Dying to Live

Use these materials to go deeper into this message on your own, or with your small group. 
Passage Breakdowns, SOAPS Format & Instructions (Weeks 1-12)
Passage Breakdowns, SOAPS Format & Instructions (Weeks 13-26)

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8:40 Service | 10:00 Service | 11:20 Service | Sermon Audio

Good morning Chapel family. Congratulations to all the families who dedicated their children today—we celebrate this moment with you!

Today we reach a critical moment in our study of the Gospel of John, because for three years now, Jesus has been saying, “My time has not yet come.” And today, for the first time, we’re going to hear him say, “The hour has come.” He has entered Jerusalem for the Passover; and he knows that in less than a week he will be crucified. So when you listen to him teach during this final week, you can feel the weight of the cross giving his words even more power and gravitas than they normally have. And in today’s passage, he talks about a shift that has to happen in our hearts if we want to follow him. Specifically, we need to change the way we think about security.

Why did I fasten my seatbelt when I got into my car today? Security. Why did I lock my car this morning—even in a church parking lot? Because I don’t trust you guys. No—it’s all those other people. Security. Why do I have health insurance? Security. Security is something that’s valued by every human…including Jesus! But in this passage, Jesus shows us that if we prioritize security too highly, it will backfire on us. We won’t get what we think we’re going to get. And he shows us a radically different way to look at security.

So…let’s look at today’s passage—John chapter 12, verses 20 through 33. Let’s hear God’s Word…

20 Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. 21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 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. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

27 “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. 28 Father, glorify your name!”

Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

30 Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. 31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die. This is the Word of the Lord.

Let’s talk first about The Need for Security. In this Passover crowd, there are some Greeks—which is a general term for Gentiles—non-Jewish people. They’ve heard about the reputation of Jesus, and they’re intrigued. So they go up to one of his disciples, Philip, and they say, “Can you get us some face time with Jesus? We want to meet him.” Philip carries the request to Jesus, and it’s

strange: Jesus never directly responds to the request for a meeting. Instead, he mysteriously says, “The hour has come.” And he starts talking about losing his life like a seed that falls into the ground. His mind is clearly focused on the cross.

This is a vulnerable moment. In verse 27, Jesus says, “Now my soul is troubled.” That word “troubled” is the same Greek word used to describe Jesus’ inner anguish when his friend Lazarus died. It’s the same word that describes how crushed he was when he realized his friend, Judas, was going to betray him. It’s a word that can be translated, “to be stirred up or unsettled.” Have you ever had something that stirs you up and unsettles you so much that you can’t sleep? That’s how Jesus is feeling here. If you knew you were going to die a violent death within a week, do you think your soul might be a little troubled?

So as a human, Jesus had the same desire that you and I have—the desire to feel safe and secure. And that basic human need was being seriously threatened.

When you look at your life, where do you see that desire for security? I see it in three main ways…

First, we crave physical security. We have a strong desire to keep our bodies and our property protected. Anybody have a security camera on your front door? Those are getting really popular: you put the app on your phone, and you can see anyone who comes to your house, and you can talk to them through the speaker so they’ll think you’re home. That’s a nice feeling of security, right? No one’s going to mess with my house. We have laws about seat belts and bike helmets and now electric bikes. And for the ultimate physical security, if we have enough money we can move into a gated community that keeps out all the bad guys.

Speaking of money, that deserves a separate bullet point: we crave financial security. In Luke 12, Jesus tells a story about a man who had a great year in his farming business. So he makes a plan: he says, “I’ll knock down all my barns and builds bigger ones so I can fit all this grain. And then I’ll say to myself: ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’” Man, that’s security, right? Your business has gone well; your 401(k) has built up nicely; and you look forward to a retirement free from stress. We crave financial security.

Let me mention one more: we want relational security. In the world of psychology, there’s a well-accepted concept is called “attachment theory.” Attachment theory says that in order to be healthy, humans need to know they’re secure in their core relationships—and it starts very young with our parents. So having a healthy attachment with our parents gives us a base from which we can move into the world confidently. But it’s more than just a parent-child thing; we look for relational security in our friendships; we look for it in dating relationships; we hope for it in marriage. We want to know the people in our life are going to stay in our life, and the thought of losing them scares us.

So deep inside, this desire for security is something that’s shared by every human, including Jesus. Which is why, just days before the cross, his soul is troubled. He is stirred up and unsettled inside, because he knows the plan, and it’s terrifying. And he uses this opportunity to teach his disciples something profound. He has to deconstruct the way they naturally think about security, in order to introduce them to a whole different kind of security.

So here’s the deconstruction part—point number 2: The Problem with Security. I see two big problems with the way we normally approach security. The first problem is this: We Can’t Avoid Death. Remember the story Jesus told, about the guy who had good crops—so he makes a plan to build bigger barns to store all his stuff, and he decides to take an early retirement down on Grand

Cayman? You know what happens next in that story, right? This is Luke 12, verse 20: “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ He thought he had years to kick back and enjoy, but it turned out to be a false sense of security! Because we cannot avoid death.

