The Full Extent of His Love
Scheduled for February 26
(John
13:1 NIV) It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had
come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who
were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.
There
is a certain fascination within John’s writings, for only John among the Gospel
authors was an intimate friend of our Lord. Matthew was not among the inner
four; Luke, as far as we know, never met the Lord in person; Mark was a young
man at the time of the Crucifixion. Only John knew Jesus well. His writings
reflect it; they are full of the personal kinds of remembrances you find when
the author writes about someone he loves deeply. It is apt, therefore, that
John begins the story of the Last Supper with the words, “he now showed them
the full extent of his love.”
If,
without having read this passage, I were to ask you, “How did Jesus show the
full extent of his love?”, you would probably reply, “At the Cross.” You’d be
right. This verse, therefore, shows us that the Last Supper was simply the
first act in the Crucifixion. It was not just simply the Passover which
happened the night before; Jesus planned this Supper as part of His trip to
the Cross. He planned it long before, when he had Moses institute the Passover.
From before time the Cross was in view, and therefore this supper was in view.
In it, Jesus begins to show his love for them.
Not
just his love; the “full extent” of his love. It was as if he were saying,
“Now you will see it all.” We see it in the Passover, a picture of
redemption. We see it in the Garden, where Jesus wrestles with fear. We see
it on the Cross. Is there any greater love than a man dying for another?
Look
again at that verse. Not just “his love;” not just “the full extent” -- look
at the verb. He showed them. He did not tell them; he did not reveal
some startling new doctrine. He showed them. The prophets revealed God’s
love, and mirrored it as best they were able. Jesus showed them in person.
The Lord’s Supper marks the full revealing.
What
does it then reveal to us? Love is, first and foremost, a sacrifice. In
animal sacrifice the Passover was proclaimed, and the death angel passed over
Israel.. At the Cross, Love Himself became the sacrifice, and the death angel
will pass over us. When he returns, we shall rise to meet him. The price of
this victory over the grave was paid for us at Calvary; for this reason we
remember the full extent of his love.
