Turn with me in your Bibles,
please, to John chapter 13. John chapter 13. I want to read from verse one.
John chapter 13 and verse one. It was not long before the Lord
Jesus Christ went to the cross and it is very interesting to
hear what he says in the opening verses of this chapter. And what I'm going to do is I'm
going to start reading, but I just want to pause in the reading
and just direct your mind to particular words, especially
here at the beginning of the chapter. So let's begin. John
chapter 13, verse one. Now, before the feast of the
Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come, that he should
depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his
own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end. Point one. This event of Jesus
washing the feet of his disciples came at that point where Jesus
knew that his hour was come when he should depart out of the world. That gives us a sense, I trust,
of the importance of this act which the Lord performed. It
was only performed at that moment when he knew that his time was
come. and supper being ended, the devil
having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son,
to betray him, Jesus knowing that the father had given all
things into his hands and that he was come from God and went
to God, once again, the things that Jesus knew, he knew that
his hour was come, he knew that God had put into his hands everything
in heaven, everything upon earth that God had committed into his
hands, all glory, all power, all dominion, all rule, all reign,
everything was committed to the Lord Jesus Christ. What did he
do? He riseth from supper, laid aside his garments, took a towel,
and girded himself. After that he poured water into
a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe
them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he
to Simon Peter, and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash
my feet? Jesus answered and said unto
him, What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt
never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash
thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him,
Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith
to him, He that is washed, and doth not save to wash his feet,
but is clean every whit. And ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should betray
him. Therefore said he, ye are not
all clean. So after he had washed their
feet and had taken his garments and was set down again, he said
unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master
and Lord, and ye say, Well, for so I am. If I then, your Lord
and Master, have washed your feet, ye also ought to wash one
another's feet. For I have given you an example,
that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say
unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord, neither
he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know
these things, happy are ye if ye do them. I speak not of you
all. I know whom I have chosen, but
that the scripture may be fulfilled, he that eateth bread with me
hath lifted up his heel against me. Now I tell you before it
come, that when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am
he. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me, and he that
receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. When Jesus had thus
said, he was troubled in spirit and testified and said, verily,
verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. Then
the disciples looked on one another, doubting of whom he spake. Now
there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples whom Jesus
loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned
to him that he should ask who it should be of whom he spake. He then, lying on Jesus' breast,
said unto him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, He it is to whom
I shall give a sop when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped
the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. And
after the sop, Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto
him, That thou doest, do quickly. Now no man at the table knew
for what intent he spake this unto him. For some of them thought,
because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, buy
those things that we have need of against the feast, or that
he should give something to the poor. He then, having received
the sop, went immediately out, and it was night. Therefore,
when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of Man glorified,
and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God
shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify
him. Little children, yet a little
while I am with you. You shall seek me, and as I said
unto the Jews, whither I go ye cannot come. So now I say to
you, a new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another,
as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this
shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love
one to another.' Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither
goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I
go thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow me afterwards. Peter said unto him, Lord, why
cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thy
sake. Jesus answered him, Wilt thou
lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
The cock shall not crow till thou hast denied me thrice. Amen. May God bless to us this reading
from his word. The Apostle Paul writing to The
Corinthians said in the third verse of chapter
11, I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through
his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity
that is in Christ. The simplicity that is in Christ. We've spoken a little bit about
the simplicity that is in Christ, and I want to continue to do
that this morning. Paul tells us emphatically that
there is, contrary to the deceptiveness of this world, contrary to the
confusion that Satan instills in this world, a simplicity that
is in Christ Jesus. And he points us In that, to
the simple truth of the gospel, the honesty and the reliability
of the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, the sincerity of the
Lord's actions, the worthiness of his motives, You remember
that Isaiah, in a time long before the Lord Jesus Christ ever came
into the world, called the Lord Jesus by that name, wonderful. Not wonderful in his complexity,
wonderful in his simplicity. And this is one of the things
that men and women marveled at throughout the life of the Lord
Jesus Christ. Joseph and his mother Mary marveled
at the things that were spoken of the Lord Jesus. His disciples
marveled saying one to another, what manner of man is this? The multitudes marveled and were
amazed. They said one to another, it
was never so seen in Israel. and the Jewish leaders marvelled
at the knowledge and the wisdom and the doctrine of the Lord
Jesus Christ. How could he know these things
as a man that had never been taught, a man that had never
learned in their schools or in their colleges? The people could say, never man
spoke like this man. And they also could say, never
man loved like this man. Never man acted like this man. You remember when Lazarus had
died and he was buried and the Lord Jesus Christ came and stood
outside his tomb, we're told that Jesus wept. And the Jews
said, see how he loved him. or the man that was full of leprosy,
full of leprosy. Sean spoke, it's funny how some
sermons are memorable, Sean. Sean spoke about leprosy at the
rescue mission a few months ago. This man was full of leprosy. I take that to mean from the
top of his head to the soles of his feet, he was full of leprosy. And he says to the Lord Jesus
Christ, if you will, you can make me clean. And he did. Such was the wonder of Jesus
Christ. And yet in this one, there is
a simplicity. There is an excellence in him,
an excellence in his nature, an excellence in his character.
