To The Uttermost

by R.F. Lundwill | Category: General | Feb 1969

In John 12.23,24 it is recorded that Jesus said, "The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the earth and die, it abideth by itself alone; but if it die, it beareth much fruit". Now that the hour had come that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, there would follow a chain of events, all foretold, which would bring to the Saviour experiences of deep suffering, until at last He would dismiss His spirit on dark Golgotha. "He loved them unto the end", the last words of John 13.1, reveal the heart of Christ, and enable us to appreciate more clearly what impelled Him to go forward to the Cross. The Revised version marginal reading for "unto the end" is "to the uttermost". The words defy the reasoning of man and the measurement of time.

We are writing of love that is beyond measure. The scene described in John 13 took place in the upper room, and is one of the tenderest pictures of Christ given to us in the Gospels. The other three Gospels record the keeping of the Passover in the upper room, but John records only the scene of the Lord washing the disciples' feet. What did Jesus do? His actions are recorded in verses 4 and 5. In the laying aside of His garments we see in symbol what He had actually done in coming into the world. Paul's words concerning this are:

"Who, being in the form of God, counted it not a prize to be on an equality with God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant" (Philippians 2.6,7).

"To the uttermost" involved Golgotha with all the terrible sufferings at the hands of men, and the judgement of a righteous God which He endured on our behalf. Who can measure Christ's love; its breadth and length, its height and depth? It can be measured only in terms of the infinite cost of our redemption. This is something which transcends human reason.

Down from His glory,

Ever living story,

My God and Saviour came,

And Jesus was His name.

Born in a manger,

To his own a stranger,

A Man of sorrows,

Tears and agony.

What condescension,

Bringing us redemption;

That in the dead of night,

Not one faint hope in sight.

God, gracious, tender,

Laid aside His splendour,

Stooping to win, to woo,

To save my soul.

His love was "to the uttermost." Our salvation also is "to the uttermost". Our Lord died, arose, and ascended to the right hand of the Majesty on high. His love is for ever, His priesthood is unchangeable and our salvation is complete.

The words quoted from Philippians 2 are preceded by the exhortation, "Have this mind in you". Let us ponder the great debt of gratitude we owe to our risen Lord. We owe it to Him to confess Him as Saviour, and to own Him as Lord. As we take a fresh view of Calvary let us re-consecrate our lives to His service. Let us love Him "to the uttermost".

R.F. Lundwill | Feb 1969
General