This message is brought to you by Desiring God. For more information, please visit desiring God.org.

Father, we tremble at the thought of your blinding and hardening work.

And we are so thankful that Jesus didn't come into the world to judge the world but that the world through him might be saved.

I don't want to be the instrument of anyone's hardening tonight. I don't want to be the aroma from death to death. I tremble at the

prospect of consigning anyone to destruction through bringing them to the point of decisive unbelief

through exposing them to the brightness of the glory which they hate.

So God I'm asking that you would come and by your power and in your

mercy because of Christ open eyes instead of closing them.

Softening hearts instead of hardening them.

Awakening faith instead of confirming unbelief.

These are weighty words and we need your help to both understand them and to respond in meekness and humility and faith and obedience to them.

So come Holy Spirit and give aid to me to me and to those who hear I pray in Jesus name,

amen.

Today's text is John 12, 37 to 50, and it has in it some of the saddest most painful parts of the Gospel of John and we're going to focus

mainly on those painful and sad parts.

Now here's a link to Christmas along those very lines.

Do you remember that when Jesus was still less than six weeks old, under 40 days, according to the law, his

parents took him to the temple to be consecrated as the firstborn.

And there happened to be there an old old man named Simeon.

Simeon had prayed and God had told him,

you will see my Messiah before you die.

And so he looked upon the babe and he knew that's exactly what he was

...