John 12:23-28
Jesus answered them, "The time has come for the Son of Man to be
glorified. Surely, I tell you, if a kernel of wheat doesn't fall into
the ground and die, it will be just one kernel. But if it dies, it
produces much grain. Love your life and lose it, but hate your life in
this world, and you will keep it for an everlasting life. If you serve
Me, follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be. If you serve
Me, the Father will honor you. "I am deeply troubled now. But what
should I say? Father, save Me from what is going to happen? No! I came
to suffer this now. Father glorify Your name." Then a voice came from
heaven: "I have glorified My name and will glorify it again."
--Beck
In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, amen.
Our savior pleads "Judge me, O God and plead my cause before and ungodly
nation." Yet, in our passage He does not hesitate to pursue the painful
end of His ministry. He is like a grain of wheat full of life which must
die in order to multiply that life. There is no other way. Truly our
Savior is life as St. John says in the beginning of His gospel.
Still, even though He Himself is life, He had to die to give that life to
others. And then He hints at something very troubling for us. He says,
"If you serve Me, follow Me." Surely He doesn't expect us to follow Him
into death, does He? Yes, actually, He does if that is what He has in
mind for us. We too are like wheat that fall to the ground and by dying
produce much fruit. It has been said, "The blood of the martyrs is the
seed of the Church." Now death may be figurative. It is possible to be
a martyr without ever physically dying. St. John was one such person.
He was willing to give His life for His Savior as he and his brother
James said "We can," when Jesus asked them, "Can you drink the cup I
drink, or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with? (St. Mark
10:35ff)"
John gave up His life for Jesus. His Savior, our Savior, took that life
and had him remain on the earth to an old age when, we are told, he was
carried into church on a stretcher. By that point in the life he had
given for Jesus, he had only one sermon left, "Dear children, love each
other." John was one type of martyr, a martyr who died according to his
will. Another type of martyr not only dies by his will, but also indeed.
Those martyrs are like St. Stephen. They are the type of martyr we
think of most often. There is also a third type of martyr. The are the
ones who die indeed, but not according to their conscious will. They are
like the Holy Innocents who where killed by King Herod after the Magi
came to visit.
If you think for a while, you can probably think of examples of each of
these martyrs in modern times. Now the question is, which type are you?
Are you willing to lay it on the line for your Savior? Are you willing
to drink the cup that He drank? Unless the seed falls to the ground and
dies...
Let's put it in real life. Are you willing to take a lower grade in
school because you stood up for the truth of God's word? Are you willing
to lose your job? Are you willing to lose a friend or two, or be less
popular? Are you willing to suffer a law suite? Are you willing to lose
a little money by being honest on your taxes?
I wonder how many of us measure up when we look at it that way. I like
to think I'm a martyr for Christ, but when I take a good hard look at it,
I fail miserably. Lord have mercy on us! We hang on to this life so
tightly. But there is one who did not. There is One who gave His life
willingly. Our Savior is the greatest of the martyrs because He was
totally innocent. We get what we deserve if we suffer. But remember
that passage in Romans chapter 6, "Or don't you know that all of us who
were baptized into Christ Jesus by our baptism share in His death?"
You already share in the Great Martyrs death! You are dead to this
sinful life. You are a martyr in fact, even if not in deed or will. So,
there is a fourth kind of martyr, and you are one. In that fact lies the
power for you to be a martyr for Christ in will, and even in deed, if our
Lord should require it. Glory be to Jesus who makes us what He wants us
to be!
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, we are not worthy of our Savior's death, we hang
onto the things of this and often place them above you. Yet, because of
your great love which you have revealed in Jesus our Savior, we are
valuable to you. Forgive us our sins of being tied to this world, rather
than tied to our Savior. Send us Your Holy Spirit so that we have the
strength and courage to be martyrs to the glory of our Savior's holy
name. Amen.