East Baptist Church – Denison, TX

The Upper Room

John 13:1

As we look at the Upper Room looking toward Easter, we need to understand our Lord did much of His most powerful and doctoral teaching of His entire ministry on this last evening before His arrest, that led to His death on the Cross for our sins. 

Let us keep up front that on the following day our Lord would give His life as payment for the sins of the very ones that were putting Him on the cross. This last evening, we find He is giving His inner circle the attention to help them deal with His impending death. Read our Scripture again with this in mind and heart.

John 13:1 (NASB77) ¹Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He should depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

This very intense and personal discipleship teaching was laced with doctrinal truth that was to be the outline for not just those in the Upper Room, but for all the generations including us today to be encouraged as we face the cold hate of the world. (My Lord does not just want us to survive but to also thrive in a world we are just passing through.)

My beloved our Lord loves us too much to candy coat how the world would react to not only His teaching, but to us for representing His Lordship as His followers.

John 15:18-20 (NASB77) ¹⁸If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.¹⁹If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. ²⁰Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.

The promises and privileges our Lord outlines in these chapters are the path to blessings and a life of purpose. I find these chapters a blessing in giving me the grounding I need when I get sidetracked and lost in the darkness of the world I have to navigate. 

The question we all have to face this Lord’s Day is – Are you plugging into that legacy? Definition: In the Bible, a legacy is primarily a spiritual inheritance of faith, values, and God’s truth passed from one generation to the next, far more valuable than material wealth, though practical stewardship is also important. It’s about leaving a lasting positive impact, a “good name” through godly living, teachings, and faithfulness, as seen in examples like Abraham and David, ensuring God’s works are remembered and honored by descendants and a witness to the world.

Do not miss the most wonderful truth proclaimed in any Word ever spoken “having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.” Looking at this truth is to know in all places and times He is loving you and will do so to the end. What a promise in the very first verse of those recorded in the Upper Room.