Jesus Through John's Eyes (4 of 5)

Thank you. When you're on a speaking engagement with people that aren't familiar with you, you're supposed to, as the speaker, find some points of contact. And so, I've driven Hondas all my life. In 1985, I got to sit in the locker room with the Cincinnati Reds. And I have an uncle who has two children and both graduated from Ohio State University. So that's my way of reaching out to the audience and making a connection.

When I meet with people who don't know Christ or they think they do, but they don't. I sit with them and give them these four little books. And these are the things I've referenced before. This is really just the Gospel of John. This is the first five chapters. This is the second five.

This is the third five. And this is the fourth five. And they read it. The good thing about it is it doesn't seem as intimidating as a whole Bible. You know, these people are unfamiliar with the Scriptures. And, oh, okay, I can read this little pamphlet, you know, and I can highlight it or I can underline it.

If maybe they have a Bible at home, they wouldn't feel right about highlighting and underlining in their Bible. So they say, I don't know what this means or that sort of thing. And so it's been a helpful tool. You sit down and you say, hey, let's try to knock out these five chapters. And sometimes it can happen in four meetings. Sometimes they have a lot of questions and it takes a good bit longer.

But they've been helpful for me in terms of just trying to help people understand about Jesus because the best way to understand about Jesus is to to read the word of God and then also see it lived out in a life so you have this two-pronged attack when you're sitting down with somebody they they get to feel in the best way the word that's sharper than any two-edged sword the word does something I could never do but at the same time like the Ethiopian eunuch who opened up the scriptures he doesn know what he reading you need somebody to run up beside the chariot and say can you explain this to me And then starting with that passage Philip said, yes, you're reading about the Messiah. And so that's the goal. That's what I try to do with folks who want to hear more about the gospel or understand something about Christianity.

And so we're making our way through the gospel. John, very quickly, I was just aware just when Tim was reading and how much I'm not going to cover. There's just no way to get it all, so we'll just hope and pray that what I do cover is the things that God needs to address either with you or your friend or your church, whatever the case may be. So we're in chapter 10 tonight, and then we're going to flip over to chapter 13 as well.

You probably know the Bible wasn't originally divided into chapters and verses until the 13th century. So, as you read through the Bible, sometimes you have sort of these artificial, what feel like artificial divisions. And it's helpful to understand that chapter 10 is a continuation of chapter 9. In chapter 9, it's a very fascinating chapter. I wish I could have talked more about it.

But you start out with a blind man who at the end of the chapter, he sees. Not only does he physically see, but he actually spiritually sees who Jesus is. and you also start out with Pharisees who physically can see, but by the end of the chapter you can tell they spiritually cannot see. So the blind man who cannot see in the end sees, and the people, the Pharisees, the religious conservatives who think they see, Jesus helps them understand by the end of the chapter, you know, you don't really see.

So it's an interesting dichotomy between those two people. and you see here in chapter 10 there there continues to be this wide um widely different reactions to who jesus is verse 19 of chapter 10 jesus has a demon chapter 10 verse 21 it's that that's impossible he can't have a demon demons don't speak the way jesus does and demons don't open up the the eyes of of the people who are blind verse 31 through 33 the reaction to Jesus saying this very controversial statement in verse 30 where he says I and the Father are one When the Jewish people heard that and Jesus claiming to be equal with the Father they, in verse 31, decided they would pick up stones to stone him. And then if you look at the very end of the chapter, many people believed in Jesus. So again, just in this one chapter, you can see that people are intersecting with Jesus and they're going to come to different conclusions.

That doesn't mean that's their final conclusion maybe, but you should just anticipate as people come alongside and you walk alongside them, they're going to have a variety of reactions to who Jesus is. And it's no surprise because it happened when Jesus was there. And I think John is intentionally showing us what actually happened, and that there was an agitation, and the agitation as you go through the book of John, it begins to escalate as you move towards the last week of Jesus' life.

And I think it's a way of John trying to shake up anybody who might be spiritually apathetic. The person that you know, maybe even the person you were, like, I don't know, what's the whole Jesus stuff about? I mean, is it any big deal? They're all kind of the same. It's one big God up there and there's different paths you get there. And isn't that just okay?

And you sort of just drift along spiritually, really not thinking much about it. And John's trying to agitate the situation or show you that Jesus was trying to help the people and shake them to say, no, that's not a good way to think. That's not true. And he's pushing, Jesus is pushing the listener to make a decision about who Jesus is. there's something really on the line.

