already & not yet

Reading for Friday, Jan. 20: John 15

John 15 is one of those “red letter chapters” where we receive nothing but teaching from Jesus. No narrative, no commentary — just words of life from the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Jesus uses the metaphor of vines and branches to illustrate the importance of abiding in Him. The word “abide” carries a great deal of meaning: dwell, remain, endure, persevere, stand firm — all of these are translations of the original Greek word. In light of what the next few hours will hold for them, it’s no surprise that Jesus encourages His followers to remain strongly rooted in their faith. I love what He says in v4, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you.” It helps me to know that Jesus is persevering and enduring right alongside of me as I continue to abide in Him. He remains stead fast; he stands firm. As I continue to believe in Him, so too does He continue to believe in me. What a great thought!

He continues the thought by emphasizing the importance of abiding in love. He highlights this with another landmark verse: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. (v13)” The most complete demonstration of this love is yet to come: the cross. But Jesus is preparing them to receive the understanding that the Holy Spirit will impart: that Jesus HAD to die as a demonstration of the Father’s enduring love TOWARD US.

Jesus also understands that there are forces that are diametrically opposed to this kind of sacrificial, self-giving, radical love. “No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.” When you enlist in the Jesus Movement, understand that you’re signing up for a counter-cultural revolution. The world says “If they hit you, hit ’em back harder.” Jesus says, “In love, turn the other cheek.” The world says, “Accumulate, hoard, get what’s rightfully yours.” Jesus says, “Store up treasure in heaven. Give to those who are in need.” The way of Jesus goes against the grain. It runs counter to the way of the world. And Jesus is honest about this, telling us we should count the cost before we enlist. But Jesus also reminds us that we never face this opposition alone. He promises us “the Counselor”, the Holy Spirit, who empowers our testimony about Jesus in the world.

What are your thoughts on John 15?

Reading for Thursday, Jan. 19: John 14

In John 14, we are approaching the final hours of Jesus’ life prior to the cross. This teaching is so rich — John brings us into these intimate encounters Jesus has with His disciples. John doesn’t record the communion observance like we find in the other Gospels; instead, he gives us a glimpse of what this communal experience looked like as the disciples experience Jesus washing their feet, teaching them, encouraging them, and finally praying over them.

I love that Jesus begins this section with words of comfort: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” Faith is not merely some kind of mental enterprise, seeking all the answers to all our spiritual questions. Faith is the connection of both mind AND heart, a balm for both confused minds and troubled hearts. Jesus knows that the next few hours and days are going to be a whirlwind for these followers. He is encouraging them to hold fast in their faith, even as He lays down His life. He wants them to trust in the promise of the Father’s house (v2) and His role in preparing this place for them.

V6 is another of those landmark passages: “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” The word for “way” means path, road, journey, a manner of life, a way of being. So Jesus stands as our path to God. The way we come to God is the same way that God comes to us — through Jesus. As Jesus says to Philip, if you’ve seen me then you’ve seen the Father (v9). But He also shows us the way of being, the way to truly live. He shows us not only who God is, but He also shows us what it means to truly be human. Humanity lives in dependent relationship with God: before He breathes life into our nostrils, we’re nothing more than dirt and earth. Jesus comes to earth, willingly lays down His life, and trusts God completely to raise Him from the dead. Ephesians 1.20 tells us that God the Father raised Christ from the dead. Although Jesus was in very nature God (Phil 2), he empties himself, makes himself nothing and humbles himself by becoming obedient to the point of death. He stands as the Way for us, the truest embodiment of human life dependent completely upon God.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on vv13-14: “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” What does it mean to ask in the name of Jesus? How do we apply this verse in our own lives?

I had a discussion recently with a friend about how we often co-opt God in our language for our own purposes. It seems that discerning God’s activity in our lives is more complicated than we’d like sometimes. Yet, we want to affirm that God is at work, God is leading, God is telling us what to do or how to be. Even though I’m skeptical of some of this kind of talk — some of it is bound to be off base, in my opinion — we’re still left with this teaching of Jesus, a promise to be active and present in our lives when we ask for things in His name. This is still a bit of a mystery to me, but it seems that part of “asking in My name” is seeking those things that align with the will of God. Jesus seems to be promising to be quick to act when we decisively pursue God and His Kingdom.

I love how the promise of the Holy Spirit stands as proof that Jesus has not abandoned these disciples as orphans. This Helper will guide the disciples in all truth and remembrance pertaining to Jesus (v26). As we saw in 12.16, the disciples didn’t piece it all together in the moment; it was the work of the Spirit to increase their understanding. And that’s my prayer for us as we read and study as well.

