John 2:23-25

Posted by DJL on Jan 29, 2015 in Daily Bread | 1 comment

When he was in Jerusalem during the Passover festival, many believed in his name because they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part would not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to testify about anyone; for he himself knew what was in everyone.

There are a couple of curious things about John’s account of Jesus that this brief transitional passage reveals.

The first is John’s chronology. Most of us who are familiar with the story of Jesus think of Jesus’ ministry as lasting three years. This is entirely due to John. While the other three evangelists only tell us about one Passover celebration – the one during which Jesus shares a last meal with his disciples – John shapes his narrative around three distinct celebrations. And this is the first.

Passover is a very important festival in the Jewish tradition, commemorating God’s deliverance of Israel from Egyptian oppression. It is also a significant celebration for John, particularly for his understanding of the nature and mission of Jesus. Jesus, as John the Baptist proclaimed (only in John’s Gospel), is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Jesus is also, as we’ll see in John’s dramatization of Jesus’ crucifixion, the Passover lamb. Hence, the Passover celebration and the imagery and symbols of the festival will occupy a significant place in both John’s plot and his theology.

The second element of John’s account this discloses is Jesus’ absolute independence from anyone or anything. John’s portrayal of Jesus is the most dispassionate of the four. Jesus is unflappable, almost unmoved by normal human emotion. There are exceptions, of course: Jesus cleansing of the Temple and the tears he will shed for his beloved friend Lazarus are two. But for the most part Jesus is pretty much a stoic, dependent on nothing and no one but his heavenly Father. And that is clearly the case here. It may be nice, John almost seems to suggest, the some people believed in him but, honestly, it’s not like he needed anyone to testify because he already knows fully, confidently, and completely who he is.

This relatively cool characterization of Jesus occasionally caused John’s Gospel a few problems. Jesus will seem at points almost too dispassionate and, for that matter, too different from the other accounts. There is no temptation, for instance, in John’s account. Why bother – Jesus, quite frankly, is pretty much beyond temptation…or any other human emotion. And some detractors felt that this view contradicted the very tenets of the Incarnation that John earlier described. Eventually, however, John’s theology won over his critics and his account was accepted as one of the four primary witnesses to Jesus life, death, and resurrection.

It will be interesting as we read through John’s story to track your own reactions. What do you make of John’s characterization of Jesus? Where does it remind you of the other three accounts? Where does it differ? And, perhaps most importantly, how does it contribute to your own understanding of Jesus and his meaning for your faith and life?

Prayer: Dear God, let us receive the testimony of John the Evangelist with gratitude, that as we read his words we will be drawn into deeper and more meaningful relationship with you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.