The difference between knowing Jesus and not knowing Jesus is like the difference between light and darkness, life and death, heaven and hell. And so this Jesus who is restoring the sight to the blind, He's raising people from the dead, He's accepting worship, He's calling Himself God, He's making Himself equal with God. He either is who He is or He's insane. and John and Jesus are pushing you to say, who is Jesus?

That's what John wants to ask at the end. Look in verse 18. Jesus says I have authority to lay down my life Well anybody could say that I mean I can decide if I want to step in front of a bullet so it doesn't hit my wife. I could make that decision. I could decide if I wanted to jump off a cliff. I could have authority to decide if I wanted to lay down my life.

That's not that surprising until he follows up by saying, I have authority to take my life up again. I mean, if you're dead, you don't have authority to bring yourself back to life, do you? I mean, nobody talks like that. Nobody makes an assessment like that. I mean, even the most egotistical person doesn't say, you know, I have the authority to lay down my life, and if I die, I have the personal authority to bring myself back to life.

I mean, if you heard somebody speak like that, you'd say, this guy is insane. and he either is insane or he's divine and so John again and Jesus are pushing the listener the reader to decide who do you think Jesus is I mean if you reject Jesus reject who you who Jesus really is in the Bible and if you accept Jesus accept who he really is in the Bible it's so much easier to talk to somebody who's really thinking about it rather than just the apathetic person who says, well, I guess it just doesn't matter. It really does matter. And Jesus and John are driving us to conclusions.

And so the question at the end of my time with people is, well, who do you think Jesus is? And that's the question that, the most important question any of us can answer in our lifetime. When we get here to John chapter 10, we learn about three people in the text, or three groups. They all represent people. Number one, very easy to see, sheep, one group.

Second group, thieves and robbers. Third group, the good shepherd. So we're going to talk about those three groups, and we're going to skip over to chapter 13. We'll get a visual, the beginning of a visual, well, it will be a visual display of what the good shepherd really looks like. So let's start out with the sheep. who are the sheep? You and I.

We're the sheep. And when you hear that, don't think it's a compliment. It's not a compliment. I mean, I passed some sheep. Somebody might here be raising sheep. And I passed some, I guess, yesterday or the day before, and they just seemed like nice animals.

And they were kind of dirty, but I mean, they were outside. But when the Bible says we're sheep, it never means it as a compliment. Because sheep are some of the dumbest animals in the world. And so if you don't know that, now you know it's not a real compliment to be called, hey, you're like a sheep. You're like the dumbest animal in the world, is what the Bible is telling us.

And here are just some examples. Sheep are nearsighted and stubborn. And so they really only have good eyesight for just several inches. And so they always have their head down. And they're stubborn, so they're resistant to being guided to another location. And so if you don't help a sheep, a sheep has its head down and will, by eating, will walk itself off a cliff.

And you think, come on, dude. I mean, can you not pay attention? No, I'm so focused on my life. I've got my life so close that I can't see just a few feet ahead of me. And I will walk over a cliff to my own death because I'm so stupid. I'm so stubborn.

I'm so nearsighted. sheep get easily stuck on their back especially when they have a lot of wool that's called a cast sheep and so what happens is they get scratch they get itchy and so they want to get it you know next to a fence post or something they can't get that and then they get over on their back and you can kind of imagine it they get over oh yeah oh yeah okay i'm ready to get back over uh and i can't. And I'm stuck. And what physically happens to a sheep is gas builds up in their stomach.

And it gets so tight, it restricts their oxygen flow, and they sit there and they suffocate. I mean, that's stupid, right? I mean, that's stupid. So a shepherd has to come and tip them back over unless they suffocate. Sheep don't have a homing device. they can't survive in the wild you've never seen a a flock of wild sheep i mean horses maybe or birds or about any kind of animal but you never say yeah those wild sheep out there in the woods No they never survived that way And they don have any kind of homing device When I was maybe second grade I had this little black dog.

It kind of looked like a miniature kind of Doberman. And his name was Peanuts. Peanuts seemed like the coolest dog because it was the only one that I knew. But Peanuts wandered away one day. And, of course, you think Peanuts is going to come back, you know. End of the night, peanuts, peanuts.

No, no. End of the week, peanuts, peanuts. End of the month, peanuts. Uh-oh. I think peanuts might be gone forever. But as a kid, you kind of held out hope.

