MrsDrPoe: "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."

For this Theology Thursday, I invite you to once again open up your Bibles as we briefly examine a portion of God's word.  

Today's thoughts stem from a study Tuesday night on John 12 presented by Mr. M. Broadwell III.  In verse 20 of the passage, "certain Greeks" came to Philip saying, "'Sir, we wish to see Jesus.'"  Mr. Broadwell made the point that at this time, most people were literally just wanting to "see" Jesus and His miracles- He was a celebrity of sorts and had just raised Lazarus from the dead.


The way that John refers to the miracles of Jesus as "signs" is definitely thought provoking.  As Mr. Holley says, "signs point to something."  If we see a McDonalds sign from the interstate, we wouldn't pull off to go look at the sign and marvel at its design or placement...we would pull off to go to what the sign was pointing to in order to eat, go to the bathroom, etc.  In the same way, the correct response to news of Jesus' presence in Jerusalem should have been, "Sir, we wish to hear Jesus," expressing desire to 'go to' what the signs/miracles were pointing to- Jesus' teaching with authority- as Mr. Broadwell pointed out.

Another aspect of the Greeks' request that should be considered is the frequency of the word "see."  If we happen to notice our favorite actor, singer, etc. on the street, we would want to go up to him in order to say "hi" or get an autograph, but we wouldn't expect to see him again or have any sort of long-term relationship with him.  Similarly, the Greeks probably desired and expected only to see a miracle and maybe say "hi" to Jesus.  But in His response to their request in verses 23-36, Jesus emphasizes to His disciples the fact that we can't just expect to come to see Him once- if we come to Him we must follow Him, and consistent with the verbiage Jesus frequently uses in His teachings, this command to "follow" is not just a one-time action but a continual one.


These two facets of this passage should encourage us to examine our own motives for coming before Jesus.  Are we expecting to just "see" and not "hear" by seeking teachers on the basis of entertainment-value instead of Bible knowledge or by seeking a congregation that gives us 'creature-comforts' instead of one that strives to follow the Biblical pattern?  Are we expecting to "see" Him once to ask for something or do we desire to continually serve and follow after Him? 


I hope these thoughts have been helpful for you today, and until next week, happy reading and studying!