Readings for this week
Monday: John 9
Tuesday: John 10
Wednesday: John 11
Thursday: John 12
Friday: John 13
Saturday: John 14
Sunday: John 15
Tuesday: John 10
Wednesday: John 11
Thursday: John 12
Friday: John 13
Saturday: John 14
Sunday: John 15
Introduction to John 9-15
Chapter 9
One Sabbath day, Jesus and his disciples see a man born blind, and the disciples want to know whose sin caused him to be born blind – his own or his parents. Jesus thinks this question is ridiculous, and tells them that it wasn’t anybody’s fault that he was born blind, but rather it happened so that God might be glorified in him. Jesus spits in the dirt, makes some mud balls, sticks them on the man’s eyes, and tells him to go wash in the Pool of Siloam. The man does so and is healed.
Later, the Pharisees find out that Jesus healed this guy on the Sabbath, so they drag the guy in for questioning. The man tells them that he thinks Jesus is a prophet. They bring the man’s parents in to identify him and to confirm that a miracle actually took place. They confirm that the man is their son, but claim they don’t know who healed him or how it happened. They were afraid they might get kicked out of the synagogue if they repeated any of the rumors they’d heard about Jesus being the Messiah, so they said, “Why are you asking us questions? Talk to our son – he’s a grown man!” They put the man under oath and ask him if Jesus is a sinner. He’s like, “I don’t know if he’s a sinner or not! All I know is this: I was blind! But now I can see!” They then tell him to tell them exactly what happened. He’s like, “I told you already, but you weren’t listening. Do you also want to become his disciples or something?” They then began throwing insults at him, and they tell him he would be far better off being a disciple of Moses like themselves rather than being a disciple of Jesus. They add, “We know where Moses came from, but we have no idea where Jesus is from!” The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They then accuse him of being a sinner since he was in the womb and they throw him out.
Later, Jesus finds him and says, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The man says, “Show him to me and I will believe in him!” Jesus says, “He’s the one speaking to you right now.” The man believes and worships Jesus. Jesus says, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.” But the Pharisees just scoff when they hear this.
The miracle of the blind man is remarkable in two respects: firstly, that although there are other accounts in both the Old Testament and the New of the blind having their sight restored, this is the only time someone born blind was given sight for the first time. Although the biblical text does not explicitly say so, the traditional interpretation is that not only was this man born without sight, he was born even without eyes. Jesus' act of making clay is an act of creation (creating eyes where none were before), a repetition of the first act of the creation of man in Genesis 2:7. This indicates the traditional Christian teaching that in the act of salvation Jesus makes his disciples a "new creation." The second remarkable aspect of the miracle is that not only did Jesus give the man physical sight, but he bestowed upon him spiritual sight as well. In the blind man's dialogue with the Pharisees, he holds his own in the dispute, engaging in reasoned theological discourse as though he were educated.
Later, the Pharisees find out that Jesus healed this guy on the Sabbath, so they drag the guy in for questioning. The man tells them that he thinks Jesus is a prophet. They bring the man’s parents in to identify him and to confirm that a miracle actually took place. They confirm that the man is their son, but claim they don’t know who healed him or how it happened. They were afraid they might get kicked out of the synagogue if they repeated any of the rumors they’d heard about Jesus being the Messiah, so they said, “Why are you asking us questions? Talk to our son – he’s a grown man!” They put the man under oath and ask him if Jesus is a sinner. He’s like, “I don’t know if he’s a sinner or not! All I know is this: I was blind! But now I can see!” They then tell him to tell them exactly what happened. He’s like, “I told you already, but you weren’t listening. Do you also want to become his disciples or something?” They then began throwing insults at him, and they tell him he would be far better off being a disciple of Moses like themselves rather than being a disciple of Jesus. They add, “We know where Moses came from, but we have no idea where Jesus is from!” The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They then accuse him of being a sinner since he was in the womb and they throw him out.
Later, Jesus finds him and says, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The man says, “Show him to me and I will believe in him!” Jesus says, “He’s the one speaking to you right now.” The man believes and worships Jesus. Jesus says, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.” But the Pharisees just scoff when they hear this.
