R267 An Incredible Prediction

God has an encouraging word for you and me today through the Bible-based preaching of Dr. Don Wilton and a message called An Incredible Prediction. As we study the Word together, know that we're here for you, connecting online at www.tewonline.org. That's www.tewonline.org, available 24-7 to talk or listen or pray.

And now, Dr. Don Wilton. Turn with me in your Bibles this morning to John's Gospel Chapter 12. By now, I'm sure that some of your Bibles are just going to automatically flop open to John's Gospel. If you are a guest with us today, we are doing a series through this incredible Gospel in the New Testament. Our subject this morning is An Incredible Prediction.

I've heard many predictions made in my life and I'm sure you have heard the same. I'm going to submit to you today that the greatest prediction that was ever made was the one that we are going to find recorded here in John Chapter 12 and from verse 20 through verse 28. Now, there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the feast and that feast, of course, was the feast of the Passover. This was the time of preparation, the time at which Jesus was going to be crucified. They came to Philip who was from Bethsaida in Galilee with a request. Sir, they said, we would like to see Jesus. So Philip went to tell Andrew and Andrew and Philip, in turn, went to tell Jesus.

Now, it doesn't take much thought here to see that probably there was a chain of command, don't you think? It must have been very difficult to have seen Jesus because he was so much surrounded by people in those days who followed him in great numbers. And so they went to Philip and Philip went to Andrew and Andrew and Philip, in turn, went to the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 23, Jesus replied, the hour is come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.

But if it dies, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. Now, my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour.

No, it was for this very reason that I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name. May the Lord write his precious word upon our hearts, an incredible prediction. It seems to me, ladies and gentlemen, that we find ourselves at a staggering moment in human history. We are standing on the verge, on the precipice, if you please, of probably the greatest and most life-changing event that was ever to occur in the history of mankind.

And right here in John chapter 12, Jesus, interacting with those who were closest to him, simply predicts his death. But something remarkable begins to happen, and as I was studying this passage, and as you and I have been trying to discover what God would have us to learn, it seems to me that there are two fundamental issues that we need to look at related to what happened here, in order to understand the incredible prediction that the Lord Jesus Christ was making. Number one, we're going to look at an incredible question. And then number two, we're going to look at an incredible reply to that question. And some of you are going to say, I cannot believe Dr. Wilkins only got two points today.

Something must have happened. This is incredible, isn't it? We're going to look at it in two ways today. Number one, and I want you to know each one of my points is 10 points under it.

Number one. Number one, we're going to look at an incredible question. Number two, we're going to try and understand this prediction of the Lord Jesus Christ by looking more closely at an incredible reply that the Lord Jesus made. So first of all, an incredible question. Isn't that the most remarkable question that anybody could ask? It's right there in verse 21. They came to these two with a request and they said, sir, we would see the Lord Jesus Christ.

I'm going to suggest to you something remarkable here. Did you notice that the people who came with this incredible question were a group of people that the Bible calls Greeks. Now the New Testament, the word there in the Greek New Testament, the word there is Hellenistic Greek. They were known as the Hellens. And in fact, what we know about the Hellens, my friends, is that the Hellenistic Greeks were Greek speaking Gentiles rather than Greek speaking Jews. These were people who were not Jewish people, they were Gentile people. And historians tell us very clearly that the Greek speaking Gentiles represented the world outside and around about Palestine rather than the world directly related to the world that was interacting with the Lord Jesus Christ here in Jerusalem. In fact, I'm going to show you this morning that because they were the Hellenistic Greek speaking Gentiles, they represented the almost crowd.

What a dubious kind of statement to make about a group of people. They were the almost crowd. You'll remember in the Acts of the Apostles, Paul spoke to a man who was a king and he said to him, King Agrippa, I want to tell you about this one whose name is the Lord Jesus Christ and I want to give to you an opportunity to give your heart and soul to the Lord Jesus Christ. And King Agrippa said to him, Almost thou persuadest me to become a Christian. These Greeks here who were beginning to circulate and surround the events of Jerusalem at the time of the crucifixion, these were the almost crowd, why? Because they were God-fearing Gentiles who were attracted by the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ but were not yet ready to make a complete handing over of their lives to him.

Have you ever met someone like that? I've met people from time to time over the years who would say to me, pastor, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I know that he came to save the world. I know that I can only have life in him. I know that he died upon the cross.

