Verse 21 begins with Jesus troubled in spirit as He testified that one of the twelve disciples will betray Him. We see this expressed by the psalmist in Psalm 41: “Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me” (Psalm 41:9) – this psalm can certainly be labelled as messianic and a prophecy fulfilled in Jesus as the psalmist, David became a ‘type’ of ‘great David’s greater Son’, the Messiah.
One wonders how Judas Iscariot, who was present with Jesus when He performed the miracles and healing, and was there in the many discourses and teaching sessions by the Master, could end up as a treacherous betrayer. Could it be because of his love for money, as evidenced by his pilfering from the money bag; could it be because Jesus was not what he expected a messiah to be and he wanted to share the position and prestige that a conquering messiah would bring? The passage does reveal that Satan was involved and he worked upon the weakness and shortcomings of Judas to cause him to collaborate with him to betray the Master. Somehow, Judas, despite his privileges, did not enter into a believing relationship with the Lord Jesus. Even though Jesus washed his feet and subsequently offered him a piece of bread as a mark of friendship and probably as a final gentle expression of His love, Judas was impervious to this love and Satan entered into him, and it was a decisive movement of judgment and separation from the Master and fellow disciples.
Ponder upon the sober remarks of J.C. Ryle:
A man may preach from false motives. A man may write books, and make fine speeches, and seem diligent in good works, and yet be a Judas Iscariot. But a man seldom goes into his closet, and pours out his soul before God in secret, unless he is serious.
We have to believe that hearing from God and knowing God is our good portion and be convicted that to sit at the feet of Jesus daily is our one and best priority. We cannot afford to be like Martha, always busy with activities, in the bid to serve God and forget to be like Mary, who has chosen the one thing that is essential and needful, as the Lord Jesus revealed. By sitting at the feet of Jesus, we will grow more like Him – more patient, more loving, more thoughtful and more godly; we will grow to know Him, to love Him and to be faithful to Him no matter what the circumstances. As someone rightly said: the only thing more important than ministry is being ministered to by God. We are mindful of the dangers of legalism; when we talk about what we should do every day, we are clear that Christ has already done for us. Instead, we are focusing on devotion to Christ more than making time with Him as a priority each day. Without knowing Him and nurturing devotion to Him, all our activities, even spiritual activities, and our opportunities to be in the midst of His ministry, would avail to nothing, and all will not last for eternity; worse still, we might end up like Judas Iscariot.
The Lord Jesus had made it clear to the rest of the disciples of His fore-knowledge of one among them becoming a betrayer and this was to help them later on to know that He was and is indeed whom He claimed to be. When Peter asked John (the disciple whom Jesus loved) to ask who the betrayer was, the Lord indicated the one to whom He was offering the piece of bread. Obviously, Jesus’ communication to John was in a soft tone such that the rest of the disciples did not hear and were not aware of Judas being the one. Nonetheless, it showed not only Jesus’ foreknowledge, it also showed Him to be divine and all-knowing. Even though the Lord Jesus knew all along that Judas Iscariot was the one, He did not disclose it to His disciples, for He knew that the Father was sovereign and He would be going to the cross.
Jesus then spoke to the rest of the disciples in endearing terms, calling them “My children”, and indicating His impending departure and that they could not come along with Him. He then gave the command,
A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
The term “new” does not mean “more recent” but rather more superior and better in quality. It is new because of a new relationship; we belong to Christ’s new community and family with God as our Father. There is also a new standard: we are to love the way Jesus loves -in a sacrificial manner, putting the welfare of our brethren above our own. It is new because such a love becomes a powerful expression of the relationship we have with the Lord and with one another and a compelling proof to a lost world that Jesus is real and among us.
This is perhaps the most significant factor in evangelism and sharing the gospel -for Christ’s followers to bear the unmistakable stamp of His love. So Tertullian (a historian) reports the pagans of his day (a century after the gospel of John was published) as saying of Christians, ‘See how they love one another!’ And it was no merely superficial love that they spoke of, for they went on: “How ready they are to die for one another!’ How far we are from these early followers of Jesus! We are bickering over the smallest of things; we allow envy and jealousy to rear their heads and we are ready to ‘kill’ our brethren with our anger and bitterness. And yet we still talk about the love of Jesus and seek to share the gospel with unbelievers; let us not believe in the least that the lost world is oblivious of the lack of love among us. How it must be grieving the heart of Jesus to see His people ignoring His new command and seeking to be first among those who yearn for self-glory and recognition.
Peter then asked where the Lord was going and declared that he was ready to follow the Master, even to death. Peter spoke better than he knew. He could not lay down his life for Jesus then; he would lay it down three decades later. Peter’s boast at this point displays not only gross ignorance of human weakness but a certain independent impulsive pride that is the seed of his denial of Jesus later on. Peter’s self- assessment and intention were far above his understanding of his strength and he had to hear the pronouncement of the Lord Jesus: ‘I tell you the truth, before the cock crows, you will disown me three times!’
Let us soberly take stock of our commitment to the Lord Jesus. Let us not be presumptuous and confidently declare that we will never be unfaithful to Him. Jesus was going to the cross and as His followers, we too have a cross to carry. It is a cross that kills our sins, smashes our idols, and teaches us the foolishness of self-reliance. Only total dependence on Him and the Spirit can deliver us from our self-centredness and self-confidence and the Lord would then be pleased to bring us through the adverse circumstances and the spiritual battles that await us.