This marks the start of a prolonged series on the Gospel of Luke. As we’ve already examined the book of Acts, it seems reasonable that the first Gospel we study should be Luke as both share a common author. Ask anyone to compare the gospels and two facts will almost always be mentioned: (1) that John is the Gospel of Love, and (2) that Luke is the Historical Gospel. While it is true that John gives us a look into Jesus’ personal struggles and relates stories not contained in any other gospel account, it is not true that Luke is purely a historical account.
Dinner is over, Judas and Satan had left to go and betray Jesus, and only those who were destined to remain are now present. Jesus has just dropped the news that one of them would betray him, and that Peter would deny knowing Jesus before sunrise. It is natural for the disciples to start feeling defeated even before their individual failings. Sensing the difficulty his followers were experiencing taking in the truth about their nature, Jesus offers them comfort in the form of still more future prophecy. "Do not be distressed," the Savior says. Words we all need to hear sometimes.
These last seven verses of chapter 12 are the last words Jesus speaks publicly to the crowds. Not historically, but in John's Gospel this is the case. It is also the the end of Part IV, The Conflict of Men Against the Messiah. So if I were John, I would put the most important of Jesus' teachings here — and he just might have. The last nine chapters are Jesus' journey to the cross and chapter 13 starts Part V, The preparation for the Messiah. In many ways, then, this is a point of transition making 12-13.17 vital to understanding this Gospel.
Today's passage doesn't present much in the way of new material and is confusing due to constantly shifting topics, so we're going to do our best to unravel this ball of string and make it easy to understand. By way of example, in verse 20 it states that some Greeks had gone "up" (meaning to Jerusalem) to worship at the feast (Passover). Who are these Greeks? They are new to the story and, as we'll see, not particularly important. Because John calls them Greeks, they are probably "God-fearers" (people who worship Elohim but are not a part of the Jewish nation).
Normally I like to follow the literary direction an author sets when trying to understand their message. I mentioned last time, that there are some passages that are better understood by the Western mind when we break the teaching down into its component parts. We did this with the end of the Upper Room discourse and we'll do the same with this passage. This may aid in our understanding, the drawback is that we lose the beauty of the language, of the metaphors. For this reason you should read the passage first, then come back for the breakdown of the teaching.
Did you read the passage again? Do you understand why it is such an uncomfortable passage? Good, because it's now time to address a very hopeful passage(13.18-38) full of despair, betrayal and death. Does it sound impossible, that tragic topics can bring about hope? All things are possible with God. In today's reading Jesus continues to demonstrate his love, but also his power by telling them what is going to happen during the next few hours. The purpose of this foretelling of future events is found in verse 19, "so that when it happens you may believe that I am he."
Before we get started back into our study of John, there are a couple matters that need to be disclosed. First, my apologies for our last post. It is not my best work, and what I post here should always reflect my best. If you would indulge me, I've re-written it and reposted the article in it's original location. I can only say that the original article was a reflection of the constraints and pressures I was under, which lead to the last two weeks of silence, If you are a regular reader and not a member of our Facebook discussion group, there was no warning for this hiatus. I encourage you to join our Facebook community to receive other notices related to this site.
It is five days before Passover, and Jesus is still in Bethany. Why is this important? Because of Zechariah 14.4-9 which states that God's kingship over the world would be revealed in Bethpage (called Bethany by Jesus' time). This is only one example of the many prophecies fulfilled in these few verses (John 12.1-11). Jesus traveled the short two mile to Jerusalem where a large crowd greeted him, shouting the same praises the people of Israel did back when David took the throne. It is a symbol of Jesus' kingship over the nation (Psalm 118.25).
In the second half of the upper room discourse Jesus has some things he needs to make sure his disciples understand. This explains why these statements are so repetitive. Due to the repitition it is easy for the reader to skip over, or speed read their way through, the passage. This is a mistake. If Jesus found it important enough to go over the same truths again and again, then it should strike us as important too. What are these important truths? They fall into two distinct categories that we will unravel for you.
There is real evil in this world, scarier than anything from a Hollywood movie. This is not one of those stories. Instead we see one of the greatest acts of goodness and light — of humility — ever performed in world history. Jesus has finished his public ministry and is hours away from his death. How does he spend that time? With those closest to him, surely. Rather than making it all about himself, however, Jesus continues to show his love in a remarkably simple way. By washing the feet of his followers Jesus demonstrates that no task, no matter how unclean, cannot be turned into an act of love.
Some of our more astute readers emailed in and asked why we chose to stop yesterday's article at verse 30, right in the middle of Jesus' discussion about his upcoming glorification through his death and resurrection. Admittedly it was on odd place to leave off, but I did so because the article was already a bit longer than usual and verse 31 confused me. I needed more time to try and understand what Jesus was saying. I think I figured it out, though my understanding is not that of traditional commentaries. I'll lay it out for you, you decide who is right.
Passover season was upon them again, and most people from outlying regions made their way to Jerusalem for the celebration. As had become a kind of tradition, many looked for Jesus on the streets of the capitol city. This year, however, had a different feel. Everyone knew the Temple rulers had commanded them all to report any sighting of Jesus in the city. Some thought the Savior might stay away, while others scoffed saying, "“What do you think? That he won’t come to the feast?” Of course Jesus would come, its what his followers — and the Pharisees — were counting on.
