So Many Signs and Yet...

Well, sometimes as we're reading our Bibles, we come to passages that are difficult.

And as I've said before, there's different reasons for why they're difficult.

The Bible was originally written in different languages,

and so sometimes translation makes it difficult, bringing that over into English.

Other times the translation is good, but it's what's spoken about that's difficult to understand.

God tells us about spiritual realities, being born again by the Spirit, how the Holy Spirit works in our lives.

And sometimes those things are difficult for us to get our heads around.

But sometimes it's not an issue of translation or understanding what the passage says.

It's that the passage itself and what it says is difficult to accept.

Maybe it offends us.

Or it says something that we don't really like or don't want to hear.

Well, we are the Davidson Community Bible Church,

and we do believe that God has spoken through these pages, every word.

And He doesn't make mistakes.

So when we get to those passages, we come with a little bit of fear and trembling,

but we've got to take our time to stop and to listen and consider what the Lord has said to us.

So that's one of those passages that we've got before us today.

We're in the story of Jesus as told by John.

We're still in John chapter 12.

John 12 · chapter mention

If you have a Bible with you, I won't have anything on the screen this morning.

I didn't get time to do that, but ask if you just follow along in your Bible.

There's also the pew Bibles in front of you, the black books in the seats there.

And here's where we're at in the story.

Jesus has just come into Jerusalem.

Triumphal entry.

Most of you know the story.

And it's the final week leading up to his death.

And he's had a conversation with some of the people, the Jews, there in the city,

which we've been following along in chapter 12.

And last week we heard about how he was pleading with them

to believe in the light while they have the light,

while they have the opportunity, before that window of opportunity closes.

And this is the end of that conversation.

John tells us how it ended in verse 36 of John chapter 12.

John 12 · chapter mention

When Jesus had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.

So we don't really know where Jesus went,

but if we look at the other Gospels, we can kind of piece things together.

During this week leading up to his death,

Jesus would come into the city of Jerusalem during the day.

And he would teach the people.

He would speak to the people.

And then oftentimes in the evening, he would make his way out of the city.

And there's a couple different places he would hang out with,

oftentimes his disciples.

The Mount of Olives, some of the gardens and groves around there.

And then eventually probably make his way out to Bethany,

where maybe he stayed.

We don't know for sure if he slept at the house of Mary and Martha and Lazarus.

But that was kind of his pattern.

So Jesus has been in the spotlight.

He's come into the city.

There's been this discussion with the crowds.

And now he goes off the radar, but not for long,

just probably for the evening.

And we'll see him again soon.

But John now takes a moment to kind of step back and address us,

the people who are reading his account,

and give us some help to understand what's going on here.

I mean, we just heard Jesus talking to this crowd.

And in the midst of this, or right leading into this conversation,

God spoke in an audible voice to Jesus.

And we might be wondering,

how is it that the people could hear that

and walk away from that and still not believe?

Well, John is now going to tell us a little bit

and try to give us some help to understand

what's really going on here between Jesus and the people.

Verse 37.

John writes this,

Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence,

they still would not or did not believe in him.

Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence,

they still would not believe in him.

This is quite the statement.

And in the original language,

which is a little bit more flexible with word order,

they would often emphasize things

by just moving it right up to the front of the sentence.

And what's emphasized here is so many.

Even after Jesus had performed so many signs,

John says,

in their presence.

Let's think about that for a moment.

In their presence.

Literally, in front of them, before them.

In the sight of them.

Now, this doesn't mean, of course,

that each person there was hovering right over top of Jesus

as he performed each miracle.

But it does mean that these things were close enough to them,

that they were done openly enough,

that virtually everybody in Jerusalem

probably knows somebody

who has been affected by the miracles that Jesus did,

by the signs that he performed,

by the healings.

John's already told us about three people

in his gospel

in Jerusalem or the vicinity.

We heard about the man at the Pool of Bethesda

who couldn't walk for 38 years.

Jesus healed him.

We heard about the man who had been born blind

in John chapter 9.

John 9 · chapter mention

Jesus gave him sight.

And then we heard, just recently,

about Lazarus,

who lived in Bethany,

just outside the city.

Many of the people in Jerusalem

had been to his funeral.

