Jeff Englund

April 20, 2019April 20, 2019

Greatness – John 13: 16

Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.

When I read today’s verse in the context of this chapter, I am inclined to sort of BLEEP right over it. It is like the narrator’s voice in my head reads, “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am,” and that is what I hear. When I get to, “Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him,” I seem to hear YADDA YADDA YADDA. Why?

For one thing, this saying seems out of context. Why would Jesus suddenly mention something about who is greater?

As I ponder this passage now, I think I see why.

April 19, 2019April 19, 2019

Monkey See, Monkey Do – John 13: 13-15

You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.

When I was a kid my parents had a saying that summed up the way we learn, peer pressure, and curiosity all in one phrase. Whenever one of us did something dorky that we had seen someone else do they would say, “Monkey see, monkey do.”

Presumably, real monkeys are prone to copy what other monkeys do. Certainly, kids are prone to copying what other kids do. Did you take my crayon? Okay, I’ll take yours. Then, of course, somebody goes crying to Mom and the oldest kid (me) always is the one to get in trouble.

Regardless of the origin of this quaint saying, Jesus applies the same principle here. We should do what we see Him doing.

April 18, 2019April 17, 2019

Happy Birthday, Blog!

Three Minute Bible is 1 year old today.

That is a bit of a surprise to me actually. It started out last spring as a summer Bible study for our Wednesday Bible study group. My hope was that people would enjoy having a few minutes in the Word every day with friends over the summer.

Fall came and the blog kept going. Now it is a year later and we are still only on chapter 13. (If you happen to be a Babylon Bee fan, you might enjoy this article: ”Pastor Completes Brief 47 Year Sermon Series on Book of Romans.” It will make this series on John seem short! 🙂 )

April 18, 2019April 16, 2019

Test Time – John 13: 12

When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. ”Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.

If you have read the Gospel of John before, you know that Jesus answers his own question in the next few verses. Even so, I want to stop here for a moment and think about Jesus’ question.

‘’Do you understand what I have done for you?”

Imagine that you were in the upper room with the disciples and Jesus. He has finished washing the feet of everyone there. Maybe you are puzzled by this. You think to yourself, “What is he doing?”

April 17, 2019April 17, 2019

My Enemy – John 13: 10b-11

”And you are clean, though not every one of you.” For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.

Does anyone out there remember a corny sci-fi TV show from the ’60s called, “Lost in Space?” I don’t remember a lot about it, but I do remember that the character named Dr. Smith. He was always trying to cause trouble. Oddly, the people he was trying to hurt always seemed to be willing to overlook his faults at the end of each show.

Jesus has a similar problem. He has twelve disciples who travel with him everywhere. They know everything about Jesus and every move he makes. Jesus loves them all but one of them is his enemy.

April 16, 2019April 15, 2019

Bull – John 13: 9 – 10a

”Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, ”not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!” Jesus answered, ”Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean…”

I love the stories about Simon Peter. He is like the proverbial bull in a China shop! One minute he is UP, the next he is DOWN. Peter is emotional and passionate. The fires of his impulsiveness drive him from one extreme to another. Yet Jesus picked him to be a disciple. Even more, Peter is often considered the lead disciple.

Today’s passage follows verse 8 where Peter tells Jesus (Jesus!!), “… you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus reprimands him and says, “Unless I wash you, you have no part in me.” Then Peter goes to the other extreme.

April 15, 2019April 14, 2019

Washed – John 13: 6-8

Image of man's face being splashed by water

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, ”Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus replied, ”You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
”No,” said Peter, ”you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, ”Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”

Unless I wash you, you have no part with me…

That is a pretty amazing statement! The scene is the last supper. The last Passover meal that Jesus would have with his disciples. The disciples still do not understand what is going on. They do not know that Jesus must die to save us from sin.

Jesus then steps into the role of a servant and does two things. The first is he demonstrates how his followers must lead by serving others. Second, he is demonstrating how we must be washed of our sins.

This second point is very subtle, yet very profound. “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me…” If we want to go to heaven, if we want to avoid an eternity in the lake of fire, we need to allow Jesus to wash us of our sin.

April 14, 2019April 13, 2019

Superhero – John 13: 4-5

…so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

A video or movie is nothing more than a series of still images strung together and shown in sequence. The pictures are shown one at a time. When this happens fast enough the pictures seem to blur together into one moving picture.

John’s gospel is a bit like a movie. Still pictures strung together into a moving narrative about Christ. Yet each picture is worth looking at. Today’s pictures come just after John tells us that Jesus has “all things” under his power. “All things,” in this context, means all things. All things on earth and in heaven. Imagine all the superheroes that have ever appeared in a comic or a movie combined into one. Their combined power would not even register on a power gauge calibrated for the power needed to control “all things.”

In today’s verse, this person with power over the entire universe steps into the role of the lowliest servant on earth. In terms of personal service to another human being, there was nothing more humble than to wash feet. This is what Jesus did.

April 13, 2019April 12, 2019

Mystery – John 13: 3

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God…

If this were a mystery story we would want to know what Jesus knew and when he knew it. John tells us what Jesus knew. He knows that all things are under his power. Presumably that means all things. Even Judas. Even the Romans.

John also tells us that Jesus knows where he had come from and where he was going. That alone is worth a blog post. Who among us knows where they are going? Do you know someone who has a plan for their life and is on a mission? Is this person spectacularly successful? Do they really know where they are going or is there an element of chance in their life?

The real mystery is how did Jesus know? Again and again, in John’s gospel John points to the fact that Jesus is more than just a man. He is a Traveler. He has come from someplace and is going someplace. His time in the Middle East was short but powerful. In three years Jesus changed the world forever.

April 12, 2019April 11, 2019

Prompting – John 13: 2

The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.

Today’s verse is in between the verses that say Jesus “loved his own” and the Father had “put all things under his power.” Jesus has love and has power. All power. Even so, Satan “prompts” Judas.

“Prompt” is an interesting word. It can mean “incite” or “suggest.” In school, I used to enjoy the opportunities for acting that came my way. My worst fear as an actor was forgetting my lines. Having someone to “prompt” me was a comfort. In today’s verse, the comfort was all Satan’s.

He was nudging Judas. “Remember…” he seems to be saying. Remember what? John does not detail how Judas went to the chief priests and negotiated a price for betraying Jesus. The other three gospels to tell that Judas sought out the opportunity to betray Jesus for money.

There is an important lesson here. Judas could have balked at this point. He could have turned back from what he had done. He could have chosen a different path. He could have confessed. But it would have been very hard. He had already let Satan into his heart. Who knows how long he had been nursing resentment toward Jesus? Who can know why he was tempted in the first place? John tells us that Judas was a thief. (John 12: 6) Could his decision to be unfaithful in a little thing have led to being unfaithful in a big thing?