Gospel of John, 14:16-22
John 14:16-22 · Courtney Hemenway · Aug 3, 2008
Gospel of John (2008), No. 31
Holly Hills Bible Church
https://www.hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/492618293886

Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word.

We are continuing on in Lesson 26, which is, let me go back up to the top here, John, the Gospel of John, Chapter 14, verses 16 through 22. Hopefully you have a copy of 26, because I ran out and our copier is down. If you don't have one, share. Look at somebody next to you if they have one. So again, we've got John 14, 16 through 22. Maybe I sensed a short passage. I'll just go through that again real quick. I'll read it. 14, 16 through 22.

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever. That is, the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him. But you know Him, because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. After a little while, the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live. You will live also.

In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. He who has my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me, and he who loves me will be loved by my Father. And I will love him and will disclose myself to him. Judas, not Iscariot, said to him, Lord, what then has happened that you are going to disclose yourself to us and not to the world? Alright, I think we got through question three. Is that right? Last week? Anybody? I think we're in question number four. Is that right? Yes? No? Five? I got all the way down to five. Well, you got ahead of me. I'll just briefly touch on 4 then. Why wouldn't the world be able to receive the Holy Spirit? From verse 17, that is, the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

So why wouldn't the world be able to receive the Holy Spirit? The world rejected Jesus Christ. Right, he was a visible manifestation and they rejected him. So would they receive the Holy Spirit who is invisible? No. So, I think in Darby, I think I read this, He, the Holy Spirit, was not to be sent into the world. The world cannot receive Him.

Christ had been presented to the world and the world would not have Him. But the Spirit is not for the world. The way that He is known shows that the world cannot know Him. He abides with you and shall be in you." The first Comforter, Christ, was neither able to abide nor be in. Again, the thing is, how is the Holy Spirit presented to the world? Visible? Invisible? Invisible. You can't see Him. The other is, from His coming into the world, Christ was rejected, so even if the Spirit is visible, would they accept Him?

No. The world. This is not for the world. This is for individuals. Again, the world is kind of cut out here now. We had Christ who was visible, fully God, fully man, visible and presented to the world, but now, after that, He's saying the Holy Spirit is not going to be given to the world. it's going to be given to individuals. So it's a whole different thing.

I also want to go back to George. I'll talk to George afterwards. He made a good point, which I forgot. In verse 16, I'll ask the Father and He'll give you another helper that He may be with you forever. He brought out a good point that I forgot and I had it but I didn't bring it up here.

That another in the Greek, I don't know if you know in the Greek, there's another, two different kinds of another. There's one of the same kind and one of a different kind. What do you think this one is? Same kind and quality. So the Holy Spirit is another, but it's of the same kind and quality as Christ. So it's not like something different. You're getting Christ, same kind and quality, but in the Holy Spirit.

So that was a good point George brought up last week that I forgot to bring out. Okay, question five. What relationship with the Holy Spirit is promised here that they didn't presently have with Jesus? If you look in verse 17, that is, the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. What is the new relationship?

Indwelling. Could Christ indwell? the disciples? No. He couldn't do that. So he's now, this is a key factor. Up until then, the Holy Spirit would abide with a person. But now this is a new promise. This is an indwelling. The Holy Spirit would in fact be in a believer.

So this is a completely different relationship. So a lot of changes are going on here. Remember what he just told you, I'm leaving you? but I'm not going to leave you alone. We'll get into some of these things on the orphan and those. So he's prepping them for all that is coming.

And I love this section in here because there's so much for us and peace and comfort and things through the Holy Spirit that we wouldn't have even if Christ was here. And I'll say it's even better that he goes away because of what we have now. Christ could not indwell them. But we now have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. That's so much better with the indwelling. And again, the permanency of that forever. We'll see a bunch of those different things in the relationship that Christ did not have.

So even though these guys are troubled, remember the passage we just went through. He just said, I'm leaving you. I'm going away. I'm going to prepare mansions for you and all this, but I'm going away. These guys are going, what? You're leaving? And so they're pretty much kind of jumbled up, tumbled up, and wondering what's going on. So he now goes into the comforter, the helper. And it's going to be even better, because he's going to abide in you. So there's a lot in here that is meant for them for comfort, after he's just told them he's going to leave them. Again from Darby, again from the abiding in.

