MR. BIG
John 13:31-38
S: Love and Failure
Pr: True success is found in loving as Jesus loves.
Type: Inductive, Narrative
PA: How is the change to be observed?
• See God’s glory.
• Love one another.
• Reach others by pointing to Jesus.
Version: ESV
RMBC 20 February 05 AM
INTRODUCTION:
ILL Failure: grocery shopping
In the frozen foods department of a local grocery store, a man was shopping with his son.
As he was walking by, he checked something off his list, and he was overheard whispering conspiratorially to the child, "You know, if we really mess this up, we’ll never have to do it again."
ILL Failure: Edison
Thomas Edison invented the microphone, the phonograph, the incandescent light, the storage battery, talking movies, and more than 1000 other things.
In December 1914, he had come to the point he had worked for 10 years on a storage battery. This had greatly strained his finances. On one particular evening, spontaneous combustion had broken out in the film room. Within minutes all the packing compounds, celluloid for records and film, and other flammable goods were in flames.
Fire companies from eight surrounding towns arrived, but the heat was so intense and the water pressure so low that the attempt to douse the flames was futile. Everything was destroyed.
Edison was 67. The damage exceeded two million dollars, but the buildings were only insured for $238,000 because they were made of concrete and thought to be fireproof. With all his assets going up in a whoosh, would his spirit be broken?
The inventor’s 24-year-old son, Charles, searched frantically for his father. He finally found him, calmly watching the fire, his face glowing in the reflection, his white hair blowing in the wind.
"My heart ached for him," said Charles. "He was 67 — no longer a young man – and everything was going up in flames. When he saw me, he shouted, ’Charles, where’s your mother?’ When I told him I didn’t know, he said, ’Find her. Bring her here. She will never see anything like this as long as she lives.’"
The next morning, Edison looked at the ruins and said, "There is great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Thank God we can start anew."
Three weeks after the fire, Edison managed to deliver the first phonograph.
Swindoll, Hand Me Another Brick, Thomas Nelson, 1978, pp. 82-3,
and Bits and Pieces, November, 1989, p. 12.
Has failure ever stopped you?
It is very hard, I think, when you have really failed.
It is so disconcerting.
It is difficult to keep going.
No one likes to be branded a failure.
We prefer to be successful.
But even as Edison shows, so often, success comes from what appears as failure.
As we come to today’s text, remember that the setting is the Upper Room.
Jesus and the disciples have been having a Passover meal, and it is during this time that He has instituted the sacrament of communion (a practice that evangelical churches, including ours, continue to this day).
It was also during this time that Jesus washed the feet of the disciples.
Someone else had the responsibility to do it, probably Peter and John, since they were the designated hosts of the meal, but they had failed to do so.
So Jesus washed their feet.
It was an act of service and love so profound that it would make an eternal impact on their lives.
It was after this that Jesus revealed his betrayer to John, but not to the rest of the band.
In a final act of friendship, Jesus offered the betrayer, Judas, an opportunity to confess and repent.
Judas, however, remained silent, and according to the instructions of Jesus, he left.
It is at this point that we begin today…
OUR STUDY:
(31) When he [Judas] had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. (32) If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once. (33) Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’ (34) A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. (35) By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
The text doesn’t say this directly, but I think there is a change in Jesus when Judas departs.
1. A sense of relief comes to Jesus when Judas leaves.
When Jesus announced that there was a betrayer in their midst, it certainly caused a swirl of confusion.
Who of them would possibly do this?
And interestingly, none of them suspected Judas.
They fully trusted him.
So, even when he left, they do not know why.
They suspect, since he was the treasurer, it was a financial matter of some kind.
Later it would be clear to all of them that Judas left to tell the whereabouts of Jesus so that the temple guards could arrest him.
Apparently, Jesus had made it known that they would be going to Gethsemane after the dinner.
Of course, to make the situation all the more frightening is that when the confrontation in the garden came, Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss.
Through the years, there have been those that have felt sorry for Judas, thinking that he was some pawn in the great scheme of things.
But I want to assure you of this…
God was never ever dependent on Judas.
Judas did not have to be the traitor.
He could have turned back at any time.
Instead, he chose to be the traitor.
He continued with his treason, even when he was offered friendship and the opportunity to reverse his course.
