Parting is such sweet sorrow

 

For I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming back. And I will take you to Myself--in order that where I am, you also may be.            --John 14:3 (Disciples' Literal New Testament).

Life is full of emotional moments. From a young mother having to drop her infant or toddler off at day-care and hearing the child crying, to an elderly person taking his or her last breath with the family gathered all around hearing the sniffles and sobs of those dear family members they leave behind, and many more in between--life is filled with tears of sorrow stemming from separation.

The extended passage from John 14 to 17 is written as a farewell message from Jesus to His disciples. We can see the fear and anxiety building in the disciples in hearing these words. Today we will focus on the beginning of chapter 16, and in this portion of Scripture we can truly see the depth of emotion that Jesus has for His followers. 

I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor Me. But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. (John 16:1-4a).

In the last chapter, Jesus had warned His disciples that they would be hated by the world. Indeed, they would face persecution and even death for His name. Jesus begins this chapter explaining why He was telling them this now.

Different Bible versions translate verse 1 in many ways. Why did Jesus say these things to them? The ESV says to keep them from "falling away." The NKJV says it is so they would "not stumble." The KJV says it was so they would not be "offended." The Greek word John uses here is skandalizo, from which we get the English word scandalize. 

The world might be scandalized at the behavior of Christians, but Jesus did not want this coming trouble to come upon them unawares. Bible scholar Randolph Tasker wrote, "A skandelethron was not a stumbling block that might trip you up; it is used as the spring of a trap that might 'go off' when you were least expecting it." One of my favorite commentators, David Guzik, writes, "Jesus warned His disciples of coming opposition because He did not want them to be surprised and stumbled by it. He also did not expect that His disciples would immediately leave the synagogues, or leave them by their own choice. They would be forced out of the synagogues for Jesus’ sake." 

In our nation of diversity, equity, and inclusion, the idea of being shunned by society for any reason is foreign to us. However, in a tight-knit community where conformity to social and religious norms forms the group's identity, shunning is often used as a punishment for those who step outside those established norms. It also serves as a deterrent for members of the group who may rely on the community for both social and commercial interaction.

You may have read The Scarlet Letter, where Nathaniel Hawthorne describes early Puritan communities in the United States. In the novel, Hester Prynne is branded as an adulterer, and is denied participation in the church, the community, and in commerce.

Earlier in our study of John, we read of the man who was born blind, whom Jesus healed. The Pharisees demanded an explanation from him. When his testimony pointed them to Jesus as the healer sent from God, the Pharisees expelled him from the synagogue and threatened to do the same to his family. In the tight-knit Jewish communities of the first century, being expelled from the synagogue was a big deal. Again, it was not just that changing one's religion was a personal choice that one could make in his own heart and mind. There were social and economic consequences as well.

There is no reason for the believer to stumble ("be offended," John 16:1) when the world stokes up the furnace of persecution. He should expect persecution, if only because his Lord told him it was coming. (Note especially John 13:19 and 14:29, where the Lord warned His disciples in advance.) Furthermore, they must not stumble when this persecution comes from religious people who actually think they are serving God. The word translated "service" in John 16:2 means "priestly service." This statement is certainly a description of Saul of Tarsus, who though he was serving God by destroying the church (see Acts 7:57-8:3; 22:3-4; 26:9-12). (Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary.)

Four different times (John 13:9, 14:29, 15:11, and 16:4) Jesus repeats the phrase, 'I have said these things to you, so that when the hour comes" they may remember and believe. The New Cambridge Bible Commentary says, "Jesus is no mere prophet but someone who, knowing and controlling events, cares about the fate of His disciples."

Jesus may have read the minds of His disciples, because in the next passage He answers an unasked question.

I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are you going?' But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. (John 16:4b-6). 

An astute reader of Scripture might point out that in John 13:36, Peter had asked this very question. "Lord, where are You going?" Warren Wiersbe explains it this way:

For three years, Jesus had been with them to protect them from attack, but now He was about to leave them. He had told them about this earlier in the evening (John 13:33), and Peter had asked Him where He was going. However, Peter's question revealed more concern about himself than about the Lord Jesus! Also, his question centered on the immediate, not the ultimate. It was necessary for Jesus to explain why it was important for them that He return to the Father. (The Bible Exposition Commentary).

In other words, when Peter asked where Jesus was going in chapter 13, he was thinking "What will happen to me/us?" When Jesus said in chapter 16 that none of them had asked where He was going, He was pointing out that none of them seemed concerned about His whereabouts as much as their own. Sorrow had filled their hearts because He would no longer be there with them. His leaving them, however, would be to their advantage.

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth; it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you. And when He comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see Me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. (John 16:7-11).

 While He was with them, Jesus had kept them together and out of danger. Once He left them, they would face increased danger, but the Holy Spirit would act as their Defender and Advocate. 

Although "advocates" appear in a court, they more readily appear in other venues, such as palaces, temples, and forums. Even in a court, and advocate does not function in a forensic role but rather as a partisan supporter. In Philo, and "advocate" may give advice about a difficult decision or provide support for someone making a claim or settling a dispute. But Advocate/Paraclete did not mean and advocate in the sense of a lawyer. It meant rather a man who would appear in court to lend the weight of his influence and prestige to a case of his friend, to convince the judges of his probity, and to see a favorable verdict. (The New Cambridge Bible Commentary).

The Holy Spirit would be God with us, just as Jesus is called our Immanuel. (That is, God With Us.) The expanded role of the Holy Spirit is that He is available to all Christians everywhere at once, where Jesus, God in the flesh, was limited in space and time.  Moreover, the Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment.

