ACE #354: Lift Him Up...Regardless

For the last two weeks, I have been hearing in my spirit, "Lift Him Up."  The first thing in my mind was that my next message would be about lifting Jesus up as written in John 12:32, "And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself."

Then on Sunday, we sang the hymn "Lift Him Up" and our pastor preached the same message.  He referenced the familiar Scripture mentioned above and aligned the Old Testament with the New Testament stating that God allowed the Israelites to be bitten by serpents with death as the result, particularly because of their complaining and ungrateful attitudes (Numbers 21:6) . However, God still showed them grace by offering specific instructions to Moses.  The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live."  This was a foreshadowing of the death of Jesus Christ, who would be lifted up on a cross through the act of Crucifixion.  As God offered the Israelites "life" through looking up at the snake on the pole, so Jesus offered us eternal life through His death on the cross.

I realized after the preached message that I was focusing on the part that said, "draw all people" rather than the "lifted up" part of the Scripture.  The "lift" is the action, the "draw" is the result.  It was the Holy Spirit urging me to "lift up" the name of Jesus instead of being ungrateful and complaining.  Those instructions were specifically for me.

So, today, as we are almost halfway through the Lenten Season, I encourage someone to choose to lift up the name of Jesus regardless of the circumstance, to rebuke complaining and ungrateful attitudes, and to be the one to draw someone closer to Christ. 

Jesus Predicts His Death

²⁰ Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. ²¹ They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” ²² Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.
²³ Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴ Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. ²⁵ Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶ Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
²⁷ “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. ²⁸ Father, glorify your name!”
Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” ²⁹ The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
³⁰ Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. ³¹ Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. ³² And I, when I am lifted up^[g] from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” ³³ He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
³⁴ The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”

³⁵ Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. ³⁶ Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.