Category: Gospel

Arresting Jesus

John knew Peter well, they’d been around the entire time of Jesus’ teaching of the twelve, and perhaps they’d known one another for years before Jesus came on the scene, both families lived by fishing on Galilee, they were both called by Jesus to follow.

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Cruising the gospel – John 18:1-40

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Arresting Jesus

A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

18:1-14 – Jesus and his disciples left the upper room and walked out of the city, presumably by a southern gate. They crossed the Kidron Valley and entered the garden of Gethsemene (from ‘gath’ meaning a press, and ‘Shemanim’ meaning oils). It was a place where olive trees grew and where the harvested olives were pressed to release the oil. ‘Garden’ does not imply decorative plants and flowers as we would think of a garden today. It was just the term for an enclosed agricultural space, a ‘garth’ or ‘gard’ with a wall around it to ‘guard’ it. Jesus and his followers often met here, and Judas was well aware of that fact.

Judas arrived outside the enclosure, followed by a group of soldiers (presumably Romans) as well as a group of Pharisees and some staff of the High Priest. Jesus left the walled enclosure and asked them who they were looking for, and they answered ‘Jesus of Nazareth’.

Jesus told them, ‘I am he’. And they stepped back and fell to the ground. ‘I am’ in Hebrew and in Aramaic sounds rather like ‘Yahweh’, the Holy Name that nobody was allowed to utter. This would have profoundly shocked the Pharisees and the High Priest’s staff. He asked them again, ‘Who are you looking for?’ Again they answered, ‘Jesus of Nazareth’. And he told them again, ‘I am he, so let these others leave’. Peter had a sword and struck out at Malthus, the High Priest’s servant, cutting off his ear lobe. Jesus told Peter to put the sword away. The Roman soldiers under their commander, and the Jewish officials accompanying them, arrested Jesus and tied his arms, probably behind his back, then took him to Annas, once High Priest, father-in-law of Caiaphas, the current High Priest. Annas asked questions about Jesus’ followers and about doctrinal matters and then sent him on to Caiaphas.

Peter’s denials

18:15-26 – Peter and one other disciple followed Jesus and the group who’d arrested him (bravely under the circumstances). There’s been some debate about the ‘other’ disciple. It might have been John, or Nicodemus, or Joseph of Arimathea, or possibly even the traitor, Judas. (Read some aspects of the debate for yourself.)

This other disciple made it possible for Peter to enter the home of Annas where there were some questions being asked of Jesus. So which of those characters mentioned above would most want Peter to hear that questioning and Jesus’ answers? Think about that for a moment. John knew Peter well, they’d been around the entire time of Jesus’ teaching of the twelve, and perhaps they’d known one another for years before Jesus came on the scene, both families lived by fishing on Galilee, they were both called by Jesus to follow. Peter was a man of action, he’d proved it once again by using his sword that very evening!

Annas questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching (verse 19). Jesus often taught to crowds (you can’t get more public than that) and replied that he always taught in public in synagogues, or even the Temple courts. He didn’t teach in secret. Annas could learn about Jesus’ teaching from any of his many listeners. That remark drew an abusive slap in the face from one of the Jewish officials. Peter and the other disciple heard and saw all this. At this point Annas sent Jesus, still tied up, to Caiaphas.

And Peter denied being one of Jesus’ disciples for the second and third times. How did all this affect Peter? I’d suggest seeing and hearing the interrogation and the angry slap and recognising his own failure in denying he was a disciple all helped to stir Peter up and ready him for action. Frustration, helplessness, anger and guilt are a heady mix for anyone with a habit of activity. And I submit that John, knowing Peter as he did, would have expected that. I think John also understood that a time for action was coming very soon.

With Caiaphas

Although John doesn’t record the interaction between Jesus and Caiaphas, we can fill the gap a little from other sources, read Matthew 26 for example.

After the resurrection of Lazarus, Caiaphas had told the Sanhedrin that it would be better for one man to die for the people, than that the whole nation should perish. He was worried that the Romans would lose patience and intervene militarily.

And during Jesus trial before the Sanhedrin, Caiaphas directly questioned Jesus, demanding a clear answer on his identity: ‘I demand you tell us whether you are the Christ, the Son of God’. Jesus did not give a direct answer, but what he said was regarded as blasphemy and the Sanhedrin condemned him.

