In John's Gospel Jesus says, "Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it produces much fruit." (12:24) John does not have the scene of Jesus in the garden struggling to accept the suffering and death that is God's will. Here in John, Jesus not so much struggles as understands. A seed has to die if there is going to be any fruit. A few verses later Jesus says, "When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things to myself." These two verses can serve us well in the next two weeks leading up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
If Jesus doesn't die, he remains just a single person. But if he dies, he rises to abundant life for himself and for all the world. In our lives we face a kind of death in whatever sufferings come our way. Embracing those crosses in union with the Risen Jesus living within us can bring us into his new and abundant life.
I chose this picture from last summer because of the abundant blossoms but also because the butterfly has to go through a kind of death to become a its gorgeous self.
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