August 3, 2023

Transitioning Times

“… these then came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying, ‘Sir, we wish to see Jesus.’ Philip came and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, saying, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.’” John 12:21-23 (NASB)

            There have been people in my life whom I have gotten to know really well. I really enjoyed spending time with them. We meshed well. Over time, they disappeared, whether from moving, or passing away. I wish I had more time to talk with them or learn something new about their life. Time was too short with them. But often as we age or start new parts of our lives, people disappear, and we meet new ones who add or take from us if we allow them.

            “… these then came to Philip,” “The presence of Greeks at the Passover was not unusual. The Greeks were inveterate wanderers. In fact, they were the first people to wander just for the sake of wandering. One Greek chided his own people saying, “You Athenians will never rest yourselves, nor will you even let anyone else rest.” Also, as Greeks they were characteristically seekers after truth. It was not unusual for a Greek to go through philosophy after philosophy in his search. The force of the Greek behind “we would like to see Jesus “is continuous. The idea is they kept repeating their request. They really wanted to hear Jesus. John wanted us to see that Gentiles were included in the events of Jesus’ incarnation and sacrifice.”[1] But “Why did the Greeks approach Philip about seeing Jesus? Perhaps because Philip had a Greek name. Or he may have had some contact with Greeks from the Decapolis area.”[2] Whatever the reason for trying to locate Jesus, the Greeks were there because they had heard the miraculous things Jesus was doing when they said, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” They were encouraged to seek out something new. Because it was a new experience, Greeks were natural philosophers. This would be something they could actually see for themselves, rather than read about it. And so Jesus told them, “the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” Before all this, Jesus said in John 2:4, 4:21, 23, 5:25, 7:6, 30; 8:20, it was not His hour. Now the hour had come. Now it was time for Him to go to a cross. For most people today, death is a humiliation. For Jesus it was His entry into glory. By His death, the world’s sins, including the Greeks who were standing there (as Gentiles), would be forgiven by Jesus’ sacrifice. This would open the door for all to come.

            Jesus’ time had come for Him to face the cross. He knew it. I am sure if the disciples knew He would be gone in less than a week, they would want more time. The moments they had with Him would be so cherished. Time would have been much more special. They would have remembered the things Jesus said and taken them to their hearts. After all the times Jesus predicted His death, the disciples still did not see. Jesus knew, “the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” But Jesus would not leave them or us alone. He would send the Holy Spirit to live within all who know Jesus as our Lord and Savior. The disciples did not understand it at this time, but we do. We have God’s enduring Word and His promises within. This gives us confidence in His Spirit to guide us each day. Let Him lead it today. He knows “the hour.”

[1] Hughes, R. K. (1999). John: that you may believe (p. 299). Crossway Books.

[2] Blum, E. A. (1985). John. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 317). Victor Books.