Until Judas departed, it seems to me that Jesus would feel a bit stifled.
He was unable to speak freely until the loyalty issues were fully established.
The remaining eleven were truly His.
So now He can truly share His final words, for within 12 hours he will be hanging on a cross, and in less than 20 hours His human body will be cold and dead in a grave.
Yet it is this very thing that is truly good news.
For…
2. The disciples are about to experience glory.
The word “glory” is sometimes a hard one for us to get our hands around.
But in this case, it is not as hard, for the glory they are about to experience is the revelation of Jesus’ true identity and purpose.
His attributes are to be revealed for all the world.
And the disciples will especially understand.
They are going to understand the radiance of perfect love.
They will appreciate the majesty of sovereign power and authority.
They will begin to grasp holiness-dazzling purity without the darkness of sin.
They will become aware of timeless faithfulness with compassionate provision.
They will come into contact with perfect justice that accompanies absolute mercy.
They will experience glory, because…
3. Glory is wrapped up in the cross.
The cross, in every way, is going to expose the true heart of God.
And though one would naturally associate bad news with the cross, in this case, this is going to be good news.
The cross is showing how God so loved the world.
The cross is showing how God the Father gave to the world God the Son.
The cross is showing how God provides eternal life to those who will believe.
This is good news.
So in tender concern, Jesus addresses them as children.
In just a few short hours, the events that will take place will seem like anything but glory.
He was going where they could no longer follow Him.
He was leaving.
These words, obviously, left these disciples confused.
And in a little while, they were going to despair.
But Jesus is saying to them, “In the midst of all this, open your eyes wide for the spiritual significance, for it is the glory of God!”
ILL Revelation: Michelangelo
Michelangelo labored over his spectacular sculpture of David for three years. Finally, it was placed in a crate and dragged for one mile by 40 men over 40 days from his studio to the front of Palazzo Signoria in Florence. The crate allowed only glimpses of magnificent work.
Finally, the workers knocked down the crate and installed the David at the foot of the palace steps.
Michelangelo returned the next day to see pieces of paper fluttering from the marble. They were notes of love from the people of Florence, who marveled at the beauty of the work.
Jesus was about to die.
But until the resurrection, the disciples were not going to understand this glory.
The prophets had craned their necks in anticipation, but now the crate is about to be knocked down.
And the glory of God will be fully displayed for all to see.
4. They were to follow Jesus’ example of love.
Jesus is now passing on his last most urgent wishes.
He wants them to pay close attention.
They must hear this new commandment…
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.
Now, the idea of and the command to love was not new to them.
But what is new is the manner.
Jesus had now given them an example they could get their hands on.
They could love each other as Jesus has loved them.
Jesus had taught them a lot about love, for He was more than just nice.
He had deliberately loved the unlovely, rejected, and difficult.
He had expressed His love in deeds.
Later, of course, they would understand how phenomenal His love was.
They would remember His reaching out to Judas.
The washing of his feet…
The offering of friendship…
The opportunity to repent…
And the letting go…
This was love in action, even in the face of betrayal.
But there was more, for…
5. They were to understand the power of love.
Love is reproductive.
It gives birth to more love.
For people who live in darkness are attracted to the light of the love they see among believers.
In other words, believers’ love for one another is Jesus’ calling card to the world.
After Jesus has made such a profound declaration and command, it becomes obvious, someone is not listening as carefully as they should…
(36) Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.” (37) Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” (38) Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times.”
We like to pick on Peter.
He is who I like to call, “Mr. Big.”
He is the guy in the lead of the other eleven.
But because his tongue lacks discretion, he is easily the whipping boy representing those with “foot in the mouth” disease.
But let us not forget, he is a tremendous example of faith.
He is the one who said to Jesus, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man.”
And He was the one who made the great declaration, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
In the big picture of things, it is not bad to be like Peter.
Though he was bold and impulsive, he was a straight ahead guy – full steam ahead.
And most importantly, he loved Jesus!
As Kent Hughes describes:
“Sometimes he only opened his mouth to change feet. At other times his words were priceless.”
But it is evident that Peter is missing the main message at this point, for he communicates an unwillingness to allow for what Jesus has said…
6. Peter is unwilling to let Jesus depart.
Peter asks two questions that will not receive answers.
