John Ch13v31-38 - Changed By The Cross

Good morning everyone, it's nice to see you today.

And as Alex said, please turn to John's Gospel chapter 13.

!

As is usual, we have tea and coffee afterwards, so there's an opportunity to catch up with each other.

And if there's any questions or anything to feedback, or you just want to talk about what we're looking at in God's Word today,

there's opportunity to do that.

I'm just waiting on a glass of water, or I'm not going to get through the reading.

It's on its way.

So talk amongst yourselves, if you like, while we're waiting.

Thank you.

Thank you, Alex.

So John's Gospel chapter 13.

This section, chapter 13 all the way through to chapter 17, is one day just before Jesus is crucified.

Jesus is spending time with his disciples, preparing them for his own departure to go back to the Father.

And so we get to listen in to all the things that Jesus is teaching the disciples over this last 24 hours.

And we're going to pick it up in verse 31 to verse 38.

When he was gone, that's Judas, Jesus said,

Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in him.

If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.

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.

Simon Peter asked him,

Lord, where are you going?

Jesus replied,

Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.

Peter asked,

Lord, why can't I follow you now?

I will lay down my life for you.

Then Jesus answered,

Will you really lay down your life for me?

Very truly I tell you,

before the cock crows,

you will disown me three times.

Well, let's pray and ask for God's help

as we look at his word.

Our Father God, we pray that by your spirit

and through your word,

you will be our teacher today.

Just as you taught to the disciples,

will you teach us

so that we know more about you

and what it means to follow you

and to trust you.

So help us now, we ask, in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, when my dad was sick with cancer,

he called all the family together

for a special meeting.

There were things he wanted to share with us.

There were the plans for the funeral.

There were things regarding the will.

There was the care of my mum.

It was his way of preparing us

for his death.

He wanted to make sure that everything

was all in order,

the way it should be.

Well, in our text that we've just read together,

Jesus is preparing his disciples

for his own death.

Did you see it there in verse 33?

Full of compassion and love,

Jesus says,

My children,

I will be only with you 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.

Well, Peter was terribly curious.

Verse 36.

Simon Peter asked him,

Lord, where are you going?

Jesus replied,

Where I am going,

you cannot follow now,

but you will follow later.

Jesus is talking about his soon-to-be death.

He's teaching the disciples,

and through God's word,

he is teaching us and preparing us

for the cross that is to come,

and what the cross means.

So this morning,

from this short text,

we're going to look at three things.

We're going to look at the cross.

We're going to learn from the cross.

And we're going to listen to the cross.

So look, learn, and listen.

First, by looking at the cross,

we see Jesus' glory.

By looking at the cross,

we see Jesus' glory.

Look back at verse 31.

When he was gone,

that's Judas,

Jesus said,

Now the Son of Man is glorified,

and God is glorified in him.

If God is glorified in him,

God will glorify the Son in himself,

and will glorify him at once.

But I don't think you could get any more glories

into such a short space.

What does it all mean when it talks about glory?

Well, glory works at two different levels.

We can think of it this way.

First, that someone can display glory.

They show their greatness and their beauty.

But on the other hand,

someone can give glory.

So we praise them,

and we honour them.

So we think of Manchester United.

Not that I'm a fan of Manchester United,

but you all know the song.

Glory, glory, Man United.

What are they saying?

At one level,

they're talking about the players on the pitch,

and the glory that they display

through their skills and scoring goals.

But then on the other hand,

there's the crowd that are watching,

that give all the glory to the players.

They praise and honour them.

So glory is both revealed,

we see someone's glory,

and it's received,

we give someone glory.

And that's essentially what's happening here.

First,

Jesus reveals his glory.

When Jesus did his first miracle,

do you remember back in chapter 2,

at the wedding feast,

they had run out of wine,

and Jesus turned the water into wine?

Well,

this is the comment that we get

after that miracle.

What Jesus did here,

in Cana of Galilee,

was the first of his signs,

through which he revealed his glory,

and his disciples believed in him.

Jesus' miracles,

all the things he did,

healing the lame,

feeding the crowds,

raising Lazarus from the dead,

all of that revealed to everyone

his power and authority.

He was displaying his glory.

But now look carefully

at what Jesus says about himself.

Look again at verse 31.

When he was gone,

Jesus said,

now the Son of Man is glorified.

Well, what's the Son of Man?

Well, turn with me back to Daniel chapter 7.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

Daniel chapter 7.

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

And if somebody's got a page number,

I always forget to write them down.

So if somebody's got a page number

for Daniel 7,

that'll be good.

892.

Yeah, 892.

Page 892.