The Roman governor, Marcus Pontius Pilatus

Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin wanted the death penalty for Jesus, but only the Roman governor could provide such a sentence, so Caiaphas sent him on for a third hearing.

Pilate was not interested in religion, only in politics, so his first question was about Jesus’ kingship. Jesus explained that he hadn’t come to rule, but to testify to the truth. Pilate’s concern was not truth, either, but still only politics, so he went back outside to the waiting Jewish delegation and told them he didn’t find Jesus guilty of anything. But the custom is that at Passover time I release someone from captivity for you. I can release Jesus for you if you wish. ‘No’, they shouted back, ‘Not Jesus, release the agitator and rebel, Bar Abbas. This Aramaic name means, quite literally, ‘Son of the father’. This is striking indeed as Jesus is the true ‘Son of the Father’. Jesus was known in Galilee as ‘Yeshua bar Yoseph’, Jesus son of Joseph, but he was truly ‘Yeshua bar Abba’, Jesus son of the Father. The Jewish leaders were choosing the wrong man, but also the Wrong Father!

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John 14:22-31 – Not to the world?

Praying for the glory

If Jesus is in John and is glorified, John shares in that glory too! Even if John doesn’t fully grasp what exactly the glory is, he certainly grasps that through Jesus that glory is already in him.

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Cruising the gospel – John 17:24-26

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Sharing what he wants

A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

17:24-26 – If these verses do not astound you, you need to pay closer attention to what Jesus is saying. Let’s break the material down to consider it carefully. The first thing to note is that Jesus is not conversing with his followers here, he’s speaking with his Father. He’s not asking for strength during his coming ordeal on the cross, instead he’s just telling his heavenly Dad what he wants. And the first thing that comes to mind is that he wants his followers to be with him where he is and to see his glory. Well, they are with him, he’s in the upper room in Jerusalem and so are they.

Seeing the glory

But do they see his glory? No, I don’t think they do – not yet, not fully. Peter, James and John had been with Jesus on the mountain and had seen and heard what happened there. But they didn’t understand what was really going on. Peter, always the practical doer, was going to build three shelters. James might have had more intuition about it, but I imagine John would have got closer than the other two. John was the disciple ‘Jesus loved’, he viewed things from a more spiritual dimension, it was his nature to dwell on spiritual truth and look for hidden depths of meaning.

I think John is already aware that Jesus thinks of himself as Yahweh’s Son, he’s referred to himself as the Son, and he often talks about ‘My Father’. And I suspect John understood that was an eternal relationship. Jesus spells it out again here in the Garden as he prays to his Father. The Father loved him before the world was created and loves him still. And I imagine for John it was not too great a leap to see that this love is eternal and will remain even after the end of time itself. And in verse 26 Jesus says to his Father that he has made his followers aware that the Father has sent him (Jesus), that he’ll continue to show them that so the Father’s love will be in them and so that Jesus himself will be in them too.

Does this take us back to Jesus in glory on the mountain? Yes, I think it does! And John must have understood that if Jesus is in him, that he too must have been gloriously transformed on the mountain, so that he, John, can also talk freely with Moses concerning law and with Elijah concerning prophecy. If Jesus is in John and is glorified, John shares in that glory too! Even if John doesn’t fully grasp what exactly the glory is, he certainly grasps that through Jesus that glory is already in him and raises him to the giddy heights of the law and the prophetic.

And this is where we all stand if Christ is in us. We just need to see, as John did, that the glory arrives when Jesus does, that we share in him and in his glory permanently. So when my body dies (as it must) I continue to live gloriously because Jesus is in me. I’m sure Peter and James came to understand this too, certainly at Pentecost if not before. That was the moment when Jesus’ glory was fully revealed to the entire church, not just in theory but in full experience.

This was a moment they had been told to wait for, but when it came it was far beyond what they had imagined or expected.

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Living in the presence
A glorious sunset
The city on the hill

Praying for the future

Within the threeness that we refer to as ‘The Trinity’ and sometimes think we understand, there is also a oneness, a complete unity.

