They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God

"While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."

These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them. But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:

"Lord, who has believed our report?

And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"

Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:

"He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts,

Lest they should see with their eyes,

Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,

So that I should heal them."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory, and spoke of Him. Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

- John 12:36b-43

Jesus has begun to speak (in yesterday's reading) about what is to become of Him. He is in Jerusalem, and it is Passion Week - the last week of His earthly life. He has alluded to meeting the suffering and death He will endure, and to judgment, and spoken of His hour of glorification. Those who were listening heard a voice like thunder in response to Jesus' words, "Father, glorify your name." Jesus told them "A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going." See While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.

"While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light." This phrase is so important that it is repeated from yesterday's reading. I will again repeat the note from my study bible here: " The theme of Jesus as the light receives renewed emphasis. The crowd wants to know the identity of the Son of Man. But Jesus challenges them to come to the light while there is still time to become children of light. Christ is 'light from Light' (Nicene Creed). In union with Him, we partake of His light, becoming children of light." Jesus will preach in various places about walking while it is day. To stumble in the darkness is also an important theme in His preaching. What does it mean to us today to be a part of this light? And to walk in His light?

These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them. But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: "Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?" Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so I should heal them." My study bible notes here: "Failure to believe in Jesus as the Incarnate Word, despite His many miracles, is due to willful spiritual blindness and hardness of heart, as foretold by Isaiah the prophet (v. 38). According to St. John Chrysostom, Isaiah's prophecy is descriptive, but does not cause the willful blindness of people. They did not become blind because Isaiah spoke, but rather Isaiah spoke because he foresaw their blindness." I think that the point my study bible makes is a very important one. A prophecy is a vision of what is to come, it is not the cause of what is to come, and we must always remember that. Indeed, this is the validity and power of prophecy - it is not the very act of God but rather an illumination given to us by the grace of God. Isaiah says, giving us an understanding of prophecy's function: "Lord, who has believed our report?" And, as Jesus has spoken yesterday of judgment, so the prophecy also does, when Isaiah says, "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so I should heal them."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory, and spoke of Him. My study bible notes, "In about 700 B.C., Isaiah reports that in a vision, 'I saw the Lord' (Is. 6:1). He saw the glory of the Son of God and spoke of Him (see v. 38)."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory, and spoke of Him. Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. My study bible notes, "Nicodemus (3:1) was one of these rulers, a 'hidden' disciple during Christ's ministry."

We are touching deeply here on themes of judgment. What is the light, and how do we walk in it? What is darkness - as my study bible frames it here, the choice of "willful spiritual blindness?" Blindness and darkness are likened, as is "hardness of heart" - which is also characterized as spiritual blindness and deafness. In Matthew's Gospel, when Jesus was asked why He spoke in parables, He replied in the following way (which includes part of today's quotations from Isaiah: "Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: 'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive, for the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.' But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear." To be willfully spiritually blind is a powerful image of a hardened heart. This is a heart grown dull with crowding out the voice of God - the Father in the secret place - and the power of mercy at work within themselves. We also read lines in the Psalms that speak of "ears that cannot hear" and these, interestingly, refer to idols. I say "interestingly" because themes of darkness and of spiritual blindness are so often intertwined with "the love of the praise of men more than the praise of God," as it says in our reading today. Spiritual blindness goes hand in hand with a kind of emphasis on image rather than substance: How are we reflected back to ourselves in the eyes of others? Is this what we live for, or is there a deeper relationship of spiritual substance which gives us true identity? For that relationship, we need the light, not the darkness - and we need to cultivate spiritual sight and hearing and understanding. We have our choice. In our world today, we are so concerned with aspects of social life in which we find ourselves confronting illnesses of the mind that poison social life. There is a great deal written about narcissistic behavior, and its rootedness beneath many types of social and psychological illnesses. There are many books written today about a culture and aspects of our social systems that cultivate this type of persona and false leadership standards. Jesus' words about loving the praise of men more than the praise of God goes to the heart of this matter. To worship our own image in the eyes of others - to put that first, and to focus on that as substance - is to be spiritually blind, it is a form of idolatry. It will not get us to the light, and it cannot teach us about what and how we may need to change. It is a form of the worship of mammon; as Jesus has taught us, we cannot serve two masters. It all comes down to this simple question: Whom do we wish to please? The Pharisees, here, clearly wish to retain their places, and they will do anything to be rid of that which threatens this system. But they are making a trade, they are choosing the wrong sort of worship first. And here is the substance of judgment, a deep and intimate understanding of who we are and what we choose. Whose praise do you seek first?