Dying & Living

It's good to see y'all out this season. Remember those who requested prayer. I had Bea Inslee, Joey Allen, Larry Hill. I also remember Linda Brown's family. Larry Brown was the fella who did the editing work on my books. She had, she got the bad COVID a while, a long time ago and it, her lungs never got better and she was kept in the winter winter.

She passed away and she belongs to Chris Cunningham is the pastor of the church he belongs to down in Tennessee. So if you ever remember that family in your prayers, you will. They're fine folk. Sweet, sweet people. Again, our worship service tonight, we have number 61.

Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus. Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus that's unmeasured, boundless, free. Holy as a mighty ocean in His fullness over me. Underneath me, all around me is the color Jesus. shore to shore. How He loved us ever, loved us strangers never, nevermore.

How He watched us for His love was Thine to call Him on His own, How for Him the intercede hath much refraining! of Jesus Number 236, Amazing Grace. amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me I once was lost but now am found What grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved! How precious did that grace appear! The hour I first believed Through many dangers For with love, His grace hath brought me safe thus far And grace will lead me home When we've been there ten thousand years Like shining as the sun, we know where's place to sing God's praise, that when we've first begun KUNE NANANI UEKI IGAKUYA EGI NAROJO-SAN IGUROSE IGAKUYA HONNAN If you have your Bible, please turn with me to John chapter 12. I'm going to read verses 23 through 26. And Jesus answered them saying, the hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. But if it died, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it. And he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto eternal life. If any man serve me, let him follow me. And where I am there shall also my servant be. If any man serve me, him will my father honor." Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, great and merciful God, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy, we thank you for great grace for ruined and wretched sinners who in and out of themselves without hope and without help in this world. We are thankful that you interceded on our behalf. that you interrupted our careers and set us on a path of righteousness. For your name's sake. We can never thank you enough for the mercy we receive every day. We know we don't deserve any of it. For the grace that envelops us as we walk in this world. For your loving eye cast upon us. For your spirit guarding us. and keeping us until the day we leave this world and find ourselves gloriously in your presence.

Pray for those who are sick, those who have lost loved ones, those who are going through trials. Ask Lord your help for them. Pray you'll show mercy and grace. And especially Julie, she's recovering from this knee operation. Pray for Cynthia, she's waiting for that knee operation. Pray for Larry Hill. for the Brown family, for the others who request the prayer, and I know it's every case.

We ask you, oh Lord, your help for them. And help us tonight as we gather here, as we look at your word, and we might really glean what our Lord means when he speaks these words to his disciples. And let it be that we would stand and say he's speaking to us. Help us, we pray, in Christ's name, amen.

Now this passage that I just read to you is the answer that our Lord gives to his disciples concerning the desire of the Greeks who asked to see Jesus. The disciples came to the Lord Jesus Christ, Andrew and Philip, after the Greeks had asked them and told the Lord what they'd said, and this is the answer that they get.

And it seems a bit of a dismissal of their desire, but in truth, it is the very heart of what it means and what it is to actually see the Lord Jesus Christ. Many had laid eyes on him for a long time now, but what it means to truly see him is to see him in his substitutionary death and glorious resurrection. to see him in the work that will glorify God and will have him glorified. Whether the Greeks ever were ever graced to have this truth revealed to them is not recorded. But you can rest assured of this fact that every one of the elect will have this revelation in full of who Jesus Christ is and what he did.

But what is the answer to the Greeks desire? Our Lord is answering that request. The Greeks said, sirs, we would see Jesus. And now He answers to Thomas and Andrew the request made. First thing our Lord says that He's on a divine mission that has a predetermined schedule. Well, He says this, the hour is come. The hour is come, in verse 23, that the Son of Man must be glorified. This begins the preparation of the disciples for our Lord leaving them, chapter 12 all the way through chapter 16. It's his advice and his preparation of his disciples for him going to the cross, to the grave, and finally ascending to the Father.

They don't fully understand him when he says he's going to die. They say he's not. They would disagree with him, Peter did. Surely this won't happen, Lord. Not so, Lord, and so forth. But he's preparing them, and this is one of the ways, really the first way he begins to really say about his death and speak to them about his death.

The word hour used here covers the remaining time up until his ascension into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father. That hour began, however, before time. We use hour, and hour is a thing that has to do with time, but this hour was ordained in all eternity. That began when Christ, who is the Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world, became surety for the sin-dead of the elect. That happened before the world, and that began the hour.

Now how was he going to become the surety to pay their sin-debt? He was going to have to leave glory, lay aside His glory and the ever-present singing of angels, holy, holy, holy, and come down here to live among men and become in the likeness of sinful flesh, to die for sinners. And in that death, He paid the surety's debt, which He had assumed for Himself, our sin debt, and that began before the world began. He's our eternal surety. Soon the Son of God, this hour has arrived and the Son of Man is said He will be glorified. And we know that's true.

