Will You Believe?

We are in John’s Gospel, and we are in chapter 12 and verse 37.  This morning, we are going to finish John 12, and today’s text will be somewhat of a transition text. 

 

Here is what I mean.  John 12 begins on the Friday before Palm Sunday.  In the recent weeks, we saw Mary anoint Jesus’ feet with oil and wipe them with her hair. 

 

We then saw Jesus ride into Jerusalem on a donkey, and He was hailed as the promised Messiah.  In chapter 12 is also where Jesus acknowledged that it was time for Him to do what God sent Him to do, and that was to die.

 

John 12 will end Sunday, and some say even Monday.  Next Sunday, we will pick up in John 13, and it will be Thursday night before the cross on Friday, and those events will be chronicled in chapters 13-21.

 

By the way, the Bible isn’t silent about what happened on Monday-Wednesday. Matthew 21-26 has a lot to say about the events of those days.

 

In today’s text, we see several responses to Jesus’ public ministry.  Primarily, we will see how the Jews responded.

 

 

1. Some Jews Couldn’t Believe, John 12:37-41.

37 But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, 38 that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: “Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” 39 Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: 40 “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, Lest they should see with their eyes, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.” 41 These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.

 

In verses 37-41, we see that some Jews, and I would even say many Jews, didn’t believe in Him even though they saw so many signs. 

 

Keep in mind, many of them, if not all of them, were familiar with Jesus’ miracles.  See 7:31 and 11:47.

 

31 And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”

 

47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs.

 

However, these weren’t just any signs, there were seven miraculous signs, and the last was raising someone from the dead.  Jesus turned water to wine, healed the nobleman’s son, healed the paralytic of 38 years, fed the 5,000, walked on water and calmed the storm, healed the man born blind, and raised Lazarus. 

 

They saw signs, and they saw many signs, and they still didn’t believe.  For John, this reminded him of the Jews in the Old Testament in Isaiah 53 as he quoted that passage in 12:38.

 

By the way, John, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, saw the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 as a prophecy fulfilled in Jesus Christ.  In other words, Jesus was the promised Messiah.

 

In verse 39, John said they could not believe.  Why was that true?  It was true because they continued to reject all of the proof and evidence that God was providing them.  The more they rejected, the harder their hearts became, and they couldn’t believe.

 

Again, John is reminded of Isaiah.  This time, he quotes Isaiah 6, and tells us explicitly that these Jews were a fulfillment of prophecy in how they responded to the promised Messiah. 

 

In verse 41, John again equated Jesus with the promised Messiah and God by looking back to Isaiah 6.  When Isaiah saw God, he saw the pre-incarnate Christ. 

 

 

2. Some Jews Wouldn’t Believe for long, John 12:42-43.

42 Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

 

In verses 42-43, John said some rulers believed in Him, talking about Jesus.  In other words, they believed initially.

 

However, I don’t think they believed ultimately and consequently weren’t saved.  They didn’t confess Jesus as Lord and Savior in the synagogue or in public. 

 

This is problematic because of the words of Christ in Matthew 10:32-33.

 

32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

 

Verse 43 tells us more about their hearts.  They desired compliments from men rather than the Christ who can save.

 

 

3. Will You Believe?

44 Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. 45 And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. 46 I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.47 And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. 48 He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. 49 For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. 50 And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.”

 

In our last several verses, Jesus reminded us that to believe in Him is to believe in God.  Look at verse 44-45. 

 

Consequently, if you don’t believe in Jesus as God, you only believe in the God of your imagination.  You only believe in the God you created in your mind because Jesus is God.

 

Also, if you do believe in Jesus, the proof or evident of your belief will be your obedience.  Verse 46 says because Jesus is the light, if you believe in Him, you won’t walk in darkness.  In other words, you will be obedient to Him.

 

Christian, is that true of you?  Are you walking according to the light in your marriage and with your kids and at work?

 

Finally, if you believe in Jesus, you receive a pardon from judgment.  Jesus didn’t come to judge you.  He came to save you.

 

However, because of His teachings and His claims, judgment will inevitably come to everyone who doesn’t believe in Jesus because Jesus’ teaching and claims are from God.

 

When I read this end of John 12 and how the Jews responded to Jesus, some couldn’t believe and some wouldn’t believe, I think of Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23 and the parable of the soils.

 

3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

 

18 “Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. 20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. 22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. 23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

 

The first soil is those who couldn’t believe.  They second and third soils are those that wouldn’t believe ultimately even though they believed initially. 

 

The fourth soil welcomed the seed and growth occurred.  When you welcome the claims of Christ as God and believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, growth will occur because of the new life.

 

 

Invitation

What could be said of these Jews this morning can also be said of so many Gentiles maybe even in this room.  Some Gentiles can’t believe.  Some Gentiles won’t believe. 

 

What about you?  Will you believe in Jesus today? To believe in Jesus is everlasting life in heaven with forgiveness of sins.