Reading for Wednesday, Jan. 18: John 13

With today’s reading, we’re right at the 5% mark in our quest to read the New Testament in 2012. I know I’ve been richly blessed by our reading so far; I can only image what the next 95% holds for us! Keep on reading and commenting!

This powerful chapter is framed by one of John’s opening lines: “Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. (v1)” The fullness of Christ’s love is demonstrated in the humble act of service. Jesus is not beneath serving; in fact, He says that this is the reason He came to earth. Mark 10.45, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” This servant attitude is a bit surprising to us at first, especially if we’re unaccustomed to this model of leadership. But Jesus fully embodies service as a way of life…as THE way of life.

I love v35: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The hallmark of Christian identity is love — the same love that prompts Jesus to pick up the towel of service. Now the dots are starting to connect for us; Jesus serves out of love — He commands His followers to share in this ministry of service — and He notes that the world will respond when they see this love move out in action.

Peter is one of my favorite characters in the Bible. I love his response when Jesus tells him he can have no part unless Jesus washes him. He replies, “Then Lord, wash all of me, because I want as much of you as I can possibly get!” Peter’s desire is to be completely immersed into a life with Jesus. Peter prompts an evaluation of my own heart: do I crave God in the same way? If not, why not?

What are your thoughts on ch13? In light of the example of service Jesus gives us, who have been some of the most influential servants you’ve known in your lifetime?

The first thing that strikes me as I read this chapter: what are these religious leaders / chief priests thinking? They’re worried about Lazarus’ testimony convincing people to follow Jesus. So their solution is to kill Lazarus…again. Nice move, guys.

From v16, we also see the progressive nature of the disciples’ understanding. All things weren’t immediately clear to them. In fact, some of these things could only be understood AFTER the fact. But the beauty of walking with Christ is that we are ever-learning, ever-growing, ever-journeying with Him toward the New Jerusalem, our eternal home.

In John 12, we are turning the corner: Jesus’ time has now approached and He must be lifted up — on the cross as a sacrifice. This is the time of His glorification; it’s what John has been building toward in his text.

I love how different Martha and Mary are in their encounters with Jesus; and I love that Jesus receives each of them as they are, on their own terms. The contrast isn’t quite as pronounced as what we saw when we compared Nicodemus with the Samaritan woman, but it’s legitimate nonetheless. Yet Jesus has room for both of these women — Martha with her plaintive and heartfelt disappointment that Jesus wasn’t present as Lazarus died; Mary with her recklessly extravagant expression of devotion for Jesus.

Another passage I love here is v41: Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. (John 12:41 ESV). I love this verse because it lets us know that the OT writers — or at the very least, Isaiah — had Christ in mind as they wrote. What was concealed in the OT was revealed in the NT. Jesus stands as the ultimate fulfillment to the prophecies of Scripture as spoken through the prophets.

Reading for Monday, Jan. 16: John 11

John 11 stands as one of the most powerful promises in Scripture. V25-26, “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?” Ultimately, this is the most important question of our lives.

Martha’s response of faith acts as the fulcrum that sets everything else in motion in this chapter. Listen to her heartfelt response, even as she’s grieving: “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.” What follows is probably the greatest demonstration of the power of faith that John has recorded for us so far.

v35 — “Jesus wept.” There aren’t any shorter verses in Scripture, but few are as profoundly deep as this one. The image of a heartbroken, weeping Messiah might be a bit unsettling to us at first. It might be a little like seeing your Dad or your grandfather cry; as children, we don’t know what to do with that because we expect those parents and grandparents to always have the answers. We’re not accustomed to seeing some of these figures like this, overwhelmed to the point of tears. Yet, this is where we find Jesus, utterly heartbroken. The text indicates that Jesus knows how this little episode is going to end, in God being glorified (v4) and with people coming to faith (v15). Yet, this does little to assuage the hurt and the pain Jesus feels when he sees his friends mourning the loss of their brother.

In our own brokenness and grief, we can turn to Jesus as one who understands what we’re feeling. He knows how overwhelming the pain can be. He remembers standing outside that tomb, longing for his friend once more. He stands now as OUR high priest, fully capable of representing the human experience — with all of its emotions and feelings and experiences — before God the Father. In Jesus, we have one who knows how we feel, how we think, and what we need.

One point of clarification: there are some who argue we should refer to this as the “resuscitation of Lazarus” rather than the “resurrection of Lazarus”. This seems like a minor point until we recognize that although Lazarus was brought back from death, he later died again — at least as far as we can tell. The resurrection of Jesus is characterized by unending and eternal life. As miraculous as this story is, the fact remains that Lazarus awaits the fullness of the final resurrection along with all the rest of the believers. However, this miracle stands as a powerful promise of the kind of life — life to the full — that we can find in Christ.