If you'll look at this first thing in chapter, in the latter part of it, it says in verse 28, it says this. Our Lord says to His Father, glorify Thy name. Then there came a voice from heaven, I have glorified it and will glorify it again. I have glorified him. We know that he's magnified his word above his name and his word is the Lord Jesus Christ. Over in John chapter 17 in his high priesthood prayer, this is what he said because he had finished the work that God had gave him to do. In verses 4 and 5 of chapter 17, he said, for I have glorified thee on earth I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self, with the glory which I had with thee before the world began." Well, how will he be glorified? He will be glorified by dying and living. You see, dying and living is our salvation. It's dying and living. We know that people say it's living and dying is our salvation. No, it's dying and living is our salvation.

If you'll look over Romans chapter 5 just for a moment, you'll see that set forth in plain language in verse 10 of Romans chapter 5. It says this, for if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more being reconciled which will be saved by his life.

By his life. He ever lives to make intercession for us. His death, paid our sin debt, his life is our life that's in with him in glory. That's how he'll be glorified. He uses the analogy of a seed of wheat falling on the ground to be sown into the ground.

Philip and Andrew are getting the first bit of information about the work of the Lord here. They've been walking with him close to three years now, maybe a little more than three years, and he's shown them what he can do. And he's told them a lot during those three years. John doesn't record a lot of what he said to his disciples. The other Gospels do. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record more of what he actually said to his disciples. But he taught them a great deal. And during that time, he taught them about his death, but they never quite got what he was saying. But now he says to Andrew and Philip, when a seed of wheat falls on the ground, it dies.

And if it dies, it brings forth life. Now, what's he talking about? He's not giving a course in horticulture. He's talking about his death. And he calls it a seed of wheat is what he is here. The full understanding awaits the culmination of events, but now the concept of death and life is set forth in an analogy, using a metaphor, an example. He is the seed of wheat. He is the seed of wheat. Wheat is often employed in Scripture as a thing of spiritual significance and substance. Wheat is special in Scripture. It was special to them because it made their bread, but it was also used to represent Him and also His people. Let's look at a few examples.

Over in Jeremiah, chapter 23, in verse 28, it says, The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream. And he that hath not word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat, saith the Lord? So the prophet's dream is the chaff.

The Word is the Quid, and we know that Jesus Christ is the Word. In the beginning, the book of John begins that way. In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God, the same was in the beginning with God, and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we have His glory, as the only begotten of the Father. So, the Word is Quid. Quid is the Word. He is the Word of God. And if you look over at Matthew chapter 3, We find the wheat also represents His elect. We find Him separating the tares from the wheat on the threshing floor in Matthew chapter 3 and verse 12. It says, whose span is in His hand.

He will thoroughly purge his floor and gather his wheat into the garner, but he will burn the chaff with unquenchable fire." So he's talking about what's the chaff. The chaff are unbelievers. The chaff are all those who despise him. But there are the tares that the devil sows among the wheat.

There's the darnel. They're of no use. And when the fan is carried over the threshing floor, the wheat be, the darnel being light, the tares being light and having no substance, they would float away with the breeze. But the wheat having substance, stays on the ground.

He said, my people. That's his people. In the end, it says, the angel will come from the four corners of the earth and gather the wheat into the garden and take the tares and bind them and cast them into hell and into eternal fire. So the wheat is his word and the wheat is his people.

Of course it is. We are his body. We are his mystical body. So we are To the Lord God, we are Jesus Christ, for we are in Him. We are in Him. The salvation of the elect was His work alone, so it's just one grain of wheat He talks about. Consideration shows that in this analogy, this is a kindness to His disciples. He tells them He dies and that's not the end of it. If he died and that was the end of it, he would die alone. He would be alone. Nothing would happen. Not only paying for our sins by his death, but we don't have life.

We must have life. And that life comes by the Spirit of God taking the results of the power of that death and apply it to our hearts through the preaching of the word of God and giving us new life. And that life comes in a picture by him being raised from the dead. We were raised with him because in God's economy we were in him before the foundation of the world. He did this by himself and his death would or might be considered martyrdom if that's all that people talked about. He died. Jesus died on the cross. He stayed in the grave for three days. Then he arose. Because like a seed plant it will die as part of the fertilization system and then it will bring forth fruit.

Bring forth fruit. I saw the other day that the Jews had found a 2,000 year old Israel date, the date, the Jerusalem date was the finest date ever grown. Egyptian literature talks about the Jerusalem dates, they were very sweet dates. About a 2,000 year old date. It was in an archaeologist's cabinet somewhere, and it was in a box.