The miracle of the blind man is remarkable in two respects: firstly, that although there are other accounts in both the Old Testament and the New of the blind having their sight restored, this is the only time someone born blind was given sight for the first time. Although the biblical text does not explicitly say so, the traditional interpretation is that not only was this man born without sight, he was born even without eyes. Jesus' act of making clay is an act of creation (creating eyes where none were before), a repetition of the first act of the creation of man in Genesis 2:7. This indicates the traditional Christian teaching that in the act of salvation Jesus makes his disciples a "new creation." The second remarkable aspect of the miracle is that not only did Jesus give the man physical sight, but he bestowed upon him spiritual sight as well. In the blind man's dialogue with the Pharisees, he holds his own in the dispute, engaging in reasoned theological discourse as though he were educated.
Chapter 10
Jesus identifies himself as the good shepherd who knows his sheep and lays down his life for them. The image of the shepherd brings together several aspects of Jesus' identity. First, leaders were often called shepherds. Good leaders were those who cared for people, in contrast to the negligent leaders or shepherds who did not. Jesus fits the role of a good shepherd by caring for others (see Ezekiel 34:1-2). Second, the good shepherd was an image for the Messiah, who was to rule over the people of God. Here Jesus identifies himself as the one in whom this promise is fulfilled (see Ezekiel 34:23). Third, God was known as the best of shepherds, who gathered and nurtured the flock. As the good shepherd, Jesus is the one in whom God comes to God's people (see Ezekiel 34:11-12). Jesus also says that the principal trait of the good shepherd is laying down his life for the sheep. This occurs when Jesus lays down his life in crucifixion. By dying, Jesus reveals the lengths to which he will go to provide life for others.
This is one of the seven "I am" sayings in John's Gospel. Since the expression "I am" recalls the name of God, who is the "I Am" (Exodus 3:14), these sayings emphasize that Jesus is God's Word in the flesh. Jesus also claims to be the gate by which the sheep enter the fold. Those who do not enter by the gate are there to steal and kill and destroy. They are there to harm the sheep, but those who enter by the gate are God’s own. Jesus also says that the sheep will always recognize the voice of their shepherd, and they will come to him, but they will not respond to the voice of an impostor. This is true of both physical sheep in the pasture, and it is true in a spiritual sense with Jesus and his followers. When the people hear him talking about sheep, they think he must either be a lunatic or demon-possessed… but a few people defend him, saying that demon-possessed man could never be able to heal a man born blind.
Later that year, during the Festival of Dedication (Hanukkah), the Jews ask Jesus how long he is going to keep them in suspense. They thought that he might be planning to start a messianic revolution on the anniversary of the Great Maccabean Revolution. They say, “Tell us if you are the Messiah or not.” And Jesus says, “I did tell you, but you didn’t believe me.” And he starts comparing himself to a shepherd again, saying that his true followers will recognize his voice (the people still didn’t understand who he was in their Maccabbean expectations of him).
Jesus then proclaims, “I and the Father are one!” His opponents picked up stone to throw at him, and Jesus asks, “For which one of my good deeds are you about to stone me?” And they say that they’re not stoning him for the good things he has done, but because he just committed blasphemy. Jesus then reminds them that in the Books of the Psalms, God himself had referred to his people as “gods.” Jesus is like, “If that’s what God says about his people, then how much more appropriate is it to say that about the one whom God has set aside as his very own and sent into the world?” He asks, “Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp.
Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days, and many people came to him and said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.”
This is one of the seven "I am" sayings in John's Gospel. Since the expression "I am" recalls the name of God, who is the "I Am" (Exodus 3:14), these sayings emphasize that Jesus is God's Word in the flesh. Jesus also claims to be the gate by which the sheep enter the fold. Those who do not enter by the gate are there to steal and kill and destroy. They are there to harm the sheep, but those who enter by the gate are God’s own. Jesus also says that the sheep will always recognize the voice of their shepherd, and they will come to him, but they will not respond to the voice of an impostor. This is true of both physical sheep in the pasture, and it is true in a spiritual sense with Jesus and his followers. When the people hear him talking about sheep, they think he must either be a lunatic or demon-possessed… but a few people defend him, saying that demon-possessed man could never be able to heal a man born blind.
