Presents
Pamphlet
1514
John
chapter 14
He was the I AM come down from heaven, born from above, to tabernacle in the flesh, to pay the price on the cross as the Lamb of God, that His sons and daughters might believe in Him and be saved.
Presents
Pamphlet
1514
John
chapter 14
He was the I AM come down from heaven, born from above, to tabernacle in the flesh, to pay the price on the cross as the Lamb of God, that His sons and daughters might believe in Him and be saved.
It is still the evening before the crucifixion. Judas has left The Last Supper with a bad attitude (which he got from the father of bad attitudes), after being handed the sop and realizing that Jesus knew he had "sold Him out". Jesus then turned His attention to glorifying God as the scriptures were being fulfilled word for word and verse by verse, exactly as they were written of Him long ago.
Then, after telling His disciples to love one another as He has loved them, He told them that He would be with them only a while longer and that He was going where they could not follow, at least for now. Well, the big old lovable fisherman, Peter, had a real hard time with this saying and said, "Why not? Why can't I follow you? I would lay down my life for you!" (Implying he wasn't afraid of anything or anyone). However, he's about to find out just how big a man he really is.
Jesus replied, "Would you lay down your life for my sake, Peter? Listen to me carefully, a cock shall not crow until you have denied Me thrice!" Peter probably shook his head in denial as if to say, "No way Lord", but he shall remember those very prophetic words right after the cock crows and he is suddenly stunned at the realization that he had in fact denied the Lord.
Jesus now seeks to "comfort" the disciples in preparation for what lies ahead, not just in that He is going to His Father's house (where they can't go right now), but that He will send the "Comforter" (vs. 16). So He turns to them, knowing what they are about to witness in the hours just ahead, and says:
"Do not worry, do not be distressed. You put your trust and belief in God, and trust and believe in Me also."John 14:1
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
We all need to remember these words during the "hour of temptation" just ahead of us, when God's elect will be delivered up, just as Jesus said they will be in Mat. 24 and Mark 13. Here are His words:
In the next verse we will also be given the "don't worry" instruction. Don't be anxious or premeditate about what you are going to say when you are delivered up, because He will send the Comforter to handle it. If you would care to see an example of exactly how He does this, then read Acts chapter 2 how that everyone, no matter what language they speak, will clearly and precisely understand exactly what is spoken. When God speaks directly to men, it doesn't matter what language (tongue) they speak, for God can speak them all simultaneously and does not require some man to interpret what He says, PERIOD!Mark 13:9
But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.
So Jesus has told His disciples not to worry, but rather trust and believe in the Father and the Son. And when He goes to His Father's house, this is what He's going to do:Mark 13:11
But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.
Most people when they read this verse picture themselves on "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" sitting in luxury in their huge mansion along side their swimming pool... oh you know!John 14:2
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.
But the word "mansions" is better translated as "abiding places" or "resting places". In fact it is translated "abode" in verse 23. So let's just say there is room for everyone in the Father's house.
And Jesus is about to go home to the Father and secure a place for you.
When will Jesus come again? Well, we will read in verses 16-18 that He will come again, even as the Comforter: John 14:18 "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." But we also know that Jesus is returning to the Mount of Olives at the 7th Trump, and not only will we gather to Him there but from then on "so shall we ever be with the Lord (I Thes. 4:17)", i.e. we will be with Him where He is, as He just said in John 14:3 "that where I AM there ye may be also.[3] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I AM, there ye may be also.
So God's elect we will be where He is throughout the entire Millennium as it is written in Ezek. 44 concerning the priests of the Zadok [elect]. It is also written concerning those who are His at His coming in Rev. 20:6 "... they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years."
How then does one get to abide with the Lord? Jesus has already told His disciples on numerous occasions, that He is the Light, the Way, the Truth, the Shepherd, etc. But He knows that they won't fully understand until after the resurrection.
Doubting Thomas has no doubt that he doesn't know where Jesus is going! So he speaks up.John 14:4
And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
[5] Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?
Note: We continue to see Jesus use the sacred name "I AM". It is the name He gave to Moses when Moses ask Him, "Who shall I say sent me?"[6]Jesus saith unto him, I AM the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
"I AM" later came Himself, to dwell in the flesh, and they called His name Jesus.Exodus 3:14
And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Now concerning the "way", if the Word of God is true and Jesus Christ is the Son of God, then there is only one way to be saved and abide forever in God's house, and that Way is through Jesus Christ. You see, He is the ONLY ONE who can prepare a place for you, for without Him you cannot enter in.