Because you know, if a dog or cat gets displaced, it does have kind of an internal homing mechanism. It can somehow, if it's alive, a lot of times make its way back. And sure enough, several months later, not in very good condition, peanuts made it back to our house. well if you had a pet sheep and your pet sheep escaped the pen you wouldn't wait week after week hoping that the sheep had some wonderful homing device no it doesn't and in fact that's why the shepherd always has to go find the sheep the sheep is never going to find its way back home and the unusual thing is if i had gone and found peanuts after a couple of months you know what a normal dog would do right bounding toward you like homeward bound you know that movie you know and here comes the dog over the hill, and you're crying, oh my gosh, you know?

That's what would happen. If a sheep sees the owner coming, it would run away. How stupid. I've been lost for months. Here comes my owner who loves me, and I'm running away. And so the shepherd has to tackle the sheep, tie its legs up, put it over its shoulder, and take it all the way back.

I mean, how stupid. And imagine the sheep. she's like this guy's after me oh no and he tackles you dude watch you know let up no more caffeine for you i mean who knows what's going on in the sheep's mind but it's just so stupid and finally and i think it's helpful to understand here that when jesus is talking about sheep he's He's talking about us. And Tim Keller, pastor in New York City, sort of drives this point home about how foolish our thinking often is And he says this we continually overestimating or underestimating what we capable of As humans, we're constantly bouncing back and forth, overestimating what we're capable of or underestimating what we're capable of.

For example, your present self thinks your past self was a fool. Right? Your present self looks back at your past self and says, well, back then I needed guidance. Back then I didn't understand, but now I've matured, now I see. And so your present self thinks about your past self as a fool. But you see the problem.

Your future self will think about your present self, oh, he's a fool. And so, whether you're 12 and you're looking back when you're 6, or you're 25 and you're looking back when you're 12, or you're 50 and you're looking back when you're 25, it doesn't matter. What this means is that you're always a fool. Yet you always think you're just about over it.

Does that make sense? You're always a fool because when you get older, you'll say, oh, how foolish I was at 50 to think that way. Because I have a different perspective when I'm 60 or 75. But when I'm 50, I always think I've just about arrived. I've almost arrived. I finally got my vision right.

And it's important to understand when Isaiah 53, 6 says, we all, like sheep, have gone astray. You don't overestimate yourself. you're one of those sheep. You've gone astray. If you can't see yourself right you're never going to see Jesus. So Jesus is mercifully trying to help. You remember the woman at the well.

You remember Nicodemus. You remember the paralyzed man. I'm coming to you, Jesus said. and one of the things I need you to understand is the condition you're in. Because if you don't really see the condition you're in, it going to be very difficult for you to see me Or you just going to see part of me and that not what I want you to see and so he wants us very mercifully but very soberly I think to say yeah we stupid sheep we gone astray second group there are thieves and robbers verse one truly truly I say to you who does not he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way that man is a thief and a robber verse 8 all who come before me are thieves and robbers and then again in verse 10 the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy so there's a there's sheep and the sheep are endangered from their own stupidity, but they're not only endangered from their own stupidity, there's an outside force, there's an outside person, there's somebody coming to actually try to harm them.

Do you know what wood veneer is? It's a real thin piece of real wood that's put against a particle board of some kind, and so it looks like real oak or it looks like real maple because this one-eighth inch thin piece of wood has been put on the top of a dining room table or put on a desk and so it looks like it's the real thing. And wood veneer furniture is popular because it makes you look like you have a real oak table or a real oak desk.

But I don't know if you've ever tried to move a veneer piece of furniture too many times. I wouldn't recommend it. And my son was going off to college, and he had gotten a chance to borrow a wood veneer, oak wood veneer desk from a friend. And he had taken it out of the garage and put it on the back of this U-Haul, and then we're trying to take it out of the U-Haul into his apartment.

And just, we didn't do anything, but it just collapsed. Just all started coming apart because really the internal parts were not very stable. But it looked like a nice piece of furniture, but it really was just wood veneer. You never sand a piece of wood veneer because you immediately rub it and you get to the cheap particle board. And when Jesus entered into the first century religious environment, he begins to abrasively rub against the religious establishment, the Pharisees. and when he rubs up against them, he exposes them as veneer.

They're just religious veneer. I mean, they've got so much veneer, they really look like the right thing, but when Jesus comes in as the agitator and begins to sand up against their life, he realizes, oh, just very quickly we get to what is just a cheap imitation. It's not real. And he's exposing them. And he's exposing them and he's saying, these people, these people who are your shepherds that are really false shepherds, false guides, they would never lay down their life for you.

