Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” John 12:31-32.
Today your LORD (יהוה) God (אלהים) says:
Today we continue on from where we left off in our prior Life Lesson in a conversation Jesus was having with His disciples and the listening crowd five days before the final Passover celebrated as one of you on earth. And of that Passover, Jesus told His disciples that He earnestly desired to celebrate it with them.
Whether you are aware of it or not, I earnestly desire to do good for you. My loving eyes are upon you at every moment. I have every one of the hairs of your head counted. I am very aware of you and I know what you need before you even know. And I have already prepared it for you. But you must understand that you can limit My ability to do good for you. I stand at your door and knock but if you close your ears and heart to My voice and do not open to Me, I cannot do for you what I would love to do.
Just as in the world you can open your heart to another and join with that person in a covenant of marriage or you can say “no” to the advances of the other person and never give them any authority to care for you, so too it is with Me. For you who are wide open to Me in love and have joined with Me in Covenant through Jesus I can intervene to protect you, deliver you, bless you, heal you, prosper you, and make all things work together for good for you.
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28.
I can constantly be giving you input and can carefully orchestrate everything in your life. I can send you the opportunities and people you need just at the moment you express your desire to Me for what you need.
Jesus told you that I am constantly working and He is at work as well. What am I working at? The details, provision, and guidance of your life in paths of righteousness for My Name’s sake, for you are Mine. I have espoused you to Me forever in faithfulness and love. If you are aware of this, you will never be without an answer to any need. Just ask and receive. I am a good Father, your forever Father.
I have set the LORD continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will dwell securely. Psalm 16:8-9.
So let us continue to look at the treasures you find in today’s conversation.
Yesterday we considered the words with which Jesus responded to the requests the Greek visitors at the Passover time had made to see Him. He let His disciples know that the time of His glorification had come and He was about to draw all people of the world, Jews, Greeks, and gentiles of every nationality and nation, to Himself and thus back into Me. The grain of wheat was going to fall into the ground and die and become the firstborn of many brethren united as a new creation in Him, a tremendous harvest back to Me for I am the LORD who sows seed. Hosea 2:22. I sowed My Son.
And today He continues to speak to them on this subject. So He continued,
“Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.” Then I answered Him audibly out of heaven: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” John 12:27-28.
You see again Jesus speaking of that hour that came when He took all your sins into His own flesh in that hour in the Garden of Gethsemane.
“Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. Luke 22:42-43.
He drank that cup of My wrath so that you will never drink it.
Thus says your Lord (Adonai), the LORD (Yahavah), even your God who contends for His people, “Behold, I have taken out of your hand the cup of reeling, the chalice of My anger; you will never drink it again. Isaiah 51:22.
Jesus, as I have told you is My Will for you in Him, prayed without ceasing. Here in the midst of a crowd, He talked to Me and I answered Him audibly out of Heaven. Heaven is so close to you, I can answer you any time day or night right out of Heaven. Get used to constantly talking with Me, it will become a fountain of living water in your spirit.
So the crowd of people who stood by and heard My voice, like the Israelites at Mt. Sinai, but not everyone had ears to hear. Some were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, “An angel has spoken to Him.” Jesus answered and said, “This voice has not come for My sake, but for your sakes. Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” John 12:30-32.
Jesus did not need audible sounds or wonders. He knew Me and was used to My voice within Him, and that is the way you should be as well. If you know Me, you access Me by the Spirit within and I speak to you in your spirit. Then your spirit speaks to your soul and your soul translates it to your native tongue. That is why My voice will sound like your own inner voice but with a tremendous difference in the effects it has in your spirit and soul. You will know it is Me by the tenderness that touches your spirit when I speak.
Jesus about to finish His time on earth by finishing the work I gave Him to do, spoke clearly indicating the kind of death by which He was to die, and lifted high on the Cross, He would draw all people to Himself. And as you behold Him with the eyes of your heart, you like the Israelites bitten by the serpents in the wilderness, will have all the venom of sin pulled out of your heart onto Him like a magnet.
If you recall, My people Israel complained and grumbled from the day I began delivering them in Egypt every time a challenge came up, but the snakes could not get through until they opened the door to the forces of evil by their complaining and grumbling about the Manna, the bread from Heaven that I rained down every morning on the dew fall. Be careful about despising the bread of life, which is fulfilled now in Jesus.
Judgment since the time of Adam was upon the earth. The earth is groaning under the judgment of decay and death. His death would bring judgment upon the world and it would be paid by Him. The judgment fell on Him and was paid in full by Him. He is the lightning rod upon which I have let fall all wrath and the judgment that was upon the earth.
The crowd then answered Him, “We have heard out of the Law that the Messiah is to remain forever; and how can You say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?” John 12:33-34.
So Jesus said to them, “For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.” John 12:35-36.
His answer here gives you insight into the light of life that I give you in Jesus. In this age of grace, the Church age, you have the Light of the world with you, in your midst, glowing and beaming rescue to you like a lighthouse on a stormy night at sea. You are wise to come, in fact, run to His light while there is still time for the grace of salvation in Him. I did not send Him to judge you but save you. You already had the unsatisfied judgment of Adam upon you but I took care of that for you in Jesus and rescued you from the realm of darkness into My own marvelous light. Leave the deeds and confusion behind and believe in the Light while there is still time to obtain faith’s goal—your salvation, which is now and forever. And when you believe and draw close to His light, I will light your lamp by Jesus in your spirit—the mystery of Christ in you, your hope of glory and fill you with the Holy Spirit.
I love you. I have rescued you from the realm of darkness in Jesus as your scapegoat and perfect Lamb of sacrifice, it is time for you to see this and take hold of it with joy, and watch your miracle come to pass. It is time to put on My armor of light and take up the Sword of the Spirit, which is My Word.
For you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), proving what is pleasing to the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, “Awake, sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father. Ephesians 5:8-20.