But it is to me evidently the point, the difference of the first Comforter, that is Christ, that he could not stay with them and the second could. Christ was not in them either, but with them. The second should dwell in them and abide, what? Forever. So abide is the same word as dwell. not be merely with them.

So it's a big change here. Lots going on from abiding with them to being in them. In the power of the Spirit of God, they should do greater works and a glorified Christ should be the source of them. So this is a big shift. They were comforted by being with him, but now he's saying it's even better. You're going to have the Holy Spirit and it's going to be in you and abide what?

Temporarily? For a little bit? Only when you need them, forever, forever abide with you. So he's giving them here something that I think is, one, I don't think they have any comprehension about that, which we'll get to some verses in the next lesson about he'll bring to remembrance all these things. And there's a reason why. They don't make sense now, but they will later. Because I think they're kind of going in me and abide.

Can you imagine what? I think they've been so confused by a lot of this stuff and just blown over by him. Now he's saying the Holy Spirit will be in you forever. I think their heads are exploding right now. I don't think they even really quite understand. They knew the Holy Spirit came upon people in the Old Testament, but it would leave. The Holy Spirit would leave. It wasn't a permanent dwelling. And now he's saying forever and in you. So they went through a whole bunch.

Again, in Ephesians 1, Again, the promise of the Holy Spirit. In Him you, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having also believed you were what? Sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. Where were you sealed? In Him. Okay, again, the in Him, in Christ.

Another, the Comforter, the one and the same, I mean, is kind in quality. We are sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory. So again, in these two verses, 16 and 17, we have a huge amount of information about the Holy Spirit. And this is, again, He told them He was going away, now He's telling them a lot of very comforting things about the Holy Spirit. Any question about that? I'll summarize kind of things in 16 and 17. Any thoughts in him? Understand that forever. All those concepts.

It's easier for us, I think, to understand that, because we have the whole scripture. These guys, I think, I put myself in their place, and their whole world is being turned upside down. Remember, Jesus has basically stopped his ministry to the world. Now it's to the disciples. And so they're getting all this revelation to them. Okay?

Before we go on to verse 18, I want to summarize, you know, the 16 and 17, all that's contained in there. First of all, in verse 16, he is an answer to Jesus' prayer to the Father. Remember, he said, I'll ask the Father and the Comforter will come. So this is a direct answer from the Father to Jesus' prayer. He is another comforter. Again, the another being same kind and quality as Christ. That's in verse 16. In verse 16, He dwells permanently in the believer. This is again a whole new concept.

Permanently. And again, that's for us too. It's permanent. It's not a, you know, I think we say, you know, go to the filling station and fill up and, you know, we get a little bit today and we're run out and we're, you know. We have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit forever.

The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Truth in verse 17. And verse 17 is unknown to the world. Again, does the world know him? Was the Holy Spirit given to the world? No. It is given to believers. And again, in verse 17, he will dwell in the believer, not abide with him. Well, actually it's two. It says he'll abide and be in. So it's two things. It's abiding with, kind of coming beside and being with, but it's inside. So it's abiding but inside. It's an indwelling. So, that make sense?

Okay, in question 6, in verse 18, Jesus said he's not going to rejoin them down here, but they are going alone to join him. Is that what it's saying? In verse 18, I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. Are they going to join him alone? Verse 18.

Stunned silence. Is somebody coming for them? Yes. Yeah, we're not going alone. Who's coming for us? Jesus. I come to you. I will come to you. So we're not going to be wandering around. He's going to come to us. He will come to us. He's not sending others to get them, but he's coming himself to get them. And He's not going to move us around here on Earth. Where is He going to take us?

Heaven. Because where is He abiding right now? He's abiding in Heaven. Yeah, He's at the right hand. So if He's coming for us, and remember all these, I'd prepare a place for you and all these things. we're going to be where he's at. So he's coming for us and he's going to take us into heaven. Is that talking about the second coming?

That was going to be one of my questions. Because Merrill Tenney has three different things for what this means. So I was going to bring that up. Well, one thing I'll go into. The word, the Greek word for come, is in the present tense, middle voice, and indicative mood. So what does present tense mean? Continuously coming.