and a simplicity and a purity in the Lord Jesus Christ that
is admirable and attractive and must not be overlooked. We must not take the Lord Jesus
Christ for granted when he is presented to us in the way that
he is throughout the years of his ministry, in the things that
he did and the things that he said. We are to pause and think
on these things. And if we do, we will realise
and we will remember, like the hymn writer said in our last
hymn, He is the fairest of 10,000. He is the chiefest of 10,000
to my soul. Now I can't take 10,000 examples
this morning and set them out before you. John said, if all
the things that had been written of the Lord Jesus Christ and
all the things that he'd done could be written, they would
fill all the books in the world. I can't take 10,000, but I'm
going to take 10. I'm going to take 10 examples
of the Lord Jesus Christ's work and His words and His testimony. 10 singular qualities of our
Saviour's life and character and personality. that so endear
him to his people. And perhaps if the Lord enables,
we'll glimpse something of the true Jesus, that we might join
with his people to say of him that to know him is to love him
and that he is altogether lovely. The first thing that I want to
draw your attention to with respect to this simplicity that is in
Christ is that the Lord Jesus Christ was poor. He was a poor
man. He did not live in a palace.
He worked and he sweated and he laboured all his life. He owned nothing when he started
his ministry except the cloak that was on his shoulders. And at his death, he left nothing
because they even stole his jacket. Not even a cloak was left. Oh,
how preoccupied we become with things, the stuff that we gather
around about us. The Lord Jesus Christ had nothing. In Luke chapter nine, verse 58,
the Lord said to one who said, I want to come and follow you.
The foxes have holes, the birds of the air have nests, but the
son of man hath not where to lay his head. In the book of
the Psalms, there is a frequent reference to the Lord Jesus Christ
in this little phrase that is employed by the psalmist. He is called the poor and needy. The poor and needy and it's used
to describe the Lord Jesus Christ. You can make a little study of
that if you like. Look up the poor and needy in the book of
the Psalms and you'll see pictures of the Lord Jesus Christ there. But it was not always so. The
Lord Jesus Christ was not always poor. In 2 Corinthians 8, verse
9, we are told, For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor,
that ye through his poverty might be rich. Voluntarily, the Lord Jesus Christ
gave up his riches, his position, his glory, that place of divine
preeminence in heaven. And he came and he joined with
our flesh. He took union with our nature. and grace provoked in him that
great substitutionary sacrifice that he made for his people and
for their lives. He became poor that we might
be rich, that we might be rich in spiritual things as he came
and opened up that way of life and salvation to sinners like
us. The Lord Jesus was poor. Secondly,
he was gracious. Here is another characteristic
of the Lord. He was gracious. We live in a
cynical age. Somebody does something, somebody
says something, we are immediately thinking to ourselves, what's
his angle? What's he getting out of this?
What's her agenda? What is it that she's getting
out of this for herself? But love and grace characterised
the Lord Jesus Christ in all that he said and did. In Luke chapter four, in verse
22, we read these things. All bear him witness and wondered
at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth. The simplicity of the Lord Jesus
Christ is seen in this, that he spoke as he was. He spoke graciously because he
was gracious. In Luke 9, verse 56, we discover
that The Lord Jesus was heading to Jerusalem and he sent ahead
that preparations might be made for him in a little village,
Samaritan village. And the people there at the village
heard that Jesus was coming to their village and they said,
he's going up to Jerusalem, he's going up to Jerusalem to worship. There's no reason why we should
help him on his way. No, you can't come into our village.
