Key Verse: "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."
- John 13:1 KJV
Follower of Jesus—you may write your own name into this verse, and it will be as true as it was of the company at the table that night! Having loved you—Jesus loves you unto the end!
It was the night before Jesus died. He was with His disciples at the Passover. Holy memories filled His mind. But amid these, His love for His own people lost none of its warmth. His "hour" of sorrow and shame was come. But with all this before Him, He did not forget "His own." He gathered them about Him, and spent the last evening with them. He had no thought for Himself; He thought only of "His own." His personal grief and bitterness were kept in His own heart, while He gave them joy. His love over-mastered His sorrow.
Then there was something else. The words read: "His hour had come to leave this world and return to His Father." So there was glory for him beyond His cross! There were a few hours of darkness, woe, and anguish—and then He would leave this world and be at home again! His heart must have been full of rapture and expectancy as He looked forward, knowing that He would shortly be home with His Father. Yet even this blessed consciousness did not make him forget His friends. "Having loved His own who were in the world—He loved them to the end."
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