John 15
KingCommentsJohn 15:1
If I Am Lifted up From the Earth
The Lord speaks of a new “now”. The previously used “now” refers to His coming into the world (John 5:25). The ”now” the Lord uses here refers to the cross. If the Father has spoken of the glorification of His Name in connection with the resurrection of Christ, it means the judgment of the world and the ruler of the world. The resurrection of Christ is the proof that the Father no longer has any connection with the world and that He must deliver the world to judgment as incorrigibly evil.
This new ”now” also has consequences for the devil. He will be cast out (cf. Luke 10:18; Revelation 12:9; Revelation 20:3; 10). Although it will take some time before this judgment is carried out, it is fixed by the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. For the believer this means that because of his connection with Christ in the resurrection, he no longer belongs to the area of authority of the devil.
For all His own, Christ when He hangs on the cross becomes the point of attraction. There, on the cross, He draws His own from the present evil age to Himself (Galatians 1:4). By pointing out the lifting up from the earth as the manner He will die, the Lord announces His death on the cross. Death on the cross is the only death that takes place by lifting up someone from the earth. In the same way, Scripture will be fulfilled that He will die on a tree (Deuteronomy 21:23; Galatians 3:13). With this the Lord excludes that He would be killed by stoning, the usual way of execution among the Jews.
The crowd knows that He referred to Himself as Son of Man. That title is known to them from Daniel 7 (Daniel 7:13). Now He speaks of His being lifted up. Perhaps they have understood that He spoke of the cross (John 8:28). They may also have thought of going to heaven because He spoke about that before (John 6:62). In any case, they know from the law that the Christ, once He is on earth, will always remain on His throne on earth (Psalms 89:4; 36; Isaiah 9:6-7; Daniel 7:14). This does not involve a lifting up on the cross or a going to heaven. So could He be the Son of Man? And if He was not, then Who is He?
Their reasoning always leads them in the wrong direction, because they do not know – and do not want to know either – about a suffering Son of Man. That is because they forget what is written in Psalms 8 (Psalms 8:5a). There it says that He is to be made “a little lower than the angels”, as the Darby Translation says in Psalms 8:5a. From Hebrews 2 we know that this is because of the suffering of death (Hebrews 2:9).
John 15:2
Last Call to Believe in the Light
Instead of answering their curious question, the Lord points out that they only have a short time left to escape darkness. Now He is still with them as the Light. Let them take refuge in Him and walk in the Light. Then the darkness of the night will not overtake them with the result that they will become completely disoriented. In His Person they have the Light with them.
He summons them to believe in Him. Then they will become sons of Light, people who are characterized by light because they came forth from it (Luke 16:8; Ephesians 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:5). Then they will understand everything He has said and they themselves will spread light to others (Matthew 5:14; Philippians 2:15). After this invitation, the Lord withdraws from them and they can no longer find Him.
John 15:3
Last Call to Believe in the Light
Instead of answering their curious question, the Lord points out that they only have a short time left to escape darkness. Now He is still with them as the Light. Let them take refuge in Him and walk in the Light. Then the darkness of the night will not overtake them with the result that they will become completely disoriented. In His Person they have the Light with them.
He summons them to believe in Him. Then they will become sons of Light, people who are characterized by light because they came forth from it (Luke 16:8; Ephesians 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:5). Then they will understand everything He has said and they themselves will spread light to others (Matthew 5:14; Philippians 2:15). After this invitation, the Lord withdraws from them and they can no longer find Him.
John 15:4
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:5
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:6
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:7
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:8
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:9
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:10
The Unbelief of the People
Here it is clearly stated that all the signs of the Lord did not bring them to believe in Him (cf. Matthew 11:20). This is not surprising, because it is foretold. The rejection of Him in spite of His many signs in their presence is a fulfillment of the word of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). In his days Isaiah preached and spoke about the power of Yahweh for the benefit of His people. However, the people did not listen and rejected Yahweh. John now applies this word of Isaiah to the Lord Jesus, yes, he even says that this word of Isaiah now has its fulfillment.