Convicting of sin

It is the job of the Holy Spirit to convict people of their sin, not to bring condemnation, but to bring salvation. The sin of the world is unbelief. It is the job of the Church, as Christ's representatives here on Earth, to testify against unbelief and to give testimony of the truth.  Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by Me."

Convicting of Righteousness

The Spirit also convicts the sinner of righteousness, not unrighteousness. Whose righteousness? The righteousness of Jesus Christ the perfect Lamb of God. The world would not receive the Son of God (John 1:10), so He has returned to the Father. When He was here on earth, He was accused by men of being a blasphemer, a lawbreaker, a deceiver, and even a demoniac. The Spirit of God reveals the Savior in the Word and in this way glorifies Him (John 16:13-14). The Spirit also reveals Christ in the lives of believers. The world cannot receive or see the Spirit of God, but they can see what He does as they watch the lives of dedicated believers. (Wiersbe).

Convicting of judgment

Satan is the "ruler of this world." When Jesus said the Holy Spirit would convict in judgment, He was referring to the judgment of Satan that was effected by His death on the cross (John 12:31). "When a lost sinner is truly under conviction, he will see the folly and evil of unbelief; he will confess that he does not measure up to the righteousness of Christ, and he will realize that he is under condemnation because he belongs to the world and the devil (Ephesians 2:1-3)" (Wiersbe). There can be no conversion to Christ without conviction of the Holy Spirit. That is why we use the Word of God to witness as a child of God.

A few words about hate

 

Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; They are mighty who would destroy me, being my enemies wrongfully; Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it. --Psalm 69:4 

 I follow a number of Christian apologists online. If you are not familiar with the term apologist, I will try to explain it to you. No, it does not mean someone who goes around saying he's sorry for being a Christian, or apologizing for past atrocities carried out in the name of Christianity. Merriam-Webster defines the term apologist as "someone who speaks or writes in defense of someone or something that is typically controversial, unpopular, or subject to criticism."

People like Cliff Knechtle and Charlie Kirk who go to college campuses and engage in debate are known as Christian apologists (although Kirk also brought in politics--it is not known whether he was killed for his politics or his religion as his killer, who is still on trial as of this writing, has not been clear about his motivation.) There are others who engage people on social media, such as David Cipriano, or those who go by pseudonyms like Taco-Talks or Dinx the Puppet. Why do they go by pseudonyms? Because they don't want to get hate mail, or angry people showing up at their door or their place of business to harass them. They get enough harassment online for standing up for their beliefs.

It was just this kind of harassment and persecution that Jesus spoke of in His final discourse to His disciples. We see it in John 15:18-27.

If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of this world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, "A servant is not greater than his master." If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, "They hated Me without a cause." But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.

 The Bible uses the phrase the world in three distinct ways. It can mean the world that God created (Genesis 1:1; John 1:10). It can also mean the world of humanity or people in the world (John 3:16). In this sense, however, Jesus is talking about a world system comprised of a society apart from and opposed to God.

"The world" from a Christian point of view involves all the people, plans, organizations, philosophies, values, etc. that belong to a society without God. Some of these things may be very cultural; others may be very corrupt; but all of them have their origins in the heart and mind of sinful man and promote what sinful man wants to enjoy and accomplish. As Christians, we must be careful not to love the world (1John 2:15-17) or be conformed to the world (Romans 12:1-2). --Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary.

Scottish evangelist and biblical scholar and theologian said, “It is an odd fact that the world soon justified its hostility to them by imputing to them the initiative in hatred. The earliest extant reference to Christians in pagan literature charges them with ‘hatred of the human race’.” (Tacitus, Annals, 15.44.5). Australian theologian Leon Morris said, “It is not without significance that the disciples are to be known by their love, the world by its hatred.” Part of that hatred involves a turning the message of Christ on its head and assigning Christians with the hate that they themselves feel for us, all the while calling themselves "loving" and "accepting" and "inclusive."

Nobody wants to be known as a hater.

The World Will Absolutely Hate Us

There are four reasons the world hates us, as we can see in this passage.

1. We are identified with Christ (verses 18, 20).

Faithful followers of Jesus have this in common with the Savior: the world hates them both. Jesus reminds us in verse 20 that "the servant is not greater than his master"; therefore, if the world hated Christ, they will also hate Christians.

Jesus knew that He would be arrested and crucified, even if (at this point) the disciples did not. Afterward, though, Simon Peter wrote:

Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified (1 Peter 4:12-14).

 "Anything that the enemy can do to us has already been done to Jesus Christ, and He is 'with us' as we suffer" (Wiersbe).

2. We do not belong to the world (verse 19).

The disciple John, who was also present when Jesus spoke these words, wrote in 1 John 4:4-6, "You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us."

Hebrews 3:1 says that we are "partakers of the heavenly calling." Wiersbe writes:

The world system functions on the basis of conformity. As long as a person follows the fads and fashions and accepts the values of the world, he or she will "get along." But the Christian refuses to be "conformed to the world" (Romans 12:2). The believer is a "new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:17) and no longer wants to live the "old life" (1 Peter 4:1-4). We are the light of the world and the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13-16), but a dark world does not want light and a decaying world does not want salt! In other words, the believer is not just "out of step"; he is out of place. (See John 17:14, 16; 1 John 4:5).

3. The world is spiritually ignorant and blind (verse 21).

"The world" in question, from Jesus' perspective, was not the pagan world, the world of Greek and Roman culture, Caesar's world. It was "the world" in which He was born and lived: the world of Galilee and Jerusalem, of the Galileans and Judeans. It was the world of Abraham's children, people who were studying the law of Moses. It was the world which thought of itself as God's people. This was the world that looked at Jesus, at what He was doing, that listened to what He was saying, and that said, "No, thank you." This was the world that saw the blind man healed and remained blind itself. This was the world that saw Lazarus raised to life, and decided it would be safer to kill him off properly because otherwise people might believe in Jesus. (NT Wright, John for Everyone).

