THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

John: Believing On The Christ, The Son Of God, For Eternal Life

Part XXXIV: Trusting In Christ For His Biblical Explanation Of Israel's Unbelief

(John 12:34-50)

I. Introduction

A. John's Gospel beginning at John 1:10-11 carries the theme that the nation Israel errantly failed to believe in Christ, and John 12:34-50 reveals Christ's Biblically sound explanation for that national unbelief.

B. We view that explanation as verified by John's citations of Old Testament prophetic Scripture both for verification of the truthfulness of Jesus as God's true Messiah and for insight on avoiding that sin of unbelief:

II. Trusting In Christ For His Biblical Explanation Of Israel's Unbelief, John 12:34-50.

A. After Jesus said He would die by crucifixion, the listening Hebrew crowd asked Him that as they had heard from the Law that Messiah remains forever, how could He die, and who was the Son of Man, John 12:32-34.

B. The crowd thought their misunderstanding was due to intellectual ignorance, but Jesus explained it was caused by a moral failure, B. K. C., N. T., p. 318. He warned that the "Light," referring to Himself, would be with them for only a little while, so they needed to walk in its revelation lest the darkness come upon them and they know not where they go. Jesus urged them to trust in Him that they might be children of light, Jn. 12:35-36a.

C. Christ then left the crowd and hid from them, refusing to minister any more unto them, (John 12:36b), and the Apostle John validated Jesus' claim and hiding action, teaching Israel's unbelief arose from sin, John 12:37-43:

1. First, John clarified that Israel's unbelief regarding Jesus was a product of her initial failure to believe in Him for His miracles as predicted by Old Testament prophecies, John 12:37 et al.:

a. John reported that Jesus had performed many attesting miracles, signs, before Israel's people, Jn. 12:37a.

b. These works actually fulfilled prophecy regarding Messiah, cf. Matthew 11:2-6 with Isaiah 35:5; 61:1.

c. Yet, regardless of all these Biblically predicted signs, Israel still had not trusted in Him, John 12:37b.

2. Second, John clarified that Israel's unbelief in Christ was itself the fulfillment of Old Testament prophesy that had predicted this unbelief, John 12:38 et al.: John cited Isaiah 53:1 where the prophet Isaiah predicted that regardless of God's power being displayed in Messiah's works, the nation would still not trust in Him.

3. Third, John clarified that Israel's unbelief in Christ eventually became a product of divine judgment, a divine blinding of Israel for her refusal to believe in Him as God as foretold in Scripture, John 12:39-41:

a. John cited Isaiah 6:10 where God was said to harden sinful Israel as an act of judgment for her initial unbelief, which principle John applied to the faithless generation of Israel in Jesus' era, John 12:39-40.

b. Stunningly, John added in John 12:41 that Isaiah 6:10 was written when Old Testament prophet Isaiah saw Jesus' glory, and spoke of Him, and in the Isaiah 6 context at Isaiah 6:1-4, the One Isaiah saw was Jahweh, the "I AM" of Exodus 3 who led Moses to deliver Israel from Egyptian bondage in the Exodus! In other words, the Apostle John here claimed Jesus was Israel's Old Testament Jahweh! (Ibid., p. 319)

4. Fourth, John clarified that Israel's unbelief was the product of some of Israel's leaders refusing to confess Him as Messiah though they knew He fulfilled Scripture, all due to worldliness, John 12:42-43: John reported that many of the chief rulers secretly believed in Jesus, but for fear of excommunication by the influential Pharisees, they did not openly confess Jesus as the Messiah since they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God, the sin of worldliness in yielding to errant peer pressure, cf. 1 John 2:15-16.

D. Finally, John recorded a teaching of Jesus that indicated how His ministry would itself judge the rebellious nation, for that ministry was not His own, but what the Father had assigned Him to perform, John12:44-50:

1. In reporting on the close of Jesus' public ministry, John recorded a discourse Christ had given where He said He only represented the Father, that the response of the people to His ministry reflected their response to the Father, for the Father had sent Jesus and told Him the words He was to speak, John 12:44-46, 48-50.

2. Thus, Jesus' very words would be used to judge the unbelievers who had rejected them, John 12:47.

Lesson: As verified in its fulfillment of Bible prophecy, Jesus' earthly ministry was performed by the Jahweh God of the Old Testament and superintended by God the Father. Israel's unbelief in Jesus in the face of that attesting ministry was thus an inexcusable sin, so the nation would be judged in the end by Jesus' own words unto her.

Application: (1) May we trust in Jesus as the Messiah and Jahweh from God the Father. (2) If Scripture validates a human messenger's words and works today as being a messenger sent unto us by God, may we heed his ministry in accountability to the Lord Who sent him lest God discipline us for unbelief! (2 Timothy 4:1-2)