So the Son of Man

is a figure,

a person,

in the Old Testament,

who has been given

divine power,

power from God.

And this is what we read

about the Son of Man.

Daniel chapter 7,

Daniel 7:13

verse 13.

Daniel has a vision,

and here's what he sees.

Daniel chapter 7,

Daniel 7:13

verse 13.

In my vision at night,

I looked,

and there before me

was one like a

Son of Man,

coming with the clouds of heaven.

He approached the Ancient of Days,

that is God,

and was led

into God's presence.

And he

was given

authority,

glory,

and sovereign power,

and all nations

and peoples

of every language

worshipped him.

His dominion

is everlasting,

and his dominion

will not pass away.

And his kingdom

is one that will

never

be destroyed.

Let's go back

to John chapter 13.

John 13 · chapter mention

What a picture

of someone

with great

power

and authority.

All the nations

will worship him,

and his kingdom

will never

end.

This

is the

Son of Man.

And here in

John's Gospel,

as Jesus is talking

about himself,

he claims

to be the

Son of Man.

Now the

Son of Man

is glorified.

In other words,

he's saying,

get ready,

because we are now

going to see

Jesus

in all

his glory.

We're going

to see

his beauty

and his majesty

and all

his splendour.

You think

turning water

into wine

was amazing.

You think

raising Lazarus

from the dead

was amazing.

Well,

you haven't

seen

this.

And what

does Jesus

do next?

What's the

next thing

Jesus does

after all

his miracles?

What's the

big thing

he does?

He dies.

The

Son of Man

with sovereign

power

and supreme

authority

is mocked

and beaten

and crucified.

the

one who

rules

and owns

all things

and whose

kingdom

will never

end

hangs

on a

cross.

He

suffers

in shame.

He

dies

in weakness.

You see,

the surprising

thing is

Jesus

displays

his glory

in all

its fullness

at the

cross.

and by

looking at

the cross

we see

Jesus

in all

his glory.

Well,

you say,

where's the

glory in

that?

Where's the

glory in

somebody who's

been beaten

and mocked

with nails

driven through

his hands

and a crown

of thorns

on his head?

Where's the

glory?

glory?

Well,

it's through

the death

of Jesus

that my

guilt

and my

sin

is punished.

It's through

the suffering

of Jesus

that all

my shame

has been

wiped away.

It's at

the cross

forgiveness

is given

and new

life is

received.

It's at

the cross

where I

am washed

clean

and made

new

and I

am given

a fresh

start

and a new

beginning

and my

past

has been

redeemed

and my

future

is secured

life

with God

now

and forever

more

that's

the glory

of

the cross.

So Jesus

reveals

his glory

and then

of course

Jesus

receives

all the

glory.

Do you

see that

in verse

32?

if God

is glorified

in him

God

will glorify

the son

in himself

and will

glorify him

at once.

As Jesus

dies

God

glorifies

the son.

He lifts

him up

and says

give him

all the

praise

and all

the honour.

It's like

an artist's

painting

that's hung

in the gallery.

the picture

on the

one hand

displays

the glory

of the

artist,

the skill

of being

able to

move that

paintbrush

and create

the picture

and as

people walk

through the

gallery

they stop

in awe.

Wow!

wow!

They glorify

the artist.

It's like

an actor

performing

on stage

in a

theatre

where the

spotlight

beams

down on

the actor

so we

can see

his skill

and the

way in

which he

moves

and speaks

and at

the end

of it

all

when they

stand

on stage

the light

shines

again

on the

actor

so that

the crowd

will

applause

and give

all the

glory

to what

they have

done

and that

is what

we are

to do

with the

cross

as we

see all

that Jesus

does

we give

him

the glory

we give

him

the applause

we give

him

the praise

you see

the cross

changes

how we

see

Jesus

he's not

just some

miracle

worker

that we

turn to

in a

crisis

he's not

some

spiritual

guru

that we

read

just to

get some

advice

he's not

someone we

turn to

when the

exams aren't

going so

well and

go oh

please help

me and

then forget

about him

no Jesus

isn't some

interesting

person to

analyse and

argue about

he is the

son of man

with sovereign

power and

supreme authority

who died

for you

and for

me

Jesus

reveals his

glory

so that

he might

receive

all the

glory

so first

by looking

at the

cross

we see

Jesus'