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Cruising the gospel – John 17:20-23

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Praying beyond and wider

A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

17:20-23 – These next three verses are amongst the most significant things Jesus ever said. These words are the mission statement for the church. Sometimes it seems to me they’re more of a ‘missing statement’ for us than a ‘mission statement’ because we overlook the implications. There’s great depth here if we will only pay close enough attention, so let’s step through these words in detail.

17:20 – Jesus is very clear that he is not praying only for the twelve followers who were with him as he spoke with his Father. No. He explicitly says, ‘I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message’. Who is that? It’s me. It’s you. You and I believed through the message brought to us in the Bible, written partly by people Jesus knew personally, taught, journeyed with, ate with, people he demonstrated his love to, some of them would soon see him die and later see him again alive. After praying for them he prays also for us!

Oneness every which way!

17:21 – He wants you and me to be one, just as he and the Father are one. There is nothing that you and I might differ over that can stand between us as two of his people. Not doctrine, not denomination, not wealth or poverty, wisdom or foolishness, not gifts or apparent lack of them, not skin colour or attitudes to this or that in church life or beyond it. The goal is not to be right, the goal is to recognise that our reconciliation was very, very costly. Loss of life and separation of Father and Son is what it took to bring peace and oneness to and between you and me. And we, in our shiny new oneness are to be part of the eternal oneness of the Father and the Son. Why? So that the world has a chance to believe that the Father sent the Son. It’s plain in verse 21. Yet there’s still more!

17:22 – Just read verse 22 again. The Father clothed his Son with glory and he passed it on to you and me! What? Why would he do that? So that you and I can be one just as the Father and the Son are one.

17:23 – And in this verse we see that Jesus is in us, and the Father is in Jesus Why is that necessary? It’s because within the threeness that we refer to as ‘The Trinity’ and sometimes think we understand, there is also a oneness, a complete unity. The Father, the Son and the Spirit are not just close friends in some unique way, or close relatives. The Holy Spirit is often described as ‘The Spirit of Christ’, and Jesus said, ‘If you’ve seen me you’ve seen the Father’. So when John tells us that without Jesus, we can do nothing (John 15:5), that implies quite undeniably that without the Spirit we can do nothing and without the Father we can do nothing. The astonishing thing that we rarely notice is that all of us who follow Jesus are now part of the Trinity. If you can’t quite swallow that idea, let me state it slightly differently. In John 15:5 just mentioned, Jesus says we need to remain in him and he in us. Well, Jesus is undeniably in the Trinity, and we are in Jesus – therefore… You fill in the dots.

The need to believe

We’d better start understanding and believing this, because if we don’t we can do – nothing. How amazing is this undeserved gift that we are now one with the Most High, one with Jesus, one with Yahweh, with the Spirit. We can make further supporting arguments for this claim.

  • We are a ‘royal priesthood’ (1 Peter 2:9), royalty is about authority and rule, priesthood is about bridging the gap between earth and heaven, enabling people to come into the Holy Presence. Jesus is King of Kings and he’s also the Great High Priest. We are in him. We do what we see Jesus do (we’re his disciples, or apprentices), just as he did what he saw the Father do.
  • We are ‘filled with the Spirit’ (see this search). Filled (in a different context) doesn’t mean half or three quarters, it means completely full and running over (Luke 6:38). Jesus is our head and we are his body, we are in him and he is in us. We were created a little lower than the angels; but I’d submit that in Christ, we are considerably higher than the angels!

But we should be very careful not to become proud or puffed up. We do not deserve to be one with the Most High, it’s a gift obtained at great cost, our humble gratitude is appropriate and required. And notice too, in verse 23, that the Father loves you just the same way he loved the Son before the foundation of the world. You are loved with the same love Jesus received before the beginning. And Paul wrote to the Galatians that love is greater than faith and it’s greater than hope. It is the greatest thing of all (1 Cor 13:13). This new life we received in Christ enables us to be and do all the things he will lead us into.

Some readers may feel I’ve gone too far in this post. If so, please leave a comment. I can’t guarantee to change my opinion, but I will certainly read all the comments and respond to them.

Next time, we’ll take a look at the final three verses of John 17.

