Hello my “Walking with Jesus” friends all around the world. May I tell you that I’m praying for all of you these days as we approach Easter 2021? I’m praying Jesus will draw each and all of us to Himself in a fresh, new way!
“Traitor” and “Betrayed” are among the most painful words spoken, aren’t they? Few things are more traumatic than being betrayed by a person who you thought was a friend, right? Yesterday we walked up those steps with Jesus and His friends, to an ‘upper room’ in Jerusalem. They’ve spent many months together, and this evening is one they’ve anticipated for a long time.
It’s Passover evening and they’ve come to the table together for the Seder celebration which, even today, provides Jewish people the privilege of declaring their uniqueness among all peoples. John the beloved disciple, gives us 4 chapters of what took place that night. As we left them yesterday, Jesus had just made a shocking statement: “I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray Me.” (John 13:21)
John tells us the disciples sat in stunned silence, looking at each other. “Jesus’ disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them He meant. One of them, the disciple Jesus loved, was reclining next to Jesus. Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said ‘Ask Him which one He means.’ Leaning back against Jesus, he asked Him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ (John 13:22-25)
We presume the disciple sitting closest to Jesus was John, and he is called ‘the beloved’ because of the statement he uses five times to identify himself, ‘the disciple Jesus loved’. (John 13:23; 19:16; 20:2; 21:7; 21:20) There is no reason to think there was anything inappropriate about the relationship Jesus had with John. It was a deep, trustworthy friendship. It appears John understood Jesus better than any of the other 11 disciples.
John was led by the Holy Spirit to write 5 books of our Bible…
* the Gospel of John… telling the story of the life of Jesus
* 1st, 2nd, 3rd John… little letters John wrote to special friends
* Revelation… the vision John received from God, in his older years, regarding future events
As we watch this delicate, unexpected moment…look around the table. Look into the eyes of these men. What do you see? Anxiety that maybe Jesus was speaking of them? Frustration that one of their own was a betrayer? Confusion as they looked at each other trying to figure out who the traitor was among them? And why didn’t Peter ask Jesus the question himself? Peter normally wasn’t bashful, and never before did he have trouble speaking boldly to Jesus. Why now? Is it possible Peter knew his brash, self-confident personality might be swayed, given the right set of circumstances, to actually turn against Jesus?
And what about you, and me, my friends? What do we feel as we look around the table and consider our relationship with Jesus? Are ‘betrayer’ and ‘traitor’ words which could be used of us?
John reports what happened next: “Jesus answered, ‘It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’ Then, dipping the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot. As soon as Judas took the bread Satan entered into him. ‘What you are about to do, do quickly’ Jesus said to Judas, but no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him… As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out…” (John 13:26-30)
What do you feel right now? Confusion, anger, fear, frustration, resentment? What just happened here? Remember, Jesus knew all things and Jesus had authority in power over all things.
Jesus could have prevented Satan from entering that room. Jesus could have struck Judas blind or deaf or even dead. But instead of retaliation, Jesus had washed Judas’ feet! Jesus had identified Judas as the betrayer in such a loving way that not all the disciples even understood what Judas was about to do!
This is a picture of the unconditional love of God, the compassion of God. Judas had experienced the same things John had experienced with Jesus… but oh what a difference in response! John’s heart was tender toward Jesus, hungry to learn all He could possibly learn about Jesus and from Him. Judas’ heart was hard, resentful, bitter… very vulnerable to the work of Satan in turning him against Jesus. Do you see that John records “As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.” By taking the bread from Jesus, Judas was acknowledging ‘YES, it is me!’ By taking the bread Judas was inviting Satan to take control of his life, his thinking, his actions, as he became the traitor.
As Judas walked out, the upper room was ghastly silent. No one spoke, no one moved, they didn’t hardly breathe! What had just happened? What does it mean? What will Jesus do now? John reports: “When Judas had gone, Jesus said, ‘now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in Him…” (John 13:31)
These men had seen Jesus glorified several times in the past months, especially as He performed great miracles. Three of them had even seen Jesus ‘transfigured in glory’ as they were up a mountain with Him and they heard the voice of God say “This is My Son, whom I love, with Him I am well pleased, listen to Him!” (Matt. 17:5) But now something had changed in that upper room, and with Judas gone, the disciples sensed they were about to experience much more which would bring God’s great glory to Jesus!