glory

that's the

first thing

so we

look at

the cross

and second

we're going

to learn

from the

cross

by learning

from the

cross

we get

to love

each other

deeply

do you see

that in

verse 34

this is what

we learn

a new

command I

give you

love

one

another

as I

have loved

you

so you

must love

one another

when we

see the

cross

we see

the glorious

love

of Jesus

in other

words

if you

want to

know what

love

looks like

don't turn

on your

TV

and go

and watch

some rom

com or

something like

that

don't look

up a book

or read

some romantic

novel

if you

want to

know what

love

looks like

learn

from the

cross

there's

two

things

for us

to learn

first

we are

given a

new

command

he says

a new

command I

give you

love

one

another

in the

old

testament

you remember

God had

given the

command

love

your

neighbour

as

yourself

now

Jesus

says

love

one

another

so

it's

not so

much

a new

command

that

they've

never

heard

before

they know

and we

know

that we

ought to

love

each

other

but it's

new

in the

sense

that they

are going

to be

the new

community

of love

that when

Jesus

goes to

the cross

and goes

back to

the father

the disciples

will be

together

as a

community

of love

they are

verse 34

to love

one another

at the end

of verse 34

love

one another

end of

verse 35

love

one another

in other

words

love

will be

the

distinctive

mark

of the

church

as people

walk in

as we

walk in

on a

Sunday

morning

we should

be

immersed

in love

our

actions

will be

loving

our

words

will be

loving

our

thoughts

will be

loving

the new

command

for God's

people

love

one

another

so what

does this

love

actually

look

like

well

we are

given

a new

standard

of loving

one another

a new

standard

if we want

to know

what love

looks like

learn from

the cross

verse 34

look at it

again

a new

command

I give

you

love

one

another

as I

have

loved

you

so you

must

love

one

another

so

how did

Jesus

love

us

how does

he

demonstrate

his

love

well

think

about

what

happens

either

side

of this

command

in its

context

it's

about

betrayal

and

denial

so

before

Jesus

gives

the

command

look

back

at

verse

21

second

part

of

verse

21

Jesus

says

to

his

disciples

very

truly

I

tell

you

one

of

you

is

going

to

betray

me

right

that's

before

the

command

now

look

at

what

happens

after

the

command

look

at

the

end

of

verse

38

very

truly

I

tell

you

before

the

crock

crows

you

will

disown

me

three

times

where's

the love

in that

betrayal

and

denial

and

then

in

the

middle

of

it

all

Jesus

says

love

as I

loved

you

you

see

Judas

would

turn

against

Jesus

Peter

would

turn

away

from

Jesus

but

knowing

this

would

happen

Jesus

loved

them

to

the

very

end

and

he

went

to

the

cross

for

people

like

Judas

and

Peter

Jesus

in

love

would

lay

down

his

life

for

the

betrayers

and

the

deniers

that's

the

standard

it's

nothing

less

than

servant

hearted

self

sacrificing

other

centered

love

it's

a love

that is

demonstrated

and seen

at the

cross

by

learning

from

the

cross

we

get

to

see

how

we

love

each

other

deeply

you

see

when

we

love

others

deeply

it

will

have

a

wider

effect

look

at

verse

35

verse

35

by

this

everyone

will

know

that

you

are

my

disciples

if

you

love

one

another

you

see

as we

love

as

Christ

love

it's

going

to

cause

a

stir

it'll

be

like

a

firework

at

night

exploding

it

gets

everybody's

attention

and they

see

and it

will be

talked

about

people

in

carrigline

will say

they're

loving

people

and I

want to

encourage us

to keep

loving

one another

as we

do

because it

has an

effect

it helps

people see

that

Jesus

loves

us

so we

are to

love

one another

but what

is this

going to

look like

in

practice

well here's

two things

for us

to consider

two things

first

live

with the

reality

not

the

ideal

you see

mostly

I

think

this is

true

of me

you tell

me

what

you

think

but I

think

this is

true

of

everyone

we

look

for

the

ideal

in

everyone

in

other

words

I

will

love

those

who

won't

betray

me

or

deny

me

I

will

love

those

who

don't

annoy

me

or

disappoint

me

the

problem

is

that

none

of us

ever

meets

the

ideal

because

we

all

fail

and

fall

that's

why

Jesus

is

saying

love

one

another

you

see

if we

waited

for the

perfect

person

to

love

we're

never

going

to

love

anybody

because

the

perfect

person

doesn't

exist

love

the

person

who

