As I read the opening verses of our passage this past week, I was reminded of a question sometimes suggested to open up discussion when friends or family are gathered together:
If you could meet anyone in the world, living or dead, who would that be?
I imagine that for many people, regardless of whether or not they are believers, Jesus might show up on their list. After all, even those who don’t believe in him might still be curious to meet him given the enormous influence he’s had upon human history. Not to mention that in most people’s minds, Jesus wasn’t just wise but also kind and likeable. Who wouldn’t want to meet him?
The Greeks in our passage, of course, were living during the time of Christ’s Incarnation. So for them seeing Jesus was tangible in a way far different than our own. If they were the kind of people apt to make a “bucket list,” seeing Jesus would certainly have been a possibility. And our passage begins by telling us about their attempt to do so. First, as already noted, these are not Jewish believers, but “some Greeks,” a term indicating that they were Gentiles or God-fearing non-Jews and not necessarily of Greek ethnicity.[1] Second, they were “among those who went up to worship at the festival” (verse 20). Given this context of worship, it’s likely that their desire to see Jesus had some religious significance or was for some religious purpose.
Now the festival being spoken of here was the Passover. As stated earlier in verse 1 of this chapter, “Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.” And in verses 12–13 we further learn that “The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 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!’”—And in case you’re wondering, yes, I’m aware that Palm Sunday is next Sunday, not today. But it is during this Passover festival period at the time of Jesus’ last week on earth prior to his crucifixion that the crowd acknowledged him as the king of Israel who had come to save them. And we’re further told starting verse 17, “17 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. 18 Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him.” So by this time near the end of Jesus’ earthly life, the years of his healing the sick—and casting out demons—and feeding the hungry—and stopping the wind and the waves—and proclaiming the Kingdom of God all bore witness to who he was. How could the crowds not want to go out and meet him? Especially when his most recent miracle was that of raising Lazarus from the dead? Who wouldn’t want to meet someone who had power even over death, our most feared enemy?
Returning to the Greeks in our passage, we’re told in verse 21, “They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘we would like to see Jesus.’” Again, we’re not told why they desired to see Jesus. Perhaps it was curiosity. Or maybe they wanted to learn more about him. Or they may have even desired to become his followers. Regardless they approached Philip, one of Jesus’ original 12 disciples whose name, by the way, was Greek. Then Philip “went to tell Andrew” who was also one of Jesus’ original 12 disciples.[2] And then both “Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.” So far, so good. All of this is fairly straight-forward and easy to follow.
What isn’t as easy to follow is what Jesus replied in response to Andrew and Philip telling him about the Greeks’ request to see him. As we often see in the Gospels, it’s rare for Jesus to reply with a simple “yes” or “no” to a question or request posed to him. In this instance the beginning of Jesus’ reply is found in verse 23: “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” The hour Jesus is speaking about here is that of his crucifixion and death.[3] And as we also noted last week, “Son of Man” was Jesus’ favorite self-designation, pointing to the fact that he was fully human[4] and fully God.[5] So we can be sure that Jesus is referring to himself here. For he knows, even if those surrounding him do not, that by the end of the week he will be hanging on a cross dying. For the Son of Man to be glorified indicates that the fullness of who he is, his identity and the completion of his mission on earth, is about to be made known by means of his death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven. But though this is all gripping, it isn’t yet clear why Jesus began his reply to the Greeks’ request to see him in this manner. So let’s continue to consider what he went on to say in verses 24–28a:
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!
Again, this sure seems like an unusual way of responding to a request from some Greeks to see Jesus. Why speak of death—and life—and followers—and the Father’s honoring him? Let’s try and work through this to see how it all might come together.
More than for those of us gathered here this morning—since I don’t think any of us are making a living as farmers—Jesus’ audience would’ve understood and related to agrarian analogies. So he began with a point that would have been obvious to them: upon falling to the ground, a kernel of wheat dies and, when it dies, it is able to produce many seeds. However, had that kernel remained on the plant, it would have no way of producing more seeds. So the death of the one kernel becomes a means of life for many other seeds.
