The Readings
Old Testament
Jeremiah 31:31-34
The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.
The Gospel
John 12:20-33
Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
“Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
The Sermon
The new covenant will be
written on your hearts. This was written 2,500 years ago but what
does that mean? To me it means that God wants a different
relationship with the Jewish people. Moses had given the Jews many
rules, many laws. Just look at the books of Exodus, Numbers and
Leviticus. There were rules for everything from personal hygiene,
what you could and couldn't eat, the treatment of slaves and even who
you could legally stone to death.
Jeremiah, who comes on the
scene a thousand years later says God will put the law within them,
He will put it on their hearts. The relationship God wants is more
personal. It is more intimate.
Jesus in his ministry gave
us the same message. He talks of relationship. In Matthew 25, he
tells the story of the person who feeds the hungry, gives drink to
the thirsty, clothes the naked and welcomes the stranger. He tells
us that when you have done these things to your fellow man you have
done it to him. There is power in relationships and Jesus wants us
to have that with each other and with him.
Clearly, Jesus is troubled
in this reading from John. He knows his time of sacrifice is near
but he soldiers on anyway. He makes the analogy of a grain of wheat
that must die as a seed before it can transform into a stalk of wheat
that bears much fruit. He knows that through his death his mission
will survive and flourish.
In this reading Jesus
makes a statement that must be troublesome to many of you. He says,
“those who love their life lose it and those who hate their life in
this world will keep it for eternal life.” This statement seems to
run counter to things he has said before. Jesus has told us that the
two greatest commandments were to love your God and love your
neighbor as you love yourself.
If I love my self and the
people around me, how could I hate my life. God's creation is a
beautiful thing so should I hate that too. The breath of life I have
been given is something I cherish. So, what is he saying here? On
the surface at least it seems like a contradiction. But, maybe it is
not.
The new testament is
translated from Greek text and the Greek word that is translated here
is miseo. Miseo can be translated to the English word hate. It can
also mean 'to love less than'. All of us know that our time on this
earth is temporary and that an eternal spiritual life awaits us when
this one comes to an end. It makes sense that we would be willing to
let go and not be attached to something that is temporary in favor of
life eternal.
I encourage you to love
your life and all the wonderful moments this life offers.. just love
it less than the eternal life that has been promised.
Have a blessed week!
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