He concludes that the religious establishment here is just a religious veneer. They can show up in your church at any moment. Man, they can look sharp. you can say, oh, I'm so glad they came. I mean, they have the right Bible and they've got a lot of Bible verses memorized and they seem to come from a good background, but it only takes one cheap imitation in a small church.

People begin to say, hey, they're the real thing. They're the real thing. And as time rubs up against them, you realize, hey, there's something not right underneath. so you have to be very very careful and the particular cheap imitation that jesus is addressing in this particular passage is the cheap imitation of of legalism that they look like they've got it all right because they do all the right things but they don't have a right internal condition you might remember jesus looking at the same people and say You're like the whitewashed tombs.

In other words, you look great on the outside, but if we scrub down into the inside, it's really just death. A scholar named Lee Irons writes this about legalism. I love this definition. Legalism, listen carefully, because some of you might be in this. Legalism is the mistaken idea that you've been accepted into the program, but you're still on probation.

You ever felt that way? I accepted into Christianity but I feel like I still on probation In other words I still got some living up to the law to do And if you ever felt that way or if you ever been made to feel that way then that's a legalistic way to think. And Jesus wouldn't want you to think that way. The Gospel says that you're beyond probation because Jesus has passed the probationary test for you.

So isn't that good news? That you're not on probation? That you don't come and you get baptized and say, okay, now you're on probation. We're going to have our eyes on you. And if you don't do the right things, then you probably aren't going to get in. See, that's just legalism.

That's an oppressive way to live. You're probably familiar with the story Pilgrim's Progress, the great Bunyan story. And there's so many great pictures in there. And you remember the man, Christian, he's got this big backpack on his back. It's weighing him down. and he's trying to figure out how to get rid of this burden on his back. And thankfully, providentially, he runs into the man called Evangelist.

And Evangelist begins to walk with him and say, hey, do you see this? And listen to this conversation. Evangelist, pointing with his finger, said, do you see the distant narrow gate? And what is Bunyan saying? Do you see the gate? Do you see the real gate?

Do you see, Jesus? I'm trying to point you to Jesus, and you're following my line. Do you see him? And this is what Christian says, no, I don't. Okay, so evangelist backs up. He doesn't give up.

This is a great picture for you as the church. Okay, do you see the distant light? I mean, I know you can't see the gate, but is there any light out there that you see? And Christian says, I think I do. And the evangelist says, okay, then keep that light in your eye and go toward it directly. Don't turn away.

And soon, you're going to see the narrow gate. See, that's what happens a lot of times when I'm standing next to somebody and I'm walking along. I say, I want you to see Jesus. Do you see Jesus? No. Do you see any light?

I mean, I'm looking for any light. Do you see any truth in what I'm saying? Okay, I think I do. Okay, let's go in that way. And if you keep going in that way, Lord willing, you'll see the narrow gate. And we be able to address that thing that on your back And so Christian begins on that way and he runs into another guy a gentleman a very well gentleman and his name is Worldly Wiseman And then this is their dialogue.

Where are you going, Worldly Wiseman says, and what are you doing with this great burden on your back? Christian says, well, I'm going to the small sheep gate where I've informed that I will enter there into a way which I will soon get rid of my heavy burden. oh if you only had the patience to listen and to hear me I could direct you to another place oh what a temptation I could direct you to another place where you could obtain your desires without the dangers you are now headed for maybe Christian didn't even realize there were dangers hey dangers I don't like dangers and it sounds like you've got a better way and really all I'm doing is trying to get rid of this burden. Sir, Christian says, I beg you, share this secret with me.

Well, you will find relief in the nearby village called Morality. In that village resides a gentleman whose name is Legality. He has the skill to help rid men of burdens like the one you have. Sir, which way should I go to Mr. Legality's house, said Christian. do you see that hill in the distance you must go over the hill the hill for bunion is the law represents mount sinai you must go over that hill to the first house and you will come to his home and as christian neared the hill as he neared the law he was struck how high the hill was how frightening the hill appeared i mean on one side the hill hung so precariously over the path christian was afraid the overhanging hill would fall on him and his burden would be heavier than when he once got on the path and so here's frightened little christian he thinks he's going to have a easier way to get rid of his burden by doing the right things and he's gotten this heavy load added to him and he's so frightened and thankfully he runs into evangelist again an evangelist looks at him and says no man has ever gotten rid of his burden by mr legality's help he cannot be set free by the works of the law Mr Legality is a cheat He veneer His looks may be pleasant but he a hypocrite So, Jesus is saying there are all kinds of competitors.

