Audio Access Available Above
“Christians This Is Your Call"
• 12.8.19 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- John began this chapter with a sweeping
statement that is meant to introduce this section. Jesus having loved His own
who were in the world, loved them to the end!
- He has washed their feet as a demonstration
of servant humility that they were to adopt toward one another. As the evening
progresses, He continues to love them to the end. Verse 18.
Text
• John 13:18 : "I do not speak concerning all of you. I know
whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture
may be fulfilled, ‘He who
eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against
Me.’" : This is
the second time that Jesus has clarified who He was and was not talking about. In
verses 10 and 11, he tells them that not all of them were
"clean."
- Not all of them should expect the blessing
that was associated with doing as their Master Jesus had done. Judas would get
the reward of doing what his Master, Satan, had called him to!
- Jesus knew with great claritiy and perception
the kind of men that He had selected to be His disciples. He knew what to
expect from them and was not blindsided by His betrayer's actions.
- What they were about to see was not only not
surprising, it was about to take place as a matter of scriptural fulfillment.
- Jesus is quoting from Psalm 41:9,
which is a Psalm of David, lamenting the turn of events that had come upon him
when Ahithophel betrayed him and followed his son Absalom's rebellion.
- David says, "Even my own familiar friend
in whom I trusted!" The phrase indicates the grievous and nearly
unbelieveable nature of the crime. "Even my own familiar friend."
- You and I will eat together and bond over a
meal, but to share a meal in the middle east, was a far more intimate
experience. You became a part of one another by sharing the same molecules!
- David's historical experience foreshadowed
the greater David's historical experience. His feelings about what had happened
were captured in Israel's songbook.
- Unlike David, Jesus was completely innocent
and had never wronged Israel, nor Judas, as David had with Ahithophel's
Grandaughter Bathsheba and Grandson-in-law, Uriah the Hittite.
- Why is Jesus telling them about this so
cryptically? Why does He not simply expose Judas to them? Why tell them
anything at all? Verse 19.
• John 13:18,19 : "Now I tell you before it comes, that when it
does come to pass, you may believe that I am He. Most assuredly, I say to you,
he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives
Him who sent Me.'" : He
is telling the disciples what will happen before it does so that they will
believe in Him!
- God told Israel that foretelling an event
before it took place was a sign of His unique character as God, as opposed to
the idols that they had begun to follow.
• Isaiah 42:8,9 : "I am the Lord, that is My name; And My
glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to carved images. Behold, the
former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; Before they spring
forth I tell you of them." : "Before
they spring forth, I tell you of them!" Jesus is doing that for His
disciples here.
- The disciples were not idolators, but they
needed to know that Jesus knew the future as God.
- It might be surprising to you, but even here,
among the disciples, there seems to be a thread of doubt. You'll see it as we
progress toward the end of this gospel.
- The disciples were not Christ's choice
because they believed everything that He said.
- It might be that they were His disciples
because they were willing to testify after having their doubts conquered by
Christ! These men were not mindless adherants. Jesus is still giving them proof!
- How important was it for them to believe Him?
Because He was about to send them out to all men and if they were not received,
Jesus would not be received.
- Today, whether you know it or not, your faith
rests largely upon the teachings and actions of the men that were in this room
with Jesus! Their writings have shaped our belief in Christ!
- Aren't you glad that they were confident and
brave in the transmission of their beliefs!?
- By the way, in case you are ever in a
conversation with a person who thinks that the Father can be taken without
Jesus, remember this! "He who receives Me (Jesus) receives He who sent
Me!"
- Because we have received the disciples' word,
we are received by the Father and by the Lord Jesus! There is no greater
confidence to have than that! Verse 21.
• John 13:21,22 : "When Jesus had said these things,
He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.' Then the disciples looked at one
another, perplexed about whom He spoke." : You'll note that Jesus "knew" a lot of things coming
into this chapter. He knew that His hour had come, (v.1) that the Father
had given all things into His hands, (v.3) as well as His betrayer.
