The promise…

Of the Spirit (part 19) 

I imagine the disciples’ minds were reeling a bit when Jesus came out with statements like: “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,” John 14:11, and “One day you’ll realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you,” verse 20. 

Jesus was talking on a level they’d never experienced before. But it clued them in as to where their lives were going next. They were being introduced to a new world that would draw them into the inner workings of the God family, where they’d come to see it was all based on love and being “in” each other. 

But it was this kingdom of God, this world of God, that Jesus had been assigned by his Father to set up on this planet, starting with this little group of Jesus’ disciples who, at this point in their lives, didn’t have a clue what they were in for. One thing they thought they knew though, was that they’d do anything for Jesus because they loved him. That part at least they were sure of. 

But Jesus soon brought them down to earth on that point too, because in verse 15 he said, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” It was another concept the disciples would come to learn, that love in the kingdom of God wasn’t just enjoying each other’s company or even being respectful and accepting of each other’s roles. Love in God’s world was all about tuning into the deepest, most heartfelt wishes of the one you love. The Father, for instance, set up this entire creation for his Son (Colossians 1:16), because he knew his Son’s heart and what would fill it. Jesus, meanwhile, wanted only to “bring glory to his Father” (John 14:13), because he knew his Father’s heart and what would fill it too.  

And what was the Father’s deepest wish? It was Jesus’ disciples doing what he’d taught them, John 14:23, because in doing that – as Jesus told them – “My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” 

This was how the disciples would be drawn into the God world of love, so they’d know what it means to be “in” each other, fulfilling the heartfelt wishes of those who love you. It was a new world they were being introduced to – but in their present state of mind how on earth could they become part of it?…(more on this tomorrow)