Does that mean that all the other religions of world are wrong? Well, Jesus did say that He has sheep of another fold, and we are not to judge others regarding their salvation, so let's not be arrogant or condescending toward others. But as John has documented several times, if you don't have the Son you don't have the Father either. In fact, Jesus just said precisely that in verse 6 when He said "no man cometh unto the Father, but by Him".
It is written that when the 1000 year Millennium is over, everyone (except those who take part in the 1st resurrection) will be judged at that time, by the Word of God. And as Jesus said in verse 6, He is the life, so if by that time you don't have Him, you won't have life anymore! Your life shall perish. John 3:16 means exactly what it says. It does not say that "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in the Buddah or the Mahaj or the Force, shall not perish. You must believe in the Son of God to receive eternal life. There is no other way for He is the Way.
The "flip side" of "if you don't have the Son you don't have the Father either", is that if you do have the Son then you also have the Father, for you cannot have either one without the other!
Herein lies a difficulty with the flesh mind, for this can only be understood on a spiritual level. The disciples were standing right there "seeing" Jesus also standing right there, the I AM dwelling in the flesh, which is something you and I will never see, nor does it matter.
Here is what He said to them:
If they had known Him, if they really "knew" who He was, if they understood that He was the I AM, understood that the real Jesus, the I AM, was not the flesh body standing before them which was about to be crucified, then they would have "seen" that the Father was in Him.John 14:7
If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him.
Do you see? You know you cannot see the wind with flesh eyes, but you can see its "works" when it blows. Neither can you see the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, with flesh eyes but you can see its "works" when it moves through His children. Neither can you see God the Father with flesh eyes, for He is Spirit, but the disciples could see His works that He performed through Jesus. Do you remember what Christ said back in chapter 4 of this Gospel of John?
And there is only one God. But since our eyes are flesh we cannot "see" spirit, nor totally understand how it interacts with this dimension. How then can we understand that He is able to manifest Himself anyway He so chooses. You see, that is really what His name "I AM" means. He is whatever He is, or wishes to be. He has chosen to reveal Himself to us in three offices, the Father, the Savior (Son), and the Holy Spirit or Comforter.John 4:24
God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Ok, then was Jesus God? Of course He was. He was the I AM come down from heaven, born from above, to tabernacle in the flesh, to pay the price on the cross as the Lamb of God, that His sons and daughters might believe in Him and be saved.
Let's return to John 14 where Jesus has just told His disciples that if they had known Him they would have known the Father also, and "seeing" the Son, they would also have "seen" the Father.
If you don't understand yet, don't feel too badly. The disciples are there with the best teacher who ever walked in the flesh and they are grappling with this "I and the Father are one" thing also! It is now Philip's turn to "take a stab" at this "look" "see" thing.
The flesh still wants that word "seen" in "you have seen Him" to mean visually, as in you open your eyes and you look at Jesus standing here, the Father standing there and the Holy Spirit standing over there. Nope, it doesn't work that way. You must use the "eyes to see", that see spiritually, not physically.[8] Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
Remember Jesus healed the blind man's eyes? Was that just to show that He could give physical sight to a blind man? No it was not, but it was so that we could see with our flesh eyes an example to help us understand what was happening spiritually! What was the result of the opening of his "eyes"? Did he take cruises and go "sight seeing" because he could now see? No, he was delivered before the Pharisees in the synagogue and easily "saw right through those hypocrites", which resulted in his excommunication from the church. Then Christ came to Him and asked if he believed on the Son of God. Do you remember the conversation? Here is what the once blind man said:
Just like Philip! Who is He, show Him to me! And yet the "I AM" is right there before him. You see, it takes more than flesh eyes to see the Lord. In fact, you cannot see the Lord with your flesh eyes.John 9:36
He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?
Now his spiritual eyes were fully open.[37] And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.
Don't make it such a hard thing to understand that the flesh can't see that which is spiritual? You know you can't see a thought or an idea. Actually, even words are spirit. Oh you can see them in print, but you don't have to. You can hear them which you could say means they are sound waves and therefore physical. But words have meanings and you cannot see a "meaning" under a microscope or detect it on an oscilloscope. You cannot weigh it, nor can you measure it with a ruler. You can only understand it.[38] And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.
