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The Structure of John
Before getting into the passage today, I wanted to draw attention to important structural changes in John. The NIVAC John commentary explains the shift well, helping us to understand what we've seen in John so far and what we'll see later:
"John 13:1 opens the second half of this Gospel. For some scholars, it serves as an introductory heading to the entire Book of Glory. The “Book of Signs” (John 1–12) centers on Jesus’ public ministry within Judaism. Jesus provides a series of signs and discourses that rely heavily on the Jewish institutions and festivals of his day. His audience is wide-ranging as he seeks men and women who will believe. He provokes crises of faith, and in many of the chapters there is a division within his audience: Some choose to believe while others remain in unbelief.
The “Book of Glory” (John 13–21), however, shifts our attention to Jesus’ private ministry, to the hour of his glorification (the cross) that has been promised throughout chapters 1–12. His audience has narrowed to the circle of those who truly believe. From chapters 13–17 Jesus is alone with his disciples; chapters 18–21 record Jesus’ final glorification.
The focus of the first half of John is on the signs of Jesus, evidences of his identity borne by miraculous works. The focus of the second half of John is on the hour. Jesus now must say farewell to his followers and begin his return to the Father through his arrest, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. In 13:1 Jesus recognizes that “his hour” has come to depart out of the world, and he focuses his attention on “his own,” whom he has loved.
Throughout the Book of Signs we observe a link between sign and discourse. That is, when Jesus offers a sign (such as the feeding of the five thousand), he generally provides an explanation (a discourse) that unveils its deeper meaning. He explains that he is the light of the world and then heals the blind man (chs. 8–9). In the Book of Glory there is one sign, one event of momentous importance: Jesus’ death on the cross. In a similar fashion, the lengthy teaching of chapters 13–17 is Jesus’ “final discourse” that explains this “final sign.”" [1]
A Question
I'm going to deal with this more tomorrow, since the "New Commandment" passage is in tomorrow's reading, but for today I want to pose a question and see what you all think. In this passage, Jesus washes the disciples' feet. He is THE Master, but is a servant. He exhorts that those that are to lead must be servants. This idea of "servant leadership" has been really important in Christian leadership for a while now. This is a VERY familiar passage that is talked about A LOT.
Which leads me to my question: what do you think this means? We obviously don't go around washing each others feet (usually), so how can we be "servant leaders"? What does a servant leader look like? What kind of actions and attitudes does a servant leader have?
Looking forward to your responses......
The Structure of John
Before getting into the passage today, I wanted to draw attention to important structural changes in John. The NIVAC John commentary explains the shift well, helping us to understand what we've seen in John so far and what we'll see later:
"John 13:1 opens the second half of this Gospel. For some scholars, it serves as an introductory heading to the entire Book of Glory. The “Book of Signs” (John 1–12) centers on Jesus’ public ministry within Judaism. Jesus provides a series of signs and discourses that rely heavily on the Jewish institutions and festivals of his day. His audience is wide-ranging as he seeks men and women who will believe. He provokes crises of faith, and in many of the chapters there is a division within his audience: Some choose to believe while others remain in unbelief.
The “Book of Glory” (John 13–21), however, shifts our attention to Jesus’ private ministry, to the hour of his glorification (the cross) that has been promised throughout chapters 1–12. His audience has narrowed to the circle of those who truly believe. From chapters 13–17 Jesus is alone with his disciples; chapters 18–21 record Jesus’ final glorification.
The focus of the first half of John is on the signs of Jesus, evidences of his identity borne by miraculous works. The focus of the second half of John is on the hour. Jesus now must say farewell to his followers and begin his return to the Father through his arrest, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. In 13:1 Jesus recognizes that “his hour” has come to depart out of the world, and he focuses his attention on “his own,” whom he has loved.
Throughout the Book of Signs we observe a link between sign and discourse. That is, when Jesus offers a sign (such as the feeding of the five thousand), he generally provides an explanation (a discourse) that unveils its deeper meaning. He explains that he is the light of the world and then heals the blind man (chs. 8–9). In the Book of Glory there is one sign, one event of momentous importance: Jesus’ death on the cross. In a similar fashion, the lengthy teaching of chapters 13–17 is Jesus’ “final discourse” that explains this “final sign.”" [1]
A Question
I'm going to deal with this more tomorrow, since the "New Commandment" passage is in tomorrow's reading, but for today I want to pose a question and see what you all think. In this passage, Jesus washes the disciples' feet. He is THE Master, but is a servant. He exhorts that those that are to lead must be servants. This idea of "servant leadership" has been really important in Christian leadership for a while now. This is a VERY familiar passage that is talked about A LOT.
Which leads me to my question: what do you think this means? We obviously don't go around washing each others feet (usually), so how can we be "servant leaders"? What does a servant leader look like? What kind of actions and attitudes does a servant leader have?
Looking forward to your responses......
[1] Gary M. Burge, NIV Application Commentary: John (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2000), 363.
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