Truth for Troubled Hearts
As "the way, the truth, and the life," Jesus serves as the better/truer/eternal prophet, priest, and king. Therefore, his promise of “greater works” means that as prophet, priest, and king, his purposes will be amplified by his multiplying believers and expanding church.
The A-Side & B-Side of Love
In John 13, Jesus was flanked at the table (and in his whole life, really) by love and betrayal. As disciples of Jesus’, the more we are with him, become like him, and do what he did, the more that will be true of our life as well.
A King Who Serves
John 13:1-17 is not just about an honored teacher performing a shameful act to serve His pupils — It tells the story that God Himself, who has authority over all of the cosmos and reality itself — has taken on the role of a servant. Jesus’ people serve people because they are served-people.
Hard Truth Brings Great Hope
John 12:37 says, "Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him,..." The temptation for us might be to think, "How is that possible?!" But there's a lot to unpack with what Jesus is trying to teach us through John's gospel here.
An Old Triumphal Entry For A New Kind of King
As best we can, let us strive together to examine the totality of scripture so that we may see the glory and beauty of our Lord Jesus. Let us be a gospel-informed people who revel in the knowledge of Christ.
True Worship
Mary's annointing of Jesus at Bethany reveals to us what true worship looks like. Where others around her saw waste, Jesus saw worship. She had been so shaped/changed by Jesus that she couldn't help but give him what was costly and fitting.
God’s Kingdom and Ours
Like the council that formed after Lazuarus's resurrection, we have to options: Bow to Jesus and his Kingdom and face the fallout of the empire/culture or bow to the empire/culture and face the fallout of Jesus and his Kingdom.
Lazarus’s Death and Ours
If Jesus had come to the earth with the sword of God’s wrath and judgement against evil, none of us would have been left to tell about it. However, he did NOT come with a sword in his hands but nails—NOT to bring judgement BUT to bear it.