Here is what Jesus says unto Philip who wants to see the Father with his flesh eyes:
Have you "seen" the Father? You have if you've seen Jesus?John 14:9
Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
You can "see" God in the works that He does, in the miracles that He performs, even unto this very day. You can "see" the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, when He manifests Himself in someone's life. Flesh eyes can see the works of God, though they cannot see the Spirit, the "Ruach" in Hebrew, which means the "Wind".John 14:10
Believest thou not that I AM in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
Again, the works you can see with the flesh eye. Whether or not you can see Him in them is a spiritual matter requiring your other set of eyes.[11] Believe me that I AM in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.
Not those who say they believe on Him, but those who actually do.[12] Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
There is a qualification here in that what you ask Christ to do must be so that it glorifies the Father. Asking for a new BMW doesn't qualify.John 14:13
And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
There are those evangelists who tell uneducated Christians that if they just have faith, then whatever they ask God for He will answer their prayers and give it to them. That is a lie! Read John 15:7 for the complete accurate statement.[14] If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
Does God not then take care of His own? Yes He does, but those who know and follow Him ask that nevertheless, His will be done, for it is their will too that the Father be glorified.
We just heard Jesus tell His disciples (even you and me) that greater works than He had shown them, they/we would do, because He was going to the Father in heaven, to the very throne where all power and authority in both heaven and earth reside, to be seated at His right hand. And whatsoever we need to get those "greater works" done, those works that will glorify the Father, we are to ask of Him and He will see to it! And just who would be asking Him for all that wisdom and understanding and perhaps an open door? Those who really and truly love Him, of course! And they have a special quality about them, they keep His commandments, which is all of His Word.
The word "Comforter" used here is the Greek word parakletos and means "Intercessor" or "Advocate", the same word John uses in his 1st Epistle.John 14:15
If ye love me, keep my commandments.[16] And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
He is our advocate.1 John 2:1
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
We'll find out exactly why the world cannot receive Him in a few verses hence.John 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
Jesus is about to depart the flesh and no longer be present with them (in the flesh). He is explaining that His departure doesn't mean that "He", the I AM, will no longer be with them to comfort them as He has been doing, and to give them power for the "greater works". Again, they will understand after the crucifixion and especially on Pentecost Day.[18] I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
And for us, since those events have taken place and we have read His Word, we know that we are NEVER alone! We are NEVER without an advocate. Even though Satan the adversary walks about heaven as a roaring lion, accusing the brethren "twenty four / seven"* (Rev. 12:10), do we have to worry? No Way! He told us not to! He will be there at the right hand of the Father, as our Advocate, and if we need anything He'll handle it. Besides, have you read Luke 10:19? "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, (Satan and his crew) and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." He's in charge, completely!
* 24 / 7 is a new term, meaning day and night, i.e. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The world won't see Him because all they have are flesh eyeballs. They will need spiritual sunglasses to see Him. Do you understand that although Jesus is about to be crucified, He is not going to die? Just His flesh will die, but He is Life, remember?[19] Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
"At that day" refers primarily to the 40th day when He would appear unto them but it is also the same "at that day" used of the Day of the Lord, which is His second advent.[20] At that day ye shall know that I AM in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
Jesus would perform an amazing, astonishing, miracle on Pentecost Day, without His "physical presence" that they were used to, and they would KNOW that it was Him who "manifested" Himself in those Galileans who would speak in a language that went forth whereby everyone present clearly understood what was being said in their own dialect (Acts 2:7). It is a miracle that cannot be duplicated by babbling unintelligible syllables to impress others that you are something special.
Read on.
John 14:21
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.There is more to just "believing" than saying "I believe", isn't there? You first have to know the commandments in order to keep them, and this isn't just referring to the 10 Commandments, though they are included. But Jesus Christ, the Word of God, gave many commandments throughout the scriptures, in both the Old and the New Testaments. Do you know them? For example, He gave the commandment to "Learn the Parable of the Fig Tree" in Matthew 24 and Mark 13. Have you learned it? If not, you haven't kept His commandment, have you?
Click here to read about the Fig Tree parable.
Note: The word "manifest" means
to cause to "see" or "know", i.e. to "reveal".
