Read John 12:20-22. Circle the words that stand out to you. What is the Lord saying to you?
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.
Reflections on the Word
“Please, May I… or Will you let me…” are forms of request. When someone makes a request of us, we have to make a decision to grant their request, delay it, or deny it.
What do we usually do when a total stranger comes up to request something from us? My default position is “Sorry. No.” When a homeless person asks for handout and I say, “Sorry. No.” Am I really sorry? No. For the most part, I brushed off that person because I just want to be on my way. Is that the same for you?
On that Triumphal Day, hundreds if not thousands lined the streets to see Jesus. Among the crowd, there must have been many who hoped that Jesus would stop and hear their plea to heal a loved one or even raise someone from the dead. People would have been pushing forward so that their cries of help could be heard by Jesus. Maybe they were thinking, “If only I shout loud and hard enough, He will hear me and grant my petition. Maybe, just maybe, He might just stop for me!”
The disciples probably surround the young colt that Jesus was riding on. They were making a way for Him by keeping the crowd at a distance so that they could move forward to Jerusalem. I could imagine the crowds of people shoving and pushing to just get a glimpse of Jesus. While we may think that there were only Jews in Jerusalem and in the crowd, there were also Gentiles who wanted to see Jesus!
Somehow, they were able to catch the attention of Philip. Andrew and Philip told Jesus about their request. Off handedly we would think that Jesus would grant them an audience, but He doesn’t, at least the text doesn’t indicate it. Scripture doesn’t state what was the reason why those Gentiles wanted to see Jesus. Was it to honor Him? Was it to ask Him to heal someone? Was it to ask Him a personal question about His deity? We don’t know. All we do know is that they wanted to see Jesus.
When someone comes to our Church or a fellowship gathering, we don’t know the reason why they came. Most likely it was a friend who invited him or her. But could there be more to the reason than just the invitation? Don’t judge a person because of their ethnicity, gender, education, social standing or even one’s language. Don’t brush off a person and turn them away because we just want to be on our way. You and I may be given the opportunity to share Jesus with that person or to help that person take another step on their spiritual journey.
-Kingston