BINGE WATCHERS!
Holy Week Reading 3: John 12:20-50

Holy Week Hump-Day, smack-dab in the middle of the last week in Lent. I feel kinda’ stuck, like binge-watching a show or film series, only to become stuck in the middle of the series. When I haven’t seen the series before and I don’t like the direction it’s headed, I’ll stop watching. That’s what this Easter feels like. I feel like all of my favorite traditions have been stolen by the dark side (Corona) and I’m not sure that I want to proceed any further.

In today’s Holy Week reading from the Gospel of John, we encounter Jesus surrounded by both believers and non-believers. He’s teaching about the Light, referring to Himself as the way to see through the darkness of the world. A voice from heaven confirms Jesus’ words and the crowd hears it. The crowd scratches their heads because this is not the direction they expected the story to proceed. Some people don’t believe because they don’t want to believe in Jesus. Others believe Jesus, but they don’t believe enough to put themselves at risk (v. 42-43). Either way, the crowd doesn’t understand.

Do we understand? Right now, I think most of us are scratching our heads, trying to figure it out. We maintain certain hopes about Easter that will not be fulfilled this year. Some of our favorites - buying new clothes, meeting the family at church, and planning for a big Easter meal at our favorite restaurant - are all gone...consumed by the dark side.

The people who listened to Jesus talk about the way to receive salvation were puzzled in much the same way. They had certain expectations, and the stuff Jesus was telling them didn’t align with what they’d grown to expect. Jesus presented the people with a choice of cups: They chose poorly.

This Easter, we are also presented with a choice:
“Do I believe in Jesus?” If the answer is “No”, stop reading.

If the answer is “Yes” or “Maybe”, consider a second question: “How far am I willing to go?”

My gut tells me that most of us can’t answer the second question without asking a third:
“How far would I have to go in order to follow Jesus?”

When we try to figure out how much we’re willing to risk to follow Jesus, we’re doing the same thing that the “Believers” in Jesus’ crowd were doing (or not willing to do).

The point is this: We shouldn’t be asking God how much of Jesus’ story we believe. We either “Believe it...or not.”.  Or, as plenty of binge-watchers may recognize: “...Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try.”

Jesus said, “For a brief time still, the light is among you. Walk by the light you have so darkness doesn’t destroy you. If you walk in darkness, you don’t know where you’re going. As you have the light, believe in the light. Then the light will be within you, and shining through your lives. You’ll be children of light.” (John 12:35-36, The Message)