John 14:8–31—Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit & Peace
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”
9 Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me. 11 Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe because of the work you have seen me do.
12 “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. 13 You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. 14 Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!
15 “If you love me, obey my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. 18 No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you. 19 Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Since I live, you also will live. 20 When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”
22 Judas (not Judas Iscariot, but the other disciple with that name) said to him, “Lord, why are you going to reveal yourself only to us and not to the world at large?”
23 Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them. 24 Anyone who doesn’t love me will not obey me. And remember, my words are not my own. What I am telling you is from the Father who sent me. 25 I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. 26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.
27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. 28 Remember what I told you: I am going away, but I will come back to you again. If you really loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the Father, who is greater than I am. 29 I have told you these things before they happen so that when they do happen, you will believe.
30 “I don’t have much more time to talk to you, because the ruler of this world approaches. He has no power over me, 31 but I will do what the Father requires of me, so that the world will know that I love the Father. Come, let’s be going.
Points of Interest
- ‘Lord, show us the Father’—this has to have been frustrating for Jesus. His entire nature and purpose is to be a picture of the Father: ‘No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us’ (1:18). Everything he does shows the Father. But even his closest friends don’t quite understand that.
- ‘Just believe’—I think this is Jesus’ answer to Thomas’ complaint in yesterday’s passage (14:5) that they don’t know the way.
- ‘will do the same works I have done, and even greater works’—Jesus’ death will not be an end to his own life. It also won’t be an end to his work. He plans for signs of eternal life to continue and to increase, through the disciples – including you and I.
- ‘another Advocate, who will never leave you’— this won’t keep happening to them. The next divine mentor will never have to leave. Good shepherd to the end, Jesus makes sure to arrange for a permanent replacement as he leaves – the Holy Spirit.
- ‘you are in me, and I am in you’—I don’t know exactly what this means, but I do note that Jesus is describing his relationship with them in the same terms as he describes the Father’s relationship with him. Jesus is inviting the disciples right into the family with the Father and him.
- ‘Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me’—all along, we’ve talked about the remarkable lack of interest Jesus has shown in being a good follower of the rules. Here, rules make something of an entrance. It turns out that you do have to follow his rules if you want to have anything to do with him. His rules, however, seem to be quite a different set than the ones with which the Pharisees are concerned. As far as I can remember, the only commands Jesus has given his disciples are to trust him (12:36), to love one another (13:34), and not to worry (14:1). ‘Trust me,’ ‘Take care of one another,’ and, ‘Don’t worry,’ have a much different feel from, ‘If you carry a mat on the Sabbath, we’ll kill you.’
- ‘we will come and make our home with each of them’—there’s some confusion about who is moving in with whom. In yesterday’s passage, Jesus talked about taking them to the Father’s house (14:2-3). Now, Jesus and the Father are coming to live with the disciples. Regardless, they’ll all be together.
- ‘He has no power over me’—it’s not that the devil is stronger. Jesus could resist him if he wanted. But Jesus is purposefully using the devil toward the Father’s ends.
Taking It Home
- For you: Have there been any times in your life when you have experienced deep, grounding peace? What level of peace or anxiety do you feel right now? Ask Jesus for his gift of peace—peace for your mind and for your heart. If you err on the anxious side and have a hard time receiving this gift, that really does sound like the best thing ever, ask Jesus for help taking what he is offering you. Is there a specific area in your life where you are particularly lacking peace? Especially ask God for peace in that very circumstance.
- For your 6: Are your 6 open to experiencing anything miraculous from God? Or would that totally weird them out? Ask Jesus for more of the Holy Spirit for your 6. Ask Jesus to help your 6 be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Ask Jesus for opportunities to talk about and experience the Holy Spirit with your 6.
- For our church: If you had any big, huge outrageous dream for our church what would it be? Today, throw caution, logistics, and practical-how-to-plans to the wind, and ask Jesus for whatever that big dream is.