With this quote John asks the Lord, as it were, in amazement, whether the preaching of God’s prophets and those of the Lord Jesus in particular have had any result, despite the revelation of the power of Christ to His people. There is an answer to that question. This answer also comes from Isaiah. Isaiah says that God has blinded the eyes of His people and hardened their hearts (Isaiah 6:9-10). This judgment of hardening is the result of their absolute refusal to obey God. They have rejected both Him and His word. This is how it was in the days of Isaiah and this is how it is with the Lord Jesus. The people do not want to believe.
Then, at a certain moment, God determines that the people can no longer believe. He seals their choice. This same word of Isaiah about hardening is also found when the people rejected the testimony of the glorified Christ (Acts 28:25-27). Thus we see that the triune God is rejected: 1. In Isaiah 6 it is Yahweh of hosts. 2. Here, in John 12, it concerns the Lord Jesus. 3. In Acts 28 it is about the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
Following his quotation from Isaiah, John states that Isaiah, when he spoke of Yahweh, in fact spoke of the Lord Jesus. With this we have a clear and powerful proof that the Lord Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus is God and wherever God reveals Himself in the Old Testament, He does so in His Son. It cannot be said more clearly than John does here. What glory did Isaiah see? He saw “the King, the LORD [Hebrew: Yahweh] of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). And John says here that Isaiah spoke of Him, that is of the Lord Jesus. What a wonderful testimony!
The judgment of hardening has come on the people as a whole. And it had to come, because although even many of the rulers believe in Him, they do so without really confessing Him. They do not confess Him according to the truth of His Person, because they only recognize in Him someone who does signs. They admire Him secretly, but do not confess Him openly because they are afraid of the Pharisees. If the Pharisees would sense an admiration for Him, they would be put out of the synagogue. And that they wouldn’t risk. The real reason they do not openly confess Christ is that they are focused on the approval of men rather than on the approval of God. The approval of God is on the second plan, the approval of people on the first.
John 15:11
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:12
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:13
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:14
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:15
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:16
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:17
Final Testimony
As a final testimony, the Lord calls that believing in Him is not possible without believing in the Father. It is as it were a summary of His whole service in this Gospel in the midst of His people and the world. It is about His Sender. It is not possible to seek His honor and not the honor of God. Believing in Him means believing in Him Who sent Him. Believing in Him only for His signs is not a belief that gives eternal life. He who looks closely at Him, that is to say in faith, sees the Father Who sent Him. The Lord again places the greatest emphasis on His unity with His Father.
Once again He points to Himself as Light that has come into the world to save people from darkness. This is what happens to everyone who believes in Him. Whoever hears His words but ignores them will not immediately be judged by Him. That is not the purpose for which He came to earth. He did not come to judge, but to save the world (John 3:17). Will someone then be able to reject Him with impunity and pass by His word? No, such a person will certainly be judged at the last day.
The standard by which he will be judged is the word the Lord has spoken. It will be clearly stated in the light that such a person has heard the word of the Lord, but consciously disregarded it. It is the word, the ‘logos’, that He has spoken, not the words. By pointing at the ‘logos’ as the means by which He judges, He points at Himself. He is the ‘logos’, a word that indicates that He is what He speaks. The ‘logos’, that is the Son Who has revealed Himself through His word, judges man. The severity of the rejection of Him as the ‘logos’ is that with the word of the Son also the word of the Father Who sent Him is rejected. The Son, in His speaking and acting, is perfectly subject to His Father. He is so one with the Father that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father.
For the second time the Lord Jesus speaks here of a commandment that He has received from His Father. The first commandment the Father has given Him is to lay down His life and to take it again (John 10:17-18). This second commandment concerns everything the Father has told Him to say and to speak. He knows what He speaks about and what the words of the Father mean. He knows those words perfectly. There is nothing hidden to Him in what the Father has told Him to speak. He fully subscribes to those words. He does not pass them on mechanically, but with complete agreement and corresponding sentiments.
He knows that the commandment means eternal life for everyone who accepts it. That is why He has spoken everything in the way the Father has told Him in the personal conversation He has had with Him and has not chosen His own form of presentation. He has not gone beyond the words the Father has told Him. He has said exactly that and no more than that because only those words are perfectly attuned to the hearers.
John 15:19
Endless Love
The Lord has withdrawn with His disciples to be alone with them. He wants to open His heart to them and tell them Who His Father is for them. Now that He is about to leave them, He wants to tell them in various ways what their new position before God the Father and in the world is in contrast to their position in Israel. Therefore He has moved into the upper room of a house in Jerusalem. In that upper room He wants to celebrate the Passover with them.