Okay, the middle voice is kind of interesting. What is the middle voice? Yeah, well that's for active. Yeah, both parties basically kind of participate in this. The middle voice, the active, is where the subject produces it. But the middle voice is kind of that both involved, the subject and. So he'll come personally to meet us. So both of us, he's coming, and we're going, and we're going together. So the middle voice. And what is the indicative, which I like? I always love the indicative. Fact. Reality. No doubt. No doubt he's coming. Fact. So there's certainty with that.

All right, now, Marilyn, getting back to your question, what does this mean? Is this coming at the second coming? Is it after his resurrection he appeared? What do you think that is when he says, I will come? Or it could be, Tenny has a third one. He has the promise of his appearance after the resurrection. Second, it may refer to the coming of Jesus in the person of the Holy Spirit. Again, one kind. And it may be prophetic of his second coming. What do you think? I will come. Second coming. Second coming? I think now he's coming. At Pentecost he comes and he takes them then.

At Pentecost? Yeah. So this is after the Resurrection? After the Resurrection. At Pentecost. That one's a different one. That's a middle one. So that's at Pentecost. Or when they become believers or members of the body of Christ. Whatever that is. At Pentecost is when the disciples come into Christ and come into the body of Christ.

So that's more kind of a second one referring to the Holy Spirit kind of? Yeah. see what he's saying there. And when you were talking earlier, I had the thought about he's sending this other comforter to them and that will indwell them. And I've kind of been under that impression.

The Holy Spirit comes and dwells within us when we're put our trust in the work of Christ. And he's able to indwell us because we have been sanctified. And he's talking to the disciples here and I come up with a question, were these guys sanctified or weren't they? You get to be a lawyer here.

What time and what did you know and when? The classic statements now. Any other thoughts? Stunned disbelief again. After the resurrection he comes back to them and shows him his wounds and maybe come back and they can still see him then, after he leaves the world, how no other people won't be able to see him, but the disciples will still be able to see him. Yeah, well there were lots who saw him after, you know, after the resurrection, before he ascended. So you're kind of in that camp after. So that's what Tenny liked, because he said there's confusion on the scriptures and stuff.

I'm kind of leaning to the two other ones. He said the last, or the one that he thought was probably the least possible, was the Second Coming. And I'm kind of either one. I'm either when the Holy Spirit came, but almost leaning more to the Second Coming to some degree, because of, when I put it in context, that's why I say, you know, You know, take this one little phrase out and we zip it out.

Well, put it in context of all what he was talking about. What did he tell him he was going to do? Where is he going and what was he doing? Going back to his father and what? Preparing a place for us? Doing all this? He's just told him all those different things about heaven and all those different things. And then he says, I will come for you. See, and to me, that fits more with, I've prepared it, and I'm going to come, I'm going to bring you to those mansions.

So... What is the orphans? I mean, orphans... I mean, if he comes back after he... but then he leaves again. So it seems like he says, I'm not going to leave you as orphans. That seems more of a permanent thing, not a temporary. See, mine would be orphans would be more to the kind of Caitlin's that orphans, we're not going to leave you alone. I'm going to show you.

I'm going to, that would be one that would lead me more to kind of the present after he, after his resurrection. I'm not going to leave you. Well, yeah, which, which again, the permanency and all that. And that's why I lean more to the second coming because of what he told him before.

I go and prepare a place for you. I'm going to do all this. I'm not going to leave you alone. I'm going to give you the comforter. And then, to me, it's, I will come for you. And the orphans means, yeah, I'm not going to leave you alone. I'm going to give you the Holy Spirit, you know, to indwell you. And so I'm not going to leave you as orphans. And to me, the orphans part says, I'm not going to leave you alone. I'm going to give you the Holy Spirit, and then I will come for you.

So that's the second coming. I mean, because you always say when people die, they go be with the Lord. But do they have to wait for Him to come? No, I think this is talking, well to me that's about the second coming, that I'm not going to leave you alone, that I'm going to come for you, the time of the second coming.

That's what I think it is. What does that mean in relation to the disciples? I mean, they're long gone. Oh yeah. No, no, I think this is talking, well, at the point of his second coming, that's where I think this is talking about. This isn't talking about believers who go to be with him. before the second coming. I don't think that's what this is talking about. But he's talking about you. I mean, that means the disciples, not Christians that are going to be alive right before the second coming.

