Introduction

As we read this passage Jesus is still standing in the temple courtyard after riding down the Mount of Olives. He fully understands that this may be His last moment to speak to these people. He hopes to reach their hearts before they decide to harden them. As we read this passage, we find that there is a group who have seen the signs and miracles of Jesus, listened to His teaching, and continued to make an active decision not to repent therefore becoming blind and hard-hearted. We are then told of another group. They experienced all the same opportunities to see and hear Jesus, and they believed, but they loved the approval of men more than God, so they believed in secret. Barclay says, “Secret discipleship is a contradiction in terms for, either the secrecy kills the discipleship, or the discipleship kills the secrecy.” (Barclay). Finally, Jesus cries out, inviting all listening to follow Him as He follows the Father. He is the Light that will guide us out of the darkness (deception, spiritual confusion. Jesus had come into the world as “Light” (v46), so humans could see the complete revelation of the heart of God.

Blind Eyes and Hardened Hearts (Jn.12:37-41)

• Although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him: Throughout his Gospel, John told us of many signs that Jesus performed that should cause us to believe in Him (John 2:11, 4:54, 6:14). Yet many did not believe in Him.
• Using two quotations from Isaiah (Is. 53:1; 6:9-10), John explained that this was prophesied.
• Jesus revealed Himself to them through the many signs and His teaching.
• Quoting from Isaiah 6:9-10, John emphasized that unbelief was because God acted in judgment upon those who refused to see His truth and turn to Him. This is why it is said, “they could not believe.”
• The Lord told Isaiah that He was sending him to speak to the nation, but they would not listen, but that his words would cause their eyes to be blinded and their hearts to become hardened as they refused to repent (Isa 6:9-10), and as a result, the land would become devastated, and the people would be exiled.
• The Lord also gave Isaiah a tremendous promise. He said a small portion of the nation (a remnant) would remain in the land, which would be enough to allow His plan of salvation to continue (Isa 6:13).
• When we refuse to repent, we become blind and hard-hearted.
• They all had the capacity to believe. We see that when we find out that some did believe (vs. 42), but this group chose to deny the work of God actively, and in doing so, they hardened their hearts.
• God did not blind their eyes or harden their hearts against their will. These men chose evil. It was their own deliberate choice.
• He’s saying the underlying cause of that resistance is the same: the people’s desire to live independently from God’s discipline.
• He is also likely implying that resisting Jesus would make those individuals more challenging to reach in the future but not impossible.

Believing In Secret (Jn. 12:42-43)

• At this point in Jesus’ ministry, many believed in Him secretly. They saw the signs and heard His teaching, yet because they feared what others would think and do against them, they would not openly declare (confess) their allegiance to and trust in Jesus.
• “Secret discipleship is a contradiction in terms for, either the secrecy kills the discipleship, or the discipleship kills the secrecy.” (Barclay)
• These rulers were afraid to openly acknowledge their faith for fear of the Pharisees, who had threatened to expel anyone who confessed Jesus from the synagogue. To be expelled from the synagogue meant that a person would be excluded from all religious activities, treated like a dead person, and allowed to purchase only the necessities of life in the market.
• For religious leaders and their families to be banished from the Jewish community meant their influence would end, and most would be financially ruined. So that threat caused many to hide their faith.
• They had been forced to make a painful choice, but John says the pain was not an excuse for silence. The cost of rejecting Jesus was far greater than the cost of confessing Him, and their silence was a form of rejection. Moreover, the threat of expulsion from the synagogue had exposed their hearts. It revealed that their status in the religious community was more important to them than their status with God.
• Jesus just explained that if anyone served Him, they would receive honor from God (Jn.12:26). Yet many loved the glory that comes from other men more than the praise that comes from God.
• We all like praise. It feels good to be liked by people. However, finding your value in how people see you, acknowledge you, or respond to you is another thing.
• They cared more about the opinion, the judgment, and the glory of men.
• The problem isn’t shyness here or lacking the courage to share their faith.
• The silence of those who believed in Jesus but refused to confess Him illustrates Paul’s statement in Romans 10:9- 10.

Abiding in Light (Jn. 12:44-50)

• Then Jesus cried out and said: These are the last words in John’s gospel from Jesus to the public. In this final speech to the multitude, Jesus emphasized the themes of all His previous preaching in John. It included a reminder of His teaching, a challenge to decide, a warning to those who decided against Him, and a promise to those who chose Him.
• Cried means to talk loudly or cry with a vengeance. This was an important statement. He had just wept over the city as He thought of all those who would choose not to believe in Him, and now, He is desperately hoping to reach them, not for His sake but for their sake.
• Let’s break down vs. 44-50:
1. Jesus emphasized His unity with God the Father. Therefore, to believe in Jesus was to put faith in Him who sent Jesus, even more than it was to put faith in Jesus Himself.
2. Jesus stressed His truthfulness and the need for man to follow Him – or live in darkness.
3. Jesus did not come to judge. To judge, He didn’t need to add humanity to His deity, but He did need to do it to rescue humanity. Yet, the word I have spoken will judge Him – there are inescapable consequences for rejecting Jesus.
4. Jesus stressed His own submission to God the Father. His authority was connected to His submission to God the Father.
• He had come into the world as “Light” (v46), so humans could see the complete revelation of the heart of God.
• To see Jesus was to cease to remain in the “darkness” of spiritual confusion or deception.
• To see Him was to finally know the truth about God and to believe in Him was to enter into a relationship in which He would continually provide such revelation.
• Because Jesus is the direct revelation of God, to disobey His commands is to disobey the Father, and to reject Him is to reject the Father.
• When we follow Jesus, we abide in the Light.

Conclusion

Jesus was fully submitted to the Father. Jesus invited us to abide in the Light. He is the Light. If we continue to deny Jesus, we risk spiritual confusion and deception, but if we follow Jesus as He follows the Father, we will walk in the Light. We avoid the darkness through repentance, knowing that without repentance we risk becoming blind and hard-hearted. When we fully abide in Jesus, we will find that our value, worth, and approval is not found in men, but rather in Jesus.

Discussion Questions

Contemplate vs. 43: What does it mean to you?
Re-read vs. 44-50: These were Jesus’ last public words. How does this impact you?
What does it mean to follow Jesus and abide in Light?