Upper Room Talk

When men get together they can sometimes engage in what’s called “locker-room talk” but when Jesus and His disciples got together for one last supper, their conversation was far removed from the crude, banal, base or crass nature that pervades locker room banter. Jesus and His disciples engaged in conversation that was of a much higher and significantly greater level of consciousness. There was nothing vacuous, lewd, vulgar or rude in the things discussed and certainly their behavior was by no means rowdy. Theirs was “upper room talk”.

Even the very atmosphere in the upper room that night was of utmost importance in order to set the stage for what Jesus was about to reveal. There had to exist a degree of intimacy that would promote deep spiritual bonding, a certain kind of vulnerability that would open hearts to receive, soberness of minds, and trust between Jesus and His faithful disciples. Perhaps that is the reason Jesus waited until Judas Iscariot had left before divulging more profound and significant details, for Judas’ heart, I imagine, had no room to receive such divine discourse since it was occupied only with evil intent. But for the remaining eleven, their hearts were occupied with Jesus. 

The conversation in the upper room was long and detailed, with Jesus offering His disciples solid advice for the spiritual journey. It was sound teachings that would keep the disciples standing in good stead after His departure; this advice came on the eve of Jesus’ impending crucifixion.

Every word Jesus spoke was important to the disciples in that upper room, and indeed is important to each one of us today. Jesus’ counsel “thoroughly equipped them for every good work” (see 2 Timothy 3:16-17), and suited the lifestyle of a true believer and follower of Christ. In the upper room, Jesus spoke of love, relationship, friendship, trust, prayer, the connection between Father, Son, and Spirit and the amazing in-dwelling, the glorification of God, and of the peace that only He can give (read John 13:31-14:31). 

The upper room talk covered the gamut of living as a disciplined follower of Christ Jesus. The upper room talk was no locker-room talk, it embodied what Apostle Paul described, in Ephesians 4:29, as “…what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.” (NKJV). So, as believers and followers of Jesus, always strive to emulate Him by engaging, not in locker-room talk but upper room talk.

Today, I encourage you to read for yourselves, in the Gospel of John chapters 13 to 17, all that Jesus said to His disciples that night, not just in the upper room but while on their way to the garden too. And I pray that as you read, the word of Christ, in all its richness, will fill your lives.

Amen†

Upper Room Talk

Shelley Johnson April 3, 2017