Sadly, the world we live in today is not that different. If you ask them, they say that they believe in God, but they are offended at His teachings. If presented with the claims of Christ, they counter with teachings from Buddha or Mohammed, believing themselves to be both "religious" and "cosmopolitan".

Wiersbe writes, "The religious world today claims to know God, but it does not want to bow the knee to Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and the only Savior of the world. Satan has blinded their eyes (2 Corinthians 4:3-4), and sin has blinded their hearts (Ephesians 4:17-19)."

4. The world will not be honest about its own sin (verses 22-24).

In his New Cambridge Bible Commentary, Jerome Neyrey writes, "Twice Jesus mounts a forensic argument about His enemies: If Jesus had not come, they would have no sin (verse 22), and if He did not work His works in their midst, they would have no sin (verse 24). But Jesus did come and did His works, which they reject. They hate not just Jesus but His Father as well (verse 23). Worst of all, they hated without cause (verse 25); that is, without provocation. They are radically evil people." Jesus contrasts this attitude of the world with that of the disciples, who are known by their love.

This statement is parallel to what Jeus told the Pharisees after He had healed the blind man (John 9:39-41). They had to admit that Jesus had healed the man born blind, but they would not follow the evidence to its logical conclusion and put their trust in Him. Jesus told them that they were the ones who were blind. But since they admitted that they had seen a miracle, this made their sin even worse. They were not sinning in ignorance; they were sinning against a flood of light. Why? Because that light revealed their own sin and they did not want to face their sin honestly. Their attitude was similar to that described in 1 Peter 3:5--"For this they willingly were ignorant." (Weirsbe)

The Holy Spirit will be Our Help 

Thankfully, we have the Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us.

In the face of such evil, Jesus speaks further about the Advocate. The disciples need Someone to aid them in responding to "hate" and "persecution." The Advocate's function in John 15:26, however, differs from that in 14:26, where He brought to remembrance all that Jesus said. Here He "witnesses" on Jesus' behalf, which some have thought suggested a forensic or conflict situation (see Matthew 10:19-20). Hence, the Advocate will function as the risposte (or answer) to the challenges raining down on Jesus and the disciples. (Neyrey)

In other words, the Spirit will give us the words we need to say to the glory of God when we find ourselves persecuted for His sake. Wiersbe writes, "Times of persecution have always been times of proclamation and witness for the church. We must be 'ready always to give an answer' when unsaved people attack us (1 Peter 3:15). The Spirit witnesses to us so that we can witness to the world (Mark 13:11). Apart from the power of the Spirit of God, we cannot give a clear witness for Christ (Acts 1:28)." 

Matthew 10:28 says, "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul." Jesus told us in the Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6:27-28) to love those who hate you and pray for those who spitefully use you. It is all for His glory.

 

 

Believe, Love, and Abide

 

I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.  --John 17:26

We as Christians often misuse the word abide. We are told to abide by rules and customs, to abide by laws and principles, especially those found in the Bible. 

This misinterpretation of Jesus' words is based in stoicism and legalism. The thought is that if we suffer here on this earth, we may attain or enjoy paradise in heaven.

Adherents to this blasphemy use the word abide more like the verb bide, as in, "I'm just biding my time here on earth waiting for my reward in the sweet by and by."  Friends, this is not how Jesus taught us to live!

Let's look at the beginning of our passage today in John 15.

As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Fther's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full (John 15:9-11).

Commentator David Guzik writes:

Jesus deliberately loved His disciples according to the way God the Father loved Him. We know that Jesus loved His disciples by teaching them, protecting them, guiding them, sacrificially serving them, and using His power and authority to do these things. In some way, the Father also did all those things for Jesus and Jesus did them for the disciples after that pattern.

The love of Jesus for His people is so remarkable, that this is the analogy or illustration that He must make. He didn’t say, “I love you as a mother loves her baby” or “I love you the way a husband loves his wife” or “I love you the way the soldier loves his buddy” or even “I love you the way an addict loves his dope.” The only way He could paint the picture was to use the love of the Father for the Son.

Warren Wiersbe puts it this way:

Several times in John's gospel you will find Jesus speaking about the Father's love for Him. We so emphasize God's love for the world and the church that we forget that the Father loves the Son. Because the Father does love the Son, He has put all things into the Son's hand (John 3:35) and has revealed all things to the Son (John 5:20). The Father loved the Son before the foundation of the world (John 17:24); He loved the Son when the Son died on the cross (John 10:17). The amazing thing is believers today can experience personally that same love! Jesus prayed "that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them [the disciples and believers today]" (John 17:26).

This is the love in which we abide. This love is the basis of our everlasting joy, both now and forever. It is also the reason we keep His commands, not out of a sense of obligation, but as a manifestation of our joyful love for the Father and the Son. Abide here does not mean to endure, nor does it mean to co-exist with (as in, you do your thing, I'll do mine, and we'll all get together just fine). It means to live in, to dwell in securely. 

Psalm 91:1 says, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." He is our Rock and our shelter.  Isaiah 25:4 says, "For You have been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; for the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall."

The second thing we see in this passage is a commandment to love.

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, then to lay down one's life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you (John 15:12-15).

Yes, He gives us commands, but our obedience is not out of a sense of duty but rather is rooted in love; both our love for Him and His love for us, as well as our love for one another.  Bible Scholar Adam Clark says that, according to St. Jerome, when the Apostle John was old, he used to be carried to the public assembly of believers. As he went, he would repeat the phrase, "Little children, love one another." They would often ask him why he would constantly repeat the same thing over and over again. "Because," he said, "it is the commandment of the Lord, and the observation of it alone is sufficient."