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John 15:9-17 – Love and fruit
‘Greatest thing’ republished – INDEX

Speaking in Jesus’ place

We do not get to choose which parts of his work we are to do. We are to do all of it! We absolutely need one another in this task, when we stand alone we are weak, but together we are strong.

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Cruising the gospel – John 16:25-33

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They will ask the Father
A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

Now we come to something extraordinary, and it’s something we need to take on board very personally. Every single follower of Jesus must grasp this for themselves. Don’t miss it! Seize it, hold this truth in your own understanding, feel it to be the deep truth that it actually is.

16:25-26 – So far, Jesus’ language has been figurative as he helps his followers grapple with things that are, frankly, too hard for them to comprehend. Now he says that a time is coming when he’ll communicate plainly with them, there’ll be no need to use figures of speech any more. Surely that time is the period after they receive the fullness of the Spirit of Christ? It will happen in the upper room at the soon-to-arrive Pentecost. From then on, Jesus says ‘they will ask in my name‘.

We (and they) are to stand in Jesus’ place and ask the Father as if we (they) are the Son! How many times must he tell us – we are his body walking this Earth! Collectively, we are intended and expected to carry on his work. We do not get to choose which parts of his work we are to do. We are to do all of it! We absolutely need one another in this task, when we stand alone we are weak, but together we are strong. Jointly and in concert we are Jesus’ body, walking this Earth.

So we no longer say, ‘Jesus, please ask the Father to do this and that’. Now we must say, ‘Father, we’re here in Jesus’ name asking you to do this and that.’ We must not feel how weak and small we are – and we are weak and small individually. Instead together, as the church, because we are Christ’s body, we have his strength and greatness!

Me – weak and small. Us – strong and great.

16:27-28 – Do we have the Father’s love? We do! Why? Because we love Jesus and know who sent him! Jesus explains that there’s a symmetry here. He came from the Father into the world. Now he will leave the world and go back to the Father. His physical presence in the world was a temporary exception.

Clarity and faith

16:29-30 – And Jesus’ followers get it. They tell him that he’s speaking clearly now, that they can see he knows everything, and that he doesn’t need anyone to ask him questions. Does that seem a little odd to you? It seemed odd to me at first.

Perhaps it’s simply that this was a method other Jewish Rabbis habitually used, encouraging their followers to ask questions to find out where they lacked knowledge and to then guide the teaching to address those gaps. Instead, Jesus already seems to know where the gaps are and he is well able to address gaps in their understanding without waiting to hear their questions.

Might it be this uncanny ability of Jesus that persuades them he really has been sent by the Most High?

What will they do next?

16:31-33 – Now Jesus asks them a question. You just told me you believe I came from the Almighty, but do you really believe? Truly? And he tells them they’ll all run away, back home, leaving him alone. These followers, the disciples learning to be like their Master, his trainees, his apprentices – they’re going to run off and leave him? Remember that they’d been treading the highways and byways of Judea and Samaria and Galilee, and even the ten Greek cities (The Decapolis) for three long, dusty, weary, yet exciting years. Are they going to abandon him now?

Jesus tells them they will, but he also says he won’t actually be alone because the Father will be with him. And he explains that he has shared all this with them so that in him they can have peaceful hearts. He’s told them what will happen, and he is not fazed by it, and neither should they be! They might feel they’ve let him down in his time of great need, he anticipates this and wants to let them know in advance that it’s OK. They shouldn’t be disheartened.

The world will throw more than enough trouble at them, but he wants their hearts to remain peaceful because he, Jesus, has already overcome the world.

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John 16:16-24 – Sadness and joy

Questions and enigmas make us think harder, and discuss the possibilities amongst ourselves, while the observing teacher gets a clear sense of whether the students are understanding the important principles.

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Not seeing, then seeing
A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

What Jesus says next is a complete riddle for his followers. ‘Soon you won’t see me, but soon after that you will see me.’ They discussed this amongst themselves, over and over it seems; but they didn’t ask the Master to explain what he meant. Perhaps they were embarrassed because they couldn’t work it out. In verse 10, Jesus had mentioned he would be ‘going to the Father’ and they were puzzled about that as well. And what did ‘soon’ imply?