And there were also a crowd of them

who were out there

that witnessed his resurrection from the dead.

So that's just three.

But John says,

not just three,

but so many signs in their presence.

It reminds me of what we read

way back near the beginning.

John chapter 2,

verse 32.

Sorry.

John chapter 2, verse 23.

John 2:23

This was three years ago.

At the Passover in Jerusalem,

at the very beginning of Jesus' ministry,

it says this,

Now while he was in Jerusalem

at the Passover festival,

many people saw the signs he was performing

and believed in his name.

So the people of Jerusalem

are no strangers

to what Jesus has been doing.

It's not as though they just

heard about the signs.

Oh yeah, way over in Galilee

he did that.

No, right here in Jerusalem,

Jesus had been performing signs.

Nicodemus was one of the religious leaders

who saw them.

We know that you are a man

who has come from God

because who could perform

do the things you're doing

if God were not with him,

he said.

In fact,

when we bring all the gospel accounts together,

we see that Jesus

has been doing

so many signs,

so many miracles,

so many healings,

it's just,

you couldn't even begin

to number them.

I mean, consider this,

when people started

to go out to him,

he would heal them,

word was spreading,

this was back in the early days

of Jesus,

more people would hear about that

and if they had some kind of malady,

they were going out,

people were flocking out to Jesus

from all over the nation.

It says in Matthew 4,

Matthew 4:23

verse 23,

he was healing

all their diseases,

all their sicknesses,

all their sicknesses,

with the exception of

Nazareth,

Jesus' hometown,

where it says he only did

a few miracles,

and with the couple times

where the Pharisees

came right up to his face

and said,

show us a sign

and then we'll believe.

And of course,

Jesus wouldn't do it then.

With the exception

of those two things,

Jesus has been doing

miracles,

healings,

signs,

left,

right,

and center.

In Galilee,

in Jerusalem,

wherever he goes,

this is the picture

that we get

from the Gospels.

John chapter 7,

John 7:31

verse 31.

Even in Jerusalem,

they acknowledge this.

still,

many in the crowd

believed in him.

They said,

when the Messiah comes,

will he perform

more signs

than this man?

In other words,

like how many more

do we need to see?

Like,

it's obvious,

isn't it?

How many would we expect

the Messiah to do?

He's done so many.

Even the religious leaders

could not deny

that Jesus had done

many signs.

They too

witnessed some of them.

John chapter 11,

John 11:47

verse 47.

At the meeting

of the Sanhedrin,

they asked,

what are we accomplishing?

Here is this man

performing

many signs.

Isn't that something?

even Jesus' opponents

admitted

that he'd been

not just,

you know,

a couple different

recoveries,

coincidentally,

for different people.

Many signs,

they said.

We might wonder,

well,

why did John

only tell us

about a few

that he's done

in Jerusalem?

Well,

as we hear

at the very end

of the book

of John,

John 20:30

chapter 20,

verse 30,

Jesus performed

many other signs

in the presence

of his disciples

which are not

recorded in this book.

And again,

at the very end

of the gospel,

the last thing

John tells us,

Jesus did many

other things as well.

If every one of them

were written down,

I suppose that even

the whole world

would not have room

for the books

that would be written.

And so,

John is not

exaggerating

when he says

so many signs

were done

in their presence.

Miracles,

healings,

probably everybody

there in Jerusalem

knew of at least

one person,

if not,

had, you know,

a direct connection

to some person

who had been touched

by the life

of Jesus,

by the healing

of Jesus.

And yet,

this is the sad

statement

that John

gives us.

They still

would not

believe in him.

Literally,

it's did not.

They still

did not

believe in him.

What a sad

statement.

We might wonder,

why?

How could this be?

You might think

of yourself

in their shoes,

like if I was

seeing all these

things,

I'd believe.

We're a little

biased because

most of us

already believe

in Jesus.

How could it be

that they saw

all those miracles

of Jesus,

healings,

signs,

and yet did not

believe,

would not

listen to him?

Well,

John

actually

gives an answer

here in verse

38 to 40.

And this is where

it gets difficult.

They still

would not

believe in him.

Verse 38,

this was to

fulfill the word

of Isaiah the prophet,

Lord,

who has believed

our message?

And to whom

has the arm of the Lord

been revealed?

