Bible Study with the M.T. Clark – John 13 & 14: Selected Passages for Discipleship – 07/20/2025
Today’s Bible Study, Authored by M.T. Clark
Listen to our Bible Study Discussion at: John 13 & 14: Selected Passages for Discipleship Audio Podcast
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John 13 & 14 : Selected Passages for Discipleship
As I sat in the quiet confines of my countryside home’s kitchen this morning, I continued my daily spiritual practice of Bible Study with a few chapters from the Old and New Testament. Today’s New Testament offering was John 13 and while the gleanings I gathered from its text may not be the first time these insights were given to the body of Christ or to myself, they ministered to my spirit and soul and offer them here as an impromptu “Bible Study”.
The context of my place on the path of Christian Discipleship this morning was one of prayerful repentance and consequential humility as my battle with my food addiction had a resounding defeat yesterday as I deliberately abandoned any hopes for “food plan success” as I surrendered to the flesh with feasting at my step daughter’s graduation party. My overindulgence in eating and the lack of wisdom of my food choices yesterday aren’t criminal offenses but I believe they are sin nonetheless because they “miss the mark” of what is best for the body that God has given me and the spirit of reckless abandon that accompanies my overeating behaviors feels more demonic than divine. So, as I entered my prayer and Bible study session this morning, I prayed for forgiveness and the wisdom, guidance, and strength to follow the Lord’s way where self-control and peace are not sacrificed in lieu of fleshly pleasures that lead to pain. After prayer and study, I feel empowered by God’s love to begin again and drew things from John 13 that seemed to speak to me to encourage me in my walk. So I will share what I gathered to encourage others to keep on walking and talking with God, knowing that His love covers a multitude of sins and empowers us for repentance and living the new life we have in Him.
John 13: 4-10 (NLT)
4 So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him.
6 When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus replied, “You don’t understand now what I am doing, but someday you will.”
8 “No,” Peter protested, “you will never ever wash my feet!”
Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
9 Simon Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!”
10 Jesus replied, “A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet, to be entirely clean. And you disciples are clean, but not all of you.” 11 For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he meant when he said, “Not all of you are clean.” [1]
While I always related to Peter and his devotion to “only do what is right” (“It isn’t proper or right for Jesus, – the Holy One – the Messiah – The Sinless One – My Lord, Master, and Teacher, to wash my sinful feet”!) and to endeavor to learn as new revelations came to him (Oh, I DO need washing, huh? Well, if that’s the case, You better wash everything!”) in this episode of Jesus’ earthly ministry, this morning it spoke to me on a personal level as my struggles with food addiction and trying to live and love like Jesus did suffered another set back.
But this episode in the life of the disciples, and Jesus’ words verses in 10 & 8, makes me understand that we will all need an “occasional foot washing” – to confess and to receive forgiveness for our failures and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness – with the hope that one day we may be able to not step in the dirt (our sin) we have before.
Our walk away from sin is not a hopeless one, we can overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. In our redeemed state, we are made complete in Christ (we have all we need for life and godliness) but we still have to walk out our freedom from sin, in a case by case, one day at a time, progressive basis.
Jesus’ words in verse 10 indicate that His disciples have been washed (“A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash[2]”) in a fundamental way that makes them clean (“to be entirely clean”) but admits to the fact that we won’t be sinlessly perfect, (“except for the feet”) where our redeemed lives comes into contact with this world broken by sin.
I’ve received this insight, undoubtedly from the benefit of other Christians and from my personal experience with the Lord, before, but it is a good lesson to keep in mind as it helps us to be humble us when we think we may have finally cracked “the Jesus Code” (I GOT THIS!) or when we are disappointed by our failures or lack of progress – while we want to be perfect as Christ is perfect, we need to be patient and loving to ourselves because Christ told us that we will have tribulations regularly and will need to be cleansed periodically. While this wisdom could cause us to despair while we are struggling, it should give us relief because it reinforces the fact that nothing can separate us from God’s love. Despite our dirty feet, we are still seen as “entirely clean” by Jesus. We just have to wash our feet from the messes we step in and should learn how to avoid stepping into them as often or at all as we grow in Christ-likeness.
As relieved as we could be from this revelation, we are also warned that we need to be sure that our faith is true and to stay in the company of Jesus, through the example of Judas Iscariot.
Although Judas did good works for the ministry, he was not part of God’s kingdom as verse 2 tells us “the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus[3] and verse 11 (For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he meant when he said, “Not all of you are clean.” [4]) tells us that his faith was not genuine. Judas’ lack of genuine faith and his decision to betray Jesus excludes him from God’s kingdom and causes Jesus to exclude him from any further teaching or fellowship on the night of the last supper as He commands Judas to leave in verse 27:
27 When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.”[5]
Many false converts of Christianity may walk with the Lord for a season or two but typically walk away, showing us the truth of the Apostle John’s words in
1 John 2:19 (NKJV) 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.[6]
Judas obviously was not “of us” and so we are warned to abide in Christ and to stay in His company – trusting that His blood covers our sins, despite our need for periodic if not continuous “foot washing” – repentance and growing in righteousness.
My intention in this study is not to make you to cause you to doubt your salvation and I don’t believe that God wants us to live in fear of His wrath either.
Even though Jesus was straight forward in telling Peter the truth about His abilities to follow perfectly in verse 38 (“Die for me? I tell you the truth, Peter—before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me. [7]), He tells him and all His disciples (us included) to not be afraid. Jesus said:
“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. 2 There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? 3 When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.[8] (John 14:1-3 (NLT))
So let these insights from John 13 & 14 be an encouragement to you in your walk. When we put our faith in Jesus, we may struggle with getting victory and freedom over sin in certain areas of our lives, but God’s love assures us that were are still miraculously “entirely clean” and that Jesus will some day come and get us and take us to the place where we will always be with Him.
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“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”
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[1] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 13:4–11.
[2] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 13:10.
[3] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 13:2.
[4] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 13:11.
[5] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 13:27.
[6] The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), 1 Jn 2:19.
[7] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 13:38.
[8] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Jn 14:1–3.
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