Tension! Almost every newspaper speaks of it ; every other periodical discusses how we might reduce it ; countless advertisements proclaim pills and potions to reduce it, and to restore us to full vigour again.
Despite today’s pre-occupation with tension, it is not new to the world—perhaps more universally severe, but yet, not new. The writings of the apostles are underlined with it and the life of the Lord Jesus Christ, as revealed by them, displays it at every turn.
It is strange that, although we know and admit that Jesus was human, as we are, and felt as we do, very often our minds picture him in a sort of anesthesia where nervous strain does not exist. Yet, if we take a few verses from the 12th and 13th Chapters of John’s Gospel, we find the following story unfolding.
Following the raising of Lazarus and the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, we find Jesus (Ch. 12. 23) speaking to a crowd of Jews and Greeks. Probably in this group would be some who had shouted, “Blessed is the King of Israel, that cometh in the name of the Lord”, as they strewed the palm fronds before him ; and with this sight still with them they hear Jesus say, “Now is the hour when the Son of Man should be glorified” Their minds would flash to the hope of Israel couched in similar words in Daniel 7. 13-14, and they might imagine that the time of subjection was at an end : Israel was to be the promised mighty nation, at last. But Jesus’ words to them, and transferred to us, are very different from this, for he tells them of suffering and sacrifice, not domination.
Firstly (v 24), Jesus says that life only comes by death : that only when we have a loyalty which extends to the supreme do we become the real servants of God. This sort of loyalty brought man’s most precious gift, redemption in Jesus Christ ; this sort of loyalty, in which our personal desires and ambitions are sacrificed to follow Jesus, is the only way in which we can enable God’s saving grace to live in us.
Next (v. 25), Jesus says that to retain our life we must lay it out, now, day by day ; to be secure in God’s grace we must pay out our lives in service, not hoard it to ourselves and let the other members of our ecclesia serve us. No-one is exempt ; paradoxical as it may seem, each one must use his life in order to keep it.
The words of advice conclude (v’ 26) with the statement that greatness comes only by service. The listeners probably thought that they had been servants long enough under the yoke of successive oppressors, and that it ought to be their turn to be lords, not servants. So too, in our life, we often think that it is time someone else did the work for a while ; we as individuals have done enough and deserve a rest. Jesus says all must be servants, gainfully employed—not observers, not armchair critics . . . all servants!
“Now Is My Soul Troubled”
Returning to our theme of tension, it is interesting to note that John makes no mention of the agony of Gethsemane, but suggests the real struggle took place here —before and during the supper, until the path to the cross became inevitable.
“Now is my soul troubled” (v 27). Jesus was worried, on edge, as the time for Judas to depart, draws nearer. No man wants to die, yet here, facing the horror of death, but filled with zeal for God, Jesus steels himself for the issue and every nerve is stretched with strain and tension. Despite all this Jesus knew that what he was doing was worthwhile. He saw in his trial and anguish something achieved for all mankind (v. 32). His mind passed from a state of tension to certainty as God’s voice (v 28) speaks to him.
So, too, we ought to know that what we are doing is worthwhile, and then what God did for Jesus He will do for us. All our uncertainty, our doubt, our self-made strains and tensions can be borne. Jesus was too honest to offer release from the strains of this life, but he does offer us power to control them. How ? We are told to listen for God’s voice. Simple ! Yet how many really believe that when the situation goes beyond their resources God’s voice will reassure them. “Our problem is not that God does not speak, but that we do not listen enough.”
But the decision was not yet irrevocable and time brings on the passover feast (13. 2), during which occurred the oft quoted incident of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet.
According to Luke (22. 24), the night was torn with dissension between the disciples on matters of precedent and prestige. It would appear that this progressed to the stage where no-one was willing to carry out the menial, but customary, task of washing the feet of the guests (can we see the same principles evident in some of our own behaviour ? ). We might imagine some of the conversation : “Let John do it, he’s the youngest” ; -Let Matthew do it, he was a tax collector” ; “Let Judas do it, he never really does any work, just looks after the money”-so no-one washed Jesus’ feet. When it became evident that none of them were going to carry out the task, Jesus rebuked them with the words, “I am giving you this example of how you ought to behave to one another”—and washed their feet.
So today we often stand on our dignity when we ought to be on our knees. We are unwilling to appear subordinate feel slighted, and resign or refuse to do the job set down for us—how many of us can say we have never fallen in this way ? Just at these moments let us picture “the Son of God, girt with a towel and kneeling at his disciples’ feet.” Yes, the men and women who stoop are the ones called to be saints.
As the meal concludes it appears certain to Jesus that Judas will not respond to his appeals. Was Judas the person on whose breast Jesus’ head was resting ? Was the tit-bit a token of special appeal ? And he utters those words, so filled with evidence of strain : -That thou doest, do quickly”. How human this is—just the sort of phrase we might use in a state of tension when we see someone creating a frightening situation and yet who is deaf to our appeals or blind to the consequences of his action. If ever we had evidence of Jesus’ humanity, it is here
Yes, Judas went out, and John adds that it was night. This night to John was more than the time after sunset, for to him it is night when a man turns away from Jesus. So too for us, it is night when we are perverse and intolerant ; it is night when there is strife and disunity ; it is night when we turn our backs on God. Let us all pray that God will help us, for men become lost in the dark.”
The Love Of Jesus
Judas has gone out and the tension has almost gone ; there still remains trial and suffering, but now the path is inevitable, for
Judas has gone out ! Any doubts have been removed. Just at this time Jesus issues his farewell command (v. 34). Before he begins the journey he must walk alone, he asks them to love one another as he has loved them.
What would this mean to them ? What does it convey to us in regard to our relationships with one another ? How did Jesus love his disciples ?
It is suggested Jesus’ love was fourfold.
- He loved unselfishly. He gave himself for those he loved, and in this giving day by day to the cross it was their happiness he had in mind, not his own.
- He loved sacrificially. No demand was too great ; his love had no limit—despite the pain they may bring in their blindness, he loved them. “If this love meant the cross, then he was willing to go to it.”
- He loved understandingly. As he lived with them, day in, day out, Jesus discovered his disciples’ weaknesses, but he loved them just the same. So we, too, must love understandingly, not blindly, but conscious that our brethren and sisters are imperfect, as we ourselves are, and love them understandingly as they are, for that is the way we hope Jesus will love us.
- Finally, Jesus loved forgivingly. Although they denied him ; although they missed the point of his parables, were slow to learn, insensitive to his desires, and in the end forsook him, he forgave their failure.
So, when we feel like condemning our brethren or sisters for being blind, insensitive, slow to learn, unimaginative, we ought to think of Jesus and forgive their failure, just as we hope Jesus will forgive ours.
This returns us to our theme of tension, for if we examine ourselves it soon becomes evident that most of us create this tension within ourselves, and, not satisfied with this, spread it amongst our brethren and friends. And why ? Because our vision of Jesus is being obscured by our own unwillingness to submit our wills to that of God.
We might do well to read again to ourselves the words of the writer to the Corinthians in I Cor. 10. 15-16, and then evaluate just what this means in our lives as we view this fourfold love of Jesus.
Reflections on the Potter and the Clay