In this passage we see the shadow of the cross, for Jesus foretells of His own death, for in calling them "friends" He promises to die for them.  Not only that, but also to include them (and us) in His holy work. Wiersbe writes:

Our friendship with Christ involves love and obedience. But it also involved knowledge: He "lets us in on" His plans. Indeed, He is our Master (John 13:13, 16), but He does not treat us as servants.  He treats us as friends, if we do what He commands. Abraham was God's friend because he obeyed God (Gen. 18:19). If we have friendship with the world, we then experience enmity with God (James 4:1-4). Lot in Sodom was not called God's friend, even though Lot was a saved man (2 Peter 2:7). God told Abraham what He planned to do to the cities of the plain, and Abraham was able to intercede for Lot and his family. 

 It is interesting to note that, in John's gospel, it was the servants who knew what was going on! The servants at the wedding feast in Cana knew where the wine came from (John 2:9), and the nobleman's servants knew when the son was healed (John 4:51-53).

Charles Spurgeon said, "It must be active obedience, notice that. 'Ye are My friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.' Some think it is quite sufficient if they avoid what He forbids. Abstinence from evil is a great part of righteousness, but it is not enough for friendship."

Finally, Jesus commands us to bear fruit worthy of our calling.

You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name he may give you (John 15:16-17).

God chose us first. The reason He chose us is first by His grace, and second because He has work for us to accomplish. In The New Cambridge Bible Commentary, Jerome Neyrey writes:

No branch can bear fruit apart from the vine (John 15:4). Bearing fruit can refer to one's deeds (Matt. 7:16) or the success of one's labors (John 4:36). But we have an immediate echo in the metaphor of grains of wheat, which die, fall into the ground, and "bear fruit" (John 12:25; see also 1 Cor. 15:37-38), suggesting that death produces life. Thus, we are inclined to consider it as the good result of being "pruned" or "laying down one's life." Either new members will be added when disciples endure hostility, or the lift that the group enjoys will be exponentially increased.

We are chosen by God to accomplish His will.  Even if it is His will that we die for Him, He is no less our friend. He promised that whatever you ask in His name, the Father will give it to you. Many take this promise to heart and ignore the first part of the sentence. In order for us to have our own requests heard and fulfilled, we must first be bearing fruit.  If "bearing fruit" sometimes means laying down our own lives for Him, then it is His will that we should be praying for, not our own. In other words, we should not pray for prosperity or long life; only that He would use us as He wills.

Abide in Him. Love one another as He loved us. Bear fruit.

Three simple commands that take a lifetime of loyal pursuit to fulfill. 

 

Be fruitful, be pruned

 

That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height--to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.  --Ephesians 3:17-19

One of the first commands that God gave was to "be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28). In context, it was a command to reproduce, so that the world would be filled with God's most glorious creation.

One of the last commands given by Jesus before ascending to heaven was to "go and make disciples." The purpose was that the world would be full of growing Christians. In essence it mirror's God's first command, to be fruitful and to multiply so that the earth would be filled with His glory.

Several different kinds of spiritual fruit are named in the Bible. We bear fruit when we win others to Christ (Rom. 1:13). We are a part of the harvest (John 4:35-38). As we grow in holiness and obedience, we are bearing fruit (Rom. 6:22). Paul considered Christian giving to be fruit from a dedicated life (Rom. 15:28). "The fruit of the Spirit" (Gal. 5:22-23) is the kind of Christian character that glorifies God and makes Christ real to others. Even our good works, our service, grow out of our abiding life (Col. 1:10). The praise that comes from our hearts and lips is actually fruit to the glory of God (Heb. 13:15). (Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary).

As we continue our study of John, we see Jesus begin to speak of fruit and fruitfulness. You'll remember in the last vers of John 14, they were just leaving the Upper Room, the place where Jesus celebrated the Passover meal with His disciples and washed their feet. As they were going, they must have passed by a grapevine near the home as they made their way to the Garden of Gethsemene.  Jesus, who was a master of the object lesson, may have pointed to one of the vines.

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them in the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. --John 15:1-8.

 A branch that is separated from the vine cannot bear fruit. It is fit only to be thrown into the fire. Our connection to Jesus, who is the "true vine", is essential. "It makes horticultural sense to state that branches are 'in' the vine and the vine 'in' the branches, but Jesus' remark is not spatial but relational. Even if the future of disciples includes being expelled from some place (16:1-2), their benefaction lies in being securely in another 'place,' namely the vine." (Jerome Neyrey, The New Cambridge Bible Commentary).

God the Father acts as husbandman, a divine caregiver of the vine. He prunes as necessary, so that the branch may be more fruitful. NT Wright, in his book John for Everyone, writes of his own experience in pruning a roses.

A rose bush, left to itself, will get straggly and tangled, and grow in on itself. It will produce quite a lot of not-so-good roses rather than a smaller number of splendid ones. It will, quite literally, get in its own light. It needs help to grow in the right directions and to the right ends. So you prune it to stop it wasting its energy and being unproductive. You cut out, particularly, the parts of the plant that are growing inwards and getting tangled up. You encourage the shoots that are growing outwards, toward the light. You prune the rose, in other words, to help it to be its true self. As far as I understand it more or less the same thing works with vines.

Taking that practical experience and making a spiritual point, Jesus is the Light. We are pruned by the Father so that we will not get tangled and grow in on ourselves; so that we will not produce a bunch of rotten fruit, but rather fewer bigger and more healthy fruit; and so that we will continue to grow toward the Light of Christ.