Then, in keeping with the theme of death and life, in verse 25 Jesus made what must have sounded like an odd claim: anyone who loves their life will lose it; conversely anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. How does loving one’s life result in their losing it? And how does hating one’s life result in keeping it for all eternity? How are we to understand this respective loving and hating of one’s life? Given that the outcomes are so monumental—if we choose wrongly we lose our life; if we choose rightly we’ll have eternal life—it’s worth trying to understand what he is speaking about. Placed in the context of Jesus’ overall teaching, to love our life is to seek to live it our way, on our terms, even if our way goes against the way that God has laid down in his Scriptures. As being spoken of here then to love our life is to care more about serving our own desires than loving and serving God. Conversely, to hate our life means that we choose to live our lives according to what has God has disclosed in his Word by believing in his Son. To hate our lives means we are willing to sacrifice life as we would have it in order to live life as God would have it, loving and living for him above all things, and loving others as we love ourselves.
Jesus then builds upon this God- and Christ-centered orientation towards life when he next talks about those who serve him in verse 26: those who serve him, must follow him. Further wherever he is, so will his servant be. We’ve noted before how closely Jesus relates to and identifies with those who are his. So, for example, to feed or provide a drink to a brother or sister who is hungry or thirsty; to invite in a brother or sister we don’t know or provide them clothes; to visit a brother or sister who is sick or in prison is to serve Jesus, our gracious King.[6] So Jesus’ identification with those who are his, with those who serve and follow him, is deeply intimate and personal. And because Jesus and the Father are one[7] and the Father ever honors the Son even as the Son ever honors the Father, the Father will also honor the one who serves Jesus, his Son. This oneness that Jesus’ followers are able to have with him and the Father will be made possible after Jesus ascends to heaven and sends his Holy Spirit to seal and indwell all who belong to him.
Again, Jesus is stating all of these things with the full awareness that the way in which he, the Son of Man, will be glorified is by his death on the cross. Apart from his death—and later resurrection and ascension after which he sends his Holy Spirit on Pentecost—God’s Word won’t spread. But as attested to by the explosion of Christianity after Christ Jesus rose from the grave and appeared to hundreds of his followers,[8] his life, death, and resurrection produced many seeds. But the means by which this good news; the means by which Jesus’ Gospel spread could only occur by his taking upon himself the sins of all who believed in him and dying on the cross in their place.
Now though Christ Jesus, the Son of Man, is God, we also see how utterly human he is when he acknowledges in verse 27, “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’?” Of course Jesus was troubled. We see the depth of just how troubled he was when, while praying in the Garden of Gethsemane he sweat drops of blood, such was his distress.[9] If death is a fearsome enemy for all of us who are deserving of it given our self-absorption and general lack of interest in living how God calls us to live, imagine how fearsome it would have been for Jesus who didn’t have to die since he was life itself; since he was the Lord and Giver of life who daily lived trusting and communing with his heavenly Father. Yet Jesus also knew, as he states in answer to his very own question, “No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour.” He who was life and who, unlike us, never yielded to any temptation placed before him and therefore did not have to die, nonetheless chose to die for the sins of any and all who believed in him. And the reason his death was able to cover their sins is because Jesus wasn’t merely human but he was also God. As God he could not only forgive sins but could also apply his very eternal life to all who turned to him for the forgiveness and life he offered.
Next, in verse 28, Jesus exclaimed with regard to his imminent death on the cross, “Father, glorify your name!” And what happened next is extraordinary for by way of reply we’re told that after Jesus said this, “Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.’” Now taking the first half of the Father’s speaking first, when, do you think, did the Father glorify his name before? There are a few possibilities. One occurred at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry when he was baptized by John the Baptist. As Matthew recounts, “16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’”[10] Given the oneness of God, the Father was glorified, he made himself known, when he, along with the Holy Spirit, glorified Jesus by acknowledging him as his Son at the time of his baptism. And the Father’s voice proclaiming Jesus as his Son was heard a second time after Jesus’ Transfiguration when he spoke with Moses, to whom God had given the Law, and Elijah, a prophet who was so important that he was taken up into heavens before dying.[11] For after this “a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud [again!] said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!’”[12] Here again the Father glorified himself by making himself known and in so doing he also glorified his Son by proclaiming him as his Son.
