John - Chapter 14
CHRIST SPEAKS OF DEPARTING AND SENDING THE COMFORTER
In the first eleven verses we are given the beginning of the ending of the earthly time of Jesus as He prepares the disciples for His departure.
It is in the 14th chapter that the Lord Jesus begins a discourse which is filled with tenderness, depth, and fullness that we see nowhere else in scripture. It is a heart melting address given to the eleven on the last night before He died.
Though He was completely aware of all that awaited Him in the final hours, though He felt the terrible load of His sacrifice to come, and He was in full acceptance of the bitterness of the cup He must drink, He took this time to comfort His chosen ones in their fear and sorrow. Here we see He truly loved them until the end.
The apostles had heard repeated statements from Him concerning His approaching suffering and death. Today, to us, these statements seem simple and direct. We read them from the perspective of looking back, and we know the full story. They, however, might have viewed these teachings as parables not to be taken literally.
Now Jesus feels their grief as if it were His own and He kindly comforts those who will abandon Him and scatter in hiding. Here we see pure and clear the prophecy of Isaiah 61:1 & 2. “... he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, … To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord...”
Jesus tells his disciples that their heart should not be troubled, and that if they believe in God, to believe also in Him. The chosen men were troubled over hearing that one would betray Him, were troubled over seeing the master troubled in spirit, troubled because He said he would only remain with them for a little while, troubled over the warning He gave Peter concerning Peter's three denials to come. The Lord knew all their hearts and now he begins to comfort them.
It is important that we remember that He was speaking not only to the eleven but to every believer after them which includes us.
When Jesus teaches them (and us) to believe also in Him, he now once more confirms His deity in an unmistakable way. We are to believe in Him exactly as we believe in the Father. Martin Luther wrote on this matter:
“Here thou seest plainly that Christ Himself testifies that He is equal with God Almighty; because we must believe in Him even as we believe in God. If He were not true God with the Father, this faith would be false and idolatrous”.
Now Jesus teaches that in the Father's house are many mansions. The Father's house is His dwelling place. Jesus is the only one who ever referred to the Father's house. He mentions it in John 2:16 when clearing the Temple. He refers to it in terms of the parable of the prodigal son, and now He mentions it as the final abobe of the saints.
He teaches that He goes to prepare a place for them (and us). God never has and never will take His people to a place un-prepared. In Eden He planted a garden for his own. He prepared Canaan to receive His own into cities they never built, and wells they never dug. Now He goes to prepare the final place for all who believe.
He also goes a step further in teaching that he will not only go to make our preparations but that He will return for us Himself to receive us there. Paul confirmed this fact in 1st Thess. 4 when he wrote that the Lord Himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout. For comfort He teaches that He Himself is the way, and the truth, and the life. He is the way by spanning the distance between God and man. He is the truth as the final revelation of God to man. None other will come as none other is needed. He is the life as the one who frees us from death itself.
And of course, verse 6 teaches that no man cometh unto the Father except by Jesus. The favor of God's grace is not available through anything we might do on our own. “neither is there salvation in any other...” (Acts 4:12).
In the next nine verses (12-20), we see the cause of Christ is made stronger by His return to the Father. We see that we are to pray in his name. Our love for Him is shown by our obedience, and we are not left as orphans as the Comforter will come.
It was only by the coming of the Holy Spirit that the apostle's faith in Christ was finalized, that the power to do the mighty works was given, and that their love was purified and deepened. Through the arrival of the Comforter, as Jesus foretold, would these apostles regain their composure and stand against the Jews and Rome to preach the Gospel. Jesus teaches in verse 12 that greater works would be done by these eleven. They would:
preach of a risen Savior
proclaim the gospel to every creature
turn souls from darkess to light
remove souls from the service of Satan to the service of God
cause heathen people to demolish their own pagan temples and worship God
build the temple of living stones of which Jesus was the foundation & corner
shake the entire world with the power of the Word.
These are among the greater works Jesus taught.
It is obedience to the commandments of Christ that they and we show our love for Him. Notice that the Comforter was to not only come but was to abide with us forever. Until now, Christ had been the Comforter but upon His leaving, He assures we would not be left alone for another Comforter would come at His request. Here once more we see Him loving them until the end.
This new person known as the Comforter was described by Jesus in a Greek word that is a contraction of two words meaning both “along side of” and “strong”. A comforter stands along side of each of us and provides us strength. Jesus also noted that the Holy Spirit would minister from within just as Christ had ministered from without.
It is good to note the many ways Jesus had laid the plan already to assure comfort to the eleven and to all who would later believe:
He assured them He was going to the father's house.
He would prepare the place there for all believers to come.
When preparations were completed, He will return Himself to receive them.
He would open the way for them and give them the power to journey there.
He would give power to perform their works to come.
Asking all things in his name assured their success.
A divine person will arrive to lead, guide, and strengthen them.
He will not leave them orphans, but will return to take them (and us) home.
Life eternal will be shared by the Father, the Spirit, the Son, and the sons.
He will manifest Himself to those who keep His commandments.
Those who keep them will be loved by the Father.
The Holy Spirit will bring them remembrance of all things Christ taught.
Peace is left to them, His peace.
NO WONDER HE TOLD THEM THAT THEIR HEARTS SHOULD
NOT BE TROUBLED.
Verse 30 brings the moment into reality that God spoke in the garden. Now was the time when the serpent (Satan) would bruise His heel. Here begins the true and total victory over sin, death, hell, and the grave. Satan had found weakness in all of the patriarchs & fathers who had come before. Noah, Abraham, David, Peter, and all others failed along their walk of faith. Christ was truly the lamb without spot or blemish. Now Jesus ends this discourse of love and comfort with strength and purpose to complete the work given Him. His last words are “... Arise, and let us go”.
