John 12:37-50
The end of Jesus' earthly ministry nears its close, and though He has performed amazing miracles, there are many who still refuse to believe He is the Messiah.
John's reference to Isaiah, in verses 39-40, makes God sound harsh and unloving, but wait to form that judgment against Him until you've read Isaiah 59, and think about this: "Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you." (verses 1-2). The sin of disbelief caused the people to become blind and hardened to Christ and His message of salvation, God's intention was for the whole world to believe in Him and have eternal life, "For God so loved the world (inclusive of every person), that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16) The problem is not an unloving God, but rather a sinful people.
Another group, upon seeing the miracles of Christ, believed in Him. However, they refused to confess their belief because it would result in being cut off from the Jewish community. It's easy to judge this group because they seem like such cowards! I ask myself what my own response would be to losing the respect of my community, a complete loss of friends and family and the way of life that I'd always known. Perhaps I can relate to those "cowards" far better than I care to admit! Confessing Christ was viewed as rebellion, an act against God's Law, and brought cursing, rather than praise, into the life of the believer. Romans 10:9 tells us, though, that confession - speaking out loud, and telling others that we believe in Christ - is what we do when we believe, "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Christ speaks, and makes it clear that rejection of Him, is rejection of God. He was doing God's will, speaking what God had commanded Him, bringing light into a dark world as He ministered. Isaiah 59 shows us just how desperate the world was for that light, " So justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows. Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like men without eyes. At midday we stumble as if it were twighlight..." (Isaiah 59:9-10)
We have a saying that is used when we are uninformed, "I am in the dark", about this or that. It means we don't know, we are unsure, the truth isn't available to us. Christ brought the truth to us so that we no longer have to be "in the dark" about our purpose in this life, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:10), or about His purpose for us after our earthly life is finished, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." (John 5:24)
God, who loves us beyond our understanding, has a great plan for our lives now - and throughout eternity. It's our choice though - do we walk in darkness, or Light?
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