---

I. The corn of wheat ABIDING ALONE. It is Christ's humiliation which we are mainly called in these words to ponder. But in order, by contrast, to bring out the wonders of that humiliation, let us, as here suggested, go back to a past Eternity, and contemplate that corn of wheat abiding alone. Immensity a void. The mysterious Trinity in unity, pervading and filling all space: No need of worlds or angels to glorify them. There was the corn of wheat abiding alone: the Eternal Son with the Eternal Father, in the glory which He had with Him before the world was.

II. We are next called to consider the corn of wheat FALLING INTO THE GROUND, AND DYING. Impelled by nothing but His own free, sovereign, unmerited grace, Christ resolves not to abide alone. He is to come down to a ruined world in order to effect its ransom and salvation. But, how replace it? How, in other words, is this redemption from sin and death to be effected? There are two words in our text, on which we may for a moment instructively pause. The one suggesting the necessity, the other the voluntariness of the death of Jesus.

1. "Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground." "Unless." There was no other possible way by which the world could be redeemed. Without the dying of corn seed — no life.

2. We have the voluntariness of Christ's death here set forth. "If it die!" — "If." This same monosyllable He Himself repeats with similar emphasis a few verses further on: "And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Me." This leads us —

III. To the corn of wheat BRINGING FORTH MUCH FRUIT. It was prophesied regarding the Redeemer, that He should "see His seed" (Isaiah 53:10). "This," says He, "is the Father's will who hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day" (John 6:39). He — the Tree of Life — was to be felled to the ground; the axe was already laid to the root. But as many a noble denizen of the forest, coming with a crash on the sward, scatters its seed all around, and in a few years there starts up a vast plantation, so Christ, by dying, scattered far and wide the grain of spiritual and immortal life. The seed and the leaves of this Tree are for the healing of the nations. The Divine corn seed drops into the ground; a golden harvest waves, and heaven is garnered with ransomed souls. Oh wondrous multitude which no man can number! A multitude growing ever since Abel bent, a solitary worshipper, in the heavenly Sanctuary, with his solitary song — the first solitary sheaf in these heavenly granaries. Yes! the song is deepening; the sheaves are multiplying.

(J. R. Macduff, D. D.)

---

---

KJV: 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.

WEB: Most certainly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.