And the disciples said to him, Lord, let's be like Elijah and
let's call down fire on their village that we might destroy
them. And the Lord said, the Son of Man is not come to destroy
men's lives, but to save them. to save them. That's why the
Lord Jesus came. He came to save men. He came
to save sinners like you and like me. He has come to save,
to seek and to save that which was lost. So what did the Lord
do instead of calling down fire from heaven upon that little
Samaritan village? What did he do instead? He went
to another village. he went to another village. In
Luke 19, 10, we're told that in seeking and saving that which
was lost, he went out after his lost sheep. In Luke 23, verse
43, Jesus saith unto him, Verily I say unto thee, today thou shalt
be with me in paradise. To a man that moments earlier
had been deriding and mocking and swearing and cursing against
him. Such is the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Let us always remember this one
who is gracious, who came to save sinners like me. And the Lord Jesus Christ thirdly
was humble. Christ came from glory. to unite
himself to sinful men and women. In Philippians chapter two, verse
eight, we read, and being found in the fashion as a man, he humbled
himself. That's the second humiliation
that the Lord Jesus Christ had. The first humiliation was to
leave heaven and become a man. The second humiliation was being
found in the fashion of a man, he humbled himself again and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. The Lord Jesus Christ of all
men had cause to be proud, but he delighted in stooping. to help and to heal those who
couldn't help or heal themselves. He came to publicans and prostitutes,
to the destitute and the demonic, to the marginalized and to the
excluded. And he said to them, come unto
me. all you who are labouring, all
you who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my
yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.' The Lord was poor and
he was gracious and he was humble. And fourthly, the Lord Jesus
Christ was servient. He was a servant. He was a servant
first to his father because he came into this world to obey
his will. And he was a servant to men,
serving them in their needs. In Luke chapter 22, verse 27,
we read, I am amongst you as he that serveth. God serving me. God serving me. Surely it's my
obligation to serve God. God served me. That's a wonderful
thought. The Lord Jesus Christ was amongst
us as a servant. He made himself of no reputation. He took upon himself the form
of a servant and was made in the likeness of men. Isaiah,
many years before, identified the Lord Jesus as God's suffering
servant. he came and he took upon himself
covenant obligations to serve God and to serve God's people,
to take upon himself like that ass that stooped and bore the
yoke upon his shoulders, those obligations that man as a sinner
could never accomplish before a holy God, and the Lord Jesus
Christ stooped to bear our burden, to be our servant and to serve
us. We read in John chapter 13 how
the Lord took and washed the disciples' feet, exemplifying
there his ministry of service towards his people and showing
us how we, if we would emulate him, are called to love one another
and serve one another also. The Lord Jesus Christ, fifthly,
was pure and holy and perfect. You know, we all come with baggage. No matter who we are, we come
with a history. We come with things in our lives
that we're not proud of, that we don't really want to talk
too much about. But the Lord Jesus Christ never
had that. For all of the days of his life,
he was holy and perfect and pure. 1 Peter 2, verse 22 tells us,
he did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. 2 Corinthians
5, 21, he knew no sin. Hebrews 7, 26, for such an high
priest became us who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate
from sinners. And it is that holiness and purity
of the Lord Jesus Christ that fitted him for the role of the
substitute. He was able to go to the cross
and to take our place because he was holy. If he had sinned,
if he had his own sin, if he was personally condemned under
the law, he could not have represented us. He could not have fulfilled
that role as surety and a substitute for us. but he was perfect. He was that lamb without spot
or blemish. He was that one that was taken
under the law and examined by the law and found to be a suitable
substitute. The Lord Jesus Christ, in his
character and his nature, in that simplicity that was in him,
was holy and pure and perfect. And the Father, made his soul
an offering for sin. This was no general atonement,
but it was a particular atonement. And the Lord Jesus Christ carried
in his own body on the tree the sins of the people of God that
he laid upon his son. He carried it and he bore that
sin away. He became sin for us that knew
no sin, that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Sixthly, the Lord Jesus was courageous
and brave and bold. I've mentioned this to you before,
I think it's quite extraordinary the way in which the strength
of the Lord Jesus Christ as he went to the cross is quite astonishing. He knew what he was going to
suffer. He knew what he was going to
endure. I'm sure that that is one of
the graces of God towards us in our humanity, that we don't
know what tomorrow holds. But the Lord knew exactly everything
that he was going to have to bear and suffer and endure. In Luke 9, 51, we are told, when
the time was come, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem. knowing what lay ahead. His friend said, don't go, don't
go. And he said, get thee behind me,
Satan. In Lamentations 1, verse 12,
we read, Behold, and see if there is any sorrow like unto my sorrow. which is done unto me, wherewith
the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger. Isaiah called him the man of
sorrows, acquainted with grief. Why was that? Why was one so
pure and holy? Why was one so meek and mild?
