Hello, my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends on this FRIDAY,
These days we’re in a very intimate season of our journey with Jesus. Why? Because we’re spending several days with Jesus and His disciples in the upper room in Jerusalem, on that historic Passover evening. In those hours Jesus did and said some things which still shake and shape our world 2000 years later.
I left you yesterday as we watched Judas walk out of that upper room having been identified by Jesus as the man who would betray Jesus. While the disciples had heard what Jesus said, and they watched Judas take the identifying bread and then leave, John tells us, “no one at the meal understood…” (John 13:28)
Equally confusing is what Jesus said as the door closed behind Judas, do you remember? “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him.” It was and is in Jesus’ obedience to God the Father that God was most glorified in Jesus’ life. Similarly, it is in our obedience to Jesus, our Savior, that Jesus is most glorified, and then in that moment the Father is glorified. as we honor God the Son! (John 14:13) This is very important for us to remember, understand and hold as major objective of our lives.
Jesus then looked around the table and began to get very personal and reflective: “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.” (John 13:33) Oh my, what did Jesus mean? The men in the room were stunned yet again, and our friend Peter wasted no time expressing his confusion by asking: “Lord, where are you going?’ Then Jesus answered: ‘Where I am going you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” (John 13:36) Oh my, what did that mean?
Peter, like many people, didn’t like that. His emotions rose up and maybe Peter even stood up at the meal to make his next statement: “Lord, why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life for you!” (John 13:37) Let’s press the pause button and freeze the frame as we try to understand what’s happening here. Jesus, as God the Son, of course, could see His future clearly, especially the next few days. Jesus was also able to look over the horizon of time to see that years future, each of those men in that upper room would face very similar torture and execution, as Jesus was about to face. That is why Jesus told Peter he would follow later. In fact, history tells us Peter was crucified upside down, dying very similarly to how Jesus died.
But Jesus wanted His friends to know that what was about to happen to Him, as horrible, almost indescribable as it would be, it was not unexpected or unpredicted. Several centuries before the Jewish prophet Isaiah had been remarkably accurate in his graphic description of what would be done to Jesus. (Isaiah 53) This was WHY Jesus, God the Son, came to earth! Only Jesus could walk this atonement path for only Jesus has no sin and therefore only Jesus is eligible to pay for my sin and yours and the sin debt of every person! Don’t miss the significance of this my friends. There never has been and never will be any other Savior! (Acts 4:12)
But there’s more, my friends. In Jesus’ death, He experienced at least two things which none of these disciples would experience in their deaths. First, God placed upon Jesus the sins of all humanity and then second, God poured out His justice wrath upon Jesus for all that sin. (2 Corinthians 5:21; Is. 53:5,6,12)
I really believe NO words Jesus could have said in that moment would have prevented Peter from saying what he had said: “Lord, why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life for you!” Jesus’ response was another of those moments when a bomb going off in the room would not have been any more impactful. Looking right at Peter, Jesus said: “Will you really lay down your life for Me? Truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown Me three times!” (John 13:38) I imagine the color drained from Peter’s face and maybe Peter even got up and walked away from the table, needing to calm down and reflect on what Jesus had said.
Meanwhile Jesus said one more very, very important thing to those around the table who would carry His name, His message and His reputation to the world, for the rest of their lives: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34,35) Can you hear the silence in the room as these men look at one another, having just watched Judas rush out of the room?
The qualifier Jesus stated is what made these words so difficult, for them and for us: “As I have loved you so you must love one another.“ How do you describe the standard of LOVE Jesus established as He lived and died His love for them and for us, a sinful and rebellious human race? How do you and I measure our love… our love for ourselves, our love for our spouses, our love for our children, our love for ANYONE, as compared to Jesus’ love for us? And would you agree that the ultimate expression and evidence of love is Jesus’ torture & death on the cross?
We need to pause right here. Place yourself in that upper room, my friends. Two weeks from today will be Good Friday! We’ll spend the next two weeks walking very carefully with Jesus and those disciples to that Passover/Easter weekend, which I hope has changed your life. May I urge you to READ the verses we’ve covered thus far in the upper room, all of John 13. Invite the Holy Spirit to help it come alive to you in a fresh new way.
The ‘Lessons Learned’ notes at the link below are well worthy of your reflection and I’ve found a special worship song which will draw you and me to Jesus and we’ll meet here, once more this week, tomorrow.
Today’s Scripture: John 13:31-38.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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