Jesus understood perfectly what was going on in their minds and that they’d like to ask him about it, but were not going to. And this is typical of him in his dealings with all his followers, not just then, but now as well. He asks questions and he makes enigmatic remarks. The reactions of his followers inform him more than a straightforward conversation would and, more to the point, they help his followers learn.

How we learn

Any teacher knows how to use this method whether the subject is art, maths, science, history – whatever. Questions and enigmas make us think harder, and discuss the possibilities amongst ourselves, while the observing teacher gets a clear sense of whether the students are understanding the important principles. It’s likely this was a method used by any Jewish rabbi. Ask a tricky question, then let the learners wrestle with it and observe their level of understanding.

So remember, when Jesus gives you a question or a problem to resolve, it’s most likely just a way of helping you go deeper or further. And if necessary, don’t be afraid to ask him! He knows your difficulties but he wants you to make the effort and, if necessary, he will help you out. Even if he needs to explain, the fact that you wrestled with it first will help his explanation stick.

So what did he mean?

First he lets them know that he understands their struggles and need to ask, and then he adds a little more information – that they will cry in deep sadness while the world rejoices. And here comes another standard teaching idea, use an illustration, something quite different, something familiar, but something with important similarities. Jesus tells them it will be like a woman giving birth – lots of pain and anguish but with relief and great joy when accomplished.

And now they understand the principle, he adds more detail for them. Their time of grief is now, but he’ll see them again and they’ll rejoice. Nobody will be able to steal that joy from them and they won’t need to ask him any more questions. In fact, they’ll be able to ask his Father (in Jesus’ name) for anything. So far they have not done this – ask, receive, and rejoice!

And what about us?

Can we expect the same? Should we, too, expect to ask in Jesus’ name, receive, and rejoice? Yes! Indeed we should! Does Jesus say to us, ‘So far you have not done this’? Perhaps he does for some of his people and for some of the time. Often we think in terms of faith – ‘Do I have too little faith?’. Frankly, it’s a bad question.

Faith is important, of course. Faith is one of the three things that Paul tells us will remain. The other two are hope and love. And Paul is very, very clear about it, the greatest of the three is not faith, but love! (1 Corinthians 13:1-2) Do you love Jesus? Does he love you? Do you have the Father’s love?

Let me remind you, that yes you do! And this love is greater than faith. Faith is required, but it’s not the measure of the answer. Father’s love is always the measure of the answer.

When you ask for something in Jesus’ name, you may or may not see the answer you expect. Anyone moved a mountain recently? Faith expects that you will trust the answer to Father’s wisdom and love. We don’t always see what we expect. We don’t always immediately receive what we ask. We need to be wise, recognise his love, remain patient and not give up.

And another thing to remember, sometimes we ask in hope, not faith. That’s OK too. There’s nothing wrong with the prayer of hope; there’s no shame in it. Sometimes there is a gift of faith, received in the moment, and we feel certain that what we ask will be done. If so, go ahead and use it! If not, pray anyway, Father listens, he does not turn away. He loves you! We all know what that’s like, we have all been children and some of us have been parents.

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John 16:12-15 – The Spirit

This is fully mature fruit seen at its most complete in the heart of the One who will send the Spirit. This is the source of the spiritual fruit talking.

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Getting the whole story
A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

Just four verses this time. Why so few? It’s because these verses are so heavily loaded with deep truth. There’s a lot here that we need to consider and absorb.

Jesus simply can’t tell them everything he wants them to know; he’s well aware they wouldn’t be able to deal with. It would, he says, ‘be more they they could bear’. It says a very great deal about his nature that he holds back for their sakes, so they won’t be overwhelmed. This is caring, this is gentleness, this is concern for the other, this is understanding.

Cast your mind forward to Paul writing to the Galatians about the fruit of the Spirit – love, patience, kindness, gentleness, self control (Galatians 5:22-23). This is fully mature fruit seen at its most complete in the heart of the One who will send the Spirit. This is the source of the spiritual fruit talking. Interrupting his precious narrative because he respects his followers’ weakness. It would destroy them so he holds back. We can learn so much from him about spiritual fruit.