frustrates

you

and

does

things

differently

to

you

love

the

reality

of

one

another

love

messy

broken

sinful

people

like

me

and

like

us

all

so

live

with

the

reality

not

the

ideal

and

second

look

to

the

cross

not

yourself

because

we've

all

got

standards

standards

that we

establish

and that

we

control

that we

can

control

ways in

which

we're

willing

to go

and love

but no

further

love

is

conditional

on our

part

I will

love

you

if

you

apologise

to me

I will

love

you

if

you

promise

never

ever

to

do

it

again

I

will

love

you

if

you

do

this

for

me

I

will

love

you

if

you

fill

in

the

blank

but

the

problem

is

our

standards

are

just

far

too

low

the

standard

by

which

we

are

to

love

is

the

cross

a

love

that

is

intentional

and

unconditional

a

love

that

will

love

deniers

and

betrayers

so

second

we

not

only

look

to

the

cross

but

we

learn

from

the

cross

and

as

we

learn

from

the

cross

we

learn

how

to

love

one

another

deeply

that's

all

good

right

happy

so

far

love

others

as

Jesus

loved

us

and

give

Jesus

all

the

glory

easy

simple

but

the

problem

is

we

don't

do

we

I

know

I

don't

I

know

I'm

good

at

loving

myself

I

love

myself

huge

and

I'm

good

at

giving

glory

but

glory

and

seeking

glory

for

myself

so

what's

going

to be

the

response

and the

answer

to that

what

do

we

do

well

we

look

we

learn

and

we

listen

by

listening

to

the

cross

we

get

to

know

ourselves

clearly

or

we

understand

ourselves

fully

look at

verse 37

Peter

asked

Lord

why

can't

I

follow

you

now

I'll

lay

down

my

life

for

you

this

is

this

is

classic

Peter

he's

all

in

he's

so

enthusiastic

oh

oh

Jesus

oh

yeah

the

love

thing

got

that

sorted

by

the

way

I'm

going

to

lay

down

my

life

for

you

whatever

you

ask

I'll

do

it

but

the

problem

is

Peter

has

a

distorted

view

of

himself

he

can't

see

what

he's

really

like

look

how

Jesus

responds

to

Peter's

claim

of

great

extravagant

love

of

laying

down

his

life

look

what

Jesus

says

will

you

really

lay

down

your

life

for

me

very

truly

I

tell

you

before

the

cock

crows

you

will

disown

me

three

times

wow

bang

at the

cross

we begin

to see

ourselves

clearly

two things

the cross

speaks to

us about

that I

want us

to get

as we

finish

first

the cross

speaks about

the horror

of my

sin

it speaks

about the

horror

of my

sin

you see

it's not

it's not

Peter who

lays down

his life

for anyone

and it's

not me

who lays

down my

life

for anyone

it's

Jesus

who lays

down his

life

for us

as

Jesus

is mocked

and beaten

as

Jesus

suffers

and dies

I

begin

to see

my

true

self

as I

look at

the cross

it's like

a mirror

reflecting

back on

me

the fact

that

Jesus

had to

go to

the cross

and die

shows

me

that I

am

more

sinful

than I

ever

thought

I'm

not just

weak

and get

it

slightly

wrong

I'm

deeply

broken

you see

at the

cross

my

true

self

is revealed

I don't

glorify

Jesus

as I

should

I don't

love

others

as I

should

like

Peter

I

deny

Jesus

and the

cross

reminds me

of what

I deserve

I

should

be

where

Jesus

is

I

should

suffer

as

Jesus

suffers

I

should

die

as

Jesus

dies

can

you

look

at the

cross

and see

him

die

and say

that should

be

me

so as

I

listen

to the

message

of the

cross

I

see

the

horror

of

my

own

sin

and

what

I

deserve

but

thankfully

the

cross

also

speaks

about

the

beauty

of

God's

love

it

speaks

about

the

beauty

of

God's

love

as

Jesus

dies

he

dies

for

me

he

lays

down

his

life

for

me

knowing

my

sin

knowing

that I

would

betray

him

knowing

that I

would

reject

him

he

dies

for

me

the

fact

that

Jesus

would

go

to

the

cross

shows

me

that I

am

more

loved

than I

ever

dreamed

possible

you

see

looking

at the

cross

we

see

God's

heart

revealed

for

you

and

for

me

where

Jesus

stands

where

I

deserve

to

stand

he

dies

as

I

deserve

to

die

here

at

the

cross

we

fall

and

experience

the

grace

of

God

who

forgives

me

of

all

of

my

sin

where

all

of

my

shame

that

I

carry

over

the

years

is

washed

away

and

all

the

guilt

that

weighs

me

down

is

removed

forever

and

more

than

that

through

his

love

I

am

changed

on

the

inside

and

I'm

humbled

and

I'm

driven

to

love

people

as

Jesus

loved

me

and

to

him

I

give

all

the

glory

listen

listen

to

the

cross

the

cross

speaks

to

us

and

confronts

us

with