We looked at it, and she said, well, I want, after she'd done a DNA analysis and found it was that unique date that's not grown over there anymore, she said, I want to see if we can plant this thing. She did, and it grew. It died. It had been dead for 2,000 years, but it brought forth fruit because it died.

Because that's what happens when seeds go into the earth and they die. And the coverage of the seed becomes fertilization for the new life that comes forward. This is what he's saying, I'm gonna die. This corn of wheat, this corn of wheat is me, I'm gonna die. And then I'm gonna be raised again. And when I'm raised again, I'm gonna bring forth much fruit, much fruit.

Over Paul, Paul when he was talking about the resurrection, said this over in 1 Corinthians chapter 15. Verse 35 and 36, it says, but some man will say, how are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come? And Paul says, Thou fool, that which thou soweth is not quickened, except it die. So in order for Christ to be quickened, to be raised from the dead, he must first die.

And that's what he's talking about. That's why he's using this analogy. Whether or not they understood it, I don't know. But his death will result in the resurrection, and the fruit of that work will be enormous. It will call an innumerable company of saints. will be saved by his grace.

It was kind of pictured in when Jacob was talking about Joseph. You know, Joseph, if you'll look at the history of Joseph in Genesis, you'll find there are over 120 that I found listed instances where Joseph is a title of the Lord Jesus Christ. Over 120 different times in Genesis. But in Genesis 49, when Jacob is telling him about his sons and what their future is, He says this in verse 22, Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches run over the wall.

And that's the gentleman interpreting the fact that not only will he save Jews, but he will also save Gentiles. That's the picture, he's a fruitful bough. And this is what our Lord is saying, when I die, I'm gonna be raised again, and I'm gonna bring forth much fruit.

What did he bring forth out of that grave? He brought you out. He brought me out. He brought every one of his elect out of that grave with him. This fruit is the salvation of every one of the elect. This is his fruit. He didn't plant a field with seeds of wheat. One seed. One seed dies and then is raised again and brings forth great food.

I'm sure these words came to his disciples' minds and blessed their heart after the resurrection, whether they understood them at the moment or not. Back in verse 16 of the same chapter, chapter 12, it says, these things understood not his disciples at the first. But when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they these things which were written, and that they had done these things unto him. So they understood. after the resurrection, what it meant. I wonder if they were, after the resurrection, that's what he was talking about when he was talking about that corn wheat dying and raising and being raised up again.

In verse 25, he turns the result of his death as it applies to you and I, to the elect of God. He says this, he that loveth his life shall lose it, and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto eternal life. Now the thing he indicates is that they also must die.

This is what he's indicating here. It's ties to what he's just saying. He does not speak of a physical death which all must eventually suffer, but rather a pronouncement or a sentence of death to the flesh or the carnal nature. That's what it is. That's what he's talking about. The flesh is described here as his life or your life. He that loveth his life shall lose it. He that hateth his life in this world shall gain eternal life. Hating your life is a kind of death and occurs only when one is given a new life in the Lord Jesus Christ. I had no problem with my flesh until the Lord saved me. I didn't have difficulty with my flesh.

I liked it. I got along well with it. I followed its dictates, whatever it intended for me. That's kind of what I did. Whatever I wanted, that's what I did. And I had no problem with it at all until I had new life in Jesus Christ. And suddenly I got a war going on in my bosom that is warring every day of my life.

The language employed here is important. Because hating is a kind of death. The language here is employed throughout the New Testament. This matter of us being dead. Reckoning ourselves to be dead. That's the language of Scripture. Many people, many of the apostles used it when they wrote the New Testament. Let's look at a few examples. Romans chapter 6 and verse 7.

It says this, for he that is dead is freed from sin. He that, and then actually this is written in the past tense, he that died is freed from sin. In fact, when you read chapter six, read it in the past tense because it was all written that way. In verses 10 and 11 of the same chapter, it says this, for he that, for in that he died, he died unto sin once, speaking of Jesus Christ, that one grain of wheat, but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise, This is talking about what He did. Likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Dead unto sin. Reckon that. We have to reckon it, don't we? Because we know the trouble is there. The trouble is there. Paul said in Galatians chapter 6 in front of verse 14, he said, God forbid that I should go and say to the cross of Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I am crucified unto the Lord, I'm dead.

The world's dead to me, and I'm dead. So this is when our Lord talks about you hating your life. If you hate your life, you'll gain eternal life. If you love your life, you'll lose it. Your life is dead. What he's talking about is your flesh. We have to reckon that to be dead. We have to reckon it because we know by experience it still works in us. So we have to save ourselves. It's dead. It's dead, even though it has an effect on us.