So John

tells us that

people did not

believe Jesus

in order that

prophecy would be

fulfilled.

Really,

there's two ways

to take that.

How do those

thoughts link

together?

There's two ways.

In order that,

or so that,

the word that

Isaiah spoke

long ago

would be fulfilled.

Or some people,

not the majority,

but some people

suggest that

it's,

they did not

believe with

the result

that the word

of Isaiah the

prophet would

be fulfilled.

I think we

kind of gravitate

towards that,

that one a little

more.

It seems to get

God off the hook

a little bit.

The other,

in order that

the word of

the prophets

be fulfilled,

almost seems to

implicate God

a little bit.

It almost seems

to suggest that

maybe he was

working or

doing something

that he had

a purpose for

them not

believing in

all of this.

And so we

might,

we might wonder,

well,

what's going on?

What do you

mean here,

John?

Which one is

it?

If we keep

following what

John says,

though,

it probably

becomes pretty

clear.

I'm going to

read it again,

starting from

the top.

Even after

Jesus had

performed so

many signs in

their presence,

they still

did not

believe in

him.

This was to

fulfill the

word of

Isaiah the

prophet,

Lord,

who has

believed our

message?

And to

whom has

the arm of

the Lord

been revealed?

For this

reason,

says John,

they could

not believe

because,

as Isaiah

says elsewhere,

he has

blinded their

eyes and

hardened their

hearts,

so they can

neither see

with their

eyes nor

understand with

their hearts

nor turn.

And I

would heal

them.

This is

where the

passage gets

difficult.

Verse 39,

especially,

for this

reason,

says John,

they could

not believe.

They could

not believe.

You can

look it up

in all of

the major

English

translations.

It says the

same thing.

they could

not believe.

Christian

standard

Bible,

relatively new

translation,

it actually

says what

could not

means.

It says they

were unable

to believe.

believe.

And then the

reason.

Because,

as Isaiah

says,

he has

blinded

their eyes

and hardened

their hearts.

signs.

Maybe even

now the

questions are

starting to

rise in

your own

mind.

Well,

but what

about,

how,

what,

how could,

before we

get to the

questions,

are you

hearing what

John is

saying?

for this

reason,

they could

not believe.

That's the

people that

saw his

signs.

Because,

he has

blinded

their eyes

and hardened

their hearts.

Maybe the

first question

on your mind

is,

well,

would God

do that?

would he

send Jesus

with a

message,

and that

message is,

believe in

me,

and at the

same time,

harden the

hearts of

the people

that Jesus

was sent

to?

Blind the

eyes of the

people that

he was sent

to?

I mean,

what's going

on here?

I don't know

how else to

read this,

but it

seems that

that's what's

going on

here.

I mean,

look back

up to

verse 36.

Jesus is

there pleading

with the

people.

He's saying,

believe in

the light

while you

have the

light.

And then

just write

down the

page.

For this

reason,

they could

not believe.

Could not

believe.

Because he

has blinded

their eyes

and hardened

their hearts.

Is it

possible

that there's

more going

on here

between

Jesus

and the

people

than meets

the eye?

I think

so.

I think

so.

The question

is not,

would God

do it?

The question

is,

why?

We might

do well

to remember

that there's

another time

that God

has done

something like

this.

We've been

learning about

it with the

kids and

alive.

God sent

Moses to

Pharaoh.

Even before

he went,

I will

harden

Pharaoh's

heart.

And he

will not

say yes.

But still

give the

message.

Give the

command.

And he

did.

And Pharaoh

did exactly

what God

said he

would.

He hardened

his heart.

He refused

to obey.

And as the

plagues kept

coming,

at some

point you

would think,

man,

Pharaoh's

got to

get it

here.

But then

it starts

telling us

in those

latter

plagues,

it was

God who

was hardening

the heart

of Pharaoh,

making his

heart stubborn

so that he

would not

respond.

And yet

he still

sent Moses

each time

and said,

give him

the command,

let my

people go.

That's

strange,

isn't it?

He's

working on

both sides

of the

equation.

Is that

what's going

on here

with Jesus

and the

people?

I think

so.

But why?

Why would

God do

that?

I think

the key

comes as

we start

looking into

a little

bit of

Isaiah's

prophecy.

