A Study of John 12:20-26

“Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”

John 12:20-26 ESV

Observation/Summary (short explanation of what the passage says in your own words):

Among all the people who travelled to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover were some Greeks. Some of them came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida, and they asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” So, Philip told Andrew and the two of them went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them by saying the hour had come for Him to be glorified. Unless a grain of wheat dies and is buried, it remains only a single seed, but if it dies then it can bear much fruit. Next, Jesus said whoever loves his own life loses it, but whoever hates their life in this world keeps it for eternal life. If anyone would serve Jesus, they must follow Him; wherever Jesus is, His servant will be there too. If anyone faithfully serves Jesus, then God the Father will honor them.

Textual Analysis and Implication (what is being said and what does this mean?):

In the previous verses, Jesus rode into Jerusalem for the feast of Passover on a donkey as He was greeted by crowds of people who heard of how He raised Lazarus from the dead. Now, John tells us, among the many people who travelled to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of Passover, there were some Greeks. The previous verses also ended with the Pharisees, upon seeing the cheering crowds, saying “the whole world” was going after Jesus, as they hardened in their resolve to put Him to death. And John intentionally tells us in the next verse about some Greeks (representing the “whole world”) who wanted to see Jesus. In their desire to see Jesus they provide a stark contrast to the Pharisees who wanted to kill Him.

These people may have been from Greece proper, but not necessarily. The term “Greeks” in the original language was also used to describe any Gentile (non-Jew) from the Greek speaking world, so they could have come from any number of regions including the nearby Decapolis. But the point is they were Gentiles from outside of the Jewish world in Israel who had heard about Jesus and wanted to see Him. It is also most likely they were God-fearers because John says they had come to worship at the feast, and this means they might even have been full fledged converts to Judaism.

In verses 21-22, John says they asked Philip to see Jesus, Philip then told Andrew, and the two of them told Jesus. While Magi from the East came to see Jesus shortly after His birth, now at the end of His life, Greeks, men from the West have come to see Him, providing yet more evidence that “the whole world” is going after Jesus. We are not told exactly why they came to see Jesus or what they had heard. They likely heard about His teaching and miracles, but it is also possible the cleansing of the temple (Mark 11:15-17) had occurred by this time, where Jesus drove out the moneychangers and traders, declaring that the temple was to be “a house of prayer for all nations.” If they heard of this then their interest would have likely been heightened by a religious leader who challenged the idea of Gentiles being inferior before God.

It is also not entirely clear why they approached Philip instead of Jesus directly. Although Philip was Jewish, perhaps they felt more comfortable going to him because Philip is a Greek name, and they may also have been uncertain how Jesus would receive them as Gentiles. Philip may also have shared their uncertainty and this was why he first consulted Andrew before going to Jesus. Whatever the case was though, the phrase used in their question as to whether they might “see” Jesus communicated a desire to sit and talk with Him.

Rather than respond to the Greeks, Jesus responded to the situation saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” As the anger of the Jewish religious authorities reached its boiling point, Gentiles began to come seeking an audience with Jesus. We don’t know whether or not Jesus spoke with the Greeks, but that is not what is theologically important here. What is important is that while previously the “hour had not yet come” (John 2:4; 4:21, 23; 7:30; 8:20), now the “hour has come” for the Son of Man to be glorified. The coming of the Greeks to see Jesus acted as a signal that the climatic hour for Jesus’ glorification had finally arrived. As we read this we should feel the dramatic tension of the moment. The “hour” spoken of refers to the time when Jesus would, die, be resurrected, and then exalted, i.e. His glorification.

Also, in the synoptic gospels Jesus used the title “Son of Man” in association with either His suffering or coming glory, but here it is used in reference to both. This is because Jesus’ coming suffering would lead to Him returning to the glory He had with the Father before the foundation of the world and because His death is itself the ultimate revelation of His glory. The horror and shame of the cross is not only followed by glory, but in itself displays the glory of Jesus more fully; that the God of creation would lower Himself to suffer for all mankind because of His overflowing love, mercy and grace declared His glory most powerfully. Furthermore, while faith has always been the means of salvation, after the cross, the salvation of mankind and covenant relationship with God would no longer be constrained by the Sinai covenant, and Jew and Gentile alike would be brought into the flock of God simply by grace through faith in Jesus and His redemptive work on the cross.