There are all kinds of people who have veneer on the side. And it appears as if they can take you the distance, but they really can't take you the distance. And I think when you're sitting and talking to somebody, you need to be sensitive to what it is that they think can get them all the way home. Now, it may be if I just do the right things, that'll get me all the way home.

But it may be some other idol. And you're familiar with your own idols. So it's not hard to identify somebody else's, not in a condemning way, but you're just familiar with your own. You have your own you're actually trying to get rid of. And so you're coming alongside and saying, I wonder what for my friend Jay, turning back to saying, I think that can actually take me home.

And I say, no, no, no, Jay, let's keep our eyes on the light. Let's keep moving towards this narrow door. And that's really the only way you can get home. There's a second thing we see, or the third person we see. We've got the sheep, the stupid sheep. We got the thieves.

So this doesn't look good. The stupid sheep are good enough, dumb enough just to get lost all by themselves. But when they get lost, thieves are coming in trying to use them. And so thankfully we have the third person, the good shepherd, who is Jesus. Verse 14. I know my own.

And this is how he knows his own. This is how well he knows his own. It's just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. See, there's a complete transparency between the Father and the Son. There's nothing hidden. And Jesus knows his own.

If you're his, he knows everything about you. He doesn't need to come along and say, hey, I need to schedule Phillips for an MRI. I can't quite see everything. No, he looks into my life. He sees everything. He's not blind to anything.

He sees things in you you don't see about yourself. And one of the reasons Jesus is called the Good Shepherd. is despite his complete knowledge of us, he keeps coming. How many of us would think if somebody knew everything about us, every thought, every action, every deed, that that person would still keep coming? A few of you may know the artist Ryan Adams.

He wrote a song, Desire. He's not a Christian artist. But I like this line in this song. You know me. And God, I'm praying that you'll find me. You'll see me.

You'll run and never tire. Desire. That's the good shepherd. God, I'm praying that you know me. That you see me. And when you see me and you know everything about me, you'll run and you'll never get tired.

And that's what the good shepherd does. Amen. He runs towards you and he never gets tired. Even your own kids, when you're running towards them sometimes, you're like, go ahead. I mean, I'm tired. Right?

Hope you make it. I mean, not me as a father. I just know some parents do this. You know, when your kids are 19 and 21, you're like, okay, go ahead. So the good shepherd, he runs and he never gets tired. He comes and he's coming for these stupid sheep and he's willing to lay down his life.

Verse 11, the good shepherd, he runs and never tires. And then when he arrives, he lays down his life for his sheep. He's not like the hired hand who sees the first sign of danger and decides to abandon the sheep. No, Jesus sees the danger. He sees the darkness. He sees the ugliness.

He sees the fears. And he still keeps coming. It doesn't matter what you look like. He's always going to be coming towards you. Zachary, who's now 21, and I guess I can tell this story since he's not here. But he was, I guess, two.

Maybe one and a half and two. And you know those little clip-on seats you have? I know you guys have one. You clip it on to the countertop. And then you stick your kid in it. So he basically can't get out.

It like a little cage seat And so my wife Nancy is pregnant with what then was going to be my daughter Morgan And she had terrible you know pregnancy sickness So any kind of weird smell you know anything was just the trip the trigger. So I'm feeding Zachary, and you know what a one and a half, one and a half year old eats? I mean, stuff that would make you want to throw up, even if you were healthy, right?

The green peas and the stuff in the little jars, you're like, oh, you smell it. And you're like, this is good for you, son. You know, you're shoveling it out. But the strongest stomach can't take that stuff. And so she's sitting like, you know, 20 feet away in the corner going, feed up the whole jar, you know. And so I'm feeding in this jar of stuff and I'm shoveling it in at a pretty good rate.

And apparently the rate was a little too fast. Because he hit the eject button. And he's sitting there and he's in this little cage, you know, cart and he's all over himself. And then that scares him, right? Now he's crying and he's got, you know, sweet potatoes and green peas running down his face. And Nancy's like, oh, now I'm really sick.

And this is the instruction she calls out to the dad, the father who loves his son eternally. Hold him. He's frightened. And I was like, calculating how much mess might I get. You know, I was like, I ain't hold this kid. No way.

So he's crying. I'm like, you know, the alligator arms. I'm sorry, I can't reach my son. You know, and so I sort of grab him by the shoulders. I put him in the sink and got the little spray hose, you know? That's not the good shepherd.

