John 12:37-50 (CLICK HERE FOR BIBLE VERSES)
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is John 12:37-50. I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help, then read the GAME sharing below. Let’s go!
John 12:37-41 (NIV)
37 Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.
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?”
39 For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:
40 “He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn–and I would heal them.”
41 Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.
On verses 37-41: John sees the cold-hearted, unbelieving response of many Jews toward Jesus as fulfilling prophecies written by Isaiah about 700 years before. Quoting Isaiah 53:1 in verse 38 and then Isaiah 6:10 in verse 40, John says that Isaiah spoke wrote these prophecies because he also saw Jesus’ glory.
What can we learn from this?
1. Faith in the end is a heart issue. If a person’s heart is cold, prideful and stubborn, Jesus himself could be standing in front of that person preaching and doing miracles, and still that person will find an excuse not to believe.
2. As we find over and over again in Scripture, the Old Testament points us to Jesus. John says that Isaiah “saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him” (v41). So when you read the Old Testament, learn to read it with New Testament eyes. That is, have an eye for how the Old Testament points you to Jesus.
3. Does verse 40 mean that God intentionally blinds certain people’s eyes and deadens their hearts so that they would not come to faith in Jesus? How do you reconcile this with the idea that God “wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3-4). I believe Isaiah is speaking from a mindset which believed that God was the source of everything, both good and bad, and thus even a person’s own stubbornness and prideful resistance to God could be seen as being from God as well. At the same time, the Scriptures do teach that people have been given free will to make our own choices, so a refusal to believe in God can never be simply attributed to God’s doing, for we each have a part to play in how we respond to God.
John 12:42-43 (NIV)
42 Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue;
43 for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.
On verses 42-43: Jesus, I pray that I would not be someone who believes in You but is not willing to confess my faith out of fear of what others might say. May I chase Your praise and not be overly concerned about getting praise from people.
John 12:44-45 (NIV)
44 Then Jesus cried out, “When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.
45 When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me.
On verses 44-45: Jesus says it himself. To believe in Jesus is to believe in God the Father. To look at Jesus is to see God the Father. That’s how united Jesus and God the Father are.
John 12:46 (NIV)
46 I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.
On verse 46: As we try to find our way through the darkness, Jesus is the light we need. So if you’re lost, confused, or scared, go to Jesus. You’ll find light, direction, warmth and life where he is.
John 12:47-48 (NIV)
47 “As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.
48 There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.
On verses 47-48: Jesus came the first time not to judge the world for its sin, but to save the world from its sin. However, if we do not keep Jesus’ words, those very words will come back to bite us when all is said and done, “at the last day” as verse 48 says. So it’s not like you can choose to believe in Jesus or not and there is no consequence if you don’t. No, God will judge us and hold us accountable for how we respond to Jesus. Did we accept Jesus and His words or did we reject Him?
John 12:49-50 (NIV)
49 For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it.
50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”
On verses 49-50: Like verses 44-45, verses 49-50 speak of how united Jesus and the Father are. Jesus speaks not using his own authority but relying on his Father’s authority, saying just what the Father wants Jesus to say. No wonder Jesus’ teaching came with an authority that was missing from the teaching of others (Matthew 7:29; Mark 1:22).
What can we learn from this? When you submit to God’s authority and consistently humble yourself before God, don’t be surprised if God entrusts more and more of His heart and His words to you, such that you find yourself speaking what God wants you to speak. Those who practice intimacy with God, who spend quality time in God’s Word and in God’s presence, will tend to carry authority from God. So if you want your words to bless others, to be just what others need and to carry God’s presence and authority, make spending quality time with God in His Word and in His presence your priority.
Jesus, today I open up my heart and say I believe in You. May I not be overly concerned with what other people say about me, but may I be focused on what You say about me. May intimacy with You always be a priority for me. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
Copyright © 2022 Justin Lim. All rights reserved.
