Jesus Believed; Devil Out, All People In

David W Palmer

(John 12:27–28 NKJV) “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. {28} Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”

This passage records words and prayers that Jesus voiced in the time between raising Lazarus from the dead and his crucifixion. His “soul” was “troubled” about the prospect of facing the horrific and cruel Roman crucifixion. But our amazing Lord refused to back away from his Father’s best plan; he didn’t even try to negotiate by saying, “Save me from this hour.” On the contrary, God’s Son—the Lamb of God—declared, “for this purpose I came to this hour.”

Jesus’s true heart and deepest desire was seen in the face of death: “Father, glorify your name.” Our amazing Lord—wanting only his Father’s glory—truly gave himself to his Father’s will, willingly; he …

… was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth. (Isaiah 53:7 NKJV)

Jesus was and is God’s Son; he had every right to freedom and privilege. Yet, he obeyed this plan because he voluntarily chose to lay down his own liberty to fulfill his Father’s dream:

(Hebrews 5:8–9 NKJV) Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. {9} And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.

We see again in these verses that the pattern Jesus modeled—by obediently laying down his own life—is the very pattern the Holy Spirit urges us to follow (See also: Phil 2:7–11). After all, he just said that he is the “author of eternal salvation to all who obey him.” Jesus doesn’t expect us to do this because we “owe” him; truly, for what Jesus did for us, he says, “You owe me nothing.” But Father is looking for the submissive, willing heart of his Son in us.

(John 12:28–29 NKJV) “Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.” {29} Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.”

In response to Jesus’s self-denying, heartfelt prayer—for his Father to be glorified rather than his own life spared—God spoke in an audible voice from heaven. Obviously, the bystanders heard it. However, true to form, even when they finally heard God speak directly from heaven, many denied it and refused to believe; they “said that it had thundered.”

Even today, people you know may hear God speak directly to them in a dream, via his word, through a preacher, in a prophetic word, or even through you; but they won’t acknowledge that it was God; to them it is just thunder. Don’t be discouraged by this; it is the same problem God himself has been having since he created the human race.

In response to the amazing unbelief of the bystanders, Jesus said:

(John 12:30 NKJV) … “This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.”

God is always reaching out with signs and wonders, wanting to get people’s attention so they will listen to what he is saying.

Then, in what looks like a change of topic, the Master went on to say:

(John 12:31 NKJV) “Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.”

This is one of the greatest examples we have of faith in Jesus’s life. In keeping with Romans 4:17, days before he even died let alone resurrected, Jesus declared: “Now!” … “Now the ruler of this world is hurled outside” (Aramaic in Plain English). Jesus’s faith declared in the present tense, as an accomplished fact, something that hadn’t happened yet; he spoke of it as though it had. The Holy Spirit explained that this is an attribute of God’s faith:

(Romans 4:17 NKJV) God … gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did.

Jesus’s declaration of faith ensured that one of the purposes for his coming to earth, and for his crucifixion, was achieved:

(1 John 3:8 NKJV) … For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.

Jesus declared the outcome as a present fact well before the event that achieved it. Was this brash arrogance and prideful boasting, like the pre-bout bragging of a boxing champ? No, Jesus was declaring through his mouth the overflow of the faith in his heart (See: Mark 11:23, Luke 6:45). This is what his Father had shown him; this was God’s plan. Jesus, in pure humility, confessed what his Father showed him. Thus, faith was released on earth that enabled the plan to be enacted by the Holy Spirit and angels.

Our Lord then followed this amazing statement with an even more unlikely faith claim:

(John 12:32–33 NKJV) “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” {33} This He said, signifying by what death He would die.

Before his death, Jesus not only accurately predicted how he would die, but also declared that his death would draw “all peoples” to him. Wow! That sure is a great faith confession—one we need to imitate. We need to believe and confess that our sacrificial obedience, self-denials, and sowing will all have great outcomes.

Instead of self-pity, complaining, or comparison, let’s make the most of our voluntary denial of freedoms and privileges by believing that each one will produce copious kingdom fruit. In truth, by doing what Jesus did, we too can believe for a similar result—something that draws people to Jesus.

Today in review, we see first that we are called to imitate and obey Jesus just as he did his Father—even to the point of self-denial and death to our old fleshly nature.

Second, we can encourage ourselves that even when God spoke clearly in an audible voice, some people brushed it off as thunder. So, let’s not take it personally if people don’t comprehend or heed what God is saying to them through us.

Third, let’s believe and confess that when we lay our lives down, amazing kingdom outcomes will be the result—eternal fruit, and the salvation of many people.

Fourth, let’s prophesy humbly and fearlessly what God reveals to us—even if it sounds unbelievable or like bragging to others. Remember, saying what God reveals is the truth, it is humble, and it releases unseen forces and power to bring it to pass. So speak forth in faith.

To finish, let’s read again the outcome of Jesus’s amazing example—high exultation and eternal veneration and authority:

(Philippians 2:5–9 NKJV) “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, {6} who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, {7} but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. {8} And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. {9} Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name”