When the person who has leprosy comes to Jesus, what's the very first thing he does? He touches What an incredible moment that before they got clean, they were touchable. See, as a church, that's what you have a chance to do right now. And of course, you've done it. I marvel at it. But man it hard And it going to be really hard sometimes because people are going to come I pray and you seen it with throw the throw of their sin the throw of their lives all over them and they want to know will you touch them before they get all better Or do they have to come in and get all cleaned up, and then you're saying, okay, great, so let's sit down and have a conversation.

See, that's very, very difficult. But when you do it, man, you're like the good shepherd. And then when you start preaching like this, they say, I've already seen it. I've already felt it. I've already touched it. And then when you say, do you see the narrow gate?

They'll say, yeah, I think I see it. It's just a powerful moment as a church to have the moment that you have to be like the good shepherd. And we'll get to his example and how he asked us to follow that. Verse 9, Jesus says, I am the door. I'm the gate. In John, another way to look at John is to look at the I am statements.

You know, I am the resurrection of life. I am the way, the truth, and life. I am the bread of life. I am the light of the world. I am. That would be a great way to look at the gospel of John.

And here he says, I am the door. I am the gate. There is no other door available. All other doors may look attractive, but they only lead to death. And Jesus makes this point abundantly clear through the letter. Chapter 1, verse 51.

Nathaniel, you will see angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man because the Son of Man, because the Son of Man, Jesus, is the only real connection between this world and heaven. chapter 2 verse 21 I am the new temple this physical temple can be destroyed because I am now the one way you connect to God chapter 6 I am the bread of life every other thing that fills up that hole in your life becomes empty unless you fill it up with Jesus chapter 7 in the middle of a great banquet Jesus stands up and says is anyone thirsty meaning I'm the only one who can quench your eternal thirst chapter 8 and 9 i am the light of the world if you don't see me you're lost and blind chapter 10 i am the door chapter 11 i am the resurrection in the life chapter 14 i am the way the truth in the life no one comes to the father except through me he the only way especially if you here and you maybe in the college age range This is a huge, huge debate. And this is probably the most offensive thing about Christianity. When I walk my friends through the gospel and I get to chapter 14, I say, I want you to know this is the most offensive thing in our culture.

It may not be personally the most offensive thing to you, but in our culture at large, when you just say to somebody, hey, there is only one way, that's the thing that will drive most people away. So you just have to be prepared. C.S. Lewis has a great way of describing this. You guys know the Chronicles of Narnia, I'm sure. Read the books.

You can skip the movies. one of my favorite books is the silver chair and jill and what's the boy's name eustace right they come into narnia eustace falls off the cliff and jill's left and she's seen the lion aslan they have this little conversation as aslan sitting next to a stream jill comes because she's thirsty and aslan says are you thirsty Jill says I'm dying of thirst well then drink and Jill says would you promise not to do anything to me I make no promises well then I dare not come and drink says Jill then you will die of thirst well I suppose I must go and look for another stream and Aslan says there is no other stream when I would take high school kids to a Young Life camp for a week not all of them would receive Christ obviously I mean I wish that would happen but many of them don't and then I would try to either in a larger group or one on one say you know I don't it doesn't appear as if you're really wanting to do this I want to respect your decision that's a decision you get to make I couldn't make it for you even if I wanted to but I would ask you to do this I want you to chase as hard as you can after the things of the world I would just skip the whole religious thing just go for the things you like the best why? Because I know they're going to be dissatisfied in the end. Now I hope mercifully God reserves them from real tragedy.

But most high school kids can know after a bad Friday or Saturday night, hey, this isn't working for me. And I remember somebody said, hey, you should start chasing after that stuff and see if it's really satisfying. And then so many times they'd circle back around at some point. Hey, Paul, you know what you were talking about? Yeah, that happened to me. can you show me that narrow gate one more time there's really only one way so in chapter 10 we have such a great picture of who we are and if you don't see it it won't matter who the good shepherd is if you don't see yourself as a stupid sheep and I mean that in the nicest and the hardest way I can say it then you're never going to need a savior If you don't understand that there are thieves, there are competitors coming at you trying to tear you down, trying to destroy your life, you're going to walk into all kinds of holes in your life.

And then I would want you to see the good shepherd who runs and he never gets tired. And we have a visual display now in John chapter 13 what it means to look like the good shepherd. When you're looking at, let's get a step back and get a big picture. When you're looking at the Gospel of John, chapter 1 through 11, basically the first half of John, so there's 21 chapters.