Later that year, during the Festival of Dedication (Hanukkah), the Jews ask Jesus how long he is going to keep them in suspense. They thought that he might be planning to start a messianic revolution on the anniversary of the Great Maccabean Revolution. They say, “Tell us if you are the Messiah or not.” And Jesus says, “I did tell you, but you didn’t believe me.” And he starts comparing himself to a shepherd again, saying that his true followers will recognize his voice (the people still didn’t understand who he was in their Maccabbean expectations of him).
Jesus then proclaims, “I and the Father are one!” His opponents picked up stone to throw at him, and Jesus asks, “For which one of my good deeds are you about to stone me?” And they say that they’re not stoning him for the good things he has done, but because he just committed blasphemy. Jesus then reminds them that in the Books of the Psalms, God himself had referred to his people as “gods.” Jesus is like, “If that’s what God says about his people, then how much more appropriate is it to say that about the one whom God has set aside as his very own and sent into the world?” He asks, “Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp.
Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days, and many people came to him and said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.”
Chapter 11
Jesus is informed by messengers that Lazarus is ill, and that his two sisters are seeking his help. Jesus tells his disciples, "This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." Jesus then delays for two days. The disciples are afraid of going back to Judea, but Jesus commands them to go with him, stating, "Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe." Thomas then proclaims, “Let’s go so that we may die with him!” Jesus waits to show up until after three days have passed, when Lazarus is now “legally dead” – the point of no return
When they arrive in Bethany, Lazarus has been dead and buried for four days. Before they enter the town, Martha, a sister of Lazarus comes to meet them and tells Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died." But Jesus assures her that her brother will rise again. Martha says, “I know that he will rise again – in the Resurrection at the Last Day. Jesus proclaims, "I am the resurrection and the life! He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die! Do you believe this?" Martha affirms, "Yes, Lord! I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world!" This is only the second time (after Nathanael) that someone declares Jesus as Son of God, and the first time someone equates him as 'Messiah' and 'Son of God' together. The only other time this happens in the entire gospel is in the explanation the author of the Gospel gives for writing his Gospel as the very end.
After entering the village Jesus is met by Mary and the Jewish people with her, and upon seeing their grief and weeping, Jesus is 'deeply moved'. Then, after asking where he was buried, the shortest verse in the four Gospels is found - "Jesus wept." After that, Jesus ask for the stone of the grave to be removed, but Mary interjects that there will be a smell. To which Jesus responds, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.” After saying this, Jesus screams, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."
When they arrive in Bethany, Lazarus has been dead and buried for four days. Before they enter the town, Martha, a sister of Lazarus comes to meet them and tells Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died." But Jesus assures her that her brother will rise again. Martha says, “I know that he will rise again – in the Resurrection at the Last Day. Jesus proclaims, "I am the resurrection and the life! He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die! Do you believe this?" Martha affirms, "Yes, Lord! I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world!" This is only the second time (after Nathanael) that someone declares Jesus as Son of God, and the first time someone equates him as 'Messiah' and 'Son of God' together. The only other time this happens in the entire gospel is in the explanation the author of the Gospel gives for writing his Gospel as the very end.
After entering the village Jesus is met by Mary and the Jewish people with her, and upon seeing their grief and weeping, Jesus is 'deeply moved'. Then, after asking where he was buried, the shortest verse in the four Gospels is found - "Jesus wept." After that, Jesus ask for the stone of the grave to be removed, but Mary interjects that there will be a smell. To which Jesus responds, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.” After saying this, Jesus screams, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."
The miracle of the raising of Lazarus, is the climax of John's “Book of Signs.” It explains the crowds seeking Jesus on Palm Sunday, and leads directly to the decision of the High Priest Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin to plan to kill Jesus. Caiaphas ironically prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.
Chapter 12
Jesus is staying with Lazarus, Mary, and Martha in Bethany six days before the Passover. During a meal, Mary comes to him and pours a pint of pure nard (perfume) on Jesus feet and then wipes his feet with her hair. Judas gets mad and yells, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages!” But John writes that Judas only said this because he loved money and not because he loved the poor. He also says that Judas was like in charge of the group’s money, and he used to help himself to the moneybag whenever he wanted. Jesus tells Judas to leave her alone because she has saved this perfume for the day of his burial. He adds, “You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”
Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him.