I know that he was the greatest person that ever lived but I want you to know, pastor, that I'm not yet ready to give my heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ. They were the almost crowd. The tragedy of the almost crowd, my friend, is that the Bible says it is appointed under man once to die and after that the judgment and these people were verging on the precipice of being almost as far as their commitment was concerned and yet there was tremendous significance in the way in which these people began to gather around the temple courts as they were wont to do. You see, they were allowed into the Gentile area which was an area that was reserved for the Gentiles in the temple of the Jewish people and so the question that we have to ask ourselves is this, why then did these Greeks ask such an incredible question? Sir, we would see Jesus. Well, perhaps they were asking that question because they had heard about Jesus.

There's no doubt about that. They rubbed shoulders with him. Historians tell us that they were Greek-speaking Gentiles in the known world. They represented the broader world of Palestine. They had heard about the remarkable work of the Lord Jesus Christ just as in almost all certainty there are those who have come to worship us today who have heard about this one called Jesus. They'd not only heard about him but they'd seen him.

There's no doubt about that. They had followed him. These were the part of the crowd. These were the people who hung on the periphery of society.

These were the people who were the onlookers. These were the people who were never given the privilege of being part of the inner machinery of those who surrounded the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords but they not only heard about Jesus, they saw what he was doing. But I'm going to suggest to you in the third place that perhaps they asked this incredible question because they felt the impact of what Jesus had done. You can go back into the earlier chapters of John and read about it for yourself. You can go back into Mark's gospel and chapter 11 verses 15 through 17 and you can read there for yourself that dramatic encounter how that Jesus Christ came into the court of the temple and he found their money changers sitting.

The Bible says that he made a whip of small cords and he drove them out of the place and he said make not my father's house a house of merchandise and I could just imagine the goosebumps that were running up and down the backs of these people. I can just imagine the fear that gripped their souls as they were confronted by the righteous indignation of the Son of the living God. May I submit to you today, they asked this question because they had felt the impact of what Jesus was all about and so the question we have to ask ourselves then is why was their request denied? You see if you read this text very clearly, there's nothing in this text that Jesus said okay, I'll go and have an interview with them. Jesus just simply gave to his disciples an answer but I'm going to say to you my friend that the Lord Jesus Christ, these disciples of his, these security agents, they went to him and they said to him sir, there's a group of Gentiles who want to see you. Jesus said, I'm not going to grant their request. There is nothing in scripture that gives us any indication that Jesus actually met with these people at this juncture and I began to wrestle with this and I began to ask myself why would Jesus not meet directly?

Why did he just suddenly begin to give an incredible reply? Maybe there are two reasons for that. Number one, because they were Gentiles. You see my friends, the whole purpose and the intent as to why Jesus came and died upon the cross was that he was going to break down all barriers. That is why the Apostle Paul was able to say later on at the institution of the New Testament church, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither male nor female, neither bond nor free because we're all one.

Nor free because we're all one in Christ Jesus. Jesus Christ, the son of the living God hung upon that cross and broke down every man-made barrier that we might have concocted in our own minds. I don't believe that Jesus denied their request because of them. I believe Jesus denied their request because of the disciples who asked him. These disciples were the Jews. These disciples were limited in their human understanding. These disciples wouldn't have been able to understand that Jesus would have crossed over that barrier like he tried to teach with his encounter with a Samaritan woman. They wouldn't have been able to understand that this march down the highway to the cross was in order to fulfill the fact that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not die but should have eternal life. They couldn't understand it and Jesus, the man of compassion, Jesus the God-man, Jesus the God who became man, the man who took upon himself the sin of the world even though he knew no sin.

I believe that Jesus denied their request not because of the Gentiles but because of a lack of understanding on the part of the Jews but maybe there's a second reason why he denied their request. Perhaps it was because they had Lazarus. Perhaps it was because they had Lazarus. Perhaps what Jesus was trying to say to these Greeks was you don't need to see me.

