It’s amazing how we can read a passage of Scripture several
times and still see things we have never seen before. The Word really is living
and active {Hebrews 4:12}.
After being astounded at the love Jesus expressed in verse
one, the second thing that stuck out to me was in verses three and four:
“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into
his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from
supper.”
Jesus then washed the disciples’ feet. Jesus didn’t just see
the suffering ahead, He saw the truth of His standing with God the Father and
that He would be with the Father soon. The suffering was coming—that’s true,
but there was another truth that wasn’t negated by suffering—Jesus was going
back to the Father. Sometimes when I see suffering in my own life, it can cloud
out everything else.
I think one of the reasons Jesus could approach suffering this
way was because He was confident in His true identity. Jesus’ identity allowed
Him to serve—even those who didn’t deserve it. He knew all things had been
given into His hands. He knew who He was and why He was here on earth. And even
though this group of his closest friends would hurt His heart by abandoning
Him, He served them. He didn’t need to punish them. He came to take the
punishment they deserved for them.
On the other hand, what are some things that you put your
identity in that have hindered you from being able to serve others?