So on a very logical level, no matter how secure and safe we try to keep ourselves, ultimately death will find us. And I’m not saying you shouldn’t wear your seatbelt and you should smoke Camels and run with scissors; I’m just saying that ultimately, the thing we’re trying to protect ourselves from is going to happen.

Popular culture has done a lot with this idea. If you’ve ever seen the movie Last Holiday with Queen Latifah, or Joe Versus the Volcano with Tom Hanks—that’s one of my favorites—these are movies about people who find out they’re about to die, and that frees them to live with fearlessness and abandon, and they’re finally the people they’ve always wanted to be. The country song, Live Like You’re Dying, has the same message—the guy finds out he’s about to die so he goes skydiving and bull riding and takes his kids fishing. It’s a good message! Since we’re all going to die, stop being afraid and live life to the fullest. So Jesus affirms that truth.

But here’s where we really need the wisdom of Jesus. The second problem with the way we normally pursue security is this: We Miss Out on Life. So back to our main passage in John 12. Jesus starts talking about his death, and they he says this mysterious thing in verse 24: Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. Hmm…

Quick story: A few years ago, I was out in my front yard, and some neighborhood kids came around, selling something—they had their little clipboard, and their pen. So they came up to me, and it turned out they were selling seeds for a school fund-raiser. Seeds to grow flowers. I think they were from the Netherlands Reformed School—you know the Dutch and their flowers. And this was years ago, but I remember I didn’t want to buy any. But Norma Jean was there, and she said, “Oh, let’s buy some.” She always says that. So we ordered a bunch of seeds, and paid the money. And a few weeks later, here came this delivery of seeds. And they had all kinds of beautiful pictures of flowers on the cover. So about three months later, you know what we had? We had a bunch of packets of seeds on the shelf in our garage. And there they sat, until we cleaned out our garage and threw them away.

So…what’s the moral of the story? Don’t waste your money on school fund-raisers. No—you should always give to school fundraisers. Actually, the moral is pretty obvious, right? Seeds are useless if you don’t plant them. Completely useless! They just sit there. So in this teaching, Jesus is using that image of a seed sitting on a shelf to represent a certain way of approaching life. A certain way of pursuing security.

In the next verse he describes it like this: Anyone who loves their life will lose it… That’s strange, isn’t it? I mean, I love my life. But here’s what that means: “loving your life” means being so absorbed with your own security that you become overly protective, overly fearful, trying to control everything. You prioritize your physical security and your financial security and your relational security above everything else. And here’s what Jesus is saying: when you do that, you lose the ability to really live.

Look, security is a normal human desire. But when we pursue security without God, it can paralyze us. We become over-cautious, afraid of failure, afraid of getting hurt; we can become xenophobic, which is the fear of strangers; we can become agoraphobic, which is the fear of leaving your house;

we can get stuck in the past, because the future is just too unpredictable and scary; we can experience anxiety and panic attacks. Being obsessed with security stops us from living.

And Jesus knew that was true for us. But for him, it was especially true. Think about it: if Jesus had lived with self-protectiveness—even if he had still been a great teacher, and performed miracles, and healed people—but if he had held onto his life—he would be a footnote in the history books. If that. We wouldn’t be talking about him today. In fact, none of us would be here today, because there would be no church. If Jesus had held on to his life, it would have ruined everything! So Jesus knew this principle was supremely true in his life! But he knew it was also true for his disciples, and for us.

Which leads to the final point: A Better Kind of Security. In this teaching, Jesus is showing us that there is a kind of security God wants us to have, but it’s different from the kind we’re used to. So let’s talk about it in two ways.

First, How to get it. Look at verse 27 again. Jesus says, “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason that I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” In other words, “Yes—I have a desire to remain safe—I’m human! But at the end of the day, I choose the glory of God over my own safety.” And then look at verse 32: 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. Here’s what he’s saying: “When I am lifted up on the cross, there is something about that moment that will draw people to me.” Does that make sense? The cross will have this magnetic power. One of the thieves hanging next to Jesus was drawn to him: “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.” One of the Roman soldiers at the cross was drawn to him: “Surely, this man was the Son of God.” And in the centuries since then, millions of people have heard the good news of the God who died for his people, and they have been so overwhelmed by that love that they’ve been drawn to Jesus. When I’m lifted up from the earth, I will draw people to myself.

Have you been drawn to Jesus? Have you felt yourself being attracted—pulled toward him? Maybe even today: as you think about the human struggle that Jesus overcame to go to the cross, do you find yourself being drawn by that love? Because here’s the thing: when that happens—when God draws us—it’s such an important moment. God draws, but we have to respond. We have to say “Yes” to him. It says in John 1:12, “To all who receive him, to those who believe in his name, he gives the right to become children of God.” So if you’re being drawn, that is a sacred moment. Believe in Christ, and you will be saved.

And when you take that step—when you receive Christ—you get the deepest kind of security anyone can have. Jesus says in John 10, “No one can snatch you out of my hand.” It says in Romans 8, “Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Jesus Christ our Lord.” It’s the security that a well-loved child has in the relationship with their father. And parents—you know this: even if your child did all kinds of dumb things, would they ever stop being your child? Would you ever stop loving them? Of course not! That’s the kind of security God offers us. There is nothing more valuable! And when you have that security, it changes the way you live.

