Sermon Tone Analysis

Jesus' entourage, His company, His business, His entrepreneurial efforts are falling apart.

Of the twelve, two are going to blatantly turn their backs on Christ.

One we're very familiar with, Judas Iscariot.

We have been told in the narrative all along that he is the one who would betray Christ.

But then also the one who has been the leader, no doubt the closest of the inner circle of disciples, Simon Peter, he will in short order…if you know the story well…deny that he knows anything about Jesus.

Three different times, he will deny Him clearly.

Both ends of the spectrum of Jesus' chosen walking away from Him.

It seems as though things are falling apart.

The rest will simply run.

They'll flee.

They'll hide.

And yet in so doing, like it or not, or believe it or not, they're actually fulfilling the mission.

They're actually not doing anything that Christ is not fully aware of.

And it is in light of human frailty that we come to today's message in John 13, verses 31 through the end of that chapter, and look at the idea of telling of His glory because this is what Jesus is wanting His disciples to do.

This is the command, the instruction, Jesus decides to leave with them at this moment.

Judas has just left the room, and in John 13, verse 31, Jesus responds in this way.

John says, /"So, when he…"/ when Judas, /"…had gone out, Jesus said, 'Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.

If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately.'"/

Five times a form of the word glory is used here.

Jesus' key word that He begins this instruction with is glory.

He says that the departure of Judas, even though they're not aware of it yet, inaugurates a moment of glory.

Now we know that what Judas is going to do is set in motion what will result in the arrest of Christ and the eventual crucifixion of Christ, His death, His burial, and yes His resurrection.

And all of this is what Jesus is referring to as glory.

That now the Son of Man is glorified.

You look those words up.

They're all in the passive.

He is glorified.

It's not something that Jesus is Himself taking action on, in other words.

A passive verb means that it's being done to Him.

So outside actions, the actions of someone else, is bringing glory to Him.

The action of Judas, eventually the actions of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the actions of the Roman soldiers, all of these tragic events, all of these dark moments serve to bring glory.

They bring glory.

Now we know this word glory, this word doxa, where we get doxology, we know that it means to shine a light on.

It means to highlight.

It means to set apart, and to reverence, and to worship.

But we have to ask ourselves…How does this seeming failure, this falling apart of His company, how does that bring glory?

And Jesus explains exactly that.

He doesn't really change topic.

He is still in the same context.

He is still in the same breath when in verse 33, He says, /"Little children…"/ speaking to His disciples, /"…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.

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."/

Jesus, in verse 33, says, "I'll be with you just a little while longer now.

The clock is ticking.

The hour has come.

The things are set in motion that will lead to My arrest, crucifixion, and death.

As I had said to those Pharisees, I say to you also.

Where I am going, you cannot come.

I'm going down a path, I'm going down a road that you cannot follow.

I'm going to do something, be part of something, involved in something that you're not going to follow and be a part of.

It is something too grave, something too impossible for you.

Something that your very human nature will so control that you can't walk the path I'm going to walk."

Now we know also that Jesus has already told them, though they don't yet understand it, that they will eventually walk this path.

Remember, we looked at a little bit of James and John and their mother, and how she came and asked if they might sit at His right hand and at His left when He comes into His glory.

And Jesus turns to James and John and says, "Are you able?

Are you able to drink the cup I'm going to drink, to be baptized with the baptism I'm going to be baptized with?"

And they said, "Yes, we're able."

And He said, "Well indeed that will happen.

But what is happening right now in just a little while, you can't follow.

I will do this Myself.

Your very human nature won't let you do this."

And I want to bring this up today to say that these disciples are at the very beginning of their spiritual journey.

They are at the milk stage of their Christian life, and though they have a heart desire to do great things…and we'll see that in Simon Peter in just a moment…the reality is they don't have the maturity to do the things that they claim they can do, and as such they become like all of us in our spiritual journey.

We want to do great things for God, but often we find ourselves failing because we try to do the great and noble before we have learned all of the fundamentals that we need, all of the change in our heart and character and mind and strength that we need in order to achieve the great things for God.

And Jesus knows this of these disciples.

And so He gives them an instruction.

Notice, after saying, "I'm going to be gone.

Where I'm going you can't come now," He says it in this way.

"I'm going where you can't go, but there is something you can do.

There is something I want you to do."

And so in verse 34, He says, /"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another."/

Now loving one another is not a new commandment.

It's all in the Old Testament.

In Deuteronomy, in Leviticus, there are many times where God gives the command to His children, to His people, to love one another, that they were to have great compassion on each other.

So in and of itself that is not the new commandment.

What is new is that Jesus qualifies this.

He says, "I want you to love one another as I have loved you."

That's new.

That's revolutionary.

And for Jesus, it's an incredibly serious statement.

This word for commandment is a Greek word that is translated sometimes instruction, sometimes charge, and sometimes commandment.

It's not just a commandment like the Ten Commandments.

It's an instruction, a charge that He has given them.

It is a particular thing He wants them to follow in order to grow, in order to fulfill God's purpose in their life.

This word is used back in the same gospel of John, back in 10:18.

Jesus speaking of Himself in the passage on being a Good Shepherd, He says, /"No one…"/ speaking of laying down His life, he says, /"No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.

I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.

This command…"/ that is that same word, /"…I have received from My Father."/

I want to just stay on that verse for a moment.

Jesus is explaining that as a Good Shepherd, He is going to lay down His life for His disciples, for His sheep, for all of those who have come to follow Him.

And notice why He is doing it.

He is doing it because it's a command He has received from the Father.

In other words, Jesus is taking very seriously the command, the charge, the instruction that is handed to Him.

So seriously in fact that He is voluntarily following it.

/"No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.

I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again."/

Jesus is saying, "When I receive a command from My Father, I take it with all seriousness.

It's a charge to My life.

And I will follow it because that is how I please the Father.