Jesus is also the author and source of faith, he knows he can leave essential things unsaid because he knows in all certainty that the Spirit he will later send will explain these things to them, when they are able to cope with the hard, difficult truth. He doesn’t worry, or think, ‘What if they just don’t get it later?’ He knows it’s safe to wait. He doesn’t just have faith, he is faith incarnate! We can learn so much from him about faith.

A trustworthy Spirit

In verse 13, Jesus explains how they will know later what he cannot share with them right now. He needs to explain that the Spirit (who they have not yet experienced) will ‘guide them into all the truth’.

The Spirit will not speak ‘on his own’ – He will, in fact, speak with the Father and with the Son, so his words will be of them and from them, and will carry their full authority.

He will speak only ‘what he hears’. – The Spirit is privy to what the Father and the Son say to one another.

He will ‘tell you what is yet to come’. – In other words the Spirit is prophetic, he will share with them whatever they need to know, even if it’s about things that have not yet happened.

The disciples would not have missed the connection with the Jesus they already know and love. He has claimed to be one with the Father and to say only what he hears the Father say. And isn’t Jesus, here in this conversation, telling them about ‘things that are to come’? That is to say, the Holy Spirit.

And then finally, in verses 14 and 15, Jesus repeats what he’s already told them. He wants to be absolutely sure they understand! The links in the chain are as clear as they could possibly be; what belongs to the Father (Yahweh, the one who just IS) has been given to Jesus. Next, these things are given by Jesus to the Spirit, and then, finally, the Spirit will pass it all on to his followers.

Simple, straightworward, but oh how awesome!

And if you are following Jesus, then it is all your inheritance too. You don’t need to do a thing to inherit something, you just need a family member who has decided to pass it on. Jesus is handing all the richness of heaven and of the Father to you on a plate! The least you can do is receive it and be grateful!

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John 16:1-11 – Warnings and leaving

If his apprentices had been given a vote, they would all have called for Jesus to stay with them. Of course from our perspective it’s clear that the sending of the Holy Spirit was the necessary next step in the life of the church. But that’s very much the benefit of hindsight!

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Dangers ahead
A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

From what Jesus tells them next, the future sounds pretty dreadful; but there’s purpose in the telling. What he has already told them was to prevent them from giving up. There’s nothing like hard times to discourage us, and Jesus is well aware of that. But now, knowing time is short, he explains how bad it will get and the great hope that remains.

Jesus explains that people who know neither him nor his Father will reject his followers and even murder them, thinking they are serving Yahweh in doing so. Now that Jesus is leaving the disciples he’s telling them things he’d shielded them from previously.

Where next?

Jesus has told them several times before that he is leaving them, he’s well aware that they haven’t asked where he plans to go and are already feeling sad and downcast (even abandoned) at losing him. It’s easy to imagine them thinking they’ve failed in some way, that he’s going to look for better followers somewhere else. So he explains that his departure will be good for them because if he stays the ‘Advocate’ won’t come. They won’t understand what this means until Pentecost when the Holy Spirit will fill them and a lot of mysteries will begin to be answered in their minds and hearts. For some reason he says that unless he leaves them, he won’t be able to send this ‘Advocate’.

If his apprentices had been given a vote, they would all have called for Jesus to stay with them. Of course from our perspective it’s clear that the sending of the Holy Spirit was the necessary next step in the life of the church. But that’s very much the benefit of hindsight!

Sin, righteousness, and judgement

The world (and especially the Jewish world in which the disciples lived) knew that sin, righteousness and judgement were important things. The Law and the Prophets were full of these three ideas – from Genesis right through to Malachi. Mankind is sinful because of disobedience, sinful people cannot claim any sort of righteousness, and without sacrifice for sin all are judged and found wanting.

Jesus now tells them that the world has all three of these important things wrong – completely wrong!

In the case of sin, people are wrong because they don’t believe in Jesus, He came to deal with sin once and for all, but many of the learned people saw Jesus himself as sinful, a blasphemer, misinformed, deserving of arrest and punishment – even a death sentence!

In the case of righteousness, people were wrong because Jesus was now returning to the Father where he could no longer be seen. Jesus himself is our righteousness and he represents us in the Father’s presence.

And in the case of judgement, people were wrong because they’d backed the wrong horse. They’d chosen ‘The Prince of this World’ who was now condemned. And who might that be? Not Jesus, clearly, but the Evil One, the opposer of everything good, who tried to condemn Yahweh but is now himself condemned.