That's

who he

quotes,

the prophet

Isaiah.

So I

encourage you

to flip

back.

We're just

going to

look at it

a little

bit.

I'll

remind you

of the

story of

Isaiah a

little bit.

I'm not

going to

tell the

whole thing.

You probably

know the

story of

Israel.

As a

nation,

on the

whole,

they would

continually

turn away

from God.

And though

there was

times of

renewal and

revival,

where they

turned to

the Lord,

then they

would turn

away again.

And they

just kept

spiraling

downward,

further and

further away

from God.

The Ten

Commandments,

which we're

about to

learn about

and alive,

the Israelites

more and

more were

doing the

very opposite

of those

things.

Worshiping

other gods.

There was

corruption in

the leadership.

There was

wickedness all

over the

place.

God was

sending the

prophets to

plead with

the people,

to repent,

to turn

away from

their sin.

We're going

to look

actually at

2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 36:15

36,

verse 15.

This just

tells the

end of the

story of

the era of

the kings.

This is

still a ways

after Isaiah

prophesied,

but this is

how it went.

It's a good

summary.

2 Chronicles

36,

15.

Yahweh,

the God

of their

ancestors,

sent word

to them

through his

messengers,

that's the

prophets,

again and

again,

because he

had pity

on his

people and

on his

dwelling place.

But they

mocked God's

messengers,

despised his

words,

and scoffed

at his

prophets until

the wrath of

Yahweh was

aroused against

his people,

and there was

no remedy.

He brought

up against

them the

king of

the Babylonians

who killed

their young

men with

the sword

in the

sanctuary,

and who

did not

spare young

men or

young women,

the elderly

or the

infirm.

God gave

them all

into the

hands of

Nebuchadnezzar.

Verse 19,

they set

fire to

God's temple

and broke

down the

wall of

Jerusalem.

They burned

all the

palaces and

destroyed

everything of

value there,

and the

survivors,

many of

them,

most of

them,

were carried

off into

exile.

Babylon.

Isaiah

came long

before this,

but do you

hear what the

word of the

Lord is saying?

It's not as

though God

wasn't patiently

pleading with

the people all

along.

He was.

He sent

prophet after

prophet after

prophet after

prophet,

but God was

saying to

them,

eventually there

will come a

time when

enough is

enough.

I will not

tolerate

wickedness and

sin forever.

That's what's

going on with

the story of

Isaiah.

Isaiah chapter

Isaiah 1:18

1 verse 18,

probably at the

beginning of

Isaiah's ministry,

Isaiah himself

even pleads with

the people to

repent.

God speaks

through him.

In Isaiah

Isaiah 1:18

1 verse 18,

he says,

Come now,

let us settle

the matter,

says the

Lord.

Though your

sins are like

scarlet,

they shall be

white as snow.

Though they are

red as crimson,

they shall be

like wool.

If you are

willing and

obedient,

you will eat

the good things

of the land.

But if you

resist and

rebel,

you will be

devoured by

the sword.

Even there

through Isaiah,

God was

pleading with

the people

saying,

Come,

repent,

humble yourself.

Let's settle

this.

I will forgive

you of all

the wicked

things you

have done.

You can

continue to

remain in

the land

even.

But if

not,

he gave

the warning,

there will

come a

time,

when enough

is enough.

Punishment

will come.

He's a

holy God.

He will

not tolerate

sin or

wickedness

forever.

And so

when we

come to

Isaiah

Isaiah 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6,

this is

that moment

when enough

is enough.

Some of

you may

know the

story.

Isaiah

has a

vision of

the Lord

seated on

a throne

in glory.

I won't

go through

the whole

thing.

But at

some point

here,

the Lord

speaks to

Isaiah.

Or I

guess he

speaks just

generally and

asks the

question in

verse 8.

Then I

heard the

voice of

the Lord

saying,

whom shall

I send?

And who

will go

for us?

And I

said,

Isaiah,

here am I.

Send me.

Isaiah

volunteers,

verse 9,

go and

tell this

people,

be ever

hearing,

but never

understanding.

Be ever

seeing,

but never

perceiving.

Make the

heart of

this people

calloused.

Make their

ears dull

and close

their eyes.