The next day, Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, and the crowds follow him with palm branches and praise him, shouting, “Hosanna!” John writes that all this took place to fulfill what the prophets had said, but his disciples didn’t realize this until after Jesus was glorified. The crowds followed Jesus because he had raised Lazarus from the dead, and the Pharisees shook their heads and said, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”
There were some Greeks visiting the city, and they asked Philip if he could take them to see Jesus. Philip took them to Andrew and Andrew took them to Jesus. Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.” Suddenly, Jesus confesses that he is terrified over what is about to happen to him, and he’s like, “What should I do? Should I tell my Father to save me from the hour at hand?” But then he cries out, “No! It was for this very reason I came to this hour!” And instead of begging his Father to save him, he cries out, “Father! Glorify your name!” Suddenly, a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have glorified it! And I will glorify it again!” The crowd that was there and heard the voice said it had thundered, and others said an angel had spoken to him. Jesus tells them that the voice was for their benefit and not his, because the time has come to judge the world and to drive out its prince. He adds, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” John says that he said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
The crowd said, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?” Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them. John says that even after all the miracles Jesus had performed, the Jews still didn’t believe in him, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophesy about them. John also says that there were actually many religious leaders who believed in Jesus, but they didn’t admit it because the Pharisees had threatened to throw the followers of Jesus out of the synagogue.
Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me! The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me! I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness!” He adds, “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”
Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him.
The next day, Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, and the crowds follow him with palm branches and praise him, shouting, “Hosanna!” John writes that all this took place to fulfill what the prophets had said, but his disciples didn’t realize this until after Jesus was glorified. The crowds followed Jesus because he had raised Lazarus from the dead, and the Pharisees shook their heads and said, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”
There were some Greeks visiting the city, and they asked Philip if he could take them to see Jesus. Philip took them to Andrew and Andrew took them to Jesus. Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.” Suddenly, Jesus confesses that he is terrified over what is about to happen to him, and he’s like, “What should I do? Should I tell my Father to save me from the hour at hand?” But then he cries out, “No! It was for this very reason I came to this hour!” And instead of begging his Father to save him, he cries out, “Father! Glorify your name!” Suddenly, a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have glorified it! And I will glorify it again!” The crowd that was there and heard the voice said it had thundered, and others said an angel had spoken to him. Jesus tells them that the voice was for their benefit and not his, because the time has come to judge the world and to drive out its prince. He adds, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” John says that he said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
The crowd said, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?” Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them. John says that even after all the miracles Jesus had performed, the Jews still didn’t believe in him, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophesy about them. John also says that there were actually many religious leaders who believed in Jesus, but they didn’t admit it because the Pharisees had threatened to throw the followers of Jesus out of the synagogue.
Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me! The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me! I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness!” He adds, “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”
Chapter 13
Jesus celebrates a Passover meal with his disciples, and John tells us that Jesus knew that the Father had handed all power over to him and that it was time to return to the Father. John also mentions that the devil had already given Judas the idea of betraying Jesus. Jesus gets up from the meal, wraps a towel around his waist, and begins washing his disciples feet. It was customary at the time for servants to wash the feet of the guests of the meal. Jesus tries to wash Peter’s feet and Peter asks him why he’s doing this. Jesus tells him that he will understand why later. Peter objects, but Jesus tells him that unless he lets him wash him he will have no part in him. Peter then declares that Jesus shouldn’t only wash his feet, but the rest of him as well. But Jesus tells him that people who have already bathed only need their feet washed. He tells the disciples that they have been cleansed… except for some of them… because he knew that Judas was plotting against him.