You've got Lazarus. Remember what happened in Luke in John chapter 11? Remember how that Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and perhaps what Jesus was saying is simply this, that the life that Lazarus was living was an impossible life only made possible by the fact that it was an imparted life. What Jesus was saying to these Jews, he was saying to them, you don't need to see me. You have got a public demonstration of the life of Christ living and flowing through this one Lazarus whom I raised from the dead. As I began to study that passage, my own heart was deeply moved as I began to realize that perhaps I'm the only Bible that some people are ever going to read. As I began to realize that perhaps I'm the only Jesus that some people are going to see. And Jesus, when he looked at these Greeks and when he looked at the Gentiles, perhaps what Jesus was seeing was the world mission of Christ Jesus beginning to come alive.

He denied their request. Paul put it like this in Galatians chapter two and verse 20. Paul said to the church at Galatia, I have been crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.

Isn't that tremendous? Jesus was saying to these Gentiles, I'm not going to give you access because I'm going to confuse people who don't need to be confused. But I'm also not going to give you access right now prior to my death because you have got Lazarus. Why don't you look at him? He's the one you need to see the demonstration of the public and private power of the Lord Jesus Christ. What an incredible question, sir. Sir, we would see Jesus. We would see Jesus.

But then let's note the incredible reply. Jesus was saying three things to them as he spoke through his disciples, as he spoke through those who were closest to him. Jesus said three things in reply to this question. Sir, we would see Jesus. Number one, Jesus was saying that Jesus, he would be glorified, that Jesus be glorified. Look with me at verse 23, the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. These Jews that surrounded him had rejected him. Now, perhaps in these Gentiles and arising out of this question as the barriers began to break down at the foot of the cross, Jesus was talking about the fact that he would be glorified. Why?

Four suggestions here. Number one, ready for this? Number one, he would be glorified in that these Gentiles were the vanguard of an enormous number of people all over the world who would be called out to serve him. We're going to see that in a few verses down there in verse 26. Perhaps Jesus would be glorified, why?

Because these Gentiles, these Greeks who came with this question, these Greeks who tried to rock the boat, these Greeks who tried to threaten the treasury, these Greeks who tried to upset the status quo and penetrate the religious world and order of the day, they came to represent the vanguard of an enormous number of people, the number of whom is as of the sand of the sea, from sea to shining sea, from every continent and every tribe and every nation and every tongue who would be called out. But number two, Jesus would be glorified in that he saw that thousands of people would not only be ransomed, but they would be restored and reconciled through the blood of Jesus Christ shed upon the cross. Number three, he would be glorified in that Jesus understood that as a result of the cross, thousands of people would have their names written in the Lamb's Book of Life so that you can know, that you know, that you know beyond any shadow of a doubt that when you die or if Jesus were to come again, that you would be transported by the angels to be seated at the feast table of the King.

Please forgive the interruption. Such exciting news to look forward to if we know that we belong to Jesus. As we're going through God's Word together, sometimes there are questions that come to mind. If you'd like to have someone discover the answers together with you in God's Word, call us, 866-899. Word is the phone number. Available 24 hours a day. We'd love to pray with you and for you.

Call 866-899-9673 or online at tewonline.org. Now back to today's teaching with Dr. Don Woolton. But there's a fourth possible reason. I believe that what Jesus was saying that the Son of Man is to be glorified is that thousands of voices would be raised in praise and in worship to Him. What a tremendous thing. Don't be dismayed. Lift up your voices. Don't be worried. Don't be dismayed.

Why? Because the Lord your God is with you and He will keep you. What a tremendous praise. And if we look at just one choir, can you imagine what the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords saw as He stood there and said that the Son of Man is going to be glorified?

You don't need to see me. You need to know that my mission is that you are going to go to Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the earth and that thousands upon thousands upon millions of voices are going to be raised in praise and glory to that name which is above every name. What was this incredible reply? Number one, that Jesus be glorified. Number two, that Jesus be crucified. That Jesus be crucified.

That Jesus be crucified. Look at verse 24. The Bible says, Jesus said, I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. The Greek word for kernel is kokos. K-O-K-K-O-S. A direct translation, kokos. And by the way, that word kokos is very interesting because the word kokos in its root means the absolute basic inner soul of the seed. It means the very functional character of the seed. It means the only part of the seed that has any potential to do anything outside of itself.

That's what the word kokos means. And what Jesus was saying here, He was saying, my friends, my incredible replies, not only that Jesus be glorified, but that Jesus will be crucified. And by so doing, He was referring to that wonderful process of Christian discipleship.