Chapter 1 through 11 is about the three-year ministry of Jesus. And chapter 12 through 21 is about one week. So the first half is about three years and the second half is about one week. what tells you what kind of weight John gives to the one week. So half of my gospel is going to be about one week of time. And so we've crossed that bridge. The last sign is the raising of Lazarus, and then we move in to the very last week.

And if you look at chapter 12, verse 1, it says six days before the Passover. So that's the verbal cue. We've moved out of the three-year ministry and now we're moving into the one week of time the rest of the letter is taken up with. And then in chapter 13 verse 1 says this Now before the feast of the Passover when Jesus knew that his hour had come Now where did we hear that already?

Mary comes to Jesus at the wedding at Canaan. Remember that? And she says, remember this, she really has a question, but she makes a statement. Lots of people do this. Just going to walk up and say, hey, we're running out of wine. And Jesus responds, my hour has not yet come.

You can't push the timetable. But now, here in chapter 13, the clock is on the countdown. This hour, this moment is on the clock now. And we're up in the upper room and Jesus is beginning to circle his disciples around himself. And he's trying to impart some last bit of information before we reach the Garden of Gethsemane and then the crucifixion and the resurrection.

And notice in verse 30 of chapter 13, Judas leaves or Judas. Let's go back to 28. Now, no one at the table knew why he said this to him. This is Judas. Some thought because Judas had the money bag, Jesus was telling him, buy what we need for the feast. Or that he should give something to the poor.

Because Jesus had just said, what you're going to do, do it quickly. So after receiving the morsel of bread, which Judas had taken, he, Judas, immediately went out. Then what does it say? It was night. So the hour has come. Darkness is closing in. and it was physically night but I think it was spiritually getting dark for everybody as well and so they're in the upper room and what happens in this particular chapter is Jesus is trying to put an end to a long-standing and very painfully shallow argument amongst the disciples and I think we mentioned this before that this that the disciples were like the middle school boys always jockeying for the front seat So they saying shotgun right They always saying I want to be first And Luke 9 recalls that in one place and then Luke 22 recalls it in the upper room that while night is closing in, of all the conversations the disciples could be having, instead of looking at Jesus or even looking at each other, they're looking at themselves and they're saying, who's going to be the greatest?

I mean, it's painful, isn't it? Here's the first communion service. Sort of the last Passover and the first communion. Here's this great historical moment. This is the bridge. This is the little tunnel from the old into the new.

And here we have the first communion service with the real Lamb finally at the table. I mean, who wouldn't want to be at this moment? And this is the moment the disciples decide to figure out who's the greatest. And you know if there's ever a conversation, especially let's say in a family, about who's the greatest, what are you also trying to determine?

Who's last? So that's the level of the shallow conversation that's taking place here on Jesus' last night. who's the least who's the lowest that's what we want to know along with who's the get the greatest and jesus knows what's going on in the table and to provide the disciples with a visual parable that will never leave their minds he demonstrates that to get into heaven's gate it's a low entry. It's a really low entry to get in.

The foot washing also serves another purpose and it's clearly stated in verse 1. He's coming to love His own. He knows His own. He loves His own. And so here He is. Jesus is displaying his love for his lost sheep.

The hour of darkness is closing in. Jesus' brutal departure from the world is at hand. His spirit is troubled, according to verse 21. He got this argument going on amongst his 12 closest friends He already knows Judas is going to betray him He knows Peter is going to deny him He knows that all the disciples will abandon him And at that very moment, what would you have done?

Forget the stupid sheep. I mean, that's what I would have said. Or let's get a new flock here. I mean, because these guys, I've been with them for three. But no, he loves them. Look at verse 1.

He loves them to the very end. He loved them all the way to the end. See, he runs and never tires. He's always coming out no matter what kind of mess you have on you. He's always trying to pursue. And let's just close with just looking at three things.

The distance that this love is willing to travel. Verse 2 and 3. during the supper when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to portray him, Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hand and that he had come from God and was going back to God, he rose from supper. During the last supper, Jesus knew Satan was in the room.

Satan had tried confronting Jesus. Satan had tried confronting Peter. Satan had tried to find any way to get towards Jesus and finally in Judas he found a willing participant. And Jesus, before Judas' departure, he washes Judas' feet. I mean, just imagine. Jesus is washing Judas' feet.

