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JOHN CHAPTER 15 KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel See previous page Jn 15,1-11 (129i) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Unity >> love perfects unity >> God’s love – God doesn’t just want us to know that He loves us; we already know that; He wants us to experience His love. Jesus made promises that are high above us all, as though unattainable, yet He has commanded us to pursue His vision of the Church just the same. As for living out these words, we may experience them from time to time, though Jesus hoped we would live by them always; but the reality is that the best of us will merely glimpse God's vision. These promises are unattainable from a lack of unity in the body of Christ. All the promises of Christ are realized through unity. Without unity the individual has very little hope of attaining anything from God. Without unity, we are just a lot of people going to church who believe in Jesus. This was not His vision, which was for all His believers to be united in each church and for all churches to be united as one. He loves us as individuals and He loves us collectively. Man has been willing to receive God’s love only as individuals and not as a body of believers, and for this reason unity has evaded the Church virtually since its onset. There was unity in the beginning in the first century when the original apostles were still alive, but shortly thereafter it dissipated, and by the third century it was gone, and it never returned. There were pockets and moments of revival that saw glimpses of unity, but they were fleeting and partial. (136ha) Temple >> Your spirit is the temple of God >> Body of Christ consists of individual members >> We are chosen members of Christ – Grape vines are all branches with no trunk, so all branches collectively represent the vine, and Jesus claimed to be the vine. (139k) Temple >> Temple made without hands >> Hiding place >> Abiding in Jesus – The high priest enters the Holy of Holies once a year to perform the annual sacrifice. Abiding in Jesus refers to entering the Most Holy Place, however, not once a year but often as we want through the word of God and prayer. There was the outer court, where the animal sacrifice was made. In the new covenant this refers to the sacrifices we make of our sinful, animal nature. We bring the resulting "blood" into the Most Holy Place to prove that we have died to sin. Entering, we pass the Table of Showbread and the golden lampstands with seven-lighted candlesticks that together refer to the Holy Spirit shedding light on the word of God. We pass the Golden Altar of Incense representing prayer, and we continue through the curtain concealing the Most Holy Place. The Golden Altar of Incense signifies prayer and is technically an article of the Most Holy Place but is positioned outside the veil, so the priests can maintain the perpetual incense. The illustration of the temple elucidates that prayer takes us behind the veil into this Most Holy Place. This is where the Ark of the Covenant resides, which contained the stone tablets of the law, Aaron’s rod that budded and the golden jar holding a sample of manna that God fed to the children of Israel during their forty-year walkabout in the wilderness. We have entered a place with God that Jesus suggested by the phrase “abide in Me.” This is what it means to abide in Jesus, to venture behind the curtain in the Most Holy Place. It is a place where signs and wonders happen inwardly and eventually outwardly. The manna represents God’s promise to always take care of us, even if He has to do it miraculously. He promises to take care of us, not because we are Christians but because we abide in Him, for not all Christians abide in Him. If we spend time in the Most Holy Place, God will enlighten us, etching His word into our heart as He etched the law into the stone tablets with the finger of God. See also: Temple worship required meticulous obedience; Jn 9-11; 113i (227h) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> Depending on Jesus to impart His gifts into us >> He gives us what we give to each other – Jesus said, “Abide in me and I in you.” We abide in Christ as a branch abides in the vine, and Jesus abides in us as the sap migrates into each branch giving it new life. Abiding in Jesus is a commandment that requires an active response, but when you look at a grape vine, the branches are just sitting there. Nothing much is happening; the branches are not trying to abide in the vine; they just do, making this analogy different from a grape vine. According to the analogy, all the branches apparently have a choice whether to abide in the vine or not. The fact that Jesus is commanding us to abide in Him means that we could unplug ourselves if we so desired; otherwise there would be no occasion to tell us to abide in Him. Anyone who would like to humanize the gospel will need to get over this verse when Jesus said that we cannot bear fruit apart from Him. Humanists say we are fruit bearers of ourselves, whereas Jesus said, "Apart from Me you can do nothing." One of the fruits that Jesus mentioned a chapter earlier was to perform miracles. It is obvious that we are unable to perform miracles without God, though it is less intuitive that we also need Him to bear the fruit of the Spirit, concerning love, joy, peace, patience… outlined in Galatians chapter five. We have all seen people simulating the fruit of the Spirit in their flesh, but we cannot maintain this façade for long before our fruit begins to spoil. Jn 15,1-8 (82l) Thy kingdom come >> Power of prayer >> Prayer anoints your life in the word (128k) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Bearing fruit >> Living a fruitful life >> It is a way of survival – Most Christians readily believe the doctrine of being born again and receiving the indwelling Holy Spirit, but most resist the anointing, which is the “out-dwelling” of the Holy