Jesus had just finished washing the feet of the disciples, teaching them that to truly be the greatest in the Kingdom, you must be the servant of all. Now they are all laying again on their sides leaning on their left elbows, getting ready to have the meal.
John 13:18
I am not saying these things to all of you; I know the ones I have chosen. But this fulfills the Scripture that says, ‘The one who eats my food has turned against me.’ (literally lifts up his heel against me, kicked me like a mule)
Is Jesus saying he did not choose Judas? Jesus washed his feet, sent him out to heal and bring the good news, and placed him in charge of the funds. Jesus chose Judas and gave him every opportunity to believe. He realized that Judas had embraced the darkness rather than the light.
John 6:70
Then Jesus said, “I chose the twelve of you, but one is a devil.”
We must understand Jesus will go to the cross for the whole world, effectively choosing everyone, but some will reject His choosing. It is not that God is not sovereign enough or strong enough to hold him but he loves enough to give him choice. Peter totally rejected Jesus but chose to seek redemption….Judas certainly could of as well. No matter who the people are in your life, God has chosen them, they can choose to reject Him but it is our job to help them understand that God has a plan and purpose for their lives.
John 13:19
I tell you this beforehand, so that when it happens you will believe that I AM the Messiah.
Please understand Jesus is not making this happen, He knows it is going to so he is telling them what is about to happen so they will understand, Jesus uses the “I AM” phrase to remind them that he is God and everything is the way He knows it will be because he knows everything.
John 13:20
I tell you the truth, anyone who welcomes my messenger is welcoming me, and anyone who welcomes me is welcoming the Father who sent me.”
Jesus was encouraging the disciples and you and I that anyone who welcomes us is welcoming in Jesus and the Father. We bring Jesus and the Father with us wherever we go, do you realize that?
John 13:21
Now Jesus was deeply troubled, and he exclaimed, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me!”
This gives us some insight into Jesus’ love for Judas. The foot washing should help us understand that despite what Jesus knew Judas was going to do, He still loved and served him through foot washing. This phrase “deeply troubled” means Jesus was troubled deep in His spirit; he was heartbroken for Judas. It is the same feeling he had in John 11 when he saw Mary weeping and when he was speaking to the people about his soon crucifixion.
Despite Judas’ actions, Jesus loved him. It is the same way He feels about us when we choose not to trust Him, to reject Him, or to turn away from Him, and do our own thing.
John 13:22-25
The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean. 23 The disciple Jesus loved was sitting next to Jesus at the table. 24 Simon Peter motioned to him to ask, “Who’s he talking about?” 25 So that disciple leaned over to Jesus and asked, “Lord, who is it?”
To us, Judas is the betrayer, we know the story but for the most part Judas must have tried to fit in, to go along with everything Jesus did. He helped feed the 15,000 people and saw the miracle at his hands. He blended in so well even after 3 ½ years of being together the discples had no clue he would betray Jesus.
In the parable of the mustard tree Mark 4:30-32
Jesus explains that evil will be in the midst of the kingdom of God here on earth. We need to be wise, not afraid just wise!
John 13: 26-30
Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.” And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. 27 When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.” 28 None of the others at the table knew what Jesus meant. 29 Since Judas was their treasurer, some thought Jesus was telling him to go and pay for the food or to give some money to the poor. 30 So Judas left at once, going out into the night.
OK, Jesus just told them the one I give food to is my betrayer! They still didn’t get it….here are a couple reasons why
– They still didn’t believe any of them could betray Jesus
– Judas was seated in a way that Jesus could easily feed him (In Middle Eastern tradition, they have flatbread that they dip into a common bowl, like chips and dip)
– Judas was seated in the place of honor or where an honored guest would sit. I believe Jesus did this to encourage Judas that he was loved
Judas fought all of Jesus’ love, rejecting Him at every turn to satisfy his own wants, thus completely submitting to Satan’s authority and becoming possessed by him.
Jesus is completely in control of every aspect of his death and resurrection. Judas, Satan, the Jewish leadership, none of them are calling the shots. Jesus is! The Jewish leadership wanted him arrested and put to death but not on a holiday as that would create unrest for the Romans. But Jesus would be the Passover lamb and he would remain in the grave for three days and three nights and arise again on the festival of first fruits, fulfilling that celebration as he is the first fruits where he has become the first making away for us to enter into heaven as he is the first fruit of righteousness.
Judas’s going out in the night was emblematic. He was swallowed up by darkness, leaving the light of the world the antithesis of darkness!
But Jesus’ heartbreak is not over yet!
John 13:31,32
As soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, “The time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory, and God will be glorified because of him. 32 And since God receives glory because of the Son, he will give his own glory to the Son, and he will do so at once.
Jesus is saying everything has now been launched that the crucifixion will happen and mankind will be redeemed just as the Father had planned. Jesus’ willingness to go to the cross because of His great love for us brings glory to both the Father and the Son!
John 13:33-35
Dear children, I will be with you only a little longer. And as I told the Jewish leaders, you will search for me, but you can’t come where I am going. 34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
This is the only time in this Gospel that Jesus uses the term “Little children,” as it means here. He is addressing them with this term of love so they will pay attention, as he doesn’t have much more time to speak to them before his crucifixion. Their ears perked up as he made this address because of that term.
The commandment to love one another was not new, Leviticus 19:18 but his directive and implication is.
Jesus is telling his disciples love one another as Jesus loved. Jesus’ love for God was expressed in perfect obedience; now this kind of love was his command—that disciples express their love for Jesus in committed obedience.
John 14:31
but I will do what the Father requires of me, so that the world will know that I love the Father.
We often get caught up in grace and forget that God calls us to act in obedience. There are things accepted in our culture that are not accepted by the Lord and Jesus is calling His church to be different from the world.
Jesus in telling them he will only be with them a little longer, peaked their curiosity. They had just seen the tens of thousands sing his praises and proclaim him Lord and King. They must have thought, “This is it Jesus is going to remove both the Romans and the Jewish leaders and become king over Israel” So Jesus saying he was only going to be with them a little longer confused them.
John 13: 36-38
Simon Peter asked, “Lord, where are you going?”
And Jesus replied, “You can’t go with me now, but you will follow me later.”
37 “But why can’t I come now, Lord?” he asked. “I’m ready to die for you.”
38 Jesus answered, “Die for me? I tell you the truth, Peter—before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.
Jesus was telling them they would enter heaven to be with Him at a later date! But not now, Peter being quite brave proclaimed if a battle is going to be fought for your Kingdom, I am willing to die for it and you.
Jesus corrects Peter, one of the inner circle of those closest to Him, with heartbreak, again saying you think you would die for me, but in truth, when push comes to shove, you will deny me rather than die for me or with me. Peter, your great strength has become your weakness, your courage to follow me to the trials is going to lead you to your denial of me.
Jesus is totally God and totally man and two of those closest to Him will stab him in the back.
Most of us at one time or another have had that happen. Jesus’ response was not vengeance; it wasn’t even anger, but it was still love. We will see later that He forgave and restored Peter. Peter’s denial caused him to lose his position among the 11 temporarily. I believe because of His reaction to Peter, He would have even walked Judas through restoration and forgiveness if Judas would have given Him the chance.
No matter what you have done, Jesus wants to restore you. No matter how far away you have gone. Jesus wants to forgive and restore you.
Jesus’ call is also to obedience and we need to choose to forgive those who we believe or who actually have harmed us….we don’t need to necessarily go back into relationship with them depending on the type of harm but we must choose to forgive….this is part of that obedience to love one another Christ has called us to!
It will heal your heartbreak! Today, begin to walk that road and walk in healing and freedom