2017.06.11                                          John 13: 21-38

                    Having loved His own…

                                  Part 3

Good Morning…. I am glad to be with you this morning… I have Good News for You! His name is Jesus… We are on a great adventure… We are Experiencing the Life and ministry of Jesus…

Jesus continues to Transform hearts and minds… by the Power of His Holy Spirit working in and through the Word of God…

Once again this morning we are studying the Gospel of John… look with me at John 13… beginning at v17…

John 13: 17-20                             NKJV

17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

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.’ 19 Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He. 20 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”

v17… If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them… Jesus has washed the disciples feet… It is a powerful example of loving  servant leadership… Jesus is saying… I have set this example for you to follow… Love and serve each other…. Do not be proud and stubborn…

 v18b… He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me… Jesus is quoting Psalm 41... look at v19…

v19… "'Now I tell you it before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He. Jesus knew who would betray Him… The disciples are going to freak out when Judas betrays Him… But Jesus is steadfast and not at all surprised…  It is all part of God´s sovereign plan… He quotes this scripture  to show them, That He is in control of this whole event… Now it is time…  This is the plan…

v20…   he who receives, whomever I send, receives me…

Jesus   is sending them to complete the work that He has begun…   And they will take the Good news of the Gospel to the ends of the earth…

John 13: 21-23                        NKJV  slt 2000

21 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.” 22 Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke. 23 Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.

v21…  I say to you, one of you will betray me…  

The disciples were now receiving another shock…. One of them would betray Jesus...? Impossible to imagine… But there was more…  Jesus knew that Peter was going to deny him…  He predicted it to his face… But even though he had been warned… When to time came Peter denied Jesus… three times…   Did Jesus know that Judas was going to betray him…?  Yes, he did because He knows everything… He is the Living Word of God…   And Jesus often spoke directly to their unspoken thoughts and intentions…

Jesus Knew every event that was going to happen… He knew who will betray and deny him… But that knowlege did not soften the impact of the events… v21… says his heart was troubled… It's a strong word in the Greek…  [? Torosso ?]… It means to be agitated deeply…

So even though He knew… It bothered him… As God in Human flesh…. Jesus knew pain and sadness just like us…   He relates to our pain and sadness and temptations… This makes Him our perfect High Priest… Hebrews ch 5 and ch 7… Jesus knew who the betrayer was… The disciples wanted to know… According to Matt24… They asked one by one… Is it I Lord… Judas had fooled them all… Peter wants to know…

v23…"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." Now the disciple Jesus loved is John… the writer of the gospel… John is leaning on Jesus… Peter whispers to him… Find out who it is… V24-30…

John 13: 24-30                       NKJV  slt 2000

24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke. 25 Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”26 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. 27 Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.” 28 But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him. 29 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. 30 Having received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.

It was tradition for the Host to give a morsel of bread dipped in Hummus or whatever it was to the guests… Jesus used it to identify Judas as the rat… The betrayer…  Now John and Peter know that Judas is the betrayer… But the rest of the disciples still had no clue… Even when Judas gets up and leaves… They do not suspect anything wrong… They just thought that he was doing his duty… Immediately He went out… Satan had entered His heart… Look at the last part of v30… And it was night… I think that is significant in this text… Because in John's Gospel… light and darkness are often used symbolically by John… Judas´ heart was now totally black… next section… v31-35…

John 13: 31-35                              NKJV   slt 2000

31 So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him. 32 If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately. 33 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. 34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

v31… And when he had gone out, Jesus said, "'now the Son of Man is glorified… And God is glorified in him,' Jesus is speaking of the cross… It is the Divine and perfect plan of redemption… They are both receiving Glory in this miracle of redemption… And God will glorify him immediately…

v33… Little children, I shall be with you a little longer. You will seek me. As I said to the Jews, where I am going you cannot come… Here is another shock for the disciples… They still do not quite understand that in just hours now they will be Temporarily separated from the Lord because of the cross… And while they are trying to process this… He calls them to a higher deeper love for each other…v34,35…

v34,35… And 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.'"

The greek word Jesus used for new here can be translated renewed… It means fresh…   Jesus took a commandment they were very familiar with… He says… I am giving you a refreshed more alive commandment…  Now there's a new standard of love… Love people like I love Them… Like I have loved you…

Love in humility and in gentleness… Love without expecting something in return… Unconditionally… This is the way I have loved you…. You do the same… Demonstrate my love to this lost and dying world… You saw me serve… you serve… 

Well, how did Jesus love? Sacrificially… Unconditionally…

I imagine that almost all of us know verse 35...  By this, by our love, all men will know that you are My disciples if you have love for one another…  We are to be known by our love…  We are to be marked by our love…  And I think that’s true of genuine Christians…  This is really critical…

Jesus says… I'm giving you a renewed commandment… Love others as I have loved you…  God´s Love flowing through us to a lost and dying world… Jesus is saying this is the sign that you belong to me… God´s love in us… It flows out of a forgiven and thankful heart… A heart that has been transformed… What marks a true believer is this transformed heart… A Genuine believer has been born again…   Translated out of the kingdom of sin and darkness into the Kingdom of God´s dear Son… Transformed from the inside…    And if we ask the question… What identifies that transformation?  Then we’re getting to the evidence of who is a true believer…  Genuine believers are known by our character… by our love of the things of God…    In a word… we are known by our love...  Last week was Pentecost… The Holy Spirit is at work in us day by day… Maybe the simplest explanation of how to identify a Christian comes from the Holy Spirit´s work in us… Look with me at Galatians 5: 23-26….