Why was one so poor and inconsequential in the grand scheme of our nation's
history and heritage? Why was one like this? so bruised
and beaten and battered, so persecuted and called to suffer to such
an extent and degree, because the Lord afflicted him, because
God was pleased to lay on him the iniquity of us all. And this
is the Lord Jesus Christ, bravely, boldly, courageously, facing
the cross, facing his suffering, facing that separation from his
father, facing that pouring of that cup of wrath into his own
blessed soul. And he did it, boldly, courageously,
constantly, and with a firmness of mind, he set his face towards
Jerusalem, and he bore our sins. Hebrews 5, verse 7 says, Who
in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and
supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able
to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared, though
he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which
he suffered. and being made perfect, He became
the author of eternal salvation to all them that obey Him. This was the calling of our Saviour
to come into this world and to face the wrath of God for the
salvation of His people, to lay down His life and suffer for
us. The seventh thing that I want
to draw your attention is that the Lord Jesus Christ was faithful
and loving. At every level, at every encounter
that we find of the Lord, this quality shone in his character. from that proud young ruler that
came to him and says, well, what have I got to do to be saved?
I've done everything that the law commands. The Lord Jesus
Christ looked on him and loved him. John. That young disciple that came
along that wrote the gospel and the epistles was just a boy. He may even have been a teenager
when he was following after the Lord. And we're told that the
Lord loved him. The Lord loved his father and
was obedient to him. The Lord loved his church and
died for it. The Lord loves his bride and
is making her pure and perfect and holy that he might consummate
that marriage feast with her and dwell with her in glory forever
and ever. Love with grace is that great
motivating quality of our Saviour. This is the simplicity that is
in Christ. Jesus, beholding him, loved him
and said unto him, one thing thou lackest. Do you remember
when Jesus was on the cross? There he was dying. There he was separated from his
father. There he was mocked, abused,
suffering in his body, suffering in his soul, suffering in his
mind. You know what he thought about?
He thought about his mother. He thought about his mom. He
looked down off of the cross at that juncture, at that moment,
and he saw his mother and John, whom he loved. And he said to
his mother, Woman, behold thy son, pointing towards John. And then he said to the disciple,
Behold thy mother. And from that hour, the disciple
took her into his own home. Such was the faithfulness and
love of the Lord Jesus Christ, that even there at the cross,
accomplishing these great cosmic feats, these great eternal and
everlasting purposes, these great covenantal responsibilities,
the Lord Jesus Christ had the presence of mind to take care
of his mother there upon the cross. This is the beauty of
the character of the Lord Jesus Christ. It does us well to remember
him. Then again, John chapter 13.
Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour
was come, that he should depart out of this world unto the Father,
having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto
the end. The faithfulness and the love
of the Lord Jesus Christ go hand in hand for his people. One other area of that faithfulness,
which I think I want to just mention to you as an example,
is that moment when the Lord Jesus Christ was in the Garden
of Gethsemane and the troops, the high priest's guards and
servants came to arrest him and to take him away. And the Lord
Jesus said to them, who is it that you're looking for? And
they said, we're looking for Jesus of Nazareth. And he said,
well, I'm Jesus of Nazareth. You can let these ones go free.
