“Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” —John 13:1 (ESV)
“What does John 13:1 mean?” By Bibleref.com:
“This verse previews the context of the entire chapter. Jesus' earthly life was characterized by love, and one of His last teachings involved the need for Christians to be humble and loving towards others. His care for others is also shown in the events described in these last moments prior to His betrayal and execution. Verses 1 through 3 give special insight into what Jesus knows, behind the scenes, during these final hours.
Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was an expression of love for all mankind. His acts of love, and the example He showed by them, are enhanced when it comes to those who are "his own who were in the world." Christians are meant to be loving to all people, but especially so to fellow believers. Later in this passage, Jesus will point to mutual love as the definitive sign of faith used to identify Christians to the rest of the world (John 13:35).
The events of this chapter happen during the last supper. John's gospel was written well after Matthew, Mark, and Luke were established and known within the church. For that reason, John often skips over details covered in those writings. Here, again, John will focus on details based on his eyewitness experience.
Context Summary: John 13:1–11 begins the ''private'' phase of John's gospel, as Jesus meets with the disciples for a Passover meal. As usual, John skips details covered in other Gospels in order to add his own memories. Jesus performs the task of a lowly servant: washing others' feet. Jesus reassures everyone that this task will make more sense later. Peter is offended by his master acting like a slave, but Jesus responds that washing is necessary for those who follow Him—and not all of those present are clean. That subtly points to Judas, who has already made plans to betray Jesus. A ''full-body'' washing only needs to happen once, while ''foot washing'' needs to be done more frequently. This helps explain the difference between once-for-all salvation, and routine confession of sin.
Chapter Summary: Jesus meets with a smaller group, possibly only the twelve disciples, in a private setting. Before eating a meal, Jesus performs the work of a lowly servant, washing the feet of the disciples. He explains that this is an object lesson. Their Lord is willing to serve in humility, so they are obligated to do the same. Jesus also predicts His impending betrayal, subtly telling Judas to leave and complete His conspiracy. The disciples don't realize what's happened, however. Peter foolishly brags about his loyalty. Jesus responds with a cutting prediction: Peter will deny his relationship to Christ three times in the next few hours.”