Bible commentator Merrill Tenney wrote, "The means by which pruning or cleaning is done is by the Word of God. It condemns sin; it inspires holiness; it promotes growth. As Jesus applied the words God gave him to the lives of the disciples, they underwent a pruning process that removed evil from them and conditioned them for further service.” 

That, I think, is what Jesus meant when He said in verse three, "You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you." Taken by itself, the verse makes no sense. The word for "clean" is the same word Jesus used in chapter 13 when Peter objected to Jesus washing his feet.  Jesus said to him, "If I don't wash you, you are not a part of Me." Peter responded, "Well, then, wash not just my feet by my head and hands, too."  Jesus then said, "Those who are bathed need only to wash their feet, but is already clean; and you are clean, but not all of you," referring to Judas.

We are cleansed by the word.  Ephesians 5:26 and 27 says, "That He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish." So we see that John 15:3, when Jesus said, "You are clean," He meant that they were already pruned and fruitful because of the words that they had heard from Jesus and applied to their lives.

What, then, is the purpose of our cleansing, of our being pruned? It is for the glory of God.  Many people take verse 7 out of context, as well. "If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you may ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." This is not, as some might teach, encouragement for us to "name it and claim it" so that we can selfishly realize God's blessing by allowing us to possess wealth. Not at all.

The purpose of our pruning is to cut away anything that keeps us from growing toward the light. "By this My Father is glorified," Jesus said, "that you bear much fruit." This is true discipleship, not that we, by some divine right, can amass great wealth. Rather it is so that we can grow in holiness and obedience. It is to give to the poor. It is to exhibit the character qualities of love, joy, and peace; patience, kindness, and goodness; gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. All of this, so that we may see other people come to Christ.

This, says Jesus, is how to be His disciple.

 

They'll know we are Christians by our love

 

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.  --Colossians 3:15

When I was growing up in the early 1970s, our church youth group would sing a chorus almost every time we met.  It said, "They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love; yes they'll know we are Christians by our love."

Outside the Church during that time a cultural revolution was taking place.  Young people who had no Christian background were all clamoring for "peace."  What started as a protest against war in Viet Nam sort of melded into a call for a generic, hazy idea promoting an absence of conflict in all relationships, not just geopolitical ones.

Since that time there has been a union in people's minds, a conflagration of peace and love.  The thinking was that you could not have one without the other.  As time went on, however, the American culture was still searching for both, and people started adding other things, as if peace and love alone were inadequate.  Phrases like, "Peace, Love, and Rock-n-Roll" became commercialized.  Tee shirts were printed and worn all over the place.  Soon, people were selling all kinds of things using that catch-phrase.  "Peace, Love, and Beer" or "Peace, Love, and Ice Cream" or "Peace, Love, and (fill-in-the-blank).

In our study of the book of John, we have seen several themes, not the least of which are love and peace.  Jesus returned to these specific themes as He was preparing His disciples for His departure from them.  They still did not realize that He was speaking of His crucifixion, but it was dawning on them that a day was soon coming where Jesus would not be with them.  Jesus gave them careful instruction on how to carry on after He was taken from them.

The disciples heard Jesus say, "A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me."  Then Jesus said, "He who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him." (John 14:19, 21).

This raised a question in one disciple's mind.

Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.  These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.'  If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.  I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.  But that the world may know I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.  Arise, let us go from here."  --John 14:22-31

Judas, the disciple that unfortunately shared a name with the traitor of our Lord, posed a serious question:  If You are going away, and the world will not see You, how will You be revealed to us but not to the world?

Jesus's answer is as true for us in the 21st century as it was for them back in the 1st century.  He will be made manifest in our love for one another, and we will know it is true love for Him if we keep His words.  Earlier Jesus had said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (verse 15).  This obedient love of Christ will reveal true Christians to one another.

The Greek word translated "manifest" in verses 21 and 22 is emphanizo, which comes from the root word phanero, which means to show or to make clear.  It is similar to our English word emphasize, derived from the Greek word emphainein, meaning to present or to exhibit.  In context, what Jesus is saying is that our love for Him and our adherence to His words will exhibit or show Christ to others, and exhibit or make clear His love.

So the song we sang in the 70s was right: they will know we are Christians by our love.

Jesus goes on to say that when He goes to the Father, He will send the Spirit who will both remind us of the words that Jesus spoke and will teach us new things.  In my last blog post I spoke at length about the Trinitarian teaching here, as each Person of the Trinity is introduced separately and distinctly, but all working as one.  

One commentary I read said that when Jesus spoke of the Spirit bringing to mind His words, and also teaching them all things, it was a coordination of "conservative" ideas (that is, we recall with reverence the things that Jesus taught us) with "progressive" ideas (that is, we get new knowledge or new revelation from the Spirit which Jesus never spoke about).  I don't necessarily agree with this interpretation.  I think a better explanation is that the Holy Spirit would continue the disciples' training in truth.  Commentator David Guzik writes:

This means that the work of the Spirit would be a work of continuation. His teaching would continue what Jesus already taught. The Spirit does not wipe clear the previous teaching of Jesus and begin again. “The Spirit will not dispense with the teachings of Jesus. The teaching to be recalled is His.” (Morris)

 We should beware of those who preach a different gospel, proclaiming that the Spirit gave them some new revelation.

