Leaving This World: John 13:1-17

Focus Passage: John 13:1-17 (NIV)

It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”

Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”

“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”

Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”

“Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

10 Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” 11 For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.

12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

Read John 13:1-17 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

This journal entry’s passage opens with a very strange phrase that challenged me when I first read it. Taken at surface value, it could be seen to conflict with another significant passage a few chapters later in John’s book. I dislike it when an author contradicts themselves, and when the Bible seems to have a contradiction like this, my reaction is to dig in and look for a smooth resolution.

In the middle of verse 1 we read, “Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.” On the surface, reading this verse leads me to believe that the cross was when Jesus left this world, since only hours later, after a really long night with no sleep, Jesus dies on the cross, and His dead body is buried. Along the same lines, Jesus’ spirit (His life breath) would have needed to go somewhere, since it was no longer with His body, so that must mean it returned to God. And then the conclusion, since Jesus is speaking from a very specific perspective, must be that Jesus left the world when His spirit returned to God following His death on the cross.

This is an easy conclusion to reach, but there is a problematic verse a few chapters later that counters this. In the garden, following Jesus’ resurrection, He tells Mary, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” (John 20:17)

Jesus directly tells Mary that He had not ascended yet, but that He was about to. This is incredibly significant, and problematic, because this means that Jesus’ death was not when He returned to the Father, but shortly (i.e. hours) after His resurrection.

I wonder if this point when Jesus returned to heaven was originally designed to be His glorious return to God and then looking back down, the Godhead realized that the remaining disciples need a little more encouragement and regrouping prompting a number of other encounters. Or, perhaps, this initial ascension was when Jesus received His new body, and then He returned temporarily to help the disciples regroup and understand what had just happened before a more official “ascension” around five or so weeks later.

So where does that leave us with John’s first challenging statement in chapter 13?

I wonder if John opens up this chapter as a grand transition into the crucifixion event, and that He includes it as a way of pulling the reader into the significance that will follow.

John’s gospel is the most detailed of the gospels surrounding Jesus’ last night before the crucifixion, and it all starts in the upper room. All of Jesus’ ministry and life were leading up to this point, and John wants us to realize who Jesus was during His last hours with them. The only time left was in that upper room, and the walk to the garden. After those few hours, when the betrayer and arrest would come, Jesus’ time with the disciples would be up.

Both these passages really push me to look at a central idea: Value the time you have right now with Jesus. We are not guaranteed future time with Him on this side of heaven, and the decisions we make today have a profound impact on that promised future.

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

Subscribe to this blog and never miss an insight.