Which would argue more with the Holy Spirit coming at Pentecost, because they would be around at Pentecost. I know you're just itching to say something. Well, without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, none of this is going to happen in any time frame. The Holy Spirit doesn't indwell believers until Pentecost. And that's when these guys get indwelled. In John 17, when the Lord is praying to the Father, He says to the Father, Father, I desire that they also whom you gave me be with me where I am that they may behold my glory which you have given me for you loved me before the foundation of the world.

So he's asking that the father would put them, I think you've got a position condition question here, that positionally they would be with him where he is and so when you get into Paul's epistles And you get to 2 Corinthians 3.18 and it talks about beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord. The glory is where He is, which is in the heavenlies.

The Spirit of God is the vehicle through which we behold the glory. We may be physically on the earth, but positionally we're in Christ in the heavenlies and with the privilege to behold His glory there. He's not coming to our environment here right now to accomplish what He's conforming us to the image of His Son. The Spirit of God is actually allowing us or enabling us to behold the glory of the Lord there now. So the conformity goes on now. And that is tantamount to being with Him where He is. We are positioned with Him right now.

See, I told you I'm kind of weaseling. I'm weaseling between with the Holy Spirit coming and of the Second Coming. The Second Coming, when I put it into context, That says, I've prepared, I'm going to come and take you. I'm not going to leave you as orphans. I gave you the Holy Spirit, but I will come for you. That, to me, puts in the Second Coming. But, the reason why I waffle towards the Holy Spirit and what we have now is because of the Greek word for come. It's in the present. It's not future. It's going on right now. And that's why I said I waffle both.

I take the context and I say, well, it's second coming, but then I take the Greek and I never want to just totally turn things around because of the Greek, but I look at it and the come was present, which means a continuous action going on now. There's another issue here that he's talked about is the orphan issue has to do with having a father. And he has made the point and will make the point that if you've seen me, you've seen the father. And so you're not going to be left outside the loop. Right. And back in John 1, he came out from the bosom of the father And my understanding is to gather us up and take us back there.

So believers, even though they function on the earth today, by faith, in the position that they enjoy, they occupy and are able to enjoy the glory of the Lord now, in the presence of the Father. Right now. So when a believer physically dies, what happens, that he's at home where he really is positionally all the time. Hal Molloy today isn't waiting for the second coming of Christ.

Right. And that's kind of answering Marilyn's question. For those believers, the minute we end our time here, we're in the presence of the Lord. Unobstructed. Unobstructed. New bodies, new creatures. We have a new body. that will match our position at that point. So, I mean, we don't have to wait.

And this is talking, you know, if it's second coming, you know, like I said, I kind of like said I'm a weasel. I'm between the two. You know, the context puts me at second coming, but the verbs and some of the other stuff says it's the Holy Spirit when the Holy Spirit comes. You know, someday the Lord will answer this. All right, we'll move on.

Question seven, where will he be coming from? Aurora, no. Salt Lake City. Yeah, Salt Lake City, I don't think. Where will he be coming from? From heaven. From heaven, yeah. So he'll be coming from heaven. He's at the Father's throne and he will take them where he is, which is far better than his remaining here. Again, this is, you know, he's comforting him because he just told him, I'm leaving. And now he says, I'm going to come for you. And where is he coming from? I'm in heaven. I'm with my father. I'm going to come and I'm going to, uh, not leave you as orphans. So again, it's, it gets into, he's trying to, I think, prep them all this time about his leaving. I mean, they've got to be shaken up. They're still trying to struggle between the Messiah, who is going to kick the Romans out and make them number one. And that's what they wanted in the Messiah. But now he's going, it's much better than the Messiah, the earthly blessings. We have all these heavenly blessings. So he's pointing to all these things. So he's walking them through, walking them through.

So now he's saying, I'm going there and I've prepared these places. Where am I in heaven? I've prepared all these mansions, the first part of John 14. And now I'm going to come from there and I'm going to take you where I am. And we'll see more of this as Revelation comes out. These next chapters, 15, 16, and my favorite, 17, the intimacy that we have, it's just a crescendo growing right now of his intimacy and his relationship that we have with him and will have with him forever. So again, he's trying to tell him it's better that he goes away than him staying. abiding in us now. He's going to go prepare all these. He's going to be with the Father. All these things are prepping him that it's OK for him to go away. OK? Yeah, Jack?