So let’s close by talking about How to live it. Through this teaching, Jesus is calling us to shift the way we think about life, from HOLDING ON to POURING OUT. From holding on—like a bag of seeds that stays on the shelf, to pouring out our lives like seeds into the ground. What does that look like?

Well, at the beginning of this message, I talked about three places we try to find security: physical, financial, and relational. There’s nothing wrong with any of those; the problem is, they’re unreliable. They can’t bear the weight we try to put on them. So as we close, let me suggest how those parts of our life could look different when we find our security in Christ.

First, we are Free to take physical risks. There are times that following Christ means that we do things that aren’t the safest things. We take good risks. Every time a team from the Chapel goes to Colombia, the State Department of the U.S. tells us, “We strongly advise against Americans traveling to this area.” Every time we go to Kenya or Tanzania or Mexico or other places, there are similar warnings. And we weigh that risk, and ultimately we feel it’s worth the tradeoff for the ministry we’re able to do and the people we’re able to love in those places.

So here’s the question: are there opportunities for service that God has given you overseas, or maybe in Paterson, or somewhere else, that you’re afraid of? Are you holding back from something because you’ve elevated your personal safety too much? Would you allow your security in Christ to free you to step into that risk for the sake of Jesus?

Second, we are Free to take financial risks. We live in an expensive part of the country, and it’s easy to worry about our financial future. And it’s easy to let that worry make us hold our money tightly. And it’s a trap. Ecclesiastes 5:10 says Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. You’ll never be satisfied! And the thing that can free you from that trap is the gospel. So would you allow your security in Christ to free you to be more generous? Is there someone around you who’s suffering, and you could help alleviate that suffering? Give extravagantly to God’s work, to the poor, to the people around you. If God has blessed you, pour out the blessing on others. Jesus said, “Freely you have received; freely give.”

And then third, we are Free to take relational risks. When I was younger, I took any sign of rejection too personally. So when I tried to initiate a friendship with someone, if I got any sign that they weren’t interested, I would read that as rejection, and become intimidated, and back off. My security was riding on that person’s response. So think about this: if you are lonely, it might be because you are afraid of rejection. You are tying your value as a person to how people respond to you. So you play it safe and you keep to yourself. What if you started to find your security in Christ? Then, you could begin to interact with people without so much riding on it. Does that make sense? So even if you’re rejected, that won’t devastate you. Because your true identity lies deeper than that.

Or, maybe you’re in a relationship. But it’s not a healthy one, because the person you’re with is abusive, or they’re addicted. But you don’t confront them on their behavior. Why? Because you’re afraid of losing them. And you don’t know who you would be without this person. So you allow it; you enable it. It’s just not worth the risk! But what if you were so secure in Christ that you were able to take that risk? What if you were able to do the right thing, and the loving thing, and confront the wrong behavior? How freeing that would be.

Or, maybe you fear talking to anyone about your faith. Because you’re afraid they might be offended or not interested, and that’s a terrifying thought. So you have long-term relationships with people that you really care about, and you’ve never shared with them the most important part of your life—your faith. Would you allow the love of God to make you so secure that you take that risk? You might be amazed to find that your friend is intrigued with your faith—in fact, maybe God has been drawing them! But even if they’re not interested, you’ve still done the right thing.

When you find your security in Christ, and you hold tightly to him, it frees you to hold everything else more loosely. It’s the way we were meant to live.

There was a college professor, named Dr. Addison Leitch. And he told the story about two young women who were students at the college where he taught. Both were bright students, and their parents wanted them to get master’s degrees and go on to lucrative careers. But while they were in college, they became Christians and decided they were going to become missionaries. Their parents freaked out. One of the mothers called this professor, thinking he was to blame. She said, “We wanted our daughter to get her master’s degree, start a career, and get something in the bank, so she could have some security.” And here’s what the professor said:

Please just let me remind you of something. We’re all on a little ball of rock called earth, and we’re spinning along through space at zillions of miles per hour. Even if we don’t run into anything, eventually we’re all going to die. Which means that under every single one of us there’s a trap door that’s going to open one day and we’re all going to fall off this ball of rock. And underneath will either be the everlasting arms of God or absolutely nothing. So maybe we can get a master’s degree to get some security.

But the biggest savings account in the world cannot stop cancer. It can’t stop traffic accidents. It cannot stop broken hearts. It can’t give you anything … any of the things that only God can give you. He’s the only significance you can have. He’s the only love that you can get and can’t lose.

Look: if we want our lives to produce something that lasts, we need to stop clinging to security the way the world does, and we need to pour ourselves out like Jesus did. So think about your life—all the potential that God has given you. Are you clinging tightly to security? Is God showing you are that package of seeds, still sealed up on the shelf? Here’s what you need to know: Jesus has you. He will never let you go. So you can let go. Hold your life loosely. Pour out your life for him. And you will be like a seed that goes into the ground and produces something amazing.