“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet”

Jesus gives the mandate for his disciples to serve each other. His followers had made noise before about competing amongst themselves for priority status. Jesus reiterates here that we are aspire to serve each other, not to lord over each other. Washing a person’s feet is a very humbling thing to do, and so can be service to others. This kind of service would be unbearable if we didn’t love the one we are serving. And so this is a call to make a decision to love the church of Christ.

Lord, I love Your church. Give me opportunity and power to serve her. Amen.

“My Father who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

Perseverence of the saints. Jesus teaches here that the sustaining power of salvation rests with God and no one else. I’ve always been confused by those that believe that only God has the power to save, but once we are saved we yield power over God to undo His work. How arrogant are we to think that we can reverse the act of salvation. We had nothing to do with the power to save in the first place! God is greater than all, including ourselves. Nothing (and I say again nothing!) can seperate us from the love of God. Hallelujah!

Lord, thank You for choosing me. Thank You for saving me and for continuing to save me. Amen.

“And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

Jesus alludes to God’s plan to bring the Gentiles into His family of chosen ones. For thousands of years, the intrument of God’s plan was the family line of Abraham. Now he has opened that up to include those from every corner of the world. What an amazing honor that is! We should not take it lightly; God is not obliged to show favor to anyone. What am I doing with this great priviledge?

Lord, help me to never forget the abundant loving-kindness You have shown me. Let me live as one chosen by You. Amen.

“Jesus answered, ‘It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him’ “

Jesus explains the reason for this man’s infirmity. Earlier, when Jesus healed the man at Bethesda, He alluded that the man was disabled because of sin in his life. Here, he reveals there is no specific sin to blame for this blind man. He also reveals that there is a divine purpose in this man’s disability. God can use physical or material hardships as punishment for sin, but He may also allow them for other reasons. In either case, He is sovreign and has a purpose.

Lord, help me not to be distracted by physical or matrial hardships (or blessings). Let me always give honor to You and Your plan. Amen.

“What does He mean by saying, ‘You will seek me and you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?”

The people are confused about what Jesus is talking about. Throughout the gospels you see the people lacking spiritual discernment. Jesus talks about being the bread of life, they talk about free food. He talks about tearing down the temple and rebuilding it in three days, they think He’s a terrorist. He says He will go where they cannot come, they think he’s going for a walk. I don’t think it’s coincidence that after the confusion in this text, Jesus talks about the Holy Spirit that is to come. The Word of God is foolishness to man and we are hopeless to understand it without the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit. How amazing is our God!

Lord, thank You for Your Spirit. Let me be submissive to Him. Teach me and use me for Your purpose.

“When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes.”

King Josiah was 36 when he first heard scripture. I love this account because it is so convicting. The reaction that the king has to hearing the Word of God is penitence, humility, and weeping. How often do I open my heart to God’s Word to allow that kind of penetration? Not often enough. Josiah instantly recognized the authority and seriousness of scripture and responded with an attitude of awe and obedience. I want to be a Josiah.

Lord, break my heart like You broke Josiah’s. Let me be obsessed with Your Word. Amen.

“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me to me I will never cast out.”

Irresistable grace and perseverence of the saints in one verse! The leaders of the day in the Jewish community preached personal power through adherence to their rules. Ironically, they held power over the people through the same legalism. Jesus strikes down both ideas in one verse. We do not have power to save ourselves, it is God who calls and the called will always respond. We do not have the power to uphold our salvation, it is Jesus who says “I will never cast you out”. Hallelujah, what a savior!

Lord, thank You for choosing me. Thank You for continuing to save me. I deserve neither. Amen.

“For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom He will.”

This reminds me of the song “Because He Lives”. God’s demonstration of His power over death is the proof of His power over sin. Because Jesus died and was brought back to life, we who are dead in sin can be alive in His righteousness. Animosity with God becomes harmony, eternal punishment gives way to eternal bliss. Praise God for His mercy and grace!

Lord, thank You for sending Your Son to live, die, and live again to free me from my sins. May Your name be praised for it forever. Amen.

“He said, ‘Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ “

Elisha encourages his servant when they appear to be overwhelmed by the Syrian army. We seem to constantly struggle with the command to be anxious for nothing, but Elisha had it figured out. He understood that God’s children can never be outnumbered. If God is with us, who could be against us? We may not face horsemen and chariots, but we do face daily temptations to sin. And even in those cases, we have the Holy Spirit of God with us and a promise that we will never be tempted beyond what we can handle. Our situation is never bleak, it is never hopeless.

Lord, help me to trust in You and Your power to deliver. Thank You for sending Your Spirit to fight for me. Amen.

“The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life”

The language Christ uses in describing His living water shows immediacy in it’s effect on the recipient. What I mean is that when a person recieves this living water, they have it’s effects at that moment. This is amazing, because it means that “eternal life” doesn’t just mean life after death. It’s something we have right now! The eternal life of Christ welling up inside us to give us strength and power to do God’s work and fight against sin. What an awesome thing this is.

Lord, don’t let me forget the eternal life I have right now. Let me never try to find strength or sustenance anywhere else. Amen.