But that doesn’t really matter.
It is his on his mind that he is not going to let Jesus go anywhere.
You know, if I had been Jesus, my response would have been much different.
“Peter, why don’t you get this?”
“Would you please just listen?”
“Only one of us needs to be the Lord, Peter.”
But let us not doubt the sincerity of this man!
For if the Romans had tried to come in that very moment, he would have been the first one to the door to bar it shut.
You see…
7. Peter is willing to die if that is what is needed.
He is interpreting this discourse as a challenge, and he is determined to meet it.
He believes he has what it takes.
And Jesus knows he means it.
He is determined,
But Jesus also knows that Peter is overestimating his own strength.
The commitment he is making is unreliable.
For…
8. Peter is going to fail.
Peter vows to lay down his life for Jesus.
But he has this all wrong.
It will be Jesus who is going to lay down his life for Peter.
Not only that, Jesus says to Peter, in a few hours, you are going to fail.
You are going to deny that you even know me.
And for once, Peter goes silent.
APPLICATION:
This text is teaching many things today.
The first lesson is that…
1. God wants us to see His glory.
Through the ages, God graciously offers us opportunity to see Him as He is.
And though He is available, we too often miss Him.
Why?
Because we lack a passion to see and receive Him.
We do not passionately pursue Him.
But if you are listening, it can happen.
It can happen during…
…the hearing of the Word;
…a walk in nature;
…the meditation of communion;
…a worship song that is directed toward God;
…the giving or receiving of love;
…a conversation;
…an act of service;
…the quietness of prayer;
…a hymn, with organ flying and the brass playing.
God’s glory is all around us.
We just need to be on the watch for it.
Accompanying this lesson is this profound principle…
2. We reflect God’s glory when we love one another.
God calls on us to do more than just get along.
He calls on us to love each other deliberately.
He doesn’t ask us just to be familiar with one another.
He tells us to be fully involved.
We are called on to build each other, and not tear each other down (something that too many of us have expertise in…).
For the fact of the matter, when we truly love one another, we find that…
3. Love is contagious.
I am sure that many of you share my own personal testimony that when you were first introduced to those that were genuine Christians, it had a positive impact on you.
You weren’t sure whether they were real or not at first, but in time, they proved to be so, and it became a powerful attraction point to receive Christ.
Sometimes, a strange thing happens, though.
As we grow in our life as a Christian, we begin to believe that we are further along than we really are.
We begin to think that our success is due to our own faithfulness and strength.
But this is a mistake (a mistake that Peter made).
For…
4. We must be realistic about our finiteness so that we can point to the greatness of our Lord.
We should not be deceived.
We can never be Mr. Big.
We overestimate our strength.
We think we are made of sterner stuff, and so we set ourselves up for the fall.
But what we must consistently keep before ourselves is that the only one that is truly great is the Lord alone.
As Alistair Begg said:
“We must remember that the best of men are men at best.”
And J. Hudson Taylor:
“I have failed … I am failing … I will fail … but Jesus never fails.”
When we understand the weakness of our own flesh, and learn through failure, hurt, and rejection, we discover how great it is to celebrate His love for us, not our love for Him.
When we get that right, an amazing thing happens…
Our hearts burn with His same love.
We are truly able to love our neighbor.
We are able to love our enemies.
We are able to love one another as He has loved us.
And this is true success.
For…
5. True success is found in loving as Jesus loves.
You see, to truly be big, we must take the form of a servant, and love as He has loved us.
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
Love each other…for when we do so, the cross no longer is foolishness or a stumbling block, instead it is seen for what it is…credible…powerful…and the glory of God.
Love each other…do so deliberately, for when we act on the command, and not on the feeling, He fills us with His love, a love that makes an eternal difference.
Now…
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
Amen.
RESOURCES:
John: That You May Believe, R. Kent Hughes
NIC: John, Leon Morris
SermonCentral:
The One Commandment, Ray Stedman
Glory Love and Blindness, Scott Grant
Talk Is Cheap, Bruce Goettsche
Smokejumpers, John Ross
Who Is in the Spotlight? D. Greg Ebie
What’s Love Got to Do with It? Kenneth Sauer
