John 12:23-28
“The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”
And on this occasion the following are the words He chose.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone, but if it dies it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal.”
John tells us (vs 33) that Jesus was talking here about His own approaching sacrificial death. But it is as though He uses His own circumstances as a reference point to teach us an inclusive principle about our own lives as well. We know that Jesus came to give us life that is abundant. To understand what Jesus was talking about, we have to consider all that He said about “life” to form our understanding. If I am hearing Him correctly, Jesus is saying that I need to have “hate” (?!!) as a soil condition in my soul in regards to this “life” in order for eternal “life” to grow there. Help!
Note: This was written in 2012 from a beautiful mountain home.
Here in New Mexico, we have escaped the humidity and heat of Oklahoma. At the encouragement of my son Daniel, who is an English literature teacher, I am brought The Grapes of Wrath along, an account of other Oklahomans who traveled west due to heat and drought. The stark difference is that they were trying to avoid starvation. I am just making a modification of 35 degrees in behalf of my comfort. While I prefer this climate, I guess I wouldn’t go quite so far as to say that I hated my life at a 110 degrees.
I have begun my day thanking the Lord for His fresh mercies which are not limited to, but certainly do include, the pleasant circumstances of life at an altitude of 9,000 feet above sea level. So, should I have begun my day instead by asking God to remove the beneficial aspects of my life so that I might dial my current gratitude down to a more appropriate level of “hate“? As I read on in The Grapes of Wrath, I am convinced, if I should choose this track, that Steinbeck stands ready to assist me.
The author had attributed most of the evil driving Oklahomans west (and I am assuming corrupting society as a whole) to “corporations” (banks in particular). Double help!! It was a corporation that generated the funds for this home and this vacation. Are Steinbeck and Jesus on the same page? (Daniel, are you in on this too?!)
As I have attempted to navigate through these complicated theological waters I have not developed hard and fast rules that can be applied to Jesus’ teachings. You may ask, how then do I expect to direct my ship without firm biblical convictions. My answer may not meet your criteria, but I am attempting to navigating by faith in His Spirit who indwells me. I trust that (even with my imperfect understanding of Jesus’ hard words) that His Spirit within me has offered (and is still offering) sufficient light to move ahead.
Father, may Your Word penetrate the hard crust of our conditioned souls and find soil in which It may grow and bring You the crop that You desire, not some culturally modified crop that has no eternal relevance. Amen.