Next, Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Here Jesus explains His death by comparing it to a seed of wheat that is planted in the ground and dies in order to bring about a bountiful harvest. In the same way a seed will not become a fruit bearing plant unless it first dies, Jesus’ glorification, mentioned in the previous verse, cannot come unless He dies and is buried. Death must precede resurrection power and fruitfulness. The glory of Jesus is also connected to His refusal to seek His own glory and to obey the will of the Father to sacrifice Himself as the ultimate Passover Lamb for the sin of the whole world. In so doing, His life, like the seed which gives it life, becomes the source of life for many and produces a bountiful harvest. And in this selfless act of obedience to the Father the seed (Jesus) is both vindicated and glorified.

After this Jesus said, “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” “Hate” is not used to communicate an absolute hatred of life, but instead, in this instance “hate” is used as a Semitic idiom to specify preference. So, we are not called to hate life and totally disregard it, we are called to give our lives for God. Life is precious, and this is precisely why we must give our life to God. The person who loves their own life so much that they covet it for themselves has denied God’s sovereignty and elevated self-interest above God. Therefore the one who “loves” their life in this way will lose it because they have chosen sin above the Savior and doomed themselves to Hell.

For this reason, the analogy of the seed exemplified in Jesus needs to be applied by those who follow Him, with a small difference. Jesus’ death was unique and fruitful in that it made possible forgiveness of sin and eternal life for mankind, but Jesus’ followers must die to their own life to receive true life in Him. We must repent of sin and surrender our self interest to Jesus because “the one who loves his life will lose it.” The one who “hates his life” is the one who denies sinful and idolatrous self obsession, takes up their cross daily (Mark 8:35) and decides to live a Christ centered life rather than a self centered life. And it is this person who hates their life “in this world” that will receive “eternal life” in the world that is to come; the new Heaven and the New Earth (Revelation 21:1-6). We must surrender our lives in this world, that is rife with rebellion and death and will face judgement, in order to receive eternal life in the new world where sorrow, suffering and death will be no more.

Lastly for this section in John 12, Jesus said, “If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” The choice to hate one’s life means to replace idolatrous self-centeredness with a focus on Christ. To be a follower of Jesus is to be a servant of Jesus. It does not mean we abandon all other responsibilities such as school, work or home life, but rather, we engage in all activities as servants of Jesus, doing everything as unto the Lord (Colossians 3:23-24). Importantly though, we do not serve to be saved, we are saved to serve. As Ephesians 2:8-10 says, we are saved by grace through faith and not by works, but we are created in Christ Jesus to do the good works God has prepared for us to do. So, we serve Jesus not so that we can earn salvation. We have been given salvation, and we serve Jesus out of our believing loyalty and love for Him.

Jesus also said His servant will be where He is. This means we follow Him both to the cross and to Heaven. Death must precede resurrection and glory. But as we follow Jesus into what He has called us to, because we are following Him, He is with us and He will never forsake us. He will comfort, encourage and equip us in all circumstances. While the meaning of servant, or “diakonos” in the original Greek describes one who waits on their master close at hand, and might be considered a lowly station, it is one that is honored by God. As Jesus said, God will honor the one who serves Him. This is a truly magnificent promise from Jesus. The one who humbly serves Him will be honored by God the Father with both reward and recognition. Just as Jesus’ crucifixion was the path to His glorification, the follower’s death to self and humble service is the path to honor and reward.

Response (How does this change how I think, act and pray?):

From this passage we see Jesus explain that His imminent death would ultimately lead to life as it would “bear much fruit.” We also see that He calls His followers to love Him and submit to His will in such a way that it may be said we comparatively hate our life in this world. This does not mean we are not to value our life, but rather, we are to love Jesus so much that by comparison our “love” of our life looks like hatred. We must turn away from love of self and turn towards Christ-centered love for God. Just as Jesus was willing to lay His life down in obedience to the Father’s will, we must be willing to serve faithfully in this way, even unto death.

But as we follow Jesus, even into death, we also follow Him into fruitfulness and glory. We have been saved to serve, and as we serve the Lord we glorify Him, declare His salvific work for all mankind, and walk the path of eternal life. All who repent of sin, and trust and follow Jesus, setting aside love of life in this world, will obtain eternal life and be honored by God the Father. Death to self, and humble, faithful service to Christ is the path to life and honor.

Self Reflection:

1. Are there any parts of my life that I need to learn to “hate” because I have been elevating them above love for God?
2. How does Jesus’ selfless life and sacrifice provide an example of obedience to God for me to follow?
3. How does the promise of eternal life and honor from God the Father motivate me to humble, faithful service? (The way up is down.)