The Dying Seed

If we truly die to self and live for Him we will live a much more fulfilling life than we did before we knew Him

The Conversation

In our kitchen are two small packets of sunflower seeds still to be planted. Every time I walk past them, I think, ‘How on earth are they going to produce the beautiful flower on the packet if I don’t take the time to plant them in the ground?’ They are just sitting there, huddled together, wrapped in a packet, being no use to anyone.

In John 12, not long before the crucifixion, it states that some Greeks asked Philip to get them an audience with Jesus. The disciples told Jesus and He replied in verses 23 and 24: “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.'' 

Firstly, the first two words ‘very truly’ and in some versions ‘truly, truly’ is a double emphasis and means what He is about to say is very important indeed. Up until this point He has been saying ‘My hour has not yet come’, but here He is saying ‘The hour has come’. He knew it was time for Him to die and He used the analogy of a seed being planted in the ground, giving up its previous existence, to germinate and bear much fruit. Germination is a mystery and a wonderful miracle of creation. Somehow it turns a dormant seed into a growing plant. They say that seeds that are thousands of years old have germinated! God’s creation is amazing!

The principle of the Kingdom is one of sacrifice. Jesus is expressing His willingness to give up His life so that much fruit could be borne. Without His death this could not happen. This principle is applicable to our lives too. In verses 25 and 26 He makes it clear and personal to us by saying: 25 “Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honour the one who serves me.”  Whoever says to himself, ‘This is my life to do with as I please, this is my life and mine alone’ will lose it. We need to die to ourselves, for only then can we bear fruit. It does not mean we can’t enjoy the good things God has given us but it means we have to live our lives for the higher purpose of serving our creator.

Our flesh wants to seek our own Kingdom but the Bible says in Matthew 6 that must seek His Kingdom first. The world wants to tell us that we should live for ourselves but the Bible tells us we must be a living sacrifice. Jesus has paid the price for us so that we now belong to him. If we truly die to self and live for Him we will live a much more fulfilling life than we did before we knew Him. The world thinks it has freedom but those who live for themselves are actually under the worst dictator you can have, that of the flesh. Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 16:24 “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me.” The cross has one purpose, to put to death, to kill.

A.W. Tozer says: ‘We must do something about the cross. And one of two things only can we do, flee it or die upon it. If we are wise we will do what Jesus did, endure the cross and despise its shame for the joy that is set before us. The cross will cut into our lives where it hurts worst, sparing neither us nor our carefully cultivated reputation. It will defeat us and bring our selfish lives to an end. Only then can we rise in fullness of life and establish a pattern of living, wholly new and free and full of good works.’

Pinterest

This death to worldliness must not only apply to individuals but the church as a whole. Nothing corrupts a church quicker than worldliness. The church of Pergamum, in Revelation is a picture of a church that is married to the world and what did Jesus say to them? He said in Revelation 2:16 ‘Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.’ It is happening in many churches today. It is a sad and destructive thing when a church allows the influences of an evil society to creep in. It can only destroy its witness and effectiveness for God.  Instead of speaking the truth and challenging bad behaviour we have compromised and conformed to the ways of the world. Erwin Lutzer, in his book "Pastor to Pastor," says:"...if we accommodate Scripture to whatever wind is blowing, we will become so absorbed by our culture, that we will have nothing to say to it." As churches we need to die to the world. We need to plant the seed of worldliness in the ground and let it die and bring forth fruit, otherwise we will become totally irrelevant and as useless as an unopened packet of seed.

It is true that both individuals and churches are going to mess up at times and we will constantly need to repent. We will need the power of the cross and the Holy Spirit to put to death our worldliness. Let us call on the help of the Holy Spirit, as individuals and churches so that we can proclaim for ourselves the words of Paul in Galatians 2:20 ‘I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.’

Lord help us to live in the world and not be influenced by it but be an influence for You in it. Amen.

Author: Thelma Cameron

May God bless and enrich your life

Please feel free to share this article and other articles on this site with friends, family and others.