Jesus continued: “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for Me, but where I am going you cannot come. 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 13:32-35)
Peter found his courage, his boldness and he spoke: “Lord, where are You going? Jesus replied, ‘Where I am going you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.’
Peter asked, ‘Lord, why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You!’ Look around the room my friends… what do you see in the eyes, in the faces of all the men who have been with Jesus for months? Are they nodding in agreement with Peter, are they pulling back away from the table fearful of where this conversation is going?
What does Jesus mean? Why will He be with them only a little while longer? Where is He going that they cannot go with Him? Why is LOVE so important that Jesus challenges the men to understand ‘Jesus style love’ will be their distinguishing trait as a follower of Jesus? What distinguishes ‘Jesus style love’ from any other type of love? And if things turn ugly, angry, even violent, would Peter really be willing to die defending Jesus?
Eyes are big, mouths hang open as the disciples watch this conversation between Jesus and Peter. But none of them could imagine what Jesus would say next: “Will you really lay down your life for Me Peter? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!” Peter was stunned and speechless. He pulled back, looking away from Jesus, his eyes darting from disciple to disciple, to Jesus and back to the disciples, to his friend John and finally to the food on the table. Peter couldn’t look at anyone. His mind was racing as he contemplated the implications of what Jesus had just said to him!
Jesus could see the confusion, the anxiety, the sense of lostness in the eyes of His friends. Listen, He’s speaking again: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in Me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me where I am. You know the way to where I am going.” (John 14:1-4)
Confusion reigned. Brows are furrowed, disciples are looking at each other, some are asking quiet questions of each other. Thomas speaks up and says what they are all thinking… “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Now heads are nodding all around the table in agreement. Jesus often spoke with word pictures that left them confused, and now He was doing it again.
In the last few moments shocking things have happened. Judas has walked out, identified by Jesus as a traitor. Jesus had then told them to love each other as He loved them, but then warned Peter that he would actually disown Jesus before the rooster crows tomorrow morning! And now Jesus is talking about leaving them, going where they can’t follow Him, at least not yet, and that He’s going to heaven to prepare a place for them and He’ll come back and bring them to where He’s going!? Grown men were scratching their heads trying to make sense of it all.
Jesus spoke again: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. If you really knew Me you would know My Father as well.” (John 14:6,7) Once again, let’s pause right here. Jesus has made an earth shaking, truth defining, declaration that will resonate down through all time touching every human life. This is a line of demarcation statement. Jesus has just stated that HE is the ONLY way to God. NO ONE can get to a relationship with God apart from Jesus.
That means EVERY religion or religious system, EVERY spiritual philosophy or theory, EVERY holy book which does NOT lead a person TO JESUS, is actually leading people AWAY from God! Now think about the significance of that statement my friends!! Jesus is saying HE is the giver of life, HE is the definer of TRUTH and HE is the only way to God!
As the disciples sat back and reflected on all they had seen Jesus do and heard Jesus say over the months they’d been together, this world shaking statement was bringing it all into focus! Jesus, God the Son, had come to make all things clear. Jesus, God the Son, had come to make a relationship with Holy, Almighty God possible for any person…but only on God’s terms!
This is why years later John wrote “This is the message we have heard from Him (Jesus) and we declare to you: God is light, in Him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have a relationship with God yet walk in the darkness we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:5-7)
Let’s spend the rest of today sitting among the disciples, with Jesus, in the upper room. Do we understand what has happened here and the significance of what Jesus has said? Do you have an authentic, genuine, alive relationship with God THROUGH Jesus Christ? How does that relationship affect how you view the world and your values, your life priorities, your relationships with people, your reputation, your objectives in life?
I urge us all to spend some time asking Jesus to help us see what HE sees in our relationship with God! We can’t afford to get this wrong can we, my friends! In our world that urges us to make our mark in life, to make life all about us and accomplishing our agenda… I have found a song to help us remember… it’s all about Jesus, only Jesus!
Today’s Scripture is John 13:21-38 and John 14:1-7.
Choose below to read or listen.
John 13
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John 14
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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 262.441.8785
“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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