- That didn't mean that He was stoic and unmoved
by what was taking place. His foreknowledge didn't keep Him from feeling the
affects of the human drama before Him!
- Knowledge of future joy and victory is never
a good salve for the pain one feels in the present! The Lord, being God in the
flesh, was "troubled in spirit."
- John has noted this emotion in the Lord
before in 11:33 and 12:27. In other contexts, the word would be
translated "disturbed." Jesus experienced a strong sense of recurring
anxiety.
- Jesus is feeling all of the effects of a
sinful betrayal. Listen to His voice as He communicates.
- "There isn't any doubt: One of YOU will
betray me!" It's one thing to know something in advance. It's another to
hear yourself verbalize it to another.
- I can almost see Messiah's lips quivering as
He declared this shocking news to His disciples. I say "shocking"
because they were completely unaware of what was happening!
- The language indicates that they kept looking
at one another, trying to figure out if anyone else had any further
information. They could hardly imagine anyone in that room betraying Jesus!
- They were "perplexed." The NASB and
the NIV both use the expression, "At a loss."
˚ "To be
without resources, to be in straits, to be left wanting, to be embarrassed, to
be in doubt, not to know which way to turn." BLB
- You and I believe that had we been there, we
would have easily picked out Judas, but that is not the picture at all. What we
have is eleven guys staring at one another hoping for a clue!
- We will often marvel at the ability that
Judas had to deceive his fellow disciples. That may reflect his talent or speak
to their lack of observation skills. Truly, you and I are easily fooled.
- The other side of this is far more
fascinating and instructive to us. Jesus knows that it's Judas and there wasn't
a single clue in His behavior toward him that tipped the scales in his direction!
- Judas didn't always have toilet duty. He
wasn't the one that was expect to wash everyone's feet with his own toothbrush!
Judas was loved to the degree that no other feeling could be detected!
- His love protected his identity, knowing full
well that the punishment what he was headed for was far worse than any human
court could administer! Naturally, there was curiosity. Verse 23.
• John 13:23-26 : "Now there was leaning on Jesus’
bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore motioned to
him to ask who it was of whom He spoke. Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, 'Lord,
who is it?' Jesus answered, 'It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped
it.' And having dipped the bread, He gave it
to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon." : Most commentators and scholars believe that the disciples sat
around a table that was fashionable at the time, called a
"Triclinium."
- It's a "U" shaped table near to the
floor with a "satelite" area in between that held the food. The
people of ancient near east didn't sit on chairs, but reclined on the floor for
a big meal.
- This is how this disciple leaned in upon
Jesus. We'll discover later that this was John himself, who received the sign
from Peter to investigate a little further. Peter kept giving him the nod.
- Peter wants to know who Jesus was speaking
of. Which of these men could betray Him? Matthew 26:22 tells us that
each of the disciples wondered if they were the ones!
- When John asks who it is, Jesus again doesn't
just expose Judas by name, but gives him the sign. He would dip the bread and
give it to the man that would betray Him.
- This is a little sanctified speculation. It
would appear that John is sitting on the Lord's left, a place of honor in these
ancient times. This is how he can lean into Christ's space.
- For the host, in this case Jesus, to dip a
piece of bread and then personally hand it to the person on his right, would be
an extra special sign of warm friendship. Who was sitting on his right?
- I believe that this makes all the sense in
the world! If Jesus had given Judas the place of honor, it's no wonder the
disciples couldn't see it!
- Can you imagine John looking at that piece of
bread and then looking to see who would receive it? Whatever he understood, he
did not have the time or the authority to relay.
- As the youngest disciple at the table, it
would have been a huge breach of protocol to speak for one's Master. Perhaps,
he was too overwhelmed by what took place next. Verse 27.