Get sin, righteousness and judgement wrong and you have no hope! Get these right, follow Jesus, and it will all become clear. What a revelation!

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John 15:22-27 – Guilt and testimony

They understood that some things are good and others are evil, but their thinking was confused. So, very often, is ours. The creator can see into the hearts of the created.

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What is good? What is evil?
A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

Jesus begins here by saying something extraordinary, he tells his followers that people are only guilty of sin because he has spoken to them. This is just how it was at the beginning; in Eden there was no possibility of guilt until the man and woman had eaten the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. We need to dig deep here to understand more clearly.

They were created naked, they walked in the garden with Yahweh naked, and he said that everything he had made was good (Genesis 1:26-31, specifically v 31). So we cannot claim it is bad, or wrong, or evil to be naked in the presence of others. That idea, which is very commonly held, perhaps especially by those who call themselves Christians, is simply wrong. There is no evidence to support it!

But when they gained the knowledge of good and evil, they were ashamed in his presence and hid themselves when he came to walk and talk with them. Yahweh didn’t come to look at their bodies, he came to look at their hearts! They understood that some things are good and others are evil, but their thinking was confused. So, very often, is ours. The creator can see into the hearts of the created. They wanted to hide their disobedient hearts from him, but that is impossible; instead the best they could manage was to hide their bodies and ignore their disobedience. It’s a form of ‘making an excuse’, hiding what Yahweh pronounced good, because of their feelings of shame. Let’s hide whatever we can in the hope that the things we can’t hide will be overlooked – sorry, it won’t work, it’s never worked.

If I’m not able to see the reality of good and evil in my heart, that does not permit me to pretend to fix it by cloaking the reality with a more comfortable and palatable alternative. The guiltiness of a sinful heart runs deep and cannot just be covered over. Because Jesus did things that no mere, guilty human being could do (healing a Jewish leper for example, or casting out a dumb demon, or healing a person born blind*), they turned against both Jesus and his Father. Even this fulfilled the law! And notice that Jesus says, ‘Their law’, he does not say ‘My law’ or ‘My Father’s Law’ (v 25). That too is significant!

A reminder

Jesus reminds them that a master is greater than his servants. We’ll be treated as he was if we are his followers. He’s reminded them of this before – more than once. John just mentioned it. But Jesus’ preference is to call us, not servants, but his friends (John 15:15).

The coming Spirit

The chapter ends with Jesus announcing that the Spirit will come. Jesus calls his Spirit ‘the Advocate’, someone who will argue the case for us, someone who will remind us of everything we need to know and remember and do and be. And we must do what the Spirit does – testify about Jesus. Remember what he says elsewhere, ‘Without me you can do … nothing.’ But if we have the Spirit of Christ living in us, we can do anything he calls us to!

See also:

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John 15:18-21 – Hatred

A master issues instructions, a servant follows instructions. Jesus teaches, his chosen apprentices learn; and it follows that if Jesus is persecuted they will be too.

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Meaning of the word
A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

The subject of hatred can be difficult, hating someone is not just a matter of disliking them, maybe we need to look at a dictionary definition.

The Greek word used here (μισέω – miseo) literally means to ‘detest’ (See the Bible Hub definition for details). In the Graeco-Roman world of the time it implied a strong emotional response of enmity and hostility. In Hebrew thought it was a little different, hatred was seen as being the opposite of love, but also as a righteous attitude to sin and idols. This can lead to misunderstanding in English translations when we read, for example, that we should ‘hate’ our father and mother. A better translation might be that we should love our father and mother less than we love Jesus.

We are Christ’s

In the previous section Jesus was talking about love; in verse 17 we read, ‘This is my command: love each other.’ And immediately afterwards he says, ‘If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first’. In other words, the world sees Jesus as sinful and idolatrous, and sees us in the same way because we follow him. We see this most clearly when we consider the approach of the Priests, the Pharisees, and the Saducees. They really did see Jesus and his followers as teaching dangerous and abhorrent errors.