And Darby here makes that point about, you will see me again. And with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, you'll see with the heart, spiritualist. Yeah, there's a lot to be revealed. There's so much here, it's beyond belief. Yeah, I mean, when you really get into all this stuff, I mean, studying it's fun. I mean, when you get in and just all the intimacy, all the things, and again, just, I always try to put myself in the perspective of where they're at, you know, and who he's talking to at this time. It's not, you know, and scripture is one of those, it's a living, the living word. I mean, he's talking to them. but we get so much out it you know what's going on with them I put myself in what I do You know, where I'm at, where they are, and what would I do?

But these disciples, from where I read it, they didn't have the Holy Spirit in glory. Oh, not yet. No, I don't think so. Not until Pentecost. You know, so they're... They don't really see. They don't have the Spirit of Truth abiding in them yet. He's telling them it's coming. But they aren't yet. Pentecost hasn't happened. The Holy Spirit hasn't been given to the individual believer. for a permanent indwelling.

I just had the thought that, you know, Saul on the road to Damascus gets introduced to the glorious Christ, and the Lord Jesus says to him, you're persecuting me, which includes all of these guys he's talking about now, and Saul is doing it right then, and Saul sees and beholds the glory of Christ then, and subsequently spends three years with Christ in the Arabian Desert learning.

Actually, what Paul was learning was what Jesus was talking about right here. He's learning, and he was the only one that really got the whole thing together. These disciples never did, I don't think. Maybe John. Get the whole concept of what Christ was talking about right here.

Remember when John was written, versus all the other Gospels. It's after Paul. and all the epistles. But to hold it in perspective, that's why, again, what John brings out is the deity of Christ. Because I think here he's talking about the church and all the stuff that Paul brings out, and really what I think John brings out and is trying to bring out is, you know, Jesus is God's Son. He is God. And all that Paul is saying is brought the authority because Jesus was the Son of God.

And so I think that's what all this focus is on in John. You get really, time after time, what does he keep saying? If you've seen the Father, you've seen me. I'm the Son. All these things. All through his gospel, he just keeps pounding that in. And I think that's because to verify all that what Paul was saying, gives it the authority because Christ was, is the Son of God.

So we see a lot of that in there. Okay, and question eight, I think we're at, in verse 19. Is that the one we're at? Yeah. In verse 19, is what is promised here better than seeing him with their eyes? And again, verse 19, after a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Because I live, you will also live. Is it better or worse? Better. And why? Why is it going to be better?

Because he's within us always, forever. And there's a phrase in there, because I live, you will also live. What is he promising? Resurrection. Life. Life. He's promising a life that's capable of all that he's described in terms of intimacy with himself and with the Father that their human life was incapable of doing.

I think we believers today, we don't believe God about this. We sit in our old Adamic environment and we dare God to accomplish what he says he's already done. He's given us life The problem we have is that we have to believe in it. Yeah, it's come to this, right? We have to believe in it. Yeah, it's come to that. We have to trust Him.

You know, the other thing, this is one of those ones, the intimacy that we have now, and many, if you've listened to me teach and stuff, this always answered one of those little questions. I remember when we were going through Ephesians and the men's Bible study and we got into this and different things. The intimacy that we have with Christ. I always puzzle in Genesis with Adam.

He walked with him in the garden. He had all this stuff. He personally walked in the cool of the garden, had fellowship with him. Remember what he said? What did he say about Adam? Was it OK for Adam just to be with God? What did he say in the end? Why did he give us women? It was not good for him to be what? Alone. Alone. I'm walking in the garden with the Lord, with God. What do you mean I'm alone?

I never understood that until we started to figure out the intimacy that we have as new creatures in Christ. And that made a whole difference to me. Because how could Adam say it's not good to be alone when he's walking in intimate fellowship, face-to-face with God, and he was alone, and this was not good? And this was the level, the different levels, the first Adam and the creation and God. There was a disjuncture. I mean, we could communicate, but it wasn't on the same level as what we have now.

We are new creatures in Christ. Our very life is His life. We now have everything but deity. We're on a level the same. So we have Now, it's great to have life. The life that we have, we don't have to have a helper, a woman, or a partner, or anything like that, because we now have a level of intimacy that is every bit as much, and we'll get into John 17, about that intimacy that we have, that I have with you, Father, I want with them. I give them the same relationship that we have. Now it's with them.