In the other Gospels we read about the preparations for this and get to know the outer circumstances of the Passover (Luke 22:8-13). John does not occupy himself with that. He describes a different kind of preparation. He writes about the spirit or mind in which the Lord gathers His own to celebrate it. In a special way he gives us a taste of the atmosphere of Divine love in which this event takes place. This preparation is done by the Lord Himself. He does this in full awareness of the fact that His hour has come (John 12:23; John 17:1; cf. John 2:4; John 7:30; John 8:20).
Christ is the only Man with Whom nothing ever happens unexpected. He knows everything perfectly in advance. That His hour has come means that He will die on the cross, rejected by men and forsaken by His God. Yet John does not speak about that. What John says about the end of Christ’s life on earth fits his Gospel. John does not describe the wickedness of man or satan, nor God’s wrath over sin, but tells us about the Son’s departure from the world back to the Father. This is what preoccupies the Lord Jesus and what forms the background of the coming chapters.
It is all about the Father and what the Son’s going to the Father means to His disciples as objects of His love. Everything is known and felt by Him in the presence of the Father. That is why His going to the Father out of this world is directly connected with His love for His own who are in the world.
We have also read about “His own” in the beginning of this Gospel (John 1:11). There it is about His people Israel as His own, but that they, His people, did not receive Him. Now John speaks again about ”His own”. That is not His people as a whole, but it is they from His people who have received Him. They are truly His, they belong to Him, they are His sheep.
To them, His departure to the Father means a great loss. How lonely they will feel in a hostile world. The Lord Jesus is aware of this and therefore He will leave them with an impressive proof of His love for them, a love that will be there to the end. The proof of that tremendous love certainly concerns His work on the cross. We can think of an infinite depth of love.
His love also extends lengthwise, into the future, for it is a love of which, no matter how far we look, the end cannot be seen. That is what John means when he writes about “loved them to the end”. If we can think of something having an end, His love goes beyond that. No matter how far we can look into the future, His love is there too. Whatever misery and sorrow we may experience, His love goes deeper. The measure of this love cannot be fathomed or measured. We can only experience and admire this love.
John 15:20
Preparation for Washing of the Feet
After the introductory words about His going to the Father and His love for His own, we now come to the scene of the washing of the feet during the Passover. But first John mentions what the devil managed to do in the heart of Judas. This shows us the great contrast between the Lord’s actions and those of Judas. The Lord acts by the Spirit of love for the Father and His own, while Judas has opened himself to the devil. The Lord Jesus gives Himself for others; Judas betrays the Lord out of his own interest.
When the supper has begun, the Lord gets up from supper to serve His own. While He gets up to do so, He is fully aware of His connection with His Father. As the Son of the Father, He knows that He has received all things into His hands, just as He knows that He will soon fall into the hands of depraved people. It is therefore impressive to realize that He Who gets up to serve the disciples is the eternal Son Who, as Man, receives all things from his Father’s hands in order to share them with those who participate in His death and resurrection.
It is also noticeable that John 13:3 speaks of both “the Father” and “God”. When we read the name “Father” it is usually in connection with our privileges, with our blessings. When we read the name ”God” it is usually in connection with our responsibility.
The Lord Jesus knows that He came from God. His purpose was to serve God on earth. He knows that He fulfilled that service perfectly to God’s glory and thereby answered His responsibility entirely. That is why He can go back to God. This relationship of the Son to His Father and His God is the starting point for the washing of the feet. The Son wants us to share with Him what He received from the Father and what He did for God. For that we need the washing of our feet.
Fellowship with the Son in what the Father has given Him can only be possible if we are aware that that Father is also the holy God in Whose presence nothing can exist that has to do with sin. Nobody is more aware of that than the Son. He knows His Father and God in a perfect way, and He knows exactly how His Father and God values Him. Therefore, no one but He can do the cleansing of defilements which enables a person to partake with Him. That is why He gets up from supper and lays aside His garments. Symbolically He renounces all glory that His God and Father has given Him.
Then we read that He takes a towel. He does that with the very hands in which the Father has placed all things. He does not use His hands to exercise power, but to serve. He uses His hands to wash the feet of His disciples. Then He girds Himself with the towel He has taken. Girding points to serving (Luke 12:37; Luke 17:8). By what He does to His disciples, He gives us an unforgettable lesson in humility. It seems that Peter has understood that lesson (1 Peter 5:5).
