(Which part of this passage strikes you the most? Which verse is the most challenging to you? Please let us all know so we can see things differently than we see them ourselves. Click on the scripture passage above to enter the blog and comment)
Day Thirteen of Steps to the Cross: John 13:1-38
1It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.[a]
2The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. 3Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
6He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?"
7Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."
8"No," said Peter, "you shall never wash my feet."
Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me."
9"Then, Lord," Simon Peter replied, "not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!"
10Jesus answered, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you." 11For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.
12When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. "Do you understand what I have done for you?" he asked them. 13"You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. 15I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
18"I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the scripture: 'He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me.'[b]
19"I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am He. 20I tell you the truth, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me."
21After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, "I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me."
22His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. 23One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. 24Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, "Ask him which one he means."
25Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, "Lord, who is it?"
26Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish." Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon. 27As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.
"What you are about to do, do quickly," Jesus told him, 28but no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. 29Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the Feast, or to give something to the poor. 30As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
31When he was gone, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. 32If God is glorified in him,[c] God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.
33"My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
36Simon Peter asked him, "Lord, where are you going?"
Jesus replied, "Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later."
37Peter asked, "Lord, why can't I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."
38Then Jesus answered, "Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!
Footnotes:
John 13:1 Or he loved them to the last
John 13:18 Psalm 41:9
John 13:32 Many early manuscripts do not have If God is glorified in him
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33"My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
36Simon Peter asked him, "Lord, where are you going?"
Jesus replied, "Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later."
37Peter asked, "Lord, why can't I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."
This is the passage that stands out to me. It reminds me so much of our humanity and Christ's devinity. Here is Jesus, about to die, but loving his people enough to try to squeez in more teaching, to more fully reveal himself to them, to teach them eternal lessons. And yet they are entirely concerned with the temporal. They are concerned with finding the "bad guy" and following the man of Jesus physicaly that they seem to miss his spiritual lessons entirely. They dont fixate on serving one another or loving one another, they fixate on why they cant go.(I notice they even drop the bone of a traitor in their midst to pick up this new bone) Something of this reminds me of us as little children. Our parents are leaving for a while and they have told us they'll be back not to be afraid. They try to leave us with some departing wisdom, be good for the sitter and make sure to brush our teeth. They leave us with a promise, when they return they'll give us a kiss and protect us as we sleep after all they're only a phone call away... BUt rather than accept the wisdom and love and believe the promise given we stomp and demand to go too or they have to stay! we dont get that our parents have to leave for us to grow and for them to have a great mariage, all we see is here and now, so we end up forgetting the lesson and give the sitter a hard time, we dont brush our teeth and we fret at bed time that perhaps mommy and daddy wont return to protect us as they said they would.Ultimately we end up having a pretty rotten night, much to our parents distress.
How often do we do this with Jesus?!
We know his promise to return and protect us always, that he's only a prayers call away, all he asks is that while he's away we love one another and take care of one another so that the world will see his glory. But the apostles didnt then, they denied him, they fretted, they doubted his promises, and so do we. We can look back on those times in childhood and shake our heads at our stomping and fretting and whining, but reading this passage I have to reflect, how much have i really grown up? Am I any less an infant today than I was sulking as my parents car left the driveway? Am i living Christs final lessons any better today than these men did the night God stooped to wash their feet? I know I have a lot of growing to do. To trust God's view, that he can see ahead where I cant, and all his promises come to pass. To not miss the eternal lessons that grow my spirit because I'm stomping like a child in my flesh.I'm so very thankful for HIs AMAZING patience with them and with me!
This time this particular scripture challenges my heart:
3Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.
Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power. He knew where he had come from and where he was going... so... he did the next thing.
He knew. To me, it makes me wonder... if I were to know what the Father has given me - with the depth that Jesus did.. how I would be so confident, so secure, so at peace with whatever He asks of me; I wouldn't be so afraid to ask and then do.
Alicia, that is really well explained. I really appreciate that mental picture of what this passage means to you
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