True Submission

Introduction

Philippians 2:2–8 NAS

make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Romans 12:1–3 (NAS):

12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.

v.12

John 13:12 NASB95

12 So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you?

John 13:12 UBS5

12 Ὅτε οὖν ἔνιψεν τοὺς πόδας αὐτῶν [καὶ] ἔλαβεν τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀνέπεσεν πάλιν, εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, Γινώσκετε τί πεποίηκα ὑμῖν;

NOTE:

A Textual Guide to the Greek New Testament The Gospel according to John

13:12 Segmentation

If a break is made after πάλιν (again) as in the text, a possible translation is “After washing their feet he put on his garment and sat down again. ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?’ he asked” (REB, similarly NRSV, NJB, and most other translations). If, however, a break is made before πάλιν, the sense is “When he had washed their feet and put on his clothes and taken his place, he said to them again, ‘Do you understand what I have been doing to you?’ ” (Goodspeed).

Jesus reclined again, taking his outer cloak back and putting it on again, resuming His rightful place as a member of those who are served.

This is clearly an example.

He did not remain a slave in His behavior.

His action here was simply to make a point.

I am sure that the men were staring at Him.

“…Do you know what I have done to you all?”

The Greek New Testament, Fifth Revised Edition (with Morphology) Chapter 13

Γινώσκετε τί πεποίηκα ὑμῖν;

2pl perfect active Indicative = “Do you understand the meaning of my act?” (Robertson)

Word Pictures in the New Testament John 13:12

It was a searching question, particularly to Simon Peter and Judas.

The use of the perfect here is a definitive expression of purpose and seriousness.

This is not like some other act.

This is serious, poignant, and critical for their minds to grasp, especially that they would also follow the same example.

v.13

John 13:13 NASB95

13 “You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am.

John 13:13 UBS5

13 ὑμεῖς φωνεῖτέ με Ὁ διδάσκαλος καὶ Ὁ κύριος, καὶ καλῶς λέγετε, εἰμὶ γάρ.

“You call...”

= φωνεῖτέ = to make a sound out to; to address with a title.

The sense here is that these men address Jesus in public as their Teacher and Lord.

Their proclamation is true, as far as it goes.

John 12–21 (2) An Interpretation of Servanthood (13:12–20)

Although one could argue that “teacher” here is merely the equivalent of rabbi and “Lord” here is either a general statement like “sir” or a mere honorific title like “master,” the entire mood of the text would seem to argue against it. It would seem, instead, that this double designation should be interpreted in terms of Jesus’ divinely directed agency in mission and not merely as a reference to an earthly teacher (cf. Nicodemus, 3:1) or to an earthly master (cf. the nobleman from Capernaum, 4:46). Rather, this Teacher is a divine-human revealer/interpreter, and this Master is none other than the one who is one and the same with the Lord God.

He seems to be addressing their own shortsightedness in their discussions about Jesus.

What are the other discussions occurring in the room that night?

Matthew 26:33–35 NASB95

33 But Peter said to Him, “Even though all may fall away because of You, I will never fall away.” 34 Jesus said to him, “Truly I say to you that this very night, before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” 35 Peter said to Him, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You.” All the disciples said the same thing too.

Luke 22:24–27 NASB95

24 And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest. 25 And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’ 26 “But it is not this way with you, but the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant. 27 “For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

Luke 22:31–32 NASB95

31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; 32 but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”

Luke 22:35–38 NASB95

35 And He said to them, “When I sent you out without money belt and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?” They said, “No, nothing.” 36 And He said to them, “But now, whoever has a money belt is to take it along, likewise also a bag, and whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one. 37 “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘And He was numbered with transgressors’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.” 38 They said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”

The reality is that their confession will not be enough to hold them together when Jesus is arrested and crucified.

If it is not for the grace and purpose of the Father, this would have been true of the disciples/apostles as well:

Matthew 7:21–23 NASB95

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

“…Teacher...” = one who is a communicator to the public.

John 11:28–29 NASB95

28 When she had said this, she went away and called Mary her sister, saying secretly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29 And when she heard it, she got up quickly and was coming to Him.

Mark 14:12–15 NASB95

12 On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was being sacrificed, His disciples said to Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare for You to eat the Passover?” 13 And He sent two of His disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him; 14 and wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is My guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?” ’ 15 “And he himself will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; prepare for us there.”

NOTE:

Why didn’t they call Him a “preacher”?

“…Lord...” = respectful title as well as title of One who is the Son of God.

Jesus did not deny that He was Teacher and Lord.

He did not condemn them for assigning that title to Jesus, even publicly.

v.14

John 13:14 NASB95

14 “If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.

John 13:14 UBS5

14 εἰ οὖν ἐγὼ ἔνιψα ὑμῶν τοὺς πόδας ὁ κύριος καὶ ὁ διδάσκαλος, καὶ ὑμεῖς ὀφείλετε ἀλλήλων νίπτειν τοὺς πόδας

Jesus changes the order of the titles:

“Lord” - primary title. His teaching is from the fact that He is Lord.