John 15:21
Preparation for Washing of the Feet
After the introductory words about His going to the Father and His love for His own, we now come to the scene of the washing of the feet during the Passover. But first John mentions what the devil managed to do in the heart of Judas. This shows us the great contrast between the Lord’s actions and those of Judas. The Lord acts by the Spirit of love for the Father and His own, while Judas has opened himself to the devil. The Lord Jesus gives Himself for others; Judas betrays the Lord out of his own interest.
When the supper has begun, the Lord gets up from supper to serve His own. While He gets up to do so, He is fully aware of His connection with His Father. As the Son of the Father, He knows that He has received all things into His hands, just as He knows that He will soon fall into the hands of depraved people. It is therefore impressive to realize that He Who gets up to serve the disciples is the eternal Son Who, as Man, receives all things from his Father’s hands in order to share them with those who participate in His death and resurrection.
It is also noticeable that John 13:3 speaks of both “the Father” and “God”. When we read the name “Father” it is usually in connection with our privileges, with our blessings. When we read the name ”God” it is usually in connection with our responsibility.
The Lord Jesus knows that He came from God. His purpose was to serve God on earth. He knows that He fulfilled that service perfectly to God’s glory and thereby answered His responsibility entirely. That is why He can go back to God. This relationship of the Son to His Father and His God is the starting point for the washing of the feet. The Son wants us to share with Him what He received from the Father and what He did for God. For that we need the washing of our feet.
Fellowship with the Son in what the Father has given Him can only be possible if we are aware that that Father is also the holy God in Whose presence nothing can exist that has to do with sin. Nobody is more aware of that than the Son. He knows His Father and God in a perfect way, and He knows exactly how His Father and God values Him. Therefore, no one but He can do the cleansing of defilements which enables a person to partake with Him. That is why He gets up from supper and lays aside His garments. Symbolically He renounces all glory that His God and Father has given Him.
Then we read that He takes a towel. He does that with the very hands in which the Father has placed all things. He does not use His hands to exercise power, but to serve. He uses His hands to wash the feet of His disciples. Then He girds Himself with the towel He has taken. Girding points to serving (Luke 12:37; Luke 17:8). By what He does to His disciples, He gives us an unforgettable lesson in humility. It seems that Peter has understood that lesson (1 Peter 5:5).
John 15:22
Preparation for Washing of the Feet
After the introductory words about His going to the Father and His love for His own, we now come to the scene of the washing of the feet during the Passover. But first John mentions what the devil managed to do in the heart of Judas. This shows us the great contrast between the Lord’s actions and those of Judas. The Lord acts by the Spirit of love for the Father and His own, while Judas has opened himself to the devil. The Lord Jesus gives Himself for others; Judas betrays the Lord out of his own interest.
When the supper has begun, the Lord gets up from supper to serve His own. While He gets up to do so, He is fully aware of His connection with His Father. As the Son of the Father, He knows that He has received all things into His hands, just as He knows that He will soon fall into the hands of depraved people. It is therefore impressive to realize that He Who gets up to serve the disciples is the eternal Son Who, as Man, receives all things from his Father’s hands in order to share them with those who participate in His death and resurrection.
It is also noticeable that John 13:3 speaks of both “the Father” and “God”. When we read the name “Father” it is usually in connection with our privileges, with our blessings. When we read the name ”God” it is usually in connection with our responsibility.
The Lord Jesus knows that He came from God. His purpose was to serve God on earth. He knows that He fulfilled that service perfectly to God’s glory and thereby answered His responsibility entirely. That is why He can go back to God. This relationship of the Son to His Father and His God is the starting point for the washing of the feet. The Son wants us to share with Him what He received from the Father and what He did for God. For that we need the washing of our feet.
Fellowship with the Son in what the Father has given Him can only be possible if we are aware that that Father is also the holy God in Whose presence nothing can exist that has to do with sin. Nobody is more aware of that than the Son. He knows His Father and God in a perfect way, and He knows exactly how His Father and God values Him. Therefore, no one but He can do the cleansing of defilements which enables a person to partake with Him. That is why He gets up from supper and lays aside His garments. Symbolically He renounces all glory that His God and Father has given Him.