I and you, you and I. This bond of intimacy which wasn't what Adam had. So we are, in Christ, we are so much better than what Adam had. So this life, this intimacy is much different than what Adam had. Even walking in the cool of the garden, face to face, talking and walking with the Lord isn't the same as what we have now in Christ. I think the thing that points that up is the fact that While the Lord Jesus had put himself in a body and lived on the earth for 33 years, he still, even though physically not in the same location, so to speak, as the Father, still had an intimacy with him that wasn't diminished at all by location. And so we as believers, I think we need to understand that our intimacy with the Lord Jesus and the Father isn't to be diminished by location. When we come to rule and reign with Him in the Millennial Kingdom, we're going to be spread all over the planet. And just because you and I aren't in Jerusalem will not mean that we don't have the same intimacy as someone standing right in front of us. Location doesn't matter.

The intimacy and the connection that they have. And that's why I said that John 17 I just love. Here is the opening up of the Lord intimate communication with his father. And again, what is he talking about? He's talking about us. And he wants to give all the glory, all everything to us. And the intimacy that he has with the father, he wants to give to us. So, you know, this is a... Him leaving was a good thing. Because he gave us all these things. And, you know, again, his resurrection, he's the firstborn of the new creatures that we are. His life is our very life. He's the firstborn of the new creation. So we are of the same species minus the deity of Christ.

And again, this is those things positionally versus conditionally. Positionally, we have that right now. We're not locationally there, we're walking on this earth and conditionally we're up and down and all around, but positionally we have that right now. And as far as our focus is on our position, man. Well, we'll get to that too. What do you have to fear? Doubt? A lot of things. Okay. Question nine.

In verse 20, is this referring to the body of Christ or an individual union? Verse 20. You will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you." Is this referring to the body of Christ or an individual union? Individual union identification. Individual. Again, remember, is it given to the world? No. It's given to individuals. Okay? In Darby, again, I went to a lot of Darby and Kelley and a bunch of them, and Darby had a lot of good things in this section.

What is in verse 20 that they could not have known then? In that day you shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. It was only when the Holy Spirit came that they knew that. The person of Christ was in the Father. That they knew. At any rate, it was there to be known. But also, they were in Christ and He in them. This they could only know by the Holy Spirit. So again, this is coming upon when the Holy Spirit dwells upon them. All this starts to come. The Spirit of Truth comes. They start figuring this out.

Would that not answer the question, I will come to you? I will come to you. When? in that day. Pentecost, when it's given. Again, I vacillate on this. I'm weaseling. Like I said, with all the mansions and preparations, that's second coming. So I put that in the context, but a lot of things point to also, because the last half of this whole chapter is about the Holy Spirit coming. So it bodes for that too.

Therefore, the knowledge of Christ in the Father was proclaimed by Christ. What was new was that He would be in them. Therefore, Jesus was speaking of the individual union with believers, rather than the church as a whole. This is also reflected in John 17, in verses 22 and 23.

The glory which you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as we are one, I in them, and you in me. that they may be perfected in unity so that the world may know that you sent me and love them even as you have loved me." And also in 1 Corinthians 6, is it 17? But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with him.

Okay? So again, it's an individual union, not talking about the whole body or the church. Okay, question 10. From verse 21, explain why this is not a command based upon law. John 21. He who has my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me, and he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will disclose myself to him. Okay? Sounds pretty law-ish to me. Why is it not? It's based on love. Very good answer. Any other thoughts? Jack, it's based on love. Is this a cause and effect? If you do this, you get this. No, it's grace. Grace. I might say that you can't love somebody you don't know. You might love what you think about them. But you have to know them in order to love them.

So this supposes that they are in the Father, and the Father is in them, that Christ is in them, that they know him, and that they have this life, and this life's basic ingredient is love. And so there isn't any strain or resistance in the new life in Christ in order to love.

It's like the imperatives in Paul's epistles. They are not the kind of thing that if you do them you will somehow be more spiritual than you were before. The issue is that here's the life and here's how it functions and here's some education and information about how this life works. A believer doesn't have to strain to keep the Lord's commandments to love him. He does because he has the life. Well, it's life and love.

Again, these are positional and conditional issues too. Conditionally, and walking in the Spirit, a whole bunch of different things come here. But it's not a commandment. Thou shalt and this is the result. As Mike was saying, these are more logical imperatives, they call it. And it goes to, if you are a new creature in Christ, you'll do this, just because of who you are. It's not a struggle. Did Jesus struggle to do the Father's will? No. Did He ever go, today I'm going to... I don't think I can do it today. It was breathing to Him, was to do His Father's will.