After Jesus is done washing their feet, he puts his clothes back on and returns to the table. He tells them that they should follow his example and wash each other’s feet just as he washed their feet. He adds, “No servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.” Jesus then reiterates that one of the disciples… one who shares this bread with him… will betray him. He says that this is to fulfill what was predicted in Psalm 41. He says that he’s telling them what is about to happen so that they will believe in him… because whoever accepts him accepts the One who sent him. Jesus then becomes very agitated and repeats that one of them will betray him. The disciples then begin to wonder which one of them he is talking about. The text says that “The disciple whom Jesus loved” (probably John) was sitting next to Jesus, so Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus who he was talking about. Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” He gave it to Judas, and the text says that as soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
After Judas leaves, Jesus declares that because he himself has been glorified, God is glorified; and when God is glorified, he himself is glorified in God. He warns them that he will be with them for only a little while longer, and they are not able to go where he is going. Jesus says, “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.” Peter asks, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replies, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” Peter asks, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you!” Then Jesus answers, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”
After Jesus is done washing their feet, he puts his clothes back on and returns to the table. He tells them that they should follow his example and wash each other’s feet just as he washed their feet. He adds, “No servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.” Jesus then reiterates that one of the disciples… one who shares this bread with him… will betray him. He says that this is to fulfill what was predicted in Psalm 41. He says that he’s telling them what is about to happen so that they will believe in him… because whoever accepts him accepts the One who sent him. Jesus then becomes very agitated and repeats that one of them will betray him. The disciples then begin to wonder which one of them he is talking about. The text says that “The disciple whom Jesus loved” (probably John) was sitting next to Jesus, so Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus who he was talking about. Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” He gave it to Judas, and the text says that as soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
After Judas leaves, Jesus declares that because he himself has been glorified, God is glorified; and when God is glorified, he himself is glorified in God. He warns them that he will be with them for only a little while longer, and they are not able to go where he is going. Jesus says, “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.” Peter asks, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replies, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” Peter asks, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you!” Then Jesus answers, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”
Chapter 14
Jesus says to them, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that 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 that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”
What Jesus is saying here reflects aspects of ancient marriage practices, where the wife moved in with the husband in an insula – a house added on to his parents’ house. Each son would add a few rooms to the house so that multiple generations, aunts, uncles, and cousins all lived in the same complex. Girls married at around 14 or 15 and the husband would have been in his mid-20s. His family would pay the “bride price” or dowry. The husband would go home to prepare a place for her — which may take months or years. During this time, she was one who was “bought with a price.” Paul’s similar words to the Christians were much like a groom’s words to his fiancée. The bride did not know when her groom would come for her. She just had to be ready. When the insula was finished, the groom and his friends would go to get his bride. They would gather in the courtyard, the man took the woman into their home and consummated the wedding. The best man would stand outside the door and announce when they were married (when consummation occurred). This would trigger a long celebration with family and friends. This is also where John the Baptist had come up with the parable of Jesus as the groom and himself as the best man, when John says that his “joy is made complete” at the “coming” of Jesus as the bridegroom.
Thomas pipes up and says, “Lord, we don’t know where you’re going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” Jesus is like, “Don’t you know me, Philip, after all this time?” He tells Philip that he has already seen the Father because he has seen the Son. Jesus also says, “Whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” Jesus adds, “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” But Jesus tells him that all who love him will know him, and he and the Father will come and make their home with them. He adds, “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Around this point, Jesus gets up from the table and they all leave.
What Jesus is saying here reflects aspects of ancient marriage practices, where the wife moved in with the husband in an insula – a house added on to his parents’ house. Each son would add a few rooms to the house so that multiple generations, aunts, uncles, and cousins all lived in the same complex. Girls married at around 14 or 15 and the husband would have been in his mid-20s. His family would pay the “bride price” or dowry. The husband would go home to prepare a place for her — which may take months or years. During this time, she was one who was “bought with a price.” Paul’s similar words to the Christians were much like a groom’s words to his fiancée. The bride did not know when her groom would come for her. She just had to be ready. When the insula was finished, the groom and his friends would go to get his bride. They would gather in the courtyard, the man took the woman into their home and consummated the wedding. The best man would stand outside the door and announce when they were married (when consummation occurred). This would trigger a long celebration with family and friends. This is also where John the Baptist had come up with the parable of Jesus as the groom and himself as the best man, when John says that his “joy is made complete” at the “coming” of Jesus as the bridegroom.
Thomas pipes up and says, “Lord, we don’t know where you’re going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” Jesus is like, “Don’t you know me, Philip, after all this time?” He tells Philip that he has already seen the Father because he has seen the Son. Jesus also says, “Whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” Jesus adds, “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” But Jesus tells him that all who love him will know him, and he and the Father will come and make their home with them. He adds, “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Around this point, Jesus gets up from the table and they all leave.
Chapter 15
Jesus says, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful… I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned… My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other… If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first… If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also… Whoever hates me hates my Father as well. If I had not done among them the works no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated me without reason.’”
Jesus adds: “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning. All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine.”
Jesus adds: “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning. All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for your comments!