Jesus moves from the theme of love to that of peace.  A common Jewish greeting of the days was, "Shalom, shalom."  You might hear it said when two people meet on the street, or when someone comes to visit your home, or when two friends leave each other.  It took the place of both "hello" and "goodbye".   The New Cambridge Bible Commentary says this:

In classical Greek, "peace" refers to the cessation of hostilities, but in Israelite writings it means much more because it translates as "shalom," which means plentitude of blessings or completeness of benefaction.  The exhortation "let not your hearts be troubled" both begins this part of the Farewell Adress (14:1) and concludes it (14:27).  But in the conclusion it is joined with Jesus's benefaction of "peace."  The context of these sayings, then, influences how we should read them.  Faced with the emptiness of Jesus's departure (14:28-29), the disciples are given fullness; that is, shalom, or peace.  And faced with "trouble," Jesus bequeaths them security and peace.  Similarly, Jesus calms the terror of His disciples in the upper room when He announces, "Peace be with you" (John 20:29, 21).  Inasmuch as the meaning of "peace" comes from its context, here it would be the successful endurance of crises and trials.

Jesus speaks once more of going to the Father.  He says if the disciples really loved Him, they would be happy for Him.  David Guzik put it this way:  "The disciples were troubled at the news of Jesus’ departure. In faith, they should instead rejoice, for the sake of Jesus, for their own sake, and for the sake of the world. The work of Jesus through the sent Holy Spirit would be greater than His work during the years of His earthly ministry."

One of the reasons that Jesus gives that they should rejoice that He goes to the Father is that "the Father is greater than I."  Without going to deeply into theological arguments, I think a brief explanation is helpful here.  Again from David Guzik:

The Father is greater than the Son in position, especially in regard to the incarnation. Yet the Father is not greater than the Son in essence or being; They are both equally God. It is remarkable that Jesus should even say this. “That it should require to be explicitly affirmed, as here, is strongest evidence that He was Divine.” (Dods)

Jesus makes a sudden transition at the end of this chapter.  He knows His time is short, and so He suggests that they start cleaning up so they can leave the upper room where they had shared a Passover meal, where He had washed their feet, and where Judas had left to betray Him.  This is why He said, "The ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me."

Who is this 'ruler'?  At one level, it is Caesar, whose soldiers will take Jesus to His death not many hours hence.  At another level, it is the dark power that stands behind even Caesar, the spiritual force of wickedness named so briefly in the previous chapter, now using Judas as a poor, willing accomplice.  The phrase 'the world' gets its negative force in John's gospel from the fact that the present world, though loved and claimed by the Father, remains under the rule of this dark lord.  Jesus's approaching death and resurrection will inflict a huge wound on this rule, from which it will never recover; but the disciples are to be sent out into the world where opposition is still powerful and deadly.  Their courage and confidence is to be sustained by remembering what Jesus had done.  He did what He did so that 'the world' might know that He loved the Father.  Called to follow Him, we are to act in such a way that 'the world' will know that we love Him.  --NT Wright John for Everyone

Which brings us back to the song our youth group sang.  "They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love; yes they'll know we are Christians by our love." 

The perfect partnership: God in us, us in Christ, and Christ in God

 

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin.  And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.  --1John 2:1

Have you ever thought about what your last words might be?

If you Google the last words of celebrities, you will find a number of pithy statements, some humorous and some profound, but some not so much.

Whenever a condemned criminal faces execution, the warden will often give him a chance to make a final statement.  We've all seen the movies where the condemned prisoner is brought to the gallows or strapped to the electric chair, and the warden or priest will ask, "Any last words?"

At that point, there is no time to wax eloquent.  There is little time for an extended soliloquy.  Death is imminent.

In the last hours of Jesus, He has a lot to say in a short period of time.  John records the works spoken in the last 24 hours of His life in chapters 13 through 17.  It's hard for us to fathom these words of Jesus as spoken at one setting.  Not only do the chapter divisions get in the way of our thinking of this as a single monologue, but the way that preachers and commentators break down each separate idea to help us digest the passage.

It's true that there is a wealth of information here given in a relatively short period of time.  I can imagine John, the youngest disciple, furiously taking notes as if from a professor giving a two-hour lecture.  We know it didn't happen that way, however.  John's gospel was written decades later, and I'm sure in his research John spoke to many of the disciples who were there, and each contributed a memory.

Let's read a small section of the final instructions of Jesus before His arrest and crucifixion.

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will also do; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.  And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

If you love Me, keep My commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever--the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.  I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.  At that day you will know I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.  --John 14:12-21

Prayer

In the first section Jesus speaks of prayer as our connection with the Father.  He Himself was often seen by the disciples as getting away alone to pray.  After communing with the Father, Jesus was enabled to do the great miracles and works that He was known for throughout the region.  Jesus promised the disciples that they, too, would be enabled to perform many great works--even greater than those that Jesus had performed--but only if they remained attuned to the Father's will by prayer.

In the kingdom of nature they should work greater miracles. No miracle is little, but some to our apprehension seem greater than others. Christ had healed with the hem of his garment, but Peter with his shadow (Acts 5:15), Paul by the handkerchief that had touched him (Acts 19:12). Christ wrought miracles for two or three years in one country, but his followers wrought miracles in his name for many ages in diverse countries. You shall do greater works, if there be occasion, for the glory of God. The prayer of faith, if at any time it had been necessary, would have removed mountains.  --Matthew Henry Commentary.

The core of Jesus's ministry was to bring people to the Father.  His scope was limited during His lifetime here on Earth, because of the constraints of time, travel, and language.  However, after Pentecost in Acts 2, people from all nations and tongues were given the Gospel.  Therefore the scope of the Christian message was widened to include the whole world, not just the region in and around ancient Israel.