How well do you receive truth? The reason I asked is that we are about to learn a great truth. It begins with a question from Judas, the brother of James, concerning Jesus last comment:
This is an excellent question! It has two parts and will be answered in two verses! But first, let's read it again slowly and think about it: How is it... that Jesus Christ... can manifest [reveal] Himself... (1) to His disciples only... and (2) NOT unto the world? The answer is so simple that it is truly astounding!John 14:22
Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?
Here is the answer to part one (1):
If a you, a man (no gender implied. i.e. a human being) loves Jesus Christ, you will "Keep His Word". You will be "hungry" and not only desire to eat, but you will EAT of the true "Bread" which came down from Heaven, the Word of God (remember?). You will be thirsty and will DRINK from the "Living Water", His Word (remember?). And the Father will LOVE YOU for it and Jesus Christ will BE REVEALED unto you so that you can SEE HIM and the FATHER both! And there you have the COMFORTER![23] Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
Keep His Word and the Father will love you. That really is comforting to know.
Now here is the answer to the second (2) part of the question concerning the world:
Now understand the depth of this saying. Jesus didn't make it up! The Father WANTS US TO KNOW, and so Jesus just told us! If you DO NOT study the Word of God, then how can you keep it? You cannot! If you do not study the Word of God, then sorry, you DO NOT love Jesus Christ! Those are the Father's words. If you disagree or you are offended, take it up with Him! He's the one who told Jesus to tell us![24] He that loveth me notkeepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.
He wanted His disciples to hear these things directly from Him while He was still present with them.[25] These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.
We just covered in verses 22 and 23 that those who love Him keep His Word, all of it. Then in order for the Holy Spirit to teach you all things, you MUST show up for class!... unless you think He will teach you while you watch TV or sit around on the dock of the bay? Please don't let some foolish preacher tell you that you don't have to study to show yourself approved by God. We just read in verse 21 that the Messiah said the Father LOVES YOU when you keep His Word. But if you must listen to a preacher then listen to preacher Paul, a wise and knowledgeable teacher personally approved by Jesus.John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
Who you gonna believe, a preacher who says you don't have to know the Book of Revelation, or the Word of God?2 Tim. 2:15
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Jesus now continues to comfort His disciples. (If they had any idea of what He was about to go through perhaps they would be trying to comfort Him.)
There is only one Prince of Peace who can give you rest and peace of mind. In fact, there is only one Prince of Peace who can bring about lasting "world peace", though the "peacemakers" attempt this even now.John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Jesus Christ gives us an inner peace, a peace within our souls, and a happiness that cannot be obtained in the world, apart from Him. For there is nothing "under the sun" that can satisfy the soul. The entire Book of Ecclesiastes, written by King Solomon, a man to whom God gave more wisdom than any other man who ever lived (other than Jesus of course), fully documents this.
John 14:28
Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.
And how their belief and faith will be boosted on the next Day of Pentecost.[29] And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.
Time's up! The sand in the final hour glass is about to run out. Satan is on his way to bruise the heel of the Messiah (Gen. 3:15). And yet, as Jesus just said, Satan has absolutely NO POWER over Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whatsoever! Remember Satan couldn't even "budge" Him during the 40 day temptation in the wilderness, and no one could "take Him" until it was His hour. However, as the next verse shows, Jesus will nevertheless proceed with the plan of God, as it was written, that He should be the Passover Lamb, crucified as the atonement for all who would believe in Him. And we thank our Father from the bottom of our hearts that Jesus did go through with it, else we would have no WAY back home to the Father's place where He is about to go and make preparations for us.John 14:30
Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.
Can you believe this scripture? If you have ever stopped to pause and meditate on a profound scripture, now is the time. You see, though His disciples were somewhat clueless at this point, Jesus knew exactly what was about to happen to Him; the trial, the abuse, the brutal bloody scourging that few men ever survived, the inhumane nailing to the cross, etc. And yet all He could think of was His disciples, even you and me, and He stood there and taught THEM and comforted THEM, and told THEM not to be afraid, or worry, and to love one another as He has loved them. And He tried to tell them that though He was going away He would be back and would never, ever leave them, and they and you and me would never be alone without an Advocate and a Comforter for He would abide with us forever! They would soon understand after the crucifixion.John 14:31
But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.
And so it was written, and so it was done, because He loves us so much!
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