And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. (24) Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. (25) He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. (26) If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.
What a blessed discourse we have of our Lord's in those few, but striking verses! All the great events approaching, no doubt arose to the view of his divine mind. And never surely did the glory of Jesus break forth with equal lustre during the whole of his ministry upon earth, than in the garden and on the cross. The triumphs of the Son of God incarnate, in those seasons, far exceeded all the miracles of his former ministry. It was by death, Jesus conquered death. He was indeed crucified in weakness; but in that weakness, sin, death, hell, and the grave, were overcome. The Lord entered their territories, and destroyed their empire forever. Then was that glorious prophecy fulfilled, which ages before, the Lord had spoken by the Prophet: I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. Zechariah 3:9
If I trespass a little longer on the Reader's time, in meditating on these sweet verses of our Lord; it shall only be to observe, the beauty of that similitude which the Lord Jesus was pleased to make use of, in allusion to his own death; when describing it, under the figure of a corn of wheat falling into the ground and dying, thereby to bring forth much fruit. And if it be true, as it is said, that corn is nearly the only grain, if not the only, which must die before it can take root: the image is yet more beautiful and express. And if it be further true, as it is said, that pure corn falling into a moist and favourable soil, begins to put on the appearance of a change the third day from the time sown, the figure increaseth in its similarity, considered as to the third day, Christ arose from the dead. But passing by these things, I beg the Reader to attend to such points in the similitude, as are most obvious and unquestionable.
When our Lord saith, that except a corn of wheat fall into the ground, Jesus did not mean that wheat falls by accident and without design, into the earth. For corn is too highly prized, and in itself too highly valuable, to be thus dealt with. The Husbandman, who is said to wait for the precious fruit of the earth; is also supposed to observe seed time and harvest. For his God (saith the Prophet), doth instruct him to discretion. See James 5:7; Genesis 8:22; Isaiah 28:24-29. And Christ, that one, single, pure, and invaluable grain of Corn, did not fall into the ground of our nature, nor die to bring forth fruit to his Church, without design; for the whole of his mission was by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. My Father (saith Jesus), is the Husbandman. Acts 2:23; John 15:1
And as corn wheat is the most precious of all grain, so our nature in the Person of Christ, is the most precious of all seed. He is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens. Hebrews 7:26. And as the bread which perisheth with using, is necessary to support our bodies, and therefore called the staff of life: so Christ the living bread which came down from heaven, is essential to give life to our souls: and therefore called the bread of life. Jesus saith, he that eateth of it shall live forever. And, to add no more; as the corn of the earth must be bruised, in order to be worked up into food for our natural life; so it pleased the Father to bruise Christ, and put him to grief, that he might become the true sustenance for our spiritual life, that we might eat and live forever. Isaiah 53:10. Yea, so very necessary is it that all his mystical body should eat of this bread, that Jesus himself saith; Except ye eat of the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
John 6:1. But in relation to his body the Church: she must have remained without the possibility of recovery, in the awful state of the dead in trespasses and sins, in which the whole nature was involved by the means of Adam's transgression; and so must have continued unawakened, unregenerated, unrenewed, and without hope, and without God forever. Reader! pause over the subject. Behold the love of God in Christ which passeth all understanding. God the Father will not suffer those whom he hath given to his dear Son thus to perish. God the Son will not leave his spouse the Church, notwithstanding all her adulteries, so to be everlastingly ruined. God the Holy Ghost will regenerate the Church, whom he hath loved in Christ before all worlds. Jesus, therefore, the pure, the single grain of corn, falls into the ground, and by dying, brings forth fruit; yea a full complete harvest, of every individual seed, which were his seed from all eternity: and finally gathers the whole into the garner of heaven. Oh! the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments; and his ways past finding out. Romans 11:33; Psalms 126:5-19; Isaiah 59:21; Matthew 13:24-52.