In both of these instances there were witnesses to God the Father’s voice.[13] As Peter later wrote about Jesus’ transfiguration,
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” 18 We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.[14]
And so, too, we find happening this time when the Father speaks in response to what Jesus said. As recorded in verse 29, “The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.” Though their explanation for the Father’s voice differed, the crowd heard the Father speak. As stated by Jesus in verse 30, “This voice was for your [the crowds’] benefit, not mine.” Jesus didn’t need convincing that he was the Father’s Son. Jesus didn’t need the Father to glorify his name to him. No, Jesus as the Son of Man who was one with the Father already knew his heavenly Father intimately. Therefore the Father’s testimony was for the crowd’s benefit, not his.
Our passage closes with Jesus foretelling his own crucifixion, the hour that had now come for him, the Son of Man, to be glorified beginning in verse 31: “‘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.” Judgment on this world comes upon all who reject Christ Jesus as the way to God, our loving and heavenly Father. And this judgment also falls upon Satan, the prince of this world,[15] for it is Satan who, at the time in which Adam and Eve dwelled in the Garden of Eden, drew them away from believing in God’s words and lured them into believing his own lies instead. And the curse that God initially placed upon him in the garden[16] is finalized by Christ’s judgment upon this prince of darkness.[17] For in Christ Jesus’ death, all death and evil are conquered and destroyed. In the death of Christ, we have the death of Satan, sin, and death itself.
As Jesus states here, when he affirms, “I, when I am lifted up from the earth will draw all people to myself,” he is indicating the kind of death he was going to die. For the cross will not only be the physical means of his being lifted up, but by his death he will also be exalted by the Father. For Jesus’ entire mission in life was to die that we might live.
So having come to the end of our passage, we can better see how everything Jesus has laid out here is in response to the initial request posed by the Greeks to Philip, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.” As God, Jesus no doubt understood that their request wasn’t a bucket-list matter but was far more profound for these Greeks had come to the Passover festival to worship. But how could they, non-Jews, worship the King of the Jews? The answer lies in the cross. For Jesus died to provide a way to the Father not only for the Jews but also for non-Jews; but also for Greeks—for Gentiles—for us. Jesus’ being lifted up from the earth on the cross would draw all people, not only Jews to himself. For he is the way to God for all who acknowledge him as Savior and Lord.
So as Jesus prepared to join in his final earthly celebration of the Passover:
He knew that he himself was to be the sacrificial Lamb of God who would offer his life to take away the sins of the world;
He knew that he was the kernel that would die in order to produce many seeds that would live for all eternity through and with him;
He knew that in dying on the cross he was demonstrating in the most profound way what it means to hate one’s life, to do God’s bidding no matter the cost, and so gain eternal life for all who followed him;
He knew that as the Son of his Father to whom he was beloved and with whom the Father was well-pleased, he was the only way for others to similarly know their loving and heavenly Father;
He knew that it was only by his death that he could put death and Satan and evil to death;
As we also saw last week, Christ, God’s Son, came to the world not to condemn the world but that all who believe in him might not perish but have life everlasting. The piece sung by the voice ensemble this morning[18] summarizes this wondrous Gospel message for us,
Crucified, laid behind a stone;
*[He] lived to die, rejected and alone;
Like a rose, trampled on the ground,
*[He] took the fall, and thought of **[us]
Above all.
See, from his head, his hands, his feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down.
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
Brothers and sisters, the amazing and good news of Jesus’ Gospel is that if we, like the Greeks in our passage, would like to see him, we can. But unlike the Greeks we do so not by seeing him physically but by seeing him through the eyes of faith. By believing that these holy Scriptures he has left us which accurately record his life and teaching are words left for us by God that we might be able to see God. To see Jesus in the flesh when he lived was no doubt a blessing for his disciples and all those with whom he came in contact. And to have seen him after his resurrection was no doubt a blessing for the hundreds who saw him. But, though Christ Jesus ascended to heaven after his resurrection, we can still see him and be blessed. For as Jesus, during one of his post-resurrection appearances said to Thomas “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” This is how we can see Jesus—by believing he is who he said he was—and turning to him—and praying to him—talking with him—and giving our lives to him and asking his help in living our lives for him. I promise you, this is a prayer Jesus will always answer.
So let us now pray.
