John 12:20-26
Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.
“Notice what you notice.” Back to John’s Gospel… An item on the “primacy” of Andrew… I have commented before on Andrew being left behind at the Transfiguration, but then being included as one of the four who were speaking with Jesus at the Mount of Olives. And that list of four – Peter, Andrew, James, and John – so easily rolls off the tongue! So here we again see Andrew seemingly in a position of leadership. Some Greeks contact Philip (also a Greek name) wanting to see Jesus. But Philip does not go directly to Jesus – he first goes to Andrew, then they go together to Jesus. Interesting…
These Greeks came “to worship at the feast”. My Study Bible seemed to discount their “faith”, that they were “attracted to Judaism by its monotheism and morality”, but that they did not want to fully convert – likely they were not interested in being circumcised! Still, I find it interesting that these Greeks came to Jerusalem for the feast and wanted to see Jesus. Had they come all the way from Greece, or were they residents of one of the many Greek cities in the Roman Empire, or did they live in Jerusalem? It matters not – what’s important is the spread of Jesus reputation and their desire to meet Him. I have no doubt but that this kind of interest was important in the spread of the Gospel after Jesus’ death and resurrection.
Slava Bohu!
I, too, wondered about their Greek identity. I also wondered what question they asked which led to Jesus’s declaration about the coming times.