Spirit. He is the one who produces fruit in our lives. In John chapter three Jesus told Nicodemus that he must be born again, but this “out-dwelling” of the Holy Spirit, this anointing, how important is it? It is essential to bearing fruit and bearing fruit is essential to our salvation! Jesus more than hinted at this when He said that those who produce no fruit are like a branch, thrown into the fire and burned. The Bible equates the children of God with being fruitful, and makes no provision for the unfruitful Christian. (225i) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables >> Parables about the garden of the kingdom >> Parables about plants (229e) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> Kingdom grows by itself >> God causes the growth >> Kingdom grows like crops in a farmer’s field KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,1-5 (137e) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Jesus is the foundation >> Bearing fruit is the foundation of being in the Spirit Jn 15,1-4 (255g) Trinity >> Father, Son and Holy Spirit >> The process of imparting the substance of God >> Father discloses the Spirit by the word Jn 15,1-3 (103c) Thy kingdom come >> Purifying process >> God’s cleansing power >> Cleansing power of the word – Jesus said, “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.” That sounds like Jn 13:10, “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean, and you are clean, but not all of you.” In this verse Jesus said the same thing, only adding that they were clean because of the word, which He had spoken to them. When we put the foot washing together with this verse, we get what Paul said in Eph 5:26, “So that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.” The water represents the Holy Spirit. This is another example of the Spirit and the word operating together to cleanse the disciples of all hindrances to seeking the Kingdom of Heaven. Jn 15-1,2 (32k) Gift of God >> Father will honor your devotion to Him >> Honor a fruitful life – This vine that the Father prunes represents both the Church and the individual. When we look at the individual, there are things in us that don’t bear fruit, so He prunes us. this is called repentance. We repent of sins, giving God permission to cut those evil practices from our lives, and He throws them into a pile to die, and are later burned. God has two pruning methods. In one instance an entire branch that doesn’t bear fruit is eliminated, and in the other instance the branch that bears fruit is merely trimmed of excess stems and twigs in order that the branch may bear more fruit. Whatever aspect of the vine that doesn’t bear fruit is truncated. This scenario refers to the individual, but what about the fact that Jesus mostly was talking about the Church as a whole in this parable? When certain people in the Church don’t bear fruit, they are culled, and they are thrown into a pile and are burned. Some people He culls, while other people he prunes, in hope that they bear more fruit. The ones who don’t bear fruit are culled to enhance those branches that do bear fruit. We are not talking about dead branches but live ones that leaf well enough but don’t grow any fruit. The branch though it be alive is cut off, because it is wasting precious resources of the tree and gives nothing in return. This is not a popular interpretation of this parable, but it corresponds with what Jesus said. If we don’t produce the fruit of the kingdom, we risk being cut from the vine and discarded, suggesting that some people in the Church will not make it to heaven. (137g) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Maturity >> Maturing in Jesus is hard work >> Maturity is the process of growing (228j) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> God works in the garden of your heart – Jesus said of the fruit-bearing branches that His Father prunes them. If God prunes us, then there must be branches growing on us that do not bear fruit. The Father prunes the fruit-bearing branches of twigs and stems that are unnecessary, which represent sin and bad habits. These may also represent followers of Jesus who no longer bear fruit, who are attached to us, such as old friends, who consider themselves Christians, yet lead us away from the faith. As we continue to bear fruit for God they will leave on their own accord, though it is the Father who is eschewing them according to the kingdom principle that darkness should have no fellowship with light. (253f) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Father and Son glorify each other >> Holy Spirit honors the Son through the Father >> Father honors the Son who honors the Father -- These verses go with verses 7&8 Jn 15-2 (22n) Sin >> Pride comes before a fall -- This verse goes with verses 4-6 (47b) Judgment >> God Judges the world >> Hell is a place of sorrow >> It is a great fire prepared for the devil and his angels >> burning site where people are thrown away -- This verse goes with verse 6 (49d) Judgment >> Those who are unfruitful in His kingdom are destroyed -- This verse goes with verse 6 (174d) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Self righteousness >> Trying to please God by your own good works -- This verse goes with verses 4-6 (206l) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Eternal security? >> Perish in your sin >> Perish from a lack of fruit (starvation) -- This verse goes with verse 6 – Jesus said that His Father is the vinedresser. Note that we do not have authority to say who goes to heaven, not even Jesus had that authority, only the Father. He is the one who prunes the vine of branches that no longer bear fruit. This passage is a high hurtle for Eternal Security advocates to traverse, who believe that once we are saved we can never lose our salvation. Every branch that is plugged into the vine is required to bear fruit; otherwise, it is wasting precious resources from the parent tree that the fruit bearing branches could have