2BC BIBLE STUDY NOTES
Wednesday in the Word
Second Baptist Church
January 7, 2026
John 13
John 13:18-21. Jesus has been speaking of following His example by serving one another. They, as His disciples, are to do as their Master has shown them. But Judas is not truly one of our Lord’s own; he is not a true disciple of Jesus. He, of course, is not “clean,” as the other disciples are (13:10-11). Jesus has just said that the real blessing is not just in knowing and understanding what He has taught them, but in doing what He commands. If they (His disciples) do what He has commanded, they will be blessed. Good works are of great benefit to the Christian. They contribute nothing to his salvation, but they do evidence true conversion, and they are the basis for the believer’s rewards. The things of which our Lord was speaking to His disciples are very important, and of great value to His true disciples (excluding Judas). His words are prophetic, spelling out what the future holds for Him and for Judas. The things of which He is speaking fulfill prophecy. Judas, who is reclining beside Jesus, and is about to take the bread which He offers, is one whose terrible betrayal has been foretold. John now cites Psalm 41:9, which says, 'The one who eats my bread has turned against me.’In verses 19 and 20, Jesus makes it very clear that all of this is about believing in Him. Jesus tells His disciples what is going to happen ahead of time, so that when these things take place they will remember He told them beforehand and believe in Him as the Messiah. While Jesus is indirectly exposing Judas as an unbeliever here, His emphasis is on believing, believing in Him. This is the thrust of verse 20. Whoever accepts the one Jesus sends accepts Jesus Himself. Whoever accepts Jesus as God’s “sent One” (see John 1:1-18) accepts the Father, who sent Him.
Verses 21-27: This is the third time in John’s Gospel that Jesus has been “troubled in spirit.” He was “intensely moved in spirit and greatly distressed" at the burial site of Lazarus (John 11:33). Later on, in chapter 12, the soul of our Lord was greatly distressed at the prospect of His coming “hour” of suffering the penalty for man’s sin (12:27). Now, our Lord is greatly distressed at the thought of one of His own followers betraying Him (13:21). He is troubled over the spiritual condition, conduct, and destiny of Judas. Passover was a festive occasion, but our Lord’s words cast a dark shadow over the meal. The disciples were “worried and perplexed” (verse 22). They knew what He said, though they could hardly grasp its true meaning. But taking His words at face value, they knew that one of them was, in some way, going to betray Jesus. Peter wants to find out who this betrayer is. If he had not been so far away from Jesus, he could have asked the Master privately himself But as it was, he found it necessary to signal to “the disciple Jesus loved” (who can hardly be anyone other than John, the author of this account), gesturing to him to ask Jesus who the betrayer Was. John, who must have been reclining next to Jesus, leaned back upon our Lord’s chest and asked who this person was. Jesus did not give John a name, but indicated that the betrayer would be the one to whom He would give a piece of bread, dipped in the dish (verse 26). For the moment, Jesus focuses His attention on Judas. Jesus dipped a piece of bread in the dish and handed it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. What an incredible, defining, moment this was! Jesus and Judas must have locked eyes. Judas had to have known that Jesus knew everything. Jesus knew Judas was the betrayer. He knew Judas did not really believe in Him. He knew Judas had already reached an agreement with the chief priests. He knew that Judas would soon go to the Jewish authorities, and lead them to Him, to arrest Him. Despite all this, Judas reached out and took the bread, knowing what that meant. It forever sealed his doom. At this moment, the scriptures say that Judas is under the influence of Satan.
Verses 28-30. If Judas and Jesus knew exactly what was going on, the rest of the disciples were without a clue. That is what John makes very clear to us in verses 28-30. Jesus turned to Judas and said to him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” in effect, Jesus dismissed Judas from the table. Judas may not have intended to go out till later. It seems to me that it was necessary for Judas to leave at this time. First, it would assure that the timing of His death was right–something more important to Jesus than to Judas, or even the Jewish religious leaders. Second, it would remove Judas, so that Jesus could speak intimately and openly with His true disciples. In some ways, Judas had already been gently excluded from certain things He was not one of the inner three: Peter, James, and John. He surely was not one of those sent to prepare for the Passover celebration. This would have enabled him to betray Jesus at the wrong time and place. Now, Judas is excluded from our Lord’s final words to His disciples. The disciples watch Judas take the bread from Jesus, and they may very well hear Jesus tell Judas it is time for him to go about his mission. But no one understood what was happening. They knew Judas kept the money box. They assumed that he had left to give something to the poor (as he made such an effort to appear to do frequently–see 12:4-6), or that he was going out to buy more supplies. And so Judas took the bread, and left immediately thereafter.
Verses 31-32. The first words which John records for us in verses 31 and 32 should have come as no surprise to the disciples. The time had come for Jesus to be glorified. The disciples had expected this, but the “glory” of which Jesus speaks is not what they would have expected at all. The glory of God is achieved at a very high price. The Father will sacrifice His own Son. Who can imagine the agony in that? The Son will lay down His life, dying on a Roman cross, and suffering separation from His Father–as the payment for our sins. And afterward the disciples will undergo their own suffering, which we see throughout the Book of Acts. It would be wrong to speak of our Lord’s glory, apart from His suffering. It would likewise be incorrect to speak of His suffering apart from His glorification. Jesus here informs His disciples that His glorification is imminent–“right away” (verse 32). His glory begins at the cross, but it does not end there. He is glorified by His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension to the right hand of the Father. Our Lord’s suffering and His glorification cannot be separated. This is what the prophets of old struggled with: How can Messiah be both a suffering Servant and a triumphant King? When the Lord is glorified He will return to the Father. This is why Jesus says where he is going they cannot come (at least for now).
Verses 34-35. We all know that there is a sense in which this “new” commandment of our Lord is not entirely new. The Old Testament law could be summed up in two commands: (1) Love God; and (2) Love your neighbor as yourself (see Matthew 22:34-40; Romans 13:8-10). What, then, is so different about our Lord’s command here that He can call it “new”? it is a command given by our Lord to the church, and not a command given to Israel. In this sense, it is the first of the “new commandments” that our Lord will give to the church through His apostles. The most important “new” dimension to our Lord’s command here is the standard which He sets for the love He requires: “Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” it is one thing to love one another as we love and care for ourselves. It is a greater love that gives up one’s own life for another, that sacrifices self-interest to promote the interests of another (JonI 15:13; Philippians 2:1-8.). The sacrificial work of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary is the “new” standard for the Christian’s love for fellow-believers.
Verses 36-38. Peter isn’t listening to the last statement; he is stuck on Jesus saying that his disciples could not go where he was going. Peter thinks Jesus is talking about commitment versus betrayal. Peter is trying to tell Jesus that he would never betray him. Jesus lets Peter know that he will betray him. As a matter of fact, he will betray Jesus three times before the morning.
The big issue of this text is the “New” Commandment to love one another. The disciples refused to serve one another, and their “love” at this moment was just like the “love” we see and read about in our culture–a self-serving “love” which continues to love so long as our interests are being served. The love which our Lord displayed was a self-sacrifIcing love, which prompted Him to serve the disciples by washing their feet, and most of all by dying on the cross of Calvary to save sinners from the guilt and penalty of their sins. The Christian standard and source of love is the Person of Jesus Christ, as demonstrated on cross of Calvary.
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