The Time Has Come

Scripture: John 13:31-33  (Click link for scripture in Bible Gateway)

31 As soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, “The time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory, and God will be glorified because of him. 32 And since God receives glory because of the Son, he will give his own glory to the Son, and he will do so at once. 33 Dear children, I will be with you only a little longer. And as I told the Jewish leaders, you will search for me, but you can’t come where I am going. (John 13:31–33 NLT)

This makes me think about seasons, about change, and about endings. Jesus had been with these eleven men, and with others who had been his followers from near the beginning, and he had poured his life into them. I thought about what he said in verse 18, “I know so well each one of you I chose.” He could have chosen different men or women to be his close followers. There was a point at which he chose these men from among many. Once he made the choice, probably about six months into his public ministry, he spent the remainder of his time on earth focused primarily (but not exclusively) on them. And now the time has come. In less than 24 hours his time with them would be over. He had a few more things, very important things, to say to them, but the window of opportunity was closing.

Jesus was dealing with two things he saw just ahead: 1) He was deeply troubled by the arrest, torture, mockery, and abuse he was about to face. He knew that Judas was betraying him to the Jews at that very moment. He knew he would be denied and deserted and would soon suffer the most agonizing and humiliating death alone. 2) He was eagerly anticipating in some way we can’t know, his arrival in the presence of his Father and the glory both he and his Father would receive as he redeemed lost humanity and defeated Satan through his sacrificial death and victorious resurrection.

Defeat and victory, humiliation and honor, death and glory, sorrow and joy. Endings are necessary for beginnings. Sowing in tears comes before reaping with joy. Humility comes before recognition. Sacrifice and service come before reward and honor. The bitterness of the struggle comes before the sweetness of the achievement. When “the time has come”, the only thing to do is move forward in faith into the future that will be created by our choices, our response, and our obedience.

Prayer:

Father, When our “Time Has Come”, may we, like Jesus, chose for your glory and for the Kingdom! May we choose love over hate, faith over fear, and hope over despair!