Then we read that He takes a towel. He does that with the very hands in which the Father has placed all things. He does not use His hands to exercise power, but to serve. He uses His hands to wash the feet of His disciples. Then He girds Himself with the towel He has taken. Girding points to serving (Luke 12:37; Luke 17:8). By what He does to His disciples, He gives us an unforgettable lesson in humility. It seems that Peter has understood that lesson (1 Peter 5:5).
John 15:23
The Washing of the Feet
When the Lord has prepared Himself for His servant work, He pours water into the basin and begins to wash the feet of the disciples and wipe them with the towel with which He has girded Himself. The washing of the feet by the Lord has a spiritual meaning. The Lord serves here as a Slave. When He became Man, He took the form of a Slave (Philippians 2:7). He will never give up this position and service of Slave (Luke 12:37; Exodus 21:5-6).
We might think that He stopped being a Slave when He entered glory. He shows us here that this is not the case. He begins a new service among His own that consists of removing the uncleanness they have acquired in their wanderings through the world. For this purification He uses the Word of God which is compared with water (Ephesians 5:26; John 15:3). When we read God’s Word, it has the effect that our thoughts are cleansed. If we have things in our life that are wrong, He makes us aware through His Word. We can then confess that and remove it. That is the cleansing He works.
For this cleansing, the Lord uses water, not blood. It is about presenting the truth, that is, God’s Word as that which cleanses. The blood has more the aspect of reconciliation. He uses the Word to cleanse those who are already reconciled by the blood. The blood cleanses in relation to God, the water cleanses in relation to the believer. The blood is applied just once. God always recognizes its value. The effect is eternal. The believer is sanctified by the blood once and for all (Hebrews 9:12; Hebrews 10:14). The application of the blood never needs to be repeated, just as no one once born of God needs to be born of God again.
After the Lord has washed their feet, He wipes them with the towel with which He was girded. Wiping also has an important spiritual meaning. Wiping the feet means getting rid of the memory of the cleansing. When someone has been cleansed of a sin by the Lord through His Word, He does not come back to it. This is also important for believers among themselves. If a believer sins and someone else points this out to him and the sin is confessed, then that sin is gone. That sin may not be brought to mind as an accusation of the other again.
John 15:24
Having Part With the Lord Jesus
When the Lord comes to Peter to wash his feet, Peter objects. He finds it inappropriate that the Lord is going to wash his feet. He is the Lord, isn’t He? Then it cannot be so that He, the Lord, bows down before him. Peter reveals here a trait of character that many of us also have. Sometimes we refuse to perform this humble service ourselves, and sometimes we refuse such a service to be performed to us, but we will motivate our refusal in a different way than Peter does here. Such an attitude shows that we don’t mind sin all that much. We must learn – and it must penetrate deeply to us by what the Lord is doing here – that the defilement we incur by our going through the world is so bad that nothing less than Christ in His humiliation can cleanse us from it.
The Lord answers Peter that he does not yet know what He is doing, but that he will understand it hereafter. By this he means that Peter will only fully understand the meaning when the Holy Spirit has come. It may also be possible that the Lord is pointing ahead of His statement after the foot washing. Another consideration is that Peter will understand the spiritual meaning once he is restored by the Lord after his denial of the Lord.
Peter is not very much impressed by the words of the Lord. He does not moderate his tone, but vigorously contradicts Him. He will never cooperate with what he considers to be too humiliating an act for the Lord. With similar powerful statements, Peter also said that the Lord would not suffer and die (Matthew 16:21-23). He speaks without self-knowledge and without knowledge of the Lord. The Lord tells him the consequences if He does not wash him. Then He will have no part with Him.
The Lord does not say: ‘You have no part of Me’. Every believer has part of Him. The Lord spoke of “no part with Me”. This means that a believer has part with Him in all that is His part, that is all that the Father has given Him (John 13:3). From eternity He always has everything in His hands as the eternal Son and the Creator. But He has become Man and now as Man He will possess what has always been His possession as the eternal Son. This has made it possible to share it with people. In this way we have received life from Him because He is life.
