The world does not know God. That is why the world cannot understand the cross. The world does not know God. And that is why the world cannot understand the lowliness and the humiliation of Christ. The world does not know God. And that is why the world cannot believe.
And the world does not know God, because the world does not know love. Because though the world has been told about God’s love. It was to them, foolishness. Because they were blind. And loved darkness. And so they have hated the light. And that light – is God’s love.
That is why the world thinks that God is something entirely than He is. The world thinks He is power and might and strength and sinlessness, and omnipresence.
But that isn’t God. For God isn’t power. God isn’t might. God isn’t sheer sinlessness. God isn’t omnipresnece.
He is all of these things, but these things are not Him. For what is God? Let me ask you? What does God say He is? God is… _ what? God is love.
A grain of Wheat – He says, unless it falls into the ground and dies, it remains a single grain. A grain of wheat which does not go into the ground and die, it is nothing. A grain of wheat that does not go into the ground and die, it lives for itself and serves none other than itself. It is for itself, and unto itself is nothing but itself. Yet a grain that falls into the ground and dies, it gives birth (it gives life that is) to many other grains, and it serves to feed others. This grain that goes into the ground and dies this grain lives for others, and dies for others. In this grain which gives itself up unto death for others (to have life, and to be fed by its death), we see Christ. We see in this grain, what Christ has done for us. That Christ did not live for Himself. That Christ did not come to be served, nor even to serve Himself, but rather He came to serve others at the cost OF Himself. He came not to live for Himself but to die for others, that in His death He might give us life, and by His death He might feed us His flesh. Christ is this grain that gives itself up unto death and is buried into the ground and this grain is Christ. This grain shows us the love of God.
And that love, that love that is found and seen in the self-donation of God unto death for others, that self-abandoning love, that reckless, prodigal, and irresponsible love, that self-destructive love that seeks the good of the other not only before the good of the self but in fact even at the cost of the good of the self, that love (which is the love of God) – for God so loved the world that HE gave His only Son / there is no greater love than this , that a man die for His friends / God showed His love in that He died for us while we were yet sinners, while we were yet enemies of God Christ died for us —— this LOVE, that love, that is His glory.
That is the glory of Son of Man with which He was to be glorified – the glory of God – the glory of Love – the glory of self-abandonment for the sake of the other.
What is glory to the world? Father save me from this hour – that’s what the accusers say to Him while He’s on the cross, isn’t it? Think just back to last Sunday, the Sunday of the Passion – if you are the Son of God save yourself, if you are the Messiah, then call God to save you. He saved others but He can’t save Himself. Let us wait and see if Elijah will save Him, so on and so on they went, mocking Him, scorning Him – all because He let Himself be crucified by those He came to save by His death.
Yet He says all the more, well what am I to say? Father save me from this Hour? Why would I do that? For it was precisely for this reason that I came into the world and unto this hour – that I might be given up, betrayed, handed over, crucified and die – than in my death all might have life. I came to die for you, and you ask me to save myself – because you do not know God. I came to die for you and you ask me to raise myself up in power and might – because you do not know love. I came to die for you and you instruct me to avoid this lowly humility on the cross – because you know nothing of glory
for unless a grain of wheat is buried into the ground and dies – it serves no purpose and is itself nothing. But if it suffers death and is buried – it gives life a hundred fold, and a thousand-fold. It gives birth to many seeds, many kernels, and to much food, and satisfies the desires of every living creature.
The grain of wheat that dies and is buried – is for others, lives for others, and dies for others. And herein is love. And therefore, Herein is love – true love, the greatest love – for there is no greater love than this – to die for others.
And so, letting John Himself finish this sermon for me, He says of this same thing in 1 John chapter 4,
Dear friends, let us there love one another, because love comes from God. For God so loved the world, that HE gave His only Son to suffer death for us on the cross. For everyone who loves has been born of God (FROM ABOVE, IN BAPTISM, BY WATER AND THE SPIRIT) and knows God. 8The one who does not love has not known God, because God is love. And those who cannot see love, and cannot understand love, and are blind to the glory of the cross are blind to it because they have not love, and therefore know not God, and for lack of love, they are perishing, and in perishing, the cross is foolishness to them.
For what value does self-sacrifice have, without love? What value to the self, is the death of self for the sake of another, if not love? The value of this is not TO THE SELF, but to the other. This is the love with which God has love us. 9This is how God’s love for us was revealed: that God has sent his only-begotten Son into the world so that we may live through him. That is, through His death for us on a cross! 10This is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, if God loved us so much, we also should love one another.
For though, No one has ever seen God, as St. Augustine said, if you WANT to see God you have the means. For God is love. If we love one another, God remains in us and his love has been brought to its goal in us. 13This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us: This is How we see the invisible God, THROUGH THE BODY OF CHRIST enacting His love for the world. For by His love, He has given us of his Spirit. 14We have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. That, is, we bear WITNESS to this love, in proclaiming the cross. 15If anyone confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him and he in God. 16We ourselves have known and put our faith in the love that God has for us. – that is, we put our faith in the cross of Christ, and in His death for us. And out of that faith – has flowed a great love. For we love because HE first loved us. We love, AS He first loved us. Our faith, is perfect in, and perfected by love. Our faith, is fulfilled in love. Our faith, gives birth to love, and our faith bears living fruit through love.
For God is love. Whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him. 17In this way his love has been brought to its goal among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment, the day that Jesus says IS NOW HERE. because even in this world, we have become as He is, that is, we have become FOR OTHERS. And in so doing, we have comfort and peace. For There is no fear in love, but perfect love, that is, the love of God, drives out fear, because fear is the expectation of punishment. The one who lives in fear remains imperfect in love.
But19We love because he first loved us. Not reciprocally, but causally. Not as tit for tat, but as as a tree is to its fruit, and as fire is to its heat. For He loved us, and His love transformed us. He loved us, and His love filled us so full that it has spilled out onto others. For we love BECAUSE He loved us so completely, that we cannot BUT love others. For He loved us, to the point that we have nothing left to do BUT to love others. And so,
Though the world does not know God – you do.
For you are loved.
