Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, 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. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their 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 soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”

Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince 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 show the kind of death he was going to die.

The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man’?”

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.

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Jesus warns the crowd to walk in the light before the darkness comes. He says earlier that He is the light of the world. The darkness is here…and many people today are walking around aimlessly trying to find their way. When we have Jesus, we have the light of the world. His light gives us guidance and allows us to see where to go. We don’t want to hide that light…but often we do. Why would we put out our light in the middle of all the darkness? It doesn’t make much sense does it. Like the kids song goes…we too often hide it under a bushel. We need to let the light of Christ shine through us. Not only does it light up our path…it helps others see that they don’t have to remain in darkness and can have this same light. Let your light shine today!

The next day the crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!” Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”

At first his disciples did not understand all of this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.

Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”

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Do you ever wonder…who would you have sided with if you were present during this time? Would you have believed in Jesus…or sided with tradition and the Pharisees? I think a lot of the crowd in this passage really didn’t believe in Jesus…just His miracles. Don’t we sort of do that now though? We only want to acknowledge him when he has done something good in our life? We want only to give Him praise when it’s convenient for us? I think we all have an opportunity each day to choose what side we are on. I challenge you to choose Jesus today…like really choose Jesus…like live/love by faith today. Choose Jesus.

Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a years’ wages.” He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of Him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him.

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Jesus said you will always have the poor among you. This breaks my heart…to know that there will always be the less fortunate among us. This should push us even more to help one another. To serve one another. To put one another above ourself. Let’s focus on Jesus…let’s focus on one another. This is love…this is what it looks like to follow Jesus.

Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in Him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.

“What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”

Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”

He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one. So from that day on they plotted to take his life.

Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the people of Judea. Instead he withdrew to a region near the wilderness, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples.

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover. They kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple courts they asked one another, “What do you think? Isn’t he coming to the festival at all?” But the chief priests and the Pharisees has given orders that anyone who found out where Jesus was should report it so that they might arrest him.

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The religious leaders were more concerned about losing their nation and temple than they were the truth. Jesus had just brought a man back to life, and they were upset about losing their building. I think there are a lot of churches today that operate the same way. They’ll serve when it meets their agenda…but when it comes right down to it they’re more concerned about their fellowship and their buildings. To pursue Jesus means you let go of those petty things. To pursue Jesus means you live to follow Him…not your own agenda. Don’t be a Pharisee. Set your heart and sight on things above…it’s the only thing that matters.

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. “Take away the stone,” He said.

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”

Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

When He had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

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Wow! Jesus brought a man back to life! That would be even more impressive if we didn’t yet know that He would do the same to Himself later on. It makes me think about how He can bring us from death to life as well. We were dead in our sin and shame…and Jesus came as THE life and gave us new life in Him. We were in darkness, and He brought us light. We were thirsty, and He quenched our thirst. Our Savior Jesus endured the cross so that we could have life again! Wow! We all have the opportunity to walk right out of that tomb! Give Him praise today!

On His arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet Him, but Mary stayed home.

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

“Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to Him. Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met Him. When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw Him, she fell at His feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in Spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” He asked.

“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.

Jesus wept.

Then the Jews said, “See how He loved him!”

But some of them said, “Could not He who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

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Jesus wept. Maybe two of the most powerful words in scripture. When Jesus sees His people in pain, He understands and sympathizes with us. To know that our God…who gave us eternal life freely, also hurts when we hurt and rejoices when we rejoice…is almost too much to comprehend. The Creator of the galaxies…understands MY pain. I’m so thankful to serve a God who loves me that much. Aren’t you?

Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped His feet with her hair.) So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

When He heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loves Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was two more days, and then He said to His disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”

“But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”

Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”

After He had said this, He went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” Jesus had been speaking of his death, but His disciples thought He meant natural sleep.

So then He told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”

Then Thomas (also known as Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”

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Jesus knew that all of this was taking place to bring glory to Him…by giving Him the opportunity to bring Lazarus back from the dead. Yet, it seems like in this passage the disciples questioned every move and word He made. They just didn’t get it…but Jesus knew exactly what was ahead. Sometimes in our life we want to question every move or direction we are headed…wondering how God could let that happen or send us down that path. We need to remember that He has it all figured out. He knows what is ahead…sometimes we just have to have enough faith to close our mouths and trust Him. Are you trusting God with your tomorrow? How about your right now? Remember…He knows what tomorrow holds…He knows what is best. Have some faith.

Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. The Jews who were there gathered around Him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

Again His Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone Him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”

“We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”

Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are “gods”’? If he called then ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came-and Scripture cannot be set aside-what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” Again they tried to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp.

Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John has been baptizing in the early days. There He stayed, and many people came to Him. They said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.” And in that place many believed in Jesus.

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Jesus proclaimed He and the Father were one. The Jews did not like that statement…at all. He claims He is fully God and fully man. The powerful message in this statement, is that Jesus gave up the power and peace and love of the Father to willingly take on our guilt and shame and face God’s wrath for us. He took on the very nature of man…for you and me. Wow! You are incredibly loved by God! You are His! Give Him praise today!

“Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me-just as the Father knows me and I know the Father-and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life-only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

The Jews who heard these words were again divided. Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?”

But others said, “These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

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Jesus can to give full life by being the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. We are the sheep. He died for you so that you could have FULL life. God is trying to figure out how to make your life miserable and ruin it as some believe. He wants you to experience a full life away from shame, worry, guilt, and sin. He wants you to live a full life…which is possible because of Jesus’ sacrifice which brought hope to a hopeless world. We are no longer bound by sin and death but have found victory in Jesus! Find fulfillment in life today! You can find it through Him! You won’t find it anywhere else. Pursue a full life in Jesus today.

Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when He found him, He said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

“Who is He, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in Him.”

Jesus said, “You have now seen Him; in fact, He is the one speaking with you.”

The man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped Him.

Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”

Some Pharisees who were with him heard Him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?”

Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.”

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Jesus said I have come to give sight to the blind, and to make blind those who claim they can see. It’s not that Jesus wants anyone to be blind…He is just exposing their false claim of sight. I think it raises the question today…are you still blind and don’t know it? Has religion, tradition, politics, temptations, etc. blinded you in such a way that you can’t truly see Jesus? It’s important that we examine.l ourselves…what are our eyes opened to? What are we choosing to see and what are we choosing to remain blinded to? Examine your sight today. You may be more blind than you think.