In Galatians, or rather Colossians chapter 2, Colossians chapter 2 verse 20 says this, Wherefore, if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments or the elements of the world, why, as though living in the world, are you subject to his ordinance? Why? If you're dead to them, if you're dead to the world, why are you trying to live according to the world's orders? And here he's talking about the legalistic view of some people in religion. Why would you go back under that mess if you're dead to them? But he says you're dead to them. He says you're dead to them. Then in chapter 3, verse 3, it says this, For ye are dead, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

So we're dead and alive. And we need to reckon ourselves. That's what it is to hate our life in this world. Though we are struggled, though we struggle and war with our flesh, our old man every day, we reckon him dead in the only way that that is possible. How can I reckon something's dead that continually eats at me and continually raises its ugly head, which continually I find in my bosom and in my mind? How can I reckon that to be dead?

Only one way. impossible for the world to believe the gospel. That's not what we can reckon we can do. We've got to believe what the Lord said. We are to reckon Him dead, and the only way it's possible to do this is by faith that the death of Jesus Christ was counted as our death. So before God, we're dead to sin.

Before God we're dead and our life is here with Christ in God is to say that we died when he died We rose when he rose and we ascended when he ascended to sit in heavenly places in Jesus Christ back again in Romans chapter 6 Verses 3 through 5 says know you not that so many of you as were baptized into Jesus Christ are were baptized into his death. So when we have the visible act, the physical act of baptism performed on us, because we don't baptize ourselves, somebody dips us in the water and takes us out of the water. Therefore, we are buried with him and were buried with him in baptism unto death, that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we had been planted together in the likeness of death, we shall also be like you in the likeness of the resurrection.

This is how we reckon ourselves to be dead. I mean, I can tell, I can say to myself, my flesh is dead before God. And then experience it otherwise. But if I believe the gospel, and I look away from me, and look to Him who sits at thy right hand, having accomplished my salvation, having died in my robes, yet having paid my sin debt, and now has exalted because He did that, and I look at Him, how can I reckon? None did. It's the only way I can do it. It's all in Him, none of it in me.

Five of those who are dead in sin and alive in Christ are His followers. It says in verse 26, if any man serve me, let him follow me. And where I am, there also shall my servant be. If any man serve me, him my father will honor. Those who are dead to sin and alive in Jesus Christ are His followers.

Now, they're described over in the Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ in chapter 14. This is how they're described. Verse 4, it says this, these are they which are not defiled by women, for they are virgins, and a virgin can either be male or female, inscription has to do with purity. These are they which follow the Lamb, with or soever he goeth. These were redeemed, bought and paid for, from among men, being the firstfruits of God and to the Lamb, verses belonging to God. These are the followers and followers of Christ. Our Lord gives two promises in verse 26. First is that they will be with Him. They will be with Him. Our Lord Jesus Christ by His Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus Christ is with His people always.

Even when we sin, which is always. He said in Matthew 28, I'll never leave you. I'll be with you always, even to the end of the world. He said that upon the commission to go and preach the gospel. He'll always be with them. In Hebrews 13 and verse 5. It says this, let your conversation be without covetousness and be content with such things as you have for he hath said, I will never leave thee. nor forsaken. So He's always with you.

And in His high priestly prayer, John chapter 17, verse 24, He says, Father, I will. That means this is going to happen. Father, I will, that they also whom Thou hast given me be with me where I am. that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me, for thou lovest me from the foundation of the world. I will, he said, that they be with me where I am. So the Lord, this was the first promise.

And the Lord Jesus Christ, that grain of wheat, hits the dirt and dies. Then he raised from the dead and brings forth much fruit. That fruit follows him. That fruit reckons the old man to be dead. And that fruit is with him always. In fact, it says in Ephesians chapter 2 that we now sit in heavenly places in Jesus Christ. Isn't that wonderful? We're here on earth, but we're also in heaven. Right now. Right now.

Secondly, the followers of Christ, he said, the Father will honor them. Those who follow Christ will be honored by God. Over in chapter 5 of John, chapter 5, verse 23, it says that all men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father. Even as they honor the Son, honor not the Father, which is sick. Those that honor the Son by following Him, the Father will honor.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, for these disciples who are yet learning about Him, and learning what's going to happen. They'll get a more full picture in the next three or four chapters. They'll get a more full picture of what's going on. But even under that, when the Lord has taken them, they betray Him. They run. They lie. Why? Because they're sinners. They're sinners.

But the Lord brings them home. The Lord brings them home. Those who are in Him when He died, or in Him when He rose again, when He ascended, those following Him, when they reckon themselves to be dead. And they will be honored by the Father, and the Lord will always be with them. Always. Father, bless us for our standing in Christ. Amen. God bless you.

Dying & Living

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