What was it? He used the analogy of the seed, the kokos, and it is a three point process in discipleship. First of all, it involves the process of death. The Bible says that the seed has not only to be put down, but it's got to die. It's got to die. Secondly, it's got to be buried.

It can't just lie around on top trying to look important. It has to be put underneath the ground just as Jesus was put in the tomb. His body was prepared for burial.

He was taken and He was put in the grave. But the third process in discipleship is the glorious resurrection. You see the glorious resurrection, my friend, is the raising of Jesus Christ to walk in newness of life and Jesus came up out of that grave as we celebrate on Resurrection Sunday and what Jesus was saying to these disciples, oh, yes, sir, they've come to me with an incredible question. But if you want to hear an incredible reply, all of this is about the fact, number one, that Jesus be glorified. All of this is about, number two, the fact that Jesus be crucified. But number three, all of this is about the fact that Jesus be multiplied, that Jesus be multiplied.

It's right there in the second part of verse 24. Here's what Jesus says. He says, but if it dies, it produces how many seeds?

Many seeds. He put it like this in another way. Jesus said, if any man, any woman, any boy, any girl would want to come after me, he or she must deny himself, must take up his cross. Now, how do you take up a cross? You only take up a cross by dying to self.

You must deny yourself. You must take up your cross and then you must follow after me. And what Jesus was saying here to these people is that the visit of the Greeks and the Gentiles around the hallowed area of these Jewish leaders was symbolical of the enormity of the harvest of souls and of biblical discipleship that lay ahead for all people throughout all the ages until the Lord Jesus Christ comes again. It's interesting for us to note in Acts chapter 11 and verse 20 that some of the first work done in the New Testament church was done by Paul in the church at Antioch among the Greeks. Many of Paul's missionary journeys focused in among the Gentiles and the Greeks in essence, beloved friends, Jesus was saying three things.

Number one, number one, all of this I believe revolved around three things. Number one is in verse 24 that death is the only way to life. You want to have eternal life?

You got to be willing to die in Christ. The second thing that Jesus was saying is in verse 25. Anything to do with self is null and void in Christian discipleship. But there was a third thing Jesus was saying.

Here it is. That service, Christian service must follow salvation. Christian service must follow salvation. Jesus was saying evangelism is incomplete until the evangelized become the evangelists.

It's right there in verse 26. My Father rewards those who serve him. Sometimes it's hard to know are we the evangelized or the evangelist? Right now I just pray that we just be honest with ourselves as Dr. Don comes into the studio and shares perhaps the most important thoughts of the day. Are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ? Why don't you pray this prayer with me right now? Dear God, I know that I'm a sinner and I know that Jesus died for me on the cross. Today I repent of my sin and by faith I receive you into my heart. In Jesus' name. My friend, I welcome you today into the family of God.

This is exciting news. If you just prayed to receive Christ along with Dr. Wilton a while ago or maybe rededicated your life, I pray that you know we'd love to move forward with you, to pray with you, to give you resources. Give us a call. Let us send them to you, 866-899. Word is the phone number. That's 866-899-9673. Or meet us online as well at www.tewonline.org. That's www.tewonline.org.

The great place to find resources like this. Jesus said, you are the light of the world. God gives us so many opportunities to share the gospel. I believe today that America is weeping. Our friends, family and neighbors are weeping.

So what is God saying to us? We are the light of the world. Jesus brings hope. There is warfare, spiritual warfare going on like we've never experienced.

We'd had better wake up America. We need to encourage one another in times like these. Speaking of encouragement, I have a life-changing ministry resource to send you from a good friend of mine this month for your gift of support to the encouraging Word. The Loneliness Solution. Finding meaningful connection in a disconnected world.

Book by Jack Eason. The Loneliness Solution is a great resource to encourage people on how to discover genuine friendships with others. I want you to get a copy for yourself and copies to keep on hand as you go about your day to give to others. You will never know how much a word spoken or a gift given at the right time can change someone's life. Call us today at 866-899-WORD to request the Loneliness Solution book for a gift of $15. Thank you for your prayers and continued support of the encouraging Word as we share the gospel to deliver lost souls from the clutches of darkness around the world. Our time's gone for today, but let's get connected this weekend online at TEWOnline.org. Join us for worship virtually online again at TEWOnline.org. Have a blessed day. The Encouraging Word