• John 13:27-30 : "Now after the piece of bread, Satan
entered him. Then Jesus said to him, 'What you do, do quickly.' But no one at the table knew for what
reason He said this to him. For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus
had said to him, 'Buy those things we need for the feast,' or that he should
give something to the poor. Having received the piece of bread, he then went out
immediately. And it was night." : Satan had cast out the idea to Judas earlier in the evening. As
Judas receives this bread from the Lord, he also receives Satan into himself!
- There is no way around this: Satan took
possession of Judas. He indwelt the betrayer!
- There have been human beings who have been
possessed by demons. To my knowledge, beside the Antichrist who will be
possessed, only Judas has ever been possessed by Satan himself!
- Satan is not the equal to God. He is a
created being and is subject to certain limitation. Satan is neither omniscient
or omnipresent.
- Generally, it can be said that none of us
will ever be important enough for him to waste his time on! He is here on this
night.
- Right there in the upper room, with Jesus in
close proximity, a disciple becomes the host for the devil to work through! It
might be wise of us to consider some of the clues to Judas' fall.
- John began by noting his dissent and
disatisfaction. Jesus had allowed a woman to waste her precious ointment upon
Him.
- Matthew 26:14-16 notes that this was
when Judas began to seek an opportunity to betray Him. It was then, at this
final dinner, that the enemy of his soul enlarged upon the idea.
- Finally, when Judas took the bait, Satan
entered right in through the open door!
- Ultimately, what made Judas susceptible to
demonic, indeed Satanic attack and possession was simply the fact that He did
not put His trust in Jesus!
- Jesus had just told His disciples of His
knowledge of their hearts. When all of the disciples wondered if they were the
ones, Judas played along.
• Matthew 26:25 : "Then Judas, who was betraying Him,
answered and said, ''Rabbi, is it I?' He said to him, 'You have said it.'" : When Judas received that bread, Jesus
no longer spoke to him, but to the devil that now possessed him!
- Jesus commanded him to make haste. Even now,
nobody at the table understood what had happened. Most assumed that Jesus
dismissed Judas on business. It was still hidden to them.
- When Judas went out though, it was night! He
had been exposed to the light and rejected it. There was only one position left
to take and Judas took it with both hands! Verse 31.
• John 13:31,32 : "So, when he had gone out, Jesus
said, 'Now the Son of Man is
glorified, and God is glorified in Him. If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in
Himself, and glorify Him immediately." : Satan's plot failed miserably from
it's inception! He entered Judas
to ensure that Jesus would be betrayed.
- In reality, he ensured his own demise! This
night was not a night of defeat. It was a night in which Jesus would be
glorified!
- Jesus would be honored, held in high esteem
and God, His Father, would be honored in Him! •
John 13:31 (NLT) : "As
soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, 'The time has come for the Son of Man to
enter into his glory, and God will be glorified because of him." : Judas' action sealed the deal. He set
the final redemption drama in motion!
- Jesus was now entering into His final glory
and because of how the world would change by that action on the Lord's part,
the Father would be honored in Him.
- Whatever honor that the Father would receive,
Jesus asserts that the Father would return it to Him without any delay! That
should comfort the disciples, but this will be hard for them. Verse 33.
• John 13:33-35 : " Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come,’
so now I say to you. A new
commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that
you also love one another. By this
all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.'" : We have not seen Jesus employ this
kind of address to the disciples before this moment.
- He is not being unkind, but is being tender
with them, calling them, essentially, "infants."
- Rabbis often addressed their disciples this
way. Jesus looks upon them as a Father who is about to embark on a journey away
from his children.
- Jesus would only be with them as a whole
group for a few more minutes! He is leaving them and they will be unable to
find Him. They will repeatedly search for Him. What does that mean?
- The word "zeteo" can speak of an
attempt to seek a thing in order to find it. It can alternately all be used
with reference to figuring something out by meditating or reasoning about it.
