“Did You Hear That?”

Scripture Lesson: John 12:20-33

Sermon Transcript for March 29, 2009

Fifth Sunday of Lent

By Pastor Andy Kinsey

“Some said they heard thunder, other said it was angels.”

- John 12:29

Prayer of Preparation

O God, may we hear your voice of truth as we listen for your Word of grace, as we prepare to witness the body of your Son lifted up on the cross for our salvation. Amen.

The Message

“The crowd standing there heard the voice and said it was thunder. Others said, ‘An angel spoke to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘This voice [from heaven] has come for your sake, not for mine’” (John 12:29-30).

Some heard thunder, others said an angel spoke.

It is common the Sunday before Holy Week to share a passage of transition to prepare God’s people for what is to come. It is common to hear a text that speaks to Jesus’ divine mission – to why he came, to why he suffered, to why he died.

It is common to listen to a portion of the New Testament that reminds the church that the passion of Jesus on the cross points to the kind of cross-centered life we as disciples are to have as we serve in Jesus’ name.

We hear words to this effect in our passage this morning:

“The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you [Jesus says], unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it and those who hate [who deny] their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor” (NRSV, John 12:23-26).

The whole passage speaks to this “hour,” to this moment of Jesus’ death on the cross, to this time of Jesus being ‘lifted up’ or crucified, to this period of the seed falling into the ground, and then waiting for fruit to come forth. “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified” (John 12:23).

And yet, it’s also at this point, this point of transition, in Jesus’ life that he reminds the disciples, and the Greeks who had gathered to meet him, why he has come – that despite a “troubled soul” he has come “for this reason” into the world – not to condemn the world but to save the world by giving his life as a sacrifice for all (see John 3:16-17, John 1:29, John 12:27). The life of sacrificial love and service will lead to eternal life and fruit (John 12:24-25).

If Jesus is afraid at this moment, we don’t necessarily know it. Unlike Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, where he sweats drops of blood, wrestling with God’s will for his life, we find here Jesus affirming God’s call, affirming God’s law that death will, in the end, lead to life eternal, affirming that denial and sacrifice will in fact lead to victory and triumph (John 12:24-25). Those who love their life lose it; those who deny their life will keep it for eternal life (John 12:25).

God’s Voice

This is where the voice from heaven, or the voice of God, comes into the picture; for once God speaks the whole mood of the story changes [See Fred B. Craddock, John (John Knox Press: Atlanta, GA, 1982), p. 94]. Suddenly, the voice of the heavenly Father confirms the mission of the earthly Son. Suddenly, the voice from heaven affirms the purpose of Jesus’ passion and death (John 12:28).

As followers of Christ, we have heard this voice before in Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan and in his temptation in the wilderness; we have heard this voice on the mount of Transfiguration, where the heavens opened and God confirms Jesus as the Beloved, as God’s own Son (Mark 1:11, Mark 9:7).

We have heard this voice before as well in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, in Genesis with Abraham and Sarah, in Exodus with Moses in front of the burning bush, in the prophets with Samuel and Elijah, Jeremiah and Isaiah, Jonah and Amos. We have heard this voice before with Mary and Elizabeth in the Gospel of Luke.

Throughout the Scriptures, and throughout the history of the church, God speaks and people respond. God speaks and something new takes place. God’s “still small voice” whispers and a whole new way of life comes into being (I Samuel 3).

Throughout the Old and New Testaments, God’s word, God’s presence, God’s voice – is forever trying to penetrate the hearts and minds of the people. God’s voice is forever speaking, but we the people are forever turning away.

Hearing God’s word is not always welcomed. In fact, sometimes it is rejected. On other occasions, it is received. But at all times, regardless of the circumstances, it is life-changing: No one who truly hears God’s voice is ever the same thereafter.

Reflections on John 12:20-33

That’s what makes our passage so interesting. God spoke, but not everyone heard it, or, at least, they didn’t hear the same thing.

Did you notice that? The voice from heaven came, but some heard thunder, while others heard an angel.

Interesting! How can that happen? Do we ever hear the same thing?

I have always found it fascinating what people hear and what they don’t hear. I am sure we could spend hours discussing that one point – as parents raising children, as teachers sharing with students, as persons working with clients. Are we really listening to one another? Are we really hearing what others say? Or, are we hearing what we want to hear?

For example, what are you hearing right now? What are you hearing as we share together in this time of worship? I would venture to say that what you are hearing and how you are receiving this message depends a
great deal on what has happened to you this week. I would venture to say that how you hear what we share throughout this hour of worship depends a great deal on what has been on your plate this morning. Did the kids come kicking and screaming? Did someone at breakfast share a word of discouragement or encouragement? Did an evangelist on TV say something to catch your ear?

Over the years, I have become more and more convinced that communication is the most difficult thing we do as human beings. It is an emotional process that brings into focus what we are feeling or sensing at any given moment, whether we hear anything at all. As we shared during our Marriage Enrichment Class, communication is something we take for granted, often at our own peril. “Now, did I hear you correctly? We are having a baby!?” “Did I hear rightly, the checkbook is empty – again?” Communication is tough.

Over the years, I have become more convinced that, given our growing, short-attention spans, most of us (including myself) do not really listen to what other people are saying. We all have a “selective listening device” in our brains that blocks what folks say to us, especially if it is something important for our own well-being. “Andy, the curfew tonight is 12:00. We’ll leave the light on. Let us know when you get home.” Twelve-fifteen, no Andy! Twelve-thirty, no Andy! One o’clock, no light, only a voice from the darkness saying, “Where have you been?”! (I have a story to share about that, but not now!)