The purpose of Jesus's earthly ministry was to glorify the Father, and in so doing the Father glorified the Son.  So when Jesus said, "If you ask anything in My name I will do it," He did not promise to answer every petition that we might make for selfish purpose or personal gain.  NT Wright wrote, 

The all-important phrase "in My name" doesn't, of course, just mean adding "in the name of Jesus" to anything we might think of, however stupid, selfish, or hurtful.  The "name" after all, as in many cultures, is supposed to reveal the character.  Praying "in Jesus' name", then, means that, as we get to know who Jesus is, so we find ourselves drawn into His life and love and sense of purpose.  We will then begin to see what needs doing, what we should be aiming at within our sphere of possibilities, and what resources we need to do it.  When we then ask, it will be "in Jesus' name", and to His glory; and through that, to the glory of the Father Himself (verse 13).  But when all this is understood, we shouldn't go soft on that marvelous word anything.  He said it, and He means it.  --John for Everyone

Paraclete

Jesus then promises to pray for the disciples, even after He is taken up to the Father.  The Father will then send the Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity.  John uses the Greek word paraclete, which can mean Helper.  It can also mean Comforter, Intercessor, and Advocate.

God the Son will return to the Father, but God the Father will send the Spirit to console, to guide, and to intercede for them.  The New Cambridge Bible Commentary says,

We have noted how Jesus' knowledge, revelations, and words constitute the chief elements of His legacy.  So the Advocate serves to ensure access to this legacy now that Jesus has gone away.  Tricia Brown argues this cogently: "The Paraclete makes possible continued access to Jesus after Jesus has departed.... In the Discourses Jesus's exclusive ability to provide a way to the Father is strongly reasserted, and the Paraclete is depicted as providing the believers with continual access to Jesus." (Spirit in the Writings of John).  At least here, the sole function of the Advocate is to keep Jesus current to the disciples: "the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you."

This particular Greek word is exclusive to John; it is used by no other Gospel writer.  However, the Apostle Paul uses a verb form of the noun paracletos in his letters to the churches.  Paul encourages them to parakaleo, to come alongside to comfort or console believers in times of trouble (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).  Other New Testament writers use this verb to mean to exhort or encourage to live faithfully and to pursue good works (Hebrews 10:24-25).  In other parts of the New Testament this verb is used to mean to entreat or plead on behalf of someone reflecting both personal and communal support (Strong's Greek Concordance).

The Holy Spirit indwells every believer, and this is why Jesus could say, "I will not leave you orphans."  That is, He will not leave us bereft of a father or bereft of a teacher, guide, or guardian.  The Spirit of God fulfills all of these roles.

Partner

Jesus comforts His disciples after telling them that He will not be with them much longer.  He then describes Himself as being in the Father, and of the disciples being in Him, and He being in the disciples.  This three-fold Godly presence in and around all Christians is not only a confirmation of the concept of the Trinity, with the Spirit indwelling us, us indwelling Christ, and Christ indwelling the Father.  It is also a confirmation of the eternal security of the believer.  Remember the words that Jesus spoke in John 10:28-30: "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."

The New Cambridge Bible Commentary introduces this passage in terms of a Broker.  If you know anything about business, and honest Broker works on behalf of a Patron or Benefactor on behalf of a Client.  In this analogy, Jesus is our go-between, the Broker between God the Father and ourselves.  In business, a Broker first seeks to establish a relationship with the Client, but he speaks on behalf of (or in the name of) the Patron or Benefactor.

He, in fact, will broker the Paraclete for them (14:16-17, 26).  The Broker, moreover, is solicitous for his clients: He warns them of coming crises, exhorting them not to be disturbed (14:1, 28); he tells them prophecies of future hard times for the express purpose of alerting them how to weather those storms successfully (14:29; see also 13:19); and finally, he gives them otherworldly peace (14:27).  Although he leaves them, he declares that he will not leave them orphans (14:28).  The clients know that they are truly connected to their patron if they keep his commands (14:15) and feed on his words (14:23).  Finally, we glimpse the complete relationship of patron, broker, and clients: "On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you" (14:20).  

 What greater partnership can we hope for?  It is predicated upon prayer, and guaranteed by the Spirit of Truth, our Paraclete.  While we marvel that we can approach the throne of heaven and address God the Father in the name of God the Son, we can also wonder that the Son prays to the Father for us, and that the Spirit also intercedes for us, with groanings too deep for words (Romans 8:26).

He paid the bride price for us

 

But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them. --Hebrews 11:16

My wife has become interested in a series originally aired on Lifetime Network called Married at First Sight.  In this series, a minister, a marriage counselor, and a psychologist find people in big cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago who are fed up with the dating scene.  These volunteers agree to be married to someone they have never met.  The team acts as matchmakers, getting profiles of men and women, and matching them according to certain criteria or algorithms.

The couples first meet on their wedding day, then the cameras follow them for a month to see how they are faring.  It is a legally binding marriage, so the only way out is divorce.  Unfortunately, only about 1 in 7 of these marriages succeed.  The obstacles they must overcome include forced intimacy (they must go from strangers to friends to lovers in a very short period of time); unsupportive friends and family members (who are usually against the idea that their son or daughter would agree to marry someone they had just met, and so they undermine the relationship from the start); and a modern culture that is not accustomed to arranged marriages but is quite accustomed to quick and easy divorce.

As I read the passage in John 14:1-11, I thought of this cable television series, and of the ancient Jewish betrothal rituals.  I found the following description from the website RuthsRoad.org, which is an excerpt from a book entitled Finding the Afikomen by Christie Eisner.

