John 13 Devotions by Stephen Taylor

John 13:1

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 unmatched and unwavering love of Christ is a blessing beyond words. His love did not change even though He knew that the cross lay before Him, His disciples would desert Him, and that the weight of every sin would be upon Him. The path Christ walked did not change how He loved; does it change ours?

It can be so easy to let feeling or circumstance dictate and direct how we love. On the easier days, I may show my love to you more, and on the harder days, I may show it to you less, but my brothers and sister, this just shouldn’t be. Christ’s love did and will not change nor shift because of circumstances or obstacles, and ours shouldn’t either. His love is not based upon feeling or emotion; it is not based upon our successes or our failures; it is not based upon anything in this world but based upon the One who created it! His love is beautiful, perfect, and powerful because it is based upon Him and all that He is.

If we desire our love to be pleasing and powerful, then our love must be based upon Him as well! He must be the spring that fills us if we want to pour from Him. This world offers us love, at a price; if you do for me, then I will do for you, but that’s not Christ’s love at all. Christ’s love gave to us when we had nothing to give back; it didn’t come as an ultimatum but as the ultimate sacrifice.

This verse is so powerful in reminding us that His love held true to the end. At no point did He ever stop loving His disciples, and if He never stopped loving them, then we too can rejoice and rest in His love. For He does not change, nor does His love waver, but it is as steadfast and eternal as He is, because our God is love! Thank You, Jesus! Lord, please help us to remain steadfast in our love as You did. Equip and anoint us to walk in Your ways!

1 John 4:15,16- If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them, and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

God bless! I love you all, but His love is eternal! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

John 13:13-16

“You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.”

This is still true for us today! Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to earth and humbly served those around Him. We, too, must follow in our King’s footsteps. Most of us who have been walking with the Lord for a little while understand this, but do we understand what we’re saying to the Lord when we refuse to do what He did? In essence, we are saying that we are above Him by refusing to serve, love, and live like He does. We are saying, “I know You did it, Jesus, but that’s just not for me; it’s below me.”

We may not view it that way or intend it to be that way, but my friends, that’s exactly what we’re saying. Christ makes a point to remind us here that if He did, then we must do it also. He reminds us to remember our place and His. He is greater than all, yet became less than all to save all who would come to Him and serve even those who would turn on Him.

Obviously, these verses are talking about serving one another humbly, but I think they point to more than that as well. Christ has set the example in every area, not just some, and we must follow Him in all of them. We can’t pick or choose where we follow Christ and how we follow Christ. Peter did, and he wound up heartbroken weeping as they took Jesus towards the cross. Thankfully, our God is merciful and brought Peter back to Himself, but when we try to determine how we will follow Him, it’s disastrous. So today, let’s follow His example in every way and know that there is a blessing in the end, and let us always do it for the glory of God!

John 13:17- Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

God bless! I love you all, but His love set the example! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

John 13:23

Lying back on Jesus’ chest was one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.

Are we resting on and in Christ today? Some days we may feel like we’re totally connected and walking in the Spirit, and other days, we may feel like we’re floating out in nowhere land. But that’s the problem with feelings. They can sometimes lie to us.

What we’re feeling never has and never will determine who He is! It’s easy for the enemy to get in our heads and convince us that we’re not good enough for the LORD or say, “How dare you sin! Now He won’t accept you!” Those are lies straight from Hell.

I think of this disciple leaning on Christ; he was a sinner saved by grace, just like us! He wasn’t perfect, and the righteousness he had wasn’t earned but given through his Lord and Savior, just like us! Many scholars say that this disciple is John. Yes, the same John who wanted to rain down fire on those who rejected Jesus. Yet here he is resting on and in the Lord, and it says the Lord loved him! This is still true for us today!

Romans 6:14- For sin shall no longer be your master because you are not under the law but under grace.

God bless! I love you all, but His love gives freedom! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

John 13:33-35

“My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. “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.”

His time was short, the cross was looming ahead, and yet Jesus made sure to stop and remind His disciples and us about the power of love. He reveals to them this new command, which is just a fulfillment of all the commands, which is to love. But with this love for one another comes a promise and a blessing. He says that we will be known as His disciples by our love for one another. Not our biblical knowledge, the number of sermons preached, or converts won but rather simply and profoundly our love for one another.

So how are we doing with this? If we are honest, we fail at this often. People are hard to love. Some are easier than others, but overall, people are hard to love. On top of that, Christ calls us to love them not with our faulty human love but in the way He loves us! For to love man the way Christ loves us is to glorify our God in a most pleasing way.

None of this can be accomplished without the Holy Spirit. We can’t love correctly without the Spirit leading. We can’t obey the commands of Christ without the Spirit’s willingness flowing through us. We can’t walk in faith without His help. Christ has charged us with a great task of loving others the way He loves us, but He also gave us the greatest Helper and Advocate in the Holy Spirit. So today, let’s love in the Spirit and honor the command Christ gave right before the cross!

John 14:16- “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you.”

1 John 3:18- Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.

God bless! I love you all, but His love is the standard that is set and the greatest love of all! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

John 13:34,35

"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."

Jesus set the example. Jesus says it's a command, not an option. Jesus says this is the metric we will be known by, so how are we doing on this? If it is our love that will show them we are His disciples, then what will our lack of love reveal about who we belong to?

In order to live this verse out, we must first look to the example that Christ set for us since He is our living example and points to His love as the ultimate point of reference. First off, Christ's love does not change or waiver. It is not based on emotions as our love is but is based on Who He is. He is love, and He does not change. His love is as pure, righteous, ultimate, and steadfast as He is.

Secondly, His love is not passive or weak. His love takes the initiative and goes the distance; just look at the cross!

Thirdly, His love never sacrificed truth but went hand in hand with it. He didn't just tell people what they wanted to hear but rather spoke the words they needed to hear and, ultimately, the words of life! He didn't shy away from the hard conversations but embraced them with mercy, grace, and truth! We cannot separate truth and love; they have to be different sides of the same coin. We can't truly love someone and refuse to share the truth, regardless of how awkward, painful, or harsh it may be. We need to deliver truth the way Christ did, with love from the heart and always with the goal of redemption, not condemnation.

The bar has been set, the command has been given, and we can do all things through Christ, our King!

Philippians 4:12,13- I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

Ephesians 4:15- Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of His body, the church.

God bless! I love you all, but His love is everything! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!