In order to have part with the Son in that which He has received as Man, it is necessary that the believer is cleansed of everything that defiles Him. We don’t even have to think about specific sins, although sins are of course an obstacle to fully enjoy with the Son what the Father has given Him. It’s about becoming defiled merely by the fact of our going through the world. It’s about a defilement which we cannot do anything about, but that is nevertheless there. The Lord Jesus washes the feet of the disciples because they have inevitably become dirty from walking through the streets of Jerusalem.
In the same way, we too become defiled spiritually when we go through the world. Unsolicited or unintentionally we see and hear things every day that defile our mind and can influence our thoughts. That makes their daily cleansing necessary (2 Corinthians 7:1). We undergo this daily cleansing when we read God’s Word in prayer. Our mind and thoughts are washed clean by reading God’s Word. No believer can do without it. This service of cleansing is what the Lord Jesus does to us when we read His Word. He can also do this by someone we hear preaching or applying God’s Word in a meeting, or when someone comes to us and draws our attention to something in God’s Word.
John 15:25
Having Part With the Lord Jesus
When the Lord comes to Peter to wash his feet, Peter objects. He finds it inappropriate that the Lord is going to wash his feet. He is the Lord, isn’t He? Then it cannot be so that He, the Lord, bows down before him. Peter reveals here a trait of character that many of us also have. Sometimes we refuse to perform this humble service ourselves, and sometimes we refuse such a service to be performed to us, but we will motivate our refusal in a different way than Peter does here. Such an attitude shows that we don’t mind sin all that much. We must learn – and it must penetrate deeply to us by what the Lord is doing here – that the defilement we incur by our going through the world is so bad that nothing less than Christ in His humiliation can cleanse us from it.
The Lord answers Peter that he does not yet know what He is doing, but that he will understand it hereafter. By this he means that Peter will only fully understand the meaning when the Holy Spirit has come. It may also be possible that the Lord is pointing ahead of His statement after the foot washing. Another consideration is that Peter will understand the spiritual meaning once he is restored by the Lord after his denial of the Lord.
Peter is not very much impressed by the words of the Lord. He does not moderate his tone, but vigorously contradicts Him. He will never cooperate with what he considers to be too humiliating an act for the Lord. With similar powerful statements, Peter also said that the Lord would not suffer and die (Matthew 16:21-23). He speaks without self-knowledge and without knowledge of the Lord. The Lord tells him the consequences if He does not wash him. Then He will have no part with Him.
The Lord does not say: ‘You have no part of Me’. Every believer has part of Him. The Lord spoke of “no part with Me”. This means that a believer has part with Him in all that is His part, that is all that the Father has given Him (John 13:3). From eternity He always has everything in His hands as the eternal Son and the Creator. But He has become Man and now as Man He will possess what has always been His possession as the eternal Son. This has made it possible to share it with people. In this way we have received life from Him because He is life.
In order to have part with the Son in that which He has received as Man, it is necessary that the believer is cleansed of everything that defiles Him. We don’t even have to think about specific sins, although sins are of course an obstacle to fully enjoy with the Son what the Father has given Him. It’s about becoming defiled merely by the fact of our going through the world. It’s about a defilement which we cannot do anything about, but that is nevertheless there. The Lord Jesus washes the feet of the disciples because they have inevitably become dirty from walking through the streets of Jerusalem.
In the same way, we too become defiled spiritually when we go through the world. Unsolicited or unintentionally we see and hear things every day that defile our mind and can influence our thoughts. That makes their daily cleansing necessary (2 Corinthians 7:1). We undergo this daily cleansing when we read God’s Word in prayer. Our mind and thoughts are washed clean by reading God’s Word. No believer can do without it. This service of cleansing is what the Lord Jesus does to us when we read His Word. He can also do this by someone we hear preaching or applying God’s Word in a meeting, or when someone comes to us and draws our attention to something in God’s Word.
John 15:26
Having Part With the Lord Jesus
When the Lord comes to Peter to wash his feet, Peter objects. He finds it inappropriate that the Lord is going to wash his feet. He is the Lord, isn’t He? Then it cannot be so that He, the Lord, bows down before him. Peter reveals here a trait of character that many of us also have. Sometimes we refuse to perform this humble service ourselves, and sometimes we refuse such a service to be performed to us, but we will motivate our refusal in a different way than Peter does here. Such an attitude shows that we don’t mind sin all that much. We must learn – and it must penetrate deeply to us by what the Lord is doing here – that the defilement we incur by our going through the world is so bad that nothing less than Christ in His humiliation can cleanse us from it.
