More Than Just That

Many different church’s evangelize or spread the good news, or feed the sheep as Jesus instructed for a variety of reasons. 1 is simply because it’s in the Bible and Jesus said so. Well good enough I guess, but then what? Some do it because very clearly we have a choice to make as individuals, the choice to make of whether we want to spend an eternity in flames or in paradise. The sooner we choose the better. What would be unfortunate some Christians would think, is that those who don’t know would automatically be condemned to “burn for all eternity” so it’s our duty to tell, them, for their sake, as well as ours. So people hand out pamphlets and tracts and little pocket sized New Testaments with the Psalms, all for the sake of “Feeding the Lost Sheep.” Usually it’s about making that choice right then and there and then we can change the numbers on the big board. Another soul saved for Christ hallelujah! Amen. This however, makes the saving about us and what we have supposedly done by imparting this knowledge. But I think Jesus came for something more than that. I think Jesus laid down his life for something more than that.

In John 12:20-33 we get a glimpse of this when Jesus is approached or more accurately his disciples are approached and so they go to other disciples who then go to him. But anyway we are told some Greeks want to see him. Seems a bit odd at first. But then we understand that these are Greeks who went to the Festival for Passover as well, and turns out they are Hellenized Jews. Jews who were in the Diaspora, or spread out who were Greek Speakers and had adopted much of Greek culture. They have heard of Jesus and want to see him for themselves. Jesus goes into a very long dialogue as he is prone to doing in Johns Gospel, about how his hour to be crucified specifically had come. He has no time to see them now but in a little while they will see him and he will draw all people to himself. As he is speaking this the voice from heaven is heard when Jesus says that he will glorify his name, and the voice of God says I will glorify it again. Now as the murmurs of the crowd try to figure out what this is, Finally Jesus says, the voice came for your sake, not for mine. Jesus will be glorified but he does not say he will carry us off to someplace else, he says he will gather everyone unto himself, Jews and Greeks, Romans, and gentiles, slave and free, women and men, all nations all races will be gathered unto himself. This doesn’t sound like a messiah who is trying to get us to safety in some other place, nor is he doing it for the glory of his name, but he is giving himself up for our sake, and for the glory of God. In the end of John’s gospel,Jesus instructs Peter, who would build the church, to feed his sheep. Again not for Peter’s glory, but in order that all people in the world may gathered to him.

We don’t respond to these needs by handing out literature, about all the bad choices we make, or calling on us to say we are sorry for all our faults so that Jesus will save us, we instead love as Jesus loves. Jesus knows all of this stuff we carry with us. He has seen it, and experienced it first hand but instead of rejecting us outright, God gave him to us so that we might know love, and be love that is unconditional, and everlasting. That is the love we share for everyone. But we must also act. Again we do not act in a way that only hands them a survey, and say choose now, nor do we act to say, see what I’ve done, look someone is on their knees and is praying for forgiveness Hallelujah Amen. We see the need love the people, and meet the need, offering it in the name and love of Christ who is gathering all people to himself. We house and feed the homeless, we work for habitat for humanity or other organizations to provide homes, we clothe the children, we heal the sick, and we listen without judging to those who question, those who are seeking more than what secular society has to offer.