- Either way, they and the leaders of the Jews
will have the same issue. They will not be able to go where Jesus does nor will
they be able to put the pieces together!
- Even the disciples, apart from the Lord's
revelation, will not be able to figure things out! Jesus will have to appear to
them and spend time teaching them, before they will understand.
- The Jewish leaders on the other hand, will be
forever baffled. On the whole, that generation will be lost, left to their own
senses and ideas about the Messiah.
- To the disciples that would not be able to
wrap their minds around their Messiah's departure, Jesus leaves them with this
instruction to hold onto during their confusion.
- He tells them that He has a "new
commandment" to give. "New" doesn't refer to something that
hasn't been heard before. Think of the word "fresh." Jesus had a
"fresh" spin on this.
- The Latin Vulgate employs the word
"Mandate." These were their standing marching orders!
- They were to continually love, agape, one
another. That wasn't new. The second greatest law was to love your neighbor as
yourself! The part that is new is the degree and the origin.
- His disciples are to always be loving toward
each other in the very same manner as Christ revealed when He was with them!
"Love each other as I have loved you!"
- That is a much taller order! Think of what we
have seen so far: Jesus loved Judas so much that he was treated like the guest
of honor that nobody would have suspected for treachery!
- Jesus doesn't love like we do and thankfully,
because His Spirit rules over our hearts, He can love the unlovely through us
as we cooperate with Him!
- That evident love that chooses to work toward
the very best outcome for the other person is the distinctive marker that a
person belongs to Jesus!
- I wonder what people believe that marker is
today. Is it knowledge or powerful exploits? Jesus tells them that their love
for each other is how the world will know who we are!
- This is how we will be distinguished as
followers of Christ, when we love each other! Our love for each other is what
sets us apart as His! Verse 36.
• John 13:36 : "Simon Peter said to Him, 'Lord,
where are You going?' Jesus
answered him, 'Where I am going
you cannot follow Me now, but you shall
follow Me afterward.'" :
Peter hasn't heard another word that the Lord said! He's stuck on the fact that
Jesus is leaving! The Lord's words are reassurring and prophetic.
- Jesus looks Simon in the eye and tells him
that he won't follow right away, but that he will! This is the promise that
Peter needs to try to remember.
- He won't be able to follow Jesus to the
cross, but history tells us that he will indeed follow his Savior, dying in the
same way, albeit, upside down! Peter just can't let it go. Verse 37.
• John 13:37,38 : " Peter said to Him, 'Lord, why can I
not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.' Jesus answered him, 'Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most
assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times." : Peter's focus is on the strength of
his conviction and the power of his will. "Why can I not follow you
now?"
- Peter cannot conceive of a roadblock that
would keep him from following after his Lord. He has been through some
difficult times. Certainly there wasn't anything that he couldn't handle.
- He truly believes, as we all do, that we
would be willing, just like that, to lay down for our lives for the Lord in our
own strength.
- In fact, Peter is confident enough to assert
that even if everyone else denied Him, he would be the sole holdout! (Mark
14:29)
- Jesus cannot let him believe this about
himself. He tells him the truth that will happen on that very night. All of
Peter's strength and conviction will utterly fail him before that very night is
over.
- The more that your Christian experience
depends upon the power of your own will and conviction to carry out loyal
service to Christ, the more that you will be susceptible to failure!
- Peter will not be able to lay down his life
for Christ, until Christ lays down His life for him and gives him, and you and
I, His Spirit, which renders every act of service a possibility!
Conclusion
- If the world is to know that you belong to
Jesus Christ, it will only be by the same love that He showed to His disciples.
It's a love that treated an enemy as if he deserved honor.
- His love refused to humiliate or dishonor
another. His love demanded that He speak the truth to those that would believe
a lie about themselves.
- Ultimately, it was the love that would be
expressed by laying His own life down for His friends! Greater love has no man
than this! May the Lord reduce us to love!
No comments:
Post a Comment