Similar here, if we are in the Spirit, walking in the Spirit, we just do it. It's not a command. It's because of who we are. and we're walking in the Spirit. This goes back to the identification truth, that we have died to the law and the old man, and we are new creatures in Christ. If we walk in the Spirit, we will do the will of the Father. It will not be under the law that we abide, but it is because that is who we are in Christ, and that we will obey and love the Lord, and love the Lord and God the Father.

It's just based out of love because of who we are. thinking of Ephesians 5, where the command to husbands is to love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. Well, a reasonable person is going to look at that and say, well, OK, if it's a command, if you understand the verse, it's impossible to do. But for God, through Paul, to say, husbands, love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it, is the normal operating procedure of the new life in Christ in a man towards his wife. That's the way he functions.

It's not a strain and it doesn't... it isn't something that you're going to stay up all night doing spiritual push-ups so that you hope it happens tomorrow. And that's what I say, it's just who we are. And I always go back to what Jesus did the Father's will, not struggling, not every day, praying, Lord, I want to do your will today.

I want to do your will today. I'm going to obey. Yeah, I'm going to obey. I'm going to do this. I have my refrigerator list of all the things you want to do today. I will take care of that. It's not that way at all. That's who he is. It was just natural for him to do that. All right, what keeps the commandments? We basically answered that, I think. What is it that keeps the commandments?

Love. The one who loves me. There are a couple of things, yes. However, it is the Holy Spirit revealing the Father to us that he first loved us, that lets us love and keep his commandments, because that is who we are in Christ. Are we required to keep his commandments for his love? No. No? Can anybody say yes? It's grace. It's grace. Yeah. And also, if you remember, I think... Do I have that here? Oh, yeah. Mike's grace circle about love. Where does it start? Where does love start? He loves me. He loves me! It's not that I loved him first. What did he do? He loved me first. So his love is not predicated on what we do. And that goes back to grace. What is grace? The unmerited. Unmerited. What does that mean? Do we have to do anything for it?

Even if you are just blah today, is God's love still the same? Absolutely. You know, that's something that gives you peace after, you know, I know I stumble, I fall, I do stupid things. And yet, God still loves me the same. And His grace is still flooding upon me. You know, there's still child training. I mean, if I do something really dumb, there's consequences and training. But His grace never changes. His grace, His love never change. It's always the same. All right, and I think we'll be able to do this. Yes, we'll be able to get through 26 and I'll hand out 27.

Why doesn't Jesus understand this? Why doesn't Judas? What did I say, Judas? Why doesn't Judas understand this? Judas, not as scared, said to him, Lord, what then has happened that you are going to disclose yourself to us and not the world? Why doesn't Judas understand that?

He can't. And why can't he? He doesn't have the Holy Spirit. He doesn't have the light to do it. Well, probably none of them understand. He's just the vocal one. He's the one that's brave enough to ask the question. Yeah, he's the guy. He's looking around going, is anybody going to ask this question? Also, what did he think about Jesus and what he was doing? Did he see anything beyond the worldly? That's basically it. They're looking at all the earthly, worldly stuff. And he couldn't see beyond that.

Messiah, we're going to go kick the Romans out of here. What do you mean? Not be disclosed only to us? What good does that do for us, getting the Romans out of here and everybody else and all the other stuff that they had put on the earthly thing? So they're looking earthly only still. so well yeah the disciples you know after you know again with the Holy Spirit what came upon you know that it things change that point everything changed that point Pentecost alright I'll hand out 27 let's close first.

Heavenly Father we thank you for today we just thank you again just for your word we thank you for just all that you are to us. Lord, you are our very life. We thank you that you haven't left us as orphans. You have given us your word. You've given us the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. which is even better than your physical presence here.

So Father, we thank you for all the truths that you reveal in your scripture. We just thank you for the grace, which is unmerited, but also unlimited blessings from you. We just thank you that it was all accomplished by the work of your Son on the cross. So Father, we just give you thanks for this time. We pray for the upcoming services, Lord, just that your Word be presented clearly. And again, prepare our hearts to receive it. Father, we just commit this day to you in Jesus' name. Amen. you