What kind of eye contact might there have been? What kind of thought might have been going through Judas' mind? I wonder when the disciples reflect back on that moment and they remember Jesus saying, love your enemies and do good to those who hate you. And they thought, oh, I don't think he was talking about that bad guy. And then go, oh, maybe he was.

Maybe he was because he washed Judas' feet. second you see that John stresses his authority here the distance of his love you see verse three we don't have time to unpack this but just just notice Jesus knowing that the father had given all things into his hands I mean whatever that is there's been a big power shift all things are in Jesus And all authority has been given to him in some unique, different way here. And so at this point, Jesus has absolute power. Everything has been downloaded to him at God.

And that moment when he has all power, that's the moment he decides to take off his robe and put on a towel. When everything is available to him, he chooses to bend down. What if you had had that kind of power? at your disposal, what would you have done? Would you have laid it aside and washed somebody's feet? See, the distance Jesus is willing to travel is beyond calculation.

We see the demonstration, secondly, of Jesus' love. In the New Testament times, the host was to provide some kind of slave to wash the feet, but there was nobody provided. There was at least a basin, a water jar, a tower provided, but I guess the person who hosts it thought, well, they'll bring somebody or they'll do it. And so they put this there, and the disciples had borrowed the upper room, so there's no servant.

And imagine now they're walking into the room, they're very used to this thing happening, and they look around and they see the basin, they see the towel, they see that there's no servant, and then just imagine what's happening. Yeah, and then they just keep walking. I mean, there had to be, for some of them, a little moment like, hmm. And they couldn't wash each other's feet.

They couldn't wash their own feet. isn't this painful how shallow these guys are at this moment in the chapter before you know what happens Jesus is at another dinner party and what happens a woman comes and breaks the perfume Where All over Jesus all over his feet And she wiping his feet with her hair And Jesus says, this woman, she's going to always be remembered. And here we are, just a few hours removed from that moment, and no disciple can wash their own feet, they can't wash each other's feet, and they can't wash Jesus' feet. it's painful. And Jesus waits long enough.

And then he stands up. And he takes the robe off. And he puts the towel on. And then he goes and imagine the utter embarrassment of every disciple. And I'm guessing you could hear every water drop fall back into the basin. The demonstration of God's love is really without calculation.

And then he gives directions, verse 14 and 15. And these are not just directions for his disciples, but for us. Let's go back to verse 13. You call me teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If then your Lord and teacher have washed your feet, then you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example that you should do just as I have done for you.

Let me close with just two points, three points quickly. One, a quote from John Piper, general application point. Jesus is saying if I the highest have gone low then you the lower from whatever height you are standing should go low also I going away and you about to become my representatives my ambassadors on earth And I want to make most clear that your fitness for this role requires that you to be the kind of people who gladly go low.

You step down from the privileges of your high standing. You engage in lowly serving. all that you do, do it with a view of getting underneath others to lift them up not getting over others to look down and feel superior the only people suited to represent me are the lowly the humble and the servant like so you as an individual and in maybe a more specific category, you as a church is that what you're signing up for? To go love.

One closing specific application. Ephesians 5. Husbands love your wives as. Husbands. Are you ready to go love? See, this is what it looks like.

Had breakfast with a friend of mine last week at a little cafeteria in Wilmington. He's got a sorry marriage. And he's added at least 50% to the sorriness of it. And he starts complaining about all the things that he has to do. And I say, man, that sounds tough. sounds like you're having to wash somebody's feet. Why did I call you, Paul, to have breakfast?

Because this is the kind of stuff you give me. I looking for a way out And you say no you got to keep diving in That what he said I said hey man I your pastor And so husbands you know it easy to serve your wife when it the kinds of things that you want to do It's easy to serve your wife if you think you're going to get something. But are you really willing to go low?

When she's acting like a middle school person. As a church, are you ready for the people coming to your church to say, I'm not trying to get above you. I'm trying to get up underneath you. And that's going to cause me to go lower than wherever you are. Let's pray together. Lord, it's such a great passage that we have a good shepherd.

One that runs and never tires. one that sees us with the vomit of our sin, the vomit of this world, the idols that are hanging off of us, that some we know, some are so hidden we don't even know them ourselves, that you keep holding on to us, you keep coming towards us. Thank you. Thank you. But for those who are here who have been rescued by the Savior who gets up underneath us and plants our feet on a rock that is certain in all times.

Now you've called us to go low. You've called every husband here to go low. The church to go low underneath some very difficult people in trying times. May the fuel of the gospel be what we run on. Not our own thoughts, not our own ways, but your ways. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.