The Lord answers Peter that he does not yet know what He is doing, but that he will understand it hereafter. By this he means that Peter will only fully understand the meaning when the Holy Spirit has come. It may also be possible that the Lord is pointing ahead of His statement after the foot washing. Another consideration is that Peter will understand the spiritual meaning once he is restored by the Lord after his denial of the Lord.
Peter is not very much impressed by the words of the Lord. He does not moderate his tone, but vigorously contradicts Him. He will never cooperate with what he considers to be too humiliating an act for the Lord. With similar powerful statements, Peter also said that the Lord would not suffer and die (Matthew 16:21-23). He speaks without self-knowledge and without knowledge of the Lord. The Lord tells him the consequences if He does not wash him. Then He will have no part with Him.
The Lord does not say: ‘You have no part of Me’. Every believer has part of Him. The Lord spoke of “no part with Me”. This means that a believer has part with Him in all that is His part, that is all that the Father has given Him (John 13:3). From eternity He always has everything in His hands as the eternal Son and the Creator. But He has become Man and now as Man He will possess what has always been His possession as the eternal Son. This has made it possible to share it with people. In this way we have received life from Him because He is life.
In order to have part with the Son in that which He has received as Man, it is necessary that the believer is cleansed of everything that defiles Him. We don’t even have to think about specific sins, although sins are of course an obstacle to fully enjoy with the Son what the Father has given Him. It’s about becoming defiled merely by the fact of our going through the world. It’s about a defilement which we cannot do anything about, but that is nevertheless there. The Lord Jesus washes the feet of the disciples because they have inevitably become dirty from walking through the streets of Jerusalem.
In the same way, we too become defiled spiritually when we go through the world. Unsolicited or unintentionally we see and hear things every day that defile our mind and can influence our thoughts. That makes their daily cleansing necessary (2 Corinthians 7:1). We undergo this daily cleansing when we read God’s Word in prayer. Our mind and thoughts are washed clean by reading God’s Word. No believer can do without it. This service of cleansing is what the Lord Jesus does to us when we read His Word. He can also do this by someone we hear preaching or applying God’s Word in a meeting, or when someone comes to us and draws our attention to something in God’s Word.
John 15:27
Completely Clean, but Not All of Them
When the Lord has told him this, Peter falls into the other extreme. He wants the Lord not only to wash his feet, but also his hands and his head. But that is not what is meant either. The Lord responds to Peter’s exaggerated reaction by giving further important teaching, as He always does after statements or reactions that demonstrate how much His words are misunderstood. He is a Teacher full of patience.
He declares to Peter – and to us! – that there are two forms of washing. There is a one-time washing of the whole body. This is what happened during our conversion (1 Corinthians 6:11; Titus 3:5). It is the one-time spiritual renewal through the Word and the working of the Spirit that is not repeated (John 3:3-6). It is the receiving of new life through which we have become children of God. Who once is a child of God, cannot become a child of God a second time. After that it is necessary to wash the feet regularly. This regular washing also takes place through the Word (Psalms 119:9).
We have a picture of both forms of washing in what happened to the priests in the Old Testament. When a son of Aaron was ordained a priest, he was washed completely on that occasion (Leviticus 8:6). That act was not repeated. When the priest entered the sanctuary to serve, he had to wash his hands and feet from the laver (Exodus 30:19). He had to do this every time he entered the sanctuary to serve.
This repeated act is what the Lord represents here in the foot washing. Only here it is not a matter of washing the hands, but of washing the feet, because the feet speak of walking and that affects our entire behavior. In the picture of the service in the tabernacle, we see that the washing of the feet is the preparation for entering the first part of the sanctuary, the holy place, in John 14-16, and entering the holy of holies in John 17.
In His teaching to the disciples, the Lord says that a person who is completely washed, is completely clean and needs only to have his feet washed. However, there is an exception among the disciples, someone to whom all this teaching about foot washing does not apply. There is one among them who is not completely clean because he is not completely washed, i.e. because he has not been converted and has no new life. The Lord knows that one exception and He also knows what is in the heart of that disciple. The heart of that disciple is not connected with His heart. There is no life connection between Him and that disciple. Therefore, what He said does not apply to a man like Judas.