Galatians 5: 22-26                  NKJV   slt 2000

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Paul describes the Fruit of the Spirit here…

 v22… But the fruit of the Spirit is love… This is the evidence of the Spirit’s presence in our lives…  Proof of our transformation and   conversion… This is exactly what we see In God´s promise in Ezekiel ch 36: 25-27… And here Paul says… The fruit of the Spirit is love…  And out of that  love flows joy… peace… gentleness… long suffering… self-control…  These all flow out of God´s love working in us in us…. And flowing out of us to others… It is our love that supports and motivates all those other things…  Jesus told Judas to go and finish the betrayal…  And he did... Jesus is now with the true disciples… And the first thing He does is have a deep and important conversation with them… He speaks directly to the evidence and reality of their salvation… 

Remember all of this flows out of   John ch 13 verse 1… That is where we began this chapter… verse 1 says…   He loved them eis telos… to the limit… to the fullness of divine capacity…     

God´s Love is a love that knows no limits…  He loved His own who were in the world as much as it was possible for the Eternal God to love...   His love is unfailing…  This chapter is one of the most wonderful… unconditional and limitless statements about His love in all of Scripture...

This O.T. commandment to Love God… Was now made stronger than in the law… Because they had seen an example of it that was new…  Love had come to another level with Jesus…  The Son of God washing feet took love to another level…  And now… Jesus  is offering His life as sacrifice for sin… and that is love at the ultimate… Later this very night… As Jesus talks about the need to Abide in His Love… He will repeat this renewed Higher commandment… And He will say…    Greater love has no man than this…. That He lay down His life for His friends… John 15: 13…  

Listen If we are going to help each other do life… If we are going to wash each others feet…  We must do it gently… After all… We all sin… We all go through hard times… We have fears and doubts... we need to counsel and pray each other… We are called to help each other… To provoke one another to love and good works… Hebrews 10: 23-25…

What characterizes our Lord´s interactions with His disciples on this final night before the cross… is His love…

Everything that Jesus expects from us… And all of His promises to us…. Everything flows from Divine love… From the Father and from the Son… Love at work… In us and through us by the Promised Holy Spirit…

John summed it up in his epistle…  We love Him because He first loved us… 1 John 4:19… Amen and amen… back to John 13… look at the last section v36-38…

John 13: 36-38                              NKJV   slt 2000

 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.” 37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.” 38 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.v36… "Simon Peter said to him, 'Lord, where are you going?' Jesus said, 'where I am going you cannot follow me now. But you will follow me afterward.'

The disciples were very upset to hear Jesus saying that he is being betrayed…. Now He says that He is going away…  They are afraid of what will happen to them when He is gone… They still hope that He will establish His Eternal Kingdom… This is a very difficult night for them…. And soon it will get a lot more difficult in the Garden of Gethsemane… Peter says… 'Lord, why can I not follow you now?'" This is Peter... Jesus says you cannot follow me now…. Peter says why not…? He seems to be coming to grips with Jesus going to the cross and he thinks that he is strong enough to fight for Him…

v37… Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.” Peter says… I am with you Lord to the end…  

v38… Jesus answered, '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.'"

Jesus knew Peter was going to fail him… He was not shocked by Peter´s weaknesses… And He is not shocked by our weaknesses and failures either… He knows that like Peter… We will also be restored… Our sin and  failures draw to the Throne of grace… We ask the Lord to forgive us…. And He does… The Love of Jesus is demonstrated in His continuing grace in our lives… As far as Peter is concerned… We have a bit more detail… In Luke's gospel… Look with me at Luke 22 v31-34…

Luke 22: 31-34                       NKJV   slt 2000

31 And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.” 33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.” 34 Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.”

Here we see Jesus interceding for Peter… Just as He intercedes for us to this day… Peter declares that He is strong… And that he will go with Him to prison and death… And we know that after he repents… He serves the Lord for the rest of His life… He boldly stood up in the temple and Gave that first Incredible sermon on the day of Pentecost… Acts 2: 22…

 His fear of man was completely gone… He said you killed Him…. But God raised Him from the dead…  And thousands were saved that day… And according to historical sources… Many years later… He did go to prison and he was martyred for the name of Jesus… As genuine believers… We are commanded to love others like The Lord Jesus Christ loved us… And we can do it…

How do I know this? Because Romans 5 says that God has poured out his love in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given… Look with me at Romans 5: 1-5…

Romans 5:1-5               NKJV   slt 2000

1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

I want us to notice the connections between Faith and Grace and the Glory of God… It produces Hope and the Glory of God… And we discover the wonderful ability to glory in our tribulations… Even in our sufferings we can Praise the Lord… We know that God is using them to continue the process of transforming us in the very image of Jesus… Loving and serving people… That means… when we run out of love and patience for the people in our lives… The Holy Spirit is ready to pour in more of God´s love… And with that Godly love…. We receive all of the Fruits of the Spirit…  This means that as genuine believers… We can share the love of Jesus with a lost and dying world… It means that we can love and care for our friends and families just like Jesus does… Unconditional… Unfailing love…

It seems impossible…. But We can love and serve just like Jesus… Because He is at work in us…  We can love and serve others Even when I don't feel like it…  We do it anyway… With His Eternal Resources…. We can display the fruit of the Spirit… Loving and caring for all the people that the Lord puts in our lives…  And watch how transforming it becomes for you and me… And this kind of Love will transform this Church and this community.. . That's the renewed Higher commandment…  love like I have loved you… Loving to the max of Jesus´ unfailing abitlity… Let´s pray…