The Great Gospel of John
Volume 8
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord and His adversaries
- Chapter 124 -
The irritation of the disciples of John.
It was already quite late in the afternoon, and for this reason it is also understandable that we arrived in Bethany quite late after sunset. Everything was excellently prepared for our reception because Raphael let everyone know that and when we would come back. This time nothing was worth mentioning on our way back. We continued our trip very quietly.
2
The Romans talked about one or the other thing with Lazarus and with the innkeepers who were with us, and also My disciples talked among themselves a lot about the events of the day.
3
I Myself talked little, walked mostly silently ahead and nobody was next to Me. I did this to move on more quickly, for otherwise those who had much to talk about with one another would repeatedly stand still in order to talk with one another so that we hardly could arrive in Bethany before midnight, for we still had to remain one little hour with the innkeeper in the valley since I had promised it to that family in the morning.
4
Since we were walking fast we reached in a few hours time the inn in the valley where the innkeeper let immediately bread and wine be served and he asked Me to take a little to strengthen Myself. This I also did for the sake of those who were present because they did not dare to take anything before Me, except our Judas Iscariot, but when I took some bread and wine, they all took considerably and they ate and drank.
5
Also some of the disciples of John the Baptist were present who indeed arrived much earlier than we because they planned to go to Galilee where they had something to do, but because they heard from the innkeeper that I would arrive here in the evening with many disciples, they remained in the second inn in the valley in order to see, hear and talk to Me.
6
When we arrived and sat down in the large dining room and refreshed ourselves with bread and wine, these disciples of John were secretly offended because we did not pay attention to them immediately after they came in.
7
And one of them came to Me and said: "Lord and Master, do Your disciples not know that we first have to wash our hands - and certainly after taking a trip - before taking bread into our hands, and then breaking and eating it? But I see that all Your disciples are breaking the bread with unwashed hands and then they eat it. As You know, Moses commanded it also, and whatever he commanded, a true Jew must certainly do it also."
8
When the disciples and also the Romans heard these words that were directed to Me, they were irritated and wanted to correct this disciple of John with rude words.
9
But I calmed them down and said then: "Put away the irritation from your soul, for it defiles man in his heart, and this is evil, but to break and eat bread with unwashed hands does not defile man. But if it irritates you, disciples of John, and you already heard beforehand that I would arrive here this evening, then why did you not make preparations in My honor, so that according to Jewish custom already at our arrival, water, a wash-basin and cloths would be ready for us?
10
I say to you, disciples of John who are purified by water, you also observe, just like the Jews, all the outer appearances very accurately, and you wash and clean yourselves 7 times a day, so that you always have a clean body, but your heart and soul are still very unwashed and therefore you are still far away from the Kingdom of God.
11
John has preached with sharp words in the desert to do penance for the forgiveness of sins, and his disciples who accepted his word and did penance he baptized them in the river Jordan and he showed them the way to Me to whom it only belongs to actually forgive their sins. But then how come that you, as you are standing now before Me, behave yourselves as if you are above Me and above My disciples? Did John teach that also to you?"
12
On this answer and to My last question, the disciple of John became very embarrassed and he did not know what he had to answer Me.
13
But then another one, who was more modest, came forward and said to Me: "Lord and Master, I have heard the wise meaning of Your words and have seen therein the fullest and purest truth, but still they have made my heart very sad when You have said that we are still far away from the Kingdom of God, while we already believed that we stood in the midst of it. What should we do to come into the Kingdom of God?"
14
I said: "Do what My disciples are doing, and do not judge people according to the outward appearance but according to their inner value. Do always sweep before your own house-door and do not look first at the door of your neighbor to see if the way towards it has already been swept. Only when you have cleaned up the way before your own door you can also say to the neighbor: 'Friend, look, I have already cleaned up the way before the door of my house, but you still have not. If you have the time and opportunity, then do also clean up the way to the door of your house. But if you have another more urgent matter to accomplish, then allow me to clean up also your way.' Then if the neighbor will say to you: 'Do this deed of love for me', then you can also clean up the way before the door of your neighbor, but you should clean up yours first.
15
No disciple can ever be more than his master. But if he, through diligence and zeal, becomes as perfect as his master, he will also be like him. And when the disciple is like the master, he will also do what his master is doing and what he has done. Then he has ceased to be a disciple and from that moment on he is also a master. Only when he is such, he also can gather disciples and convey entirely his art and knowledge to them.
16
However, you are by far still no masters, but only extremely weak disciples of John. Then how could you already gather disciples yourself and teach them something what you yourselves do not know? It is indeed already an old rule of life, which says that no one can give anything to someone, which he first does not possess himself. Then how can you teach your disciples to discover the Kingdom of God while you yourselves are still far away from it? Therefore, learn to know first yourselves the Kingdom of God and its righteousness from the Master who has the Kingdom of God in Himself and who can also give it to you. If you then have received it from the right Master in yourselves, only then you can inform and give it to other people who want to have it and are searching for it. Then the right Master will commend you and He will truly feel joy about you and your disciples.
17
But if a master of your kind as leader over others who are blind, is still blind himself, then whereto will he bring his disciples? Will then not leader and disciple, when they come to a pit, fall both into it while the one will not be able to help out the other from it? If you really want to be a teacher by all means, then learn first from the One who is a true Master and Teacher."