Otherwise,

they might see

with their

eyes,

hear with

their ears,

understand with

their hearts,

and turn

and be

healed.

It's a

sobering

word.

This is your

assignment,

Isaiah.

This is your

mission.

The time has

come when

enough is

enough.

And this is

my judgment.

This is my

punishment.

Deaf ears,

blind eyes,

calloused

hearts.

Isaiah

says,

for how

long,

Lord?

And God

answers in

verse 11,

until the

cities lie

ruined and

without

inhabitant,

until the

houses are

left deserted

and the

fields ruined

and ravaged,

until the

Lord has

sent everyone

far away and

the land is

utterly forsaken.

And though a

tenth remains in

the land,

it will again

be laid

waste.

There's only a

glimmer of hope

that comes at

the end.

But as the

terebinth and

oak leave

stumps when

they are cut

down, so the

holy seed will

be the stump in

the land.

So there came

a time in

Israel's story

when eventually

God said,

enough is

enough.

There's no

turning back.

There's no

opportunity from

this point

forward to

repent and

to change

punishment.

It's coming

for your

sin.

And I think

this is what

John is talking

about.

He's saying

here in

John chapter

John 12 · chapter mention

12,

the reason the

people here

that are

witnessing all

these signs

could not

believe,

were unable

to believe,

is because

God is doing

the same

thing here

and now

today,

in Jesus'

day,

with the

Jewish people

as he was

doing back

then.

it had

come about

that by

God's own

determination,

for many

of them,

the verdict

was enough

is enough.

now I don't

know how

that worked

for each

individual

person.

Maybe it

was on an

individual

basis.

Maybe some

of them,

they'd been

hearing the

preaching of

John the

baptizer,

and then

they just

made the

choice to

harden their

hearts.

No,

no,

no,

no.

But eventually

comes that

moment where

God hardens

their hearts

and closes

the window

of opportunity

that they

have to

believe and

to respond.

We talked

about that a

little bit

last week.

Jesus is

pleading with

them,

believe in

the light

while you

have the

light.

There is a

window of

opportunity

for all

of us.

But it

seems that

that window

of opportunity

for some,

for the

Jewish people,

was closed

even in the

midst of

Jesus'

ministry.

Not for

all of

them.

You'll

remember how

John began

the gospel.

He said

that Jesus

came to

his own

and his

own did

not receive

him.

But as

many as

received him

who believed

in his name,

he gave the

right to

become children

of God.

So the

general,

on the

whole,

story of

Israel was

they rejected

their Messiah,

but not

everyone.

Not

everyone did.

One more

passage that

kind of

confirms or

brings this

into focus

well for

us is in

Romans chapter

Romans 11:7

11,

verse 7.

In fact,

all of

Romans 9-11

really digs

into this

issue,

the story

of Israel.

How is it

that God

is going to

keep his

promises and

his covenants

with Israel

and yet they

rejected the

Messiah?

Many of

them on

the whole.

That's the

whole topic

of this

section,

Romans 9-11.

We won't

look at it

all,

but just

jump in

in verse

7.

Listen to

this.

Paul says,

What then?

What the

people of

Israel sought

so earnestly

they did

not obtain.

The elect

among them

did,

but the

others were

hardened,

as it is

written.

God gave

them a

spirit of

stupor,

eyes that

could not

see,

and ears

that could

not hear

to this

very day.

Paul is

reflecting

back on

why did

all the

children of

Israel

reject the

Messiah?

He explains

that there

was a

remnant,

just like in

the Old

Testament days,

that was

chosen by

grace and

enabled to

see, to

believe, but

that the

others were

hardened.

A punishment

from God.

He was

saying enough

is enough.

The window

of opportunity,

at least in

that generation

for those

people, was

closed.

You could

think about

the kinds

of people

that Jesus

ran into

during his

ministry.

The Pharisees,

the leaders

of Israel,

corrupt.

They had

hard hearts

to Jesus.

It wasn't

that God

just out of

nowhere,

decided,

well, some

of you guys

are going

to get

mercy and

others not.

No, they

had had

opportunity,

and yet they

had been

resisting and

refusing to

listen all

along the

way.

