Jn 13

How to follow Jesus: By serving

PART 1

Warm-up: When you have to do menial tasks, what goes through your mind?

Read: John 13:1-15

Context: After Jesus cast a vision of a new community (Jn 10) that lives out His resurrection life (Jn 11) and lays down its own life in pursuit of him (Jn 12), Jesus now focuses in Jn 13 on the way how we get there.

1) According to vv1-3, what did Jesus know about himself?
  • What does it mean that the Father had given all things in his hands? cf Jn 17:12
2) Why is it so remarkable that Jesus did here what he did, and despite his unlimited authority? cf Phil 2:5-8.
  • Washing feet was the work of slaves. How might Jesus have felt when he washed the feet of Judas? What must Judas have thought?

3) Was Peter simply being humble when he refused Jesus to wash him? Why or why not?

4) What spiritual truth did Jesus communicate to Peter in vv8-11?
  • How did Jesus explain the significance of his actions, vv12-17?
  • And what was it that Peter could not yet understand?
5) How are we then supposed to “wash one another’s feet”?
  • How come that Jesus compares the sins of his followers to dirty feet, and in what ways does forgiveness resemble a washing?

PART 2

Context: Last week we read how Jesus humbled himself washing feet as a metaphor of cleansing & forgiveness, even those of Judas, though it did not benefit him. We also talked about the command to all disciples to follow this example, and how and why (i.e. not to elevate ourselves, but to build the church). This week, let’s take a closer look at the remainder of the chapter:

Read: John 13:16-38

1) Does v16 teach any new idea or does it simply observe a fact?
[Idea: He is the master/sender, they are the servants/messengers. Fact: Servant is not greater].
  • What application does Jesus infer from that new idea, v17?
  • Do you feel blessed to have this duty?
2) What is that “blessedness” that Jesus talked about: a) A happy feeling? b) The reward for doing right? Or c) Is blessedness the root cause of all truly good works?
  • Which of these (or other) answers do you think is most in line with v18, and why?
  • What did Judas realize during these final conversations that could have led him to take sides against Jesus, to his own destruction?
  • Was Judas upset because Jesus expected him to serve? Or was he appalled (like others before him, Jn 6:66) that Jesus taught that no one can follow and serve him except if we recieve God’s unmerited favor and in everything depend on Him?
3) Read v19: Why did Jesus foretell to Judas his betrayal? Why was that necessary?
  • What effect did Jesus expect this prophecy to have on the other disciples? => What does it mean to “…believe that I am He“?
  • How is such faith (i.e. that Jesus is Jahweh, the ‘I am who I am’) connected to prophecy?
    • What is actually prophecy?
    • From whom and where do you expect prophetic words? [Only collect opinions: Jn 13 does not call for judging them]
    • To what end did Jesus use his prophecy here in v19? Did he mean that truly prophetic words (=his own) will actually cause and inspire faith? Is this what the living word of God does? cf Ro 16:26
    • Can anyone know that Jesus is one with God, other than by means of a prophetic word ? cf Mt 15:16-17; Prov 29:18; Rev 19:10
      => Do you think your own faith has been influenced by prophecy? How?
4) How does v20 fit with v19? Have these verses anything to do with each other, or did Jesus suddenly change subjects?
  1. What is the context all about, both before and after? => What could the ‘receiving’ have had to do with Judas?
  2. Elsewhere in John, ‘receiving’ is synonymous to believing (Jn 1:12; 12:48): Why? Who must we receive to be believers? v19 (repeated 3x)
  3. Due to the preceding lesson on humble service, some commentators view v20 as a parallel of Mt 10:40 about brotherly love; however, “One I send” (no definite article) mentions no brothers. Still, vv19-20 can also mean that God imparts the Holy Spirit through his prophetic word as it is proclaimed by those ‘missionaries of the good news’ whom He sends, cf Ro 10:14-15.
  4. However, nowhere are disciples of Jesus commanded to receive in brotherly love everyone who claims prophetic authority. To qualify as prophetic, a messenger must be prophetic (cf Mt 10:41), i.e. the message must pass the test of being true to God in every way. A messenger is and must be proven to be true by the message, cf 1Thes 2:13 ; Acts 9:17-18. No message is proven to be true based on who is the messenger
5) Jesus predicted the sins of both Judas and Peter. How did they differ?
  • What are we supposed to learn from this generally, and about sin and the devil in particular?
  • How did the sin of Judas (vv2+22) contrast to what he should have done instead, v20?
6) C.H. Spurgeon is quoted as having said: A little faith will bring your soul to heaven; a great faith will bring heaven to your soul. [Note: He didn’t say “…to earth“]
  • Jesus stated that where He will go, not even believers can “go” now. What does that mean? Did he just state the obvious that we cannot yet physically enter heaven?
    • Or did he rebuke any triumphalistic belief that we can “bring heaven to earth” by walking like Jesus did?
  • Why don’t we fulfill the command of v34 if we go round telling unbelievers “you are awsome”?
  • How have all attempts to erect heavenly kingdoms by ourselves fared in history?
  • What does it mean to (instead) pray for this kingdom to come, Mt 6:10?

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