He tells his apprentices (disciples) that the world would love them if they were themselves worldly. But we, too, are his disciples so let’s make this more direct and personal – the world would love you and me if we were worldly. Are we worldly? I hope not! And why are we not worldly? Because Jesus has chosen us out of the world. If you’re popular in the world you should be alarmed! Jesus is the head, not us. We are merely the body of Christ. Or more encouragingly, we are amazingly the body of Christ. So when the vicar offers you a wafer and tells you, ‘This is the body of Christ, broken for you’; you might retort, ‘No it’s not, I am part of the body of Christ, as are you’. But I’m not sure how well that would go down!

Master and servant

Jesus reminds them of something he told them previously, namely that masters are greater than their servants. A master issues instructions, a servant follows instructions. Jesus teaches, his chosen apprentices learn; and it follows that if Jesus is persecuted they will be too. And those who follow Jesus’ teaching will also follow theirs. They are going to share in more than his life, for elsewhere he clearly states that they have become his friends (no longer servants), so they (and we) become teachers like him and will be persecuted by some, followed by others.

The abuse will come because of his name, because they don’t know the Father. Jesus came as a servant, a messenger, in his Father’s name. We go as servants, as messengers, in Jesus’ name. And we go to those who don’t know his name, his mission or his character. Jesus came to reveal the truth to an ignorant world, to bring life to a dying world. So should we – but if we do not, can we really claim to be his followers at all?

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John 15:9-17 – Love and fruit

This joyful, loving relationship we have with Jesus is so important. In these verses Jesus stresses it by repetition. He wants to see joyfulness in our lives, he wants his joy to find a welcome in our lives.

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A fragment of John’s gospel
(Wikimedia)

At this point Jesus begins talking about love. It always helps, when explaining something, to have an illustration or example; Jesus needs an example of his love for his followers, so he says, ‘I’ve loved you the same way the Father has loved me’. There’s such a lot in that simple statement!

But the disciples had evidence of the Father’s love for the Son going far beyond words alone; the love was affirmed by powerful action. They had seen the sick being healed, the dead raised to life and evil spirits thrown out. Oh yes, he had the affection of the Father, and now Jesus tells them that he loves them like that, too! Notice how remaining in the love depends on obeying the commands. It’s not that the love is taken away in the absence of obedience, but the absence of obedience is the same thing as walking away from the source of the love. So his followers have a part to play as well, they are to ‘Stay in his love’. They are to stay close, not wander off but to stay in that place of affection.

It begins and ends with love

This joyful, loving relationship we have with Jesus is so important. In these verses Jesus stresses it by repetition. He wants to see joyfulness in our lives, he wants his joy to find a welcome in our lives. He’s explained this clearly and now, in verse 12 he shows how simple it is. The command that must be obeyed if we are to remain in him and his joy in us is not hard and it’s not complicated or demanding – just love one another, please!

And the greatest and fullest love imaginable is to be more concerned for one another than for our own existence! In verses 14 and 15 Jesus brings us right back to the need for obedience yet again, and it’s not an obedience like that of servants or slaves. We are fully informed, he calls the disciples (and us) his friends, not his servants. Our place is not to serve Christ, but to be his friends. I’m sure you appreciate the difference. We’re helping out one of our mates, not scraping and bowing to an imperial boss!

Getting the job done

Sometimes we are told that people in the world need to ‘choose Christ’, that they need to ‘make a decision for Christ’. Yet Jesus clearly sees it very differently, he tells us here that he chooses us, not the other way around. We are right to share the good news about Jesus, to explain to people that peace and joy and freedom are found in him. But we don’t need to persuade people to make a choice. Jesus makes the choice. We never, never need to browbeat anyone, our task is just to introduce one of our friends. Hey, this is Jesus, say ‘Hi’ to the best friend I have, he’d like to get to know you better.

We do have a job though, and introducing Jesus might well be an important part of it. We were chosen to bear lasting fruit, and if we ask Papa for something, he’ll provide it. He’s always willing because he sees us as one of his Son’s friends – he loves the Son and he loves his Son’s willing mates and helpers. It’s all about relationship, is it not? What we do counts for little, who we are counts for everything! Without Jesus I can do – nothing! But I can do everything in Christ.

And finally, Jesus reminds them one more time, ‘Love one another’. He knows how easily we forget!

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