“Teacher” - He is the Teacher because as Lord He has to announce the Word of God.

Jesus is addressing His disciples from the standpoint of His example, as odd as it was.

He put aside His dignity.

He put aside His disciple-generated prestige.

He put aside being thought of as One who is just like other men.

He then took on the ignoble, shameful, and menial posture of a slave.

This, then, is the posture of each Christian towards one another.

This introduces a reality of following Jesus Christ that is lost to our contemporary “Christianity.”

1 Corinthians 1:22–24 NASB95

22 For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; 23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, 24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

The reality of this act by Jesus is not that He washed the feet of these men, per se.

The reality of this act by Jesus is all the dignity that He set aside and the shame that He willingly took upon Himself.

Don Green writes (The Folly of the Cross, p.67):

“That view, however, does not adequately account for the historical background underlying 1 Cor 1:23. True, worthy citizens did not discuss crucifixion in cultured company, but Paul obviously intends far more in this context. He was addressing the impact of an exclusive message of salvation that had as its central component an itinerant preacher from Judea who had been crucified at the hands of the Roman army. Given the degraded status of crucified men, Gentiles would have found Paul more than uncouth. In the midst of Roman power and world domination, they would have found Paul’s message to be utterly ridiculous. Paul was speaking absurdities not worthy of serious consideration. That is the foolishness Paul described in 1 Cor 1:23. An examination of contemporary Roman writers bears out that conclusion. They variously call Christianity a “pernicious superstition,” a “depraved and excessive superstition,” and “figments of an unhealthy belief, and vain sources of comfort.” Obviously, “Christ crucified” was utterly mad and contradicted all prevailing rational thought. Thus, though the Jews had to abandon their notions of a curse being upon the crucified, the Gentiles had to abandon their associations of weakness and contempt before they could believe in Christ. It was simply preposterous to suggest that this crucifixion was the focal point of the redemption of mankind.

Hengel writes, “To believe that the one pre-existent Son of the one true God, the mediator at creation and the redeemer of the world, had appeared in very recent times in out-of-the-way Galilee as a member of the obscure people of the Jews, and even worse, had died the death of a common criminal on the cross, could only be regarded as a sign of madness. The real gods of Greece and Rome could be distinguished from mortal men by the very fact that they were immortal––they had absolutely nothing in common with the . . . one who . . . was bound in the most ignominious fashion and executed in a shameful way.””

This is the point of this act from Jesus.

While the men were arguing, as men do, as to who is (not will be) the greatest, Jesus took on the shame and disgrace of a slave.

v.15

John 13:15 NASB95

15 “For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.

John 13:15 UBS5

15 ὑπόδειγμα γὰρ ἔδωκα ὑμῖν ἵνα καθὼς ἐγὼ ἐποίησα ὑμῖν καὶ ὑμεῖς ποιῆτε.

“For” = explanation.

Jesus explains that Jesus gave them a command, instruction, to wash one another’s feet.

The basis of this command was His own act of doing the same.

“…I gave you an example...”

Example = ὑπόδειγμα = a showing by (instrumental).

The “example” = a visible showing by

Vocabulary of the Greek Testament ὑπόδειγμα

ὑπόδειγμα 5262

For ὑπόδειγμα, “example,” as in Jas 5:10, cf. BGU III. 747ii. 13 (A.D. 139) ὑπόδιγμα ἀπειθίας, Priene 11757 (i/B.C.) πολί]τ̣ου καλὸν ὑπόδειγμα [παραστήσας, OGIS 383218 (mid. i/B.C.) νομίζω τε αὐτοὺς καλὸν ὑπόδειγμα μιμήσασθαι, Kaibel 4352 καλῶν ὑπόδειγμα φιλάνδρων, and Aristeas 143 χάριν δὲ ὑποδείγματος, “for the sake of illustration.”

The word is used of a “specimen” in BGU IV. 114143 (B.C. 14) πρὸς ὃ ἔδειξέ σοι ὑπόδειγμα, and P Fay 12216 (c. A.D. 100) ἔπεμψά σοι ὑποδείγματ̣α̣ μ̣ε̣γάλων τεσσαράκοντα, “I sent you forty specimens of the large sort” (Edd.: cf. Olsson, p. 180). On the use in common Greek or ὑπόδειγμα for παράδειγμα, see Rutherford NP p. 62

v.16

John 13:16 NASB95

16 “Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him.

John 13:16 UBS5

16 ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, οὐκ ἔστιν δοῦλος μείζων τοῦ κυρίου αὐτοῦ οὐδὲ ἀπόστολος μείζων τοῦ πέμψαντος αὐτόν.

Matthew 10:24–25 NASB95

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. “It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household!

Luke 6:40 NASB95

40 “A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.

They will become like slaves and that will be their identification to the world.

“Truly, truly....” = solemn statement of truth meant to adjust their thinking.

If they Master has acted like a slave, and He is sending them out, then they will be slaves of a slave.