Preceding this week's gospel text is the stunning miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead. Yet as amazing as Jesus' ability to bring Lazarus back to life was, for John that event is simply an introduction to the real heart and power of the gospel. The climax of the Lazarus drama does not come when the bound figure stumbles out of the tomb. The punch line of that story is here in chapter 12, where the true miracle yet to come is disclosed and the scope of Jesus' mission is revealed. Ironically, it is in bringing Lazarus back to life that the wheels are set in motion for Jesus' own death.

To confirm the Pharisees' fears, voiced in verse 19, that "the world has gone after him," John immediately introduces as representatives of that whole world "some Greeks" seeking Jesus. These Greeks are pr…