The New Commandment

GOLDEN TEXT: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” —John 13:34

JOHN 13:12-17,34,35; 14:21-24

THE scene of today’s lesson is in the “upper room” where Jesus spent the last evening before his crucifixion with his disciples. (Mark 14:15; Luke 22:12) Jesus knew that the Father’s due time for him to die, to be “cut off” in death, had arrived, and he therefore spent this last evening of his earthly ministry endeavoring to impress upon his disciples important truths which he saw they very much needed.

One of these was a lesson in humility and brotherly love. While the disciples had been with Jesus for more than three years, they had not yet grasped the true import of his teachings and of his spirit. They were greatly impressed with their belief that he was the promised Messiah, the One who had come to be a great King in a powerful kingdom which would rule over Israel and the whole world. They gloried in the prospect of participation with him in this new government. But as yet their viewpoint of Jesus’ teachings concerning his kingdom was influenced by their own ambitions to occupy prominent positions in it.

So, even in the upper room, with arrest and death facing their Master, there “was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest.” (Luke 22:24) Undoubtedly this caused Jesus to wash his disciples’ feet as an example of humility and love. It was a menial service, and Jesus wanted them to realize that anyone worthy to be truly great in his kingdom must be willing to render the humblest sort of service.

After washing the disciples’ feet Jesus inquired: “Know ye what I have done to you?” (vs. 12) They knew, of course, that he had washed their feet, but did they grasp the lesson that Jesus was thus endeavoring to teach them? Had they taken fully into consideration that while he was truly their Lord and Master, it was not beneath him to render this humble service as a token of his love for them?

If they caught the significance of this lesson, then they would realize how out of keeping it was for them to be disputing among themselves as to who should be the greatest in the kingdom. “I have given you an example,” Jesus said, and then added, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his Lord.”

“If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them,” Jesus told the disciples in that upper room. Even if they understood the meaning of the example he had given, the understanding itself would be of little value unless they put the lesson into practice. A failure to follow his example in their associations with one another would mean that they were merely hearers of the Word, and not doers.

Or, to use Jesus’ own words in a further application of this lesson in humility and brotherly love, those who truly love him will actually keep his commandments, and these in turn will be especially loved by the Heavenly Father and by himself. It was not without a reason that Jesus placed so much emphasis upon this aspect of the Christian life. Not only did he note with disappointment the wrangling of his immediate disciples in their anxiety to be great and important, but he knew that this was one of the most prevalent weaknesses of fallen humanity, and that all of his followers throughout the age would have to come to grips with it and be overcomers in order to prove their worthiness to live and reign with him.

A story is told of a man who was hired for a certain amount to do a job. He in turn hired another man to actually do the work, paying him twice as much. His explanation was that it was worth the difference to be “boss.” Not all human beings are afflicted with this urge to lord it over others, but many are, and even among the Lord’s own people it manifests itself all too often. It is well that we all take Jesus’ lesson seriously to heart, and realize that the truly great in the Lord’s sight are those who are willing to render the humblest service, and to rejoice when others occupy a seemingly higher position in the vineyard.

To the truly humble who obey the new commandment to love one another rather than lording it over one another, Jesus promised that both he and the Father would manifest themselves to them. And, he added, “We will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” What a glorious reward this is for humbly keeping the commandment to love one another as Jesus loved us! What greater honor could we enjoy than to have the Lord Jesus, and our Heavenly Father, make their abode with us!

QUESTIONS

Where were Jesus and the disciples when he gave the new commandment to them which is stated in our Golden Text?

What was it that probably prompted Jesus to wash his disciples’ feet?

What important lesson did Jesus thus teach to his disciples?

What rich reward did Jesus promise to those who obeyed his new commandment to love one another as he had given the example?

| Home Page | Table of Contents |