And so it

seems that

what John is

saying here is

that even

as the signs

kept increasing,

Jesus kept

doing more,

it was obvious

right in front

of their

faces.

many of

them could

not believe

because God

had already

said enough

is enough

with some

in that

generation

and hardened

their hearts

and blinded

their eyes.

These are

sobering

words.

What's there

here for us?

I want to

draw us

back to

what we

talked about

last Sunday.

There is a

window of

opportunity for

each one of

us to put

our faith in

Jesus, to

respond to

God's gracious

offer of

salvation, his

plea to

believe.

all of us

have sinned,

we have all

done wrong,

none of us

deserves

salvation.

In fact, we

all deserve

the opposite.

And that

window,

it's really

God who

determines

how long

that will

stay open

for each

one of

us.

And I

think deep

down inside

we all

know that,

that window

closes, we

know for

sure when

we die,

there's no

opportunities

after we

die to

believe, to

receive

salvation.

But I

think we're

seeing here

that God

even has

the sovereign

right to

close that

window even

sooner in

our lives.

It's a

sobering

thought.

So what

do we do

with this?

Well, if

you're here

this morning

and you

have not

put your

faith in

Jesus and

received him

as your

Lord and

Savior, I

want to

encourage you,

today is

the day to

believe.

Not tomorrow,

not someday.

We don't know

how long we

have before

God closes

that door of

opportunity for

us.

As God

says elsewhere

in his word,

today if you

hear his

voice, do

not harden

your hearts.

Believe in

the light while

you have the

light so that

you may become

children of

light.

Most of us

here in this

room have made

that decision

already.

God

and I hope

that you

know that

because of

Jesus being

in Christ,

born of

his spirit,

you are

safe.

You are

secure.

This blinding

of eyes and

hardening of

hearts will

never come to

you.

Jesus paid the

punishment and

that covers you.

you are

secure forever.

But it

doesn't mean

that there is

no place for

fear, for

reverence towards

this holy God.

My mind kept

going back to

Philippians chapter

two verse

11 and we

will end with

this.

Sorry,

two verse

12.

Paul writes

this to the

believers in

Philippi.

Therefore, my

dear friends,

as you have

always obeyed,

not only in

my presence,

but now much

more in my

absence,

continue to

work out your

salvation with

fear and

trembling.

For it is

God who

works in

you to

will and

to act in

order to

fulfill his

good purpose.

even though

we are safe

and secure

in Christ,

let us

not forget

that we

have a

holy God

and we

ought not

to go on

doing the

things that

Christ died

to atone

for,

those sins,

those wicked

things.

Paul says,

continue to

obey.

God worked

in the

heart of

Pharaoh and

hardened it.

It seems

that he

also worked

in the

hearts of

some who

were listening

to Jesus

and hardened

them.

But,

to those of

us who are

in Christ,

it says that

God works

in us

to will

and to

act in

order to

fulfill his

good purpose.

we're not

on our

own in

this.

God is

the one

who enables

us,

gives us

power to

obey,

to do

what is

good,

to do

what is

right.

And so,

that's what I

take from

these words.

We have a

holy God,

a free

God,

a God

who graciously

gives us

chances again

and again

and again,

and yet a

God who

will not

put up

with sin

and wickedness

forever.

And so,

we should

tremble before

that.

We should.

Let's pray.

Father in

heaven,

thank you

for these

words.

I'll admit

on behalf

of everyone,

not the

words I

wanted to

hear at

first,

or the

words I

wanted to

see as

I began

my prep,

but it's

the truth,

it's your

word.

I pray

that you

would help

us to

wrestle with

these words

well and

to take

you very

seriously.

Thank you

that you

are an

amazing,

gracious,

merciful God.

We do

not understand

all of your

ways,

all of your

dealings with

people,

with your

special people,

Israel,

with us,

the church,

2,000 years

later,

but we are

so thankful

that you

have given

so many of

us in this

room grace

and that we

have come to

put our faith

in you and

to be saved.

And I pray,

Lord,

that we would

continue to

work to see

others come

to that as

well.

and we

trust you

with the

results.

You are

the God

who is

capable of

softening

hearts.

Soften the

hearts of

all in our

midst who

don't believe

and all in

this community

who don't

believe.

We pray

in Jesus'

name.

Amen.