First, the parents of the bride would be summoned and their permission would be sought. If they agreed, the bride was brought out and the hopeful bridegroom would pour a cup of wine known as “the cup of betrothal.” If she accepts the proposal, she would say yes by drinking the cup of wine that was set before her. Once the bride drank this cup, the engagement was official, and the contractual phase of the wedding was initiated. A mohar or bride price was paid to the girl’s parents and the ketubah, or contract, with the pledge of the groom to care for her, was signed. Now they were legally married and would have to go through a divorce to dissolve the marriage. This explains the situation of Joseph and Mary who were legally betrothed when Mary was pregnant with Jesus, but the consummation part of the wedding had not yet taken place. The bridegroom then leaves gifts for the bride as a pledge to return for her in the future. He then leaves her to go build a bridal chamber on His father’s house to bring her to, for the second part of the wedding known as the consummation. When would he be back for her? No one knew but his father, who had to inspect the chamber. Once it met his specifications, he would release his son to go get his bride. The common saying was, “no man knows the day or hour, only the father.” This was the phrase, or idiom, that Jewish people in Jesus’ day would understand to be talking about the time when the bridegroom would go to kidnap his bride. While the bridegroom was away, the bride spent the time sewing her wedding garments and preparing to be a wife. From the day of her betrothal, she was set apart and was veiled when she went in public because she was known as, “not [her] own, [she was] bought at a price” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Then, when the groom’s father was satisfied that all was in order, usually within a year, the friends of the bridegroom would blow a shofar and proclaim in the streets, “Behold the bridegroom cometh!” And the bridegroom would go forth with a procession to the bride’s house, usually at midnight, and “abduct the bride.” That is the reason he was called, “the thief in the night” because he came suddenly at an hour unknown to the bride and she had to be watching and living with the expectation that he was coming any minute. 

Let's read the passage in John 14 now, and see if you can pick up on the parallels that I saw.

"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.  And where I go you know, and the way you know."  --John 14:1-4

If you remember the words of Jesus at the end of chapter 13, you will recall that Jesus had told them all at once that: 1) He was to leave them, and "where I am going, you cannot come"; 2) That they would all fall away; 3)That Peter would deny Him 3 times.  These revelations had to weigh heavy on the disciples' hearts.  That's why Jesus's next words are, "Let not your heart be troubled."

"Cheer up," He tells them.  "You already believe (or have faith in) God; then show that same faith and belief in Me."  Then He likens Himself to a bridegroom who has chosen a bride.  They have already shared the "cup of betrothal" at the Passover meal.  He is now giving them gifts as He prepared to shed His blood as the "bride price" to secure their future.  Now He was telling them that He was going away to prepare a dwelling place for them in His Father's house, and that He would come back and take them all home with Him one day.

The word translated "mansions" is probably better thought of as rooms or apartments.  The Greek word that John uses is only used one other time in the New Testament, in verse 23.  There, Jesus says "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him."  Here the word translated home connotes a permanent residence, not necessarily a "mansion."  Bible Commentator David Guzik echoes the sentiments of earlier Greek translators when he says, "In light of the ancient Greek, mansions is better translated “dwelling places.” The noun mone (connected to the verb meno, “stay” or “remain”) means “a place to stay.” In light of God’s nature, it is better to translate it mansions. Whatever dwelling place God has for us in heaven, it will be as glorious as a mansion."

So Jesus describes His leaving to build for us a permanent residence in a glorious city.  Then He gives this guarantee: "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, so that where I am, there you may be also."  Knowing this as our calm assurance, our troubled hearts are troubled no more.

Reading further,

Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?"  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.  If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him."  Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us."  Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?  He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show me the Fahter'?  Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?  The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.  Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves."  (John 14:5-11)

The disciples had this annoying habit of completely missing the point of what Jesus was trying to say. Spurgeon once said thank God they did not understand, that they were able to ask Jesus questions, because in those answers we really see the heart of Jesus.

First Thomas, missing entirely the analogy of the Bridegroom (perhaps because he was male and could not fully identify with the role as a bride), seeks clarification of Jesus's last sentence, "Where I go you know, and the way you know."  Wait, what?  Jesus, I love You, Man, but we don't know where you're going, much less the way.

Jesus makes a clarifying statement that is our statement of faith:  "I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except by Me."  David Guzik writes this: 

Jesus didn’t say that He would show us a way; He said that He is the way. He didn’t promise to teach us a truth; He said that He is the truth. Jesus didn’t offer us the secrets to life; He said that He is the life.

I’m wandering about; I don’t know where I’m going. Jesus is the way.

I’m confused; I don’t know what to think. Jesus is the truth.

I’m dead inside and don’t know if I can go on. Jesus is the life.

Jesus's exclusive claim to be the only way to the Father was followed immediately by His own claim to deity: If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father.  Another disciple, Philip, makes a statement that he believes makes him seem religious.  "Lord, just show us the Father."  Let us see God, and we will be satisfied.

Jesus's answer must have been with a roll of the eyes--at least that is the way I read it in my human mind, will, and emotions.  I don't know--maybe Jesus had more patience that I have.  But it really sounds like Jesus was gently mocking Philip.  "After all the time we spent together, Philip, you still don't know Me?  Over and over you've heard Me say, 'I and the Father are one.'  So how can you still act like you haven't seen God in Me?  You've seen all the miraculous works I did.  I did those miracles not on My own authority but with God working through Me.  So you can either believe that the Father is in Me, or you can believe in Me because of the miracles themselves."

Jesus is God in the flesh, the Son of Man spoken of by the prophet Ezekiel and Daniel.  Moses spoke of Him in Deuteronomy 18:18, "I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him."  He is the Angel of the Lord who wrestled with Jacob and who led the armies of Joshua.  Every time Jesus used the phrase, I AM, He affirmed His deity--"I AM the way, I AM the truth, I AM the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me."

How can you hear the words of Jesus and see the works of Jesus without seeing God Himself?  Colossians 1:15 says, "The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation."  Hebrews 1:3 says,  "Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high." Jesus Himself is the image of God Himself.  If we, who are made in the image of God, dwell in the house of God as the bride of His Son, then we are in a sacred and secure place indeed, because God hates divorce, and He will never break His vows.