Over the years, I have grown even more convinced that, given the many voices clamoring for our attention, we are becoming more and more tone-deaf to God’s own voice in our lives: To whose voice do we truly listen? Are we putting ourselves in a position through prayer and worship, through the study of Scripture, to hear God’s voice, to hear what God is saying?

Therefore, it should come as no surprise to any of us in our scripture this morning that not everyone heard God’s voice. Right? Not everyone hears God’s voice concerning Jesus. Some hear thunder, others hear angels. And yet, as Jesus says, this voice from heaven is shared not for his sake (he had already heard and responded to God’s voice) but for our sake (John 12:30).

In other words, to those who have ears to hear let them hear!

In the Bible that is usually a call to get the cotton out of our ears: God is about to say something important. God wants us to take notice. There is a message God wants us to hear.

I have a theory. Maybe you will disagree with this theory, but I would like to test it with you this morning: I think one of the reasons people stay away from church is not because they don’t like the preacher or they don’t like the choir. No, what I have come to believe is that many folks stay away because they are afraid of what they might hear if they truly listen to what God says! What do you think?

Do you remember the prophet Jonah? What makes Jonah’s story so compelling is not the image of God’s distance, but the closeness of God’s call, of God’s voice, of God’s personal claim on Jonah’s life. To be sure, Jonah doesn’t want to change. He doesn’t want to do what God has called him to do. In fact, when God comes close, what does Jonah do? He runs the other way! God calls Jonah, Jonah heads to the sea!

What happens when we start to listen to God? Do we run, hide, or respond?

Stories of Hearing God’s Voice

For years Will Willimon was the Dean of the Chapel at Duke University. He is now the Bishop of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church. Throughout his tenure at Duke, Willimon met and dealt with all kinds of persons and families. One of those persons was a father whose daughter decided to change Majors mid-stream after going on a mission trip to Haiti. The father came into Willimon’s study at Duke Chapel furious at what happened. How could he ruin his daughter’s life? How could she give up a career in medicine for the ministry? How could that happen? The daughter was “fine” until helping the poor in Haiti! Years later Willimon commented on this incident, sharing what can actually happen when we begin to listen to what God is saying! (How many persons is God calling right now at Grace Church?)

Several weeks a friend of mine from Vincennes came to see me here in Franklin. He called and said he wanted to talk. I became fearful. He is a good friend, and I know his family very well. But I thought the worst: divorce, illness, conflict, drugs. (Why do we always think the worst?) He came, and we went to lunch. He now lives in Chicago in a high rise, just off of Michigan Avenue. He pulls down a six digit yearly income. His kids are grown. His wife is gainfully employed as well. Finally, after few pleasantries, I cut to the chase: “So, what’s going on?”

“I want to quit my job, I want to help the poor and go into the ministry. I’m tired of my life; I’m tired of corporate America, and I want to move in a new direction. After my heart attack two years (he’s 49) I realized there is more to life than money, and I am not going to go on this way anymore. Andy, am I crazy?”

Now, usually, when I hear this, I am overjoyed. I really am. But after picking my jaw off the floor, I found myself questioning him: “Are you sure you want to do this? Are you sure you heard God’s voice? You are making a great deal of money, we are in an economic downturn and tough job market; the church is not the center of society anymore. It’s not the only show in town. Are you sure about this?”

“Are you sure you didn’t hear thunder or something? Maybe you heard an angel!”

“No, I heard God’s voice. Isn’t that what Jesus said, ‘Come and follow.’”

Reflections on God’s Voice

What happens when you hear the Voice, not any voice, but THE Voice, God’s voice?! Did you hear that? Hear what? That voice. What voice? The voice of the One being lifted up! That voice!

Now, maybe God is not calling you to be a full-time missionary or an ordained minister, but God is calling you to serve, to share. Maybe God is calling you out of your comfort zone, or calling you to take up a new task, or calling you to give up a bad habit. There is a voice calling you to a new of life, to be sure.

On Monday, we traveled back home to Mt. Vernon for a special family event, where I was reminded again of that Voice and of the persons who were there when I first heard it. To be sure, when I heard that voice some thirty years ago I didn’t hear thunder and I didn’t hear an angel; in fact, there are days when I still question whether I really heard God’s voice at all: Did you really mean me, Lord? After all, I have been accused of not listening before! I have been accused of selective hearing! Maybe the other folks in that little church heard something! Why me? Of all the voices I could have listened to…I chose to listen to God’s! And I am still trying to understand it!

Reminds me of what Frederick Buechner, the Presbyterian pastor and writer once wrote. He wrote that “there are all different kinds of voices calling [us] to all different kinds of work, and the problem is to find out which is the voice of God rather than Society, say, or the Superego, or Self-Interest. By and large a good rule for finding [or listening to] God’s voice is this: the kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work (a) that you need most to do and (b) that the world needs most to have done…The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet./1/

Your Deep Gladness
     World’s Deep Hunger

And it’s at that point that we are likely to hear God’s voice most clearly…the way Jesus did…the way the disciples did…the way we still can…even when others don’t, even when some hear thunder and others say it is an angel, the voice speaks our name. Amen.