You can let these ones go. You've found who you want. Let
these ones go. And so the Lord Jesus Christ
reminded us there of that love and faithfulness that he had
for his disciples. Once again, showing us in picture
form how he substituted himself, stood in the gap for his people,
and allowed them to go free, his disciples, even although
they would have been likely candidates for arrest on that place and
on that occasion. Jeremiah 31 verse 3 says, I have
loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness
have I drawn thee. And Romans 5 verse 8, God commendeth
his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ
died for us. The Lord Jesus Christ was loving
and faithful. And eighthly, the Lord Jesus
Christ was dedicated and committed. Love and faith brought the Lord
Jesus Christ to this world, to his people, to join with them
in union and took him to the cross. We will never truly know
the depth of suffering that the Lord Jesus Christ endured for
our salvation. physically, mentally, spiritually,
there was a collision of sin and holiness when the Lord Jesus
Christ went to the cross. There God the Father poured out
His wrath into the spotless soul of His Son. The sword of judgment
was plunged into the holy heart of Christ. Zechariah 13 verse
7 says, Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the
man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts. And in John
12, verse 27, we can see something of that commitment and dedication
of the Lord Jesus Christ for his people when he said, now
is my soul troubled, and what shall I say? Father, save me
from this hour, but for this cause came I unto this hour. Ninthly, the Lord Jesus Christ
in his character and his nature, in that simplicity that is in
Christ, is knowledgeable, is sensitive, and is welcoming. Weary sinner, the Lord Jesus
knows what you need. The Lord Jesus knows your condition. He knows where you are in your
life. He knows what you're going through. The Lord Jesus knows all about
you. He knows your state. He knows
where you've been. He knows what you've done. And
he loves you just the same. He welcomes you to come to Him. I cannot recommend a better friend. I cannot speak of one who is
more attractive than this Jesus Christ. He is a friend for the
lonely. He is a healer for the sick. He is a provider for the hungry. a benefactor to the poor and
he will give you rest. Remember the people who came
to try and bring their friend into the presence of the Lord
and they discovered that the house that he was in was just
so full and packed with people that they couldn't get access
to him. So what did they do? They dragged
their friend and his bed up onto the top of the roof and they
undid the tiles on the roof and they laid down the bed through
the hole in the roof right in front of where Jesus stood. And
when Jesus saw their faith, we are told, he said unto the sick
of the palsy, son, son, thy sins are forgiven. What a statement
to hear God pronounce. What a statement to hear the
Lord Jesus Christ pronounce to you, your sins are forgiven. Do you want to know that your
sins are forgiven? Do you want to know that that
history has been dealt with? That baggage has been taken away? That the Lord Jesus Christ has
carried it all away? Then trust him, trust him. There was a lady tried to press
through the crowd to lay a hand on the Lord Jesus Christ, believing
that if she could just touch the hem of his garment, it would
be enough for her to be healed in her body. And he said unto
her, Daughter, be of good comfort. Thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace. On another occasion,
a lady came into the house while the Lord was at supper, and she
brought a bowl, a vial of perfume, and she anointed the Lord. The people that were around said,
what a waste. That was expensive perfume, and
it's just been spilled now. What a waste. And the Lord said,
I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are forgiven. For she
loved much, but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth
little. And he said unto her, thy sins are forgiven. This is
the Jesus that we look to. The Jesus who forgives the sins
of needy people. Do you need your sins forgiven?
You need Jesus. And I recommend the welcoming,
loving, gracious Jesus of Nazareth. The last thing that I want to
say about the Lord this morning is this, that he is meek and
gentle. In 2 Corinthians 10, verse 1,
the apostle Paul writes, I, Paul, myself, beseech you by the meekness
and gentleness of Christ. This is the simplicity which
is in Christ, his meekness and his gentleness. You can go to
him. You can go to him. He's God, but you can go to him. He is the creator of the universe,
but you can go to him. He is the one who has done all
things well. And yet you, in your sin, can
approach him in his meekness and his gentleness and he will
receive you. What a saviour. In Matthew chapter 12, we read
verse 19. I think that's a beautiful little verse. I think that verse tells us something
about the character of the Lord Jesus Christ. Listen, there's
not going to be any singing and dancing. There's not going to
be any great big drama. There's not going to be any sort
of great sound of trumpets and celebration. No, you just go. You just go
quietly into his presence, where you're sitting. You just go quietly
into the presence of that one who is meek and gentle, that
one who is approachable and welcoming. You won't hear him shouting in
the streets, that's not how it's done. You won't see him breaking
that bruised reed. And my, haven't we been bruised. You won't see him quenching that
smoking flax but he will breathe upon it to bring it to flame
and bring it to life and there he will kindle and there he will
bless his people and he will send us forth into victory. Come, come and welcome to the
Lord Jesus Christ. He is a great saviour of sinners. He is a worthy redeemer. He is gentle. He is faithful. He is loving. He declares, all
that the Father giveth me shall come to me and him that cometh
unto me I will in no wise cast out. This is our Saviour. This is the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is the beauty of the gospel. This is the simplicity that is
in the life of our Saviour Jesus Christ. What more attractive
person could we possibly conceive of? He is altogether lovely. He is the fairest of 10,000 to
my soul. Amen.