[1] Crossway ESV Study Bible note. The Greek is “ησαν δὲ Ελληνές τινες.”
[2] John 1:43–44: “43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida.” Andrew’s call may be found in John 1:40: Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.
[3] See also John 2:4b: Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.; John 7:6, 8, 30: 6… Jesus told them, “My time is not yet here…. 8 You go to the festival. I am not going up to this festival, because my time has not yet fully come…. 30 At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come.; 8:20b:… no one seized him, because his hour had not yet come.
[4] The 93 occurrences of this title found in Ezekiel are a way of affirming his full humanity.
[5] As seen in Daniel 7:13–14: 13 In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man,[5] coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
[6] See sermon preached on November 26, 2017, How Do We Care for Christ? on Matthew 25:31–46. The specific reference mentioned above may be found in vv. 37–40, “37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” Saul’s later encounter with the risen Christ on the Damascus road is a negative example of Jesus’ teaching as he told Saul (soon to be the apostle Paul) that to persecute Christians was the same as persecuting Christ Jesus himself. Acts 9:1–5: 9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied.
[7] John 10:30: [Jesus is speaking] “I and the Father are one.” Jesus also made evident his oneness with the Father in his reply to Philip in John 14:8–9: 8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” 9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
[8] As noted by the Blue Letter Bible, “The Bible says that Jesus made a number of appearances after His death. They were to a number of different people over a forty-day period. The Bible specifically says that on Easter Sunday Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene, the women that came to Jesus tomb (Mary the Mother of James, Salome, and Joanna), Peter, and two disciples on the Emmaus road. He also appeared to the remainder of the Twelve Disciples with Thomas absent. Later he appeared to them with Thomas present. There was also an appearance to seven disciples on the Sea of Galilee. On another occasion he appeared to over five hundred people at the same time. There is also an appearance to James. Finally Jesus appeared to Saul of Tarsus – the man who became the Apostle Paul. These appearances convinced His disciples, beyond any doubt, that He had risen from the dead.” Mary Magdalene: John 20:11–18: 11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. 13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. 15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). 17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” 18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. The Women: Matthew 28:9–10: 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Peter: Luke 24:34: “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” The two disciples on the road to Emmaus: Luke 24:13–16, 30–31: 13 Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing him…. 30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. The disciples minus Thomas: John 20:19–24a: 19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” 24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” All of the disciples: John 20:26–28: 26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” All the disciples: Matthew 28:16–20: 16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Peter (Cephas), the twelve disciples, over 500 believers, James, all of the apostles, and Paul: I Corinthians 15:3–8: 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas,and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. Saul (later the apostle Paul): Acts 9:3–5: 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied.
See also Luke’s comment: Acts 1:1–3: 1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.
[9] According to Luke 22:43: “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” Interestingly, in this moment of deep agony Jesus does pray “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (v. 42) as recorded, with minor variations, in Matthew 26:39, 42; and Mark 14:36, 39. But even here Jesus’ focus isn’t on his will, but that of his loving and heavenly Father.
[10] Matthew 3:16–17. Parallels may be found in Mark 1:9–11: 9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” Luke 3:21–22: 21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
[11] 2 Kings 2:11–12: 11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two.
[12] Matthew 17:5. Parallels may be found in Mark 9:7: Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” Luke 9:35: A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.”
[13] As attested to the fact that we have these instances recorded for us in Scripture but, see also, Matthew 17:4: When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified.; Mark 9:8: Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.; Luke 9:36: When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves and did not tell anyone at that time what they had seen.
[14] 2 Peter 1:16–18.
[15] Sa John 14:30–31: 30 I will not say much more to you, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over me, 31 but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me.; John 16:7–11: 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin, because people do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.; 2 Corinthians 4:4: The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.; Ephesians 2:1–2: 1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.; I John 4:4: You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.; I John 5:19: We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
[16] Genesis 3:14–15: 14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
[17] See, for example, Luke 10:17–20: 17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” 18 He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”; Colossians 2:13–15: 13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.; Hebrews 2:14–15: 14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— 15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
[18] Above All, Words and Music by Lenny LeBlanc & Paul Baloche with When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, words by Isaac Watts; Music by Lowell Mason. *Original is You; **Original is me.