used to bear more fruit. Jn 15,3-11 (117b) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Rest in Jesus (Sabbath) >> Rest in His yoke through obedience Jn 15-3 (255a) Trinity >> Holy Spirit’s relationship between Father and Son >> God’s word is Spirit >> Spirit of the word >> Words of His Spirit are life KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,4-11 (99d) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Enduring the will of God >> Endure abiding in Him – Jesus said that if we are born again Christians abiding in the vine, and if His words abide in us, representing the sap of the vine that nourishes the branches, he promised, “Ask whatever you wish and it shall be done for you. By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.” He is saying that God the Father earnestly desires to answer our prayers. It is not burdensome to Him, because in so doing, He glorifies Himself. Is God a glory-monger who seeks attention from His creation? Yes He is! On the one hand, He seeks our worship, and He deserves it. On the other hand, He seeks our attention knowing that if we don’t give it to Him, it can only mean we are giving it to something else, leading to the consequences of idolatry. That is, He seeks our praise not for His glory only, but also for our good. Jn 15,4-10 (136j) Temple >> Your spirit is the temple of God >> Body of Christ is the temple of God Jn 15,4-6 (22n) Sin >> Pride comes before a fall -- These verses go with verse 2 (174d) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Self righteousness >> Trying to please God by your own good works -- These verses go with verse 2. The Church is probably more unplugged from Jesus today than ever, and they have replaced their connection to God with religion, which is a simulation of faith. They would like us to believe they have more faith than any other generation, but all they really have is a lot of enthusiasm, and a lot of big churches, and a lot of fancy cars and materialism, which they would like to pass-off as fruit, but in fact Jesus never came close to saying that materialism and physical blessings are considered fruit. (197e) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Man withers when he is in control >> Fruitlessness >> A fruitless life offends God – The person who does not produce fruit, God will clip off the vine. Note, it doesn’t say the branches were dead that the Father pruned; rather, sap was flowing through them and using up vital nutrients without producing any fruit. This refers to someone who is spiritually alive but doesn’t bear fruit, a Christian who has the Holy Spirit dwelling in him but doesn't care about doing the will of God. This corresponds with the parable in Lk 13,6-9, “A man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any. And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?’ And he answered and said to him, ‘Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.’” The Bible teaches that anybody who refuses to bear fruit, God will cut him off and throw Him into the fire. Through disobedience and rebellion the Holy Spirit has been unable to do much with the Church, and it seems their obedience level is exponentially eroding as the time of the end approaches. Meanwhile the world condemns and criticizes God for being ineffective. Jn 15-4,5 (77b) Thy kingdom come >> Hunger for the essence of God >> Hunger for His presence Jn 15-4 (77j) Thy kingdom come >> Tapping into the power of God through humility >> The humble realize the source of their power (78l) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> Abiding in Jesus -- This verse goes with verses 7-11 KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,5-11 (236k) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Invest in the kingdom >> Invest in the treasures of the kingdom >> Invest in the fruit of the kingdom Jn 15-5 (116k) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> His Grace in us is in vain without Him Jn 15-6 (15j) Servant >> Angels execute Judgment >> In regard to the world (47b) Judgment >> God Judges the world >> Hell is a place of sorrow >> It is a great fire prepared for the devil and his angels >> burning site where people are thrown away (49d) Judgment >> Those who are unfruitful in His kingdom are destroyed -- This verse goes with verse 2. Many Christians think they have an option to obey God. Perhaps they said the Sinner's Prayer, and ‘that settles it.’ They go to church, but it is just a routine. Far as developing a relationship with God, it never happened. Jesus is saying that if our faith never materializes and if we never seek freedom from our sinful ways, the Father may view us a fruitless branch wasting precious resources and cut us from the vine and throw us into a growing pile of dead sticks to be burned. People can try to make Jesus’ words say something else, but if they were honest with themselves, they would know that Jesus was talking about losing their salvation through a fruitless lifestyle, resulting in eternal judgment. They were once connected to the vine, and now they're not. Jesus is not the one who takes away the braches; His Father does, making Jesus pure grace and mercy to us. Jesus does not judge His people, yet there is still room to fear God. (206l) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Eternal security? >> Perish in your sin >> Perish from a lack of fruit (starvation) -- This verse goes with verse 2. This parable is a word picture of the Father removing worthless branches from the parent vine, and throwing them into a pile to be burned. Eternal security advocates who believe in the doctrine once saved always saved have the task of making Scripture read that this unfruitful Christian was never part of the vine (he was never saved), but what did Jesus mean by, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, he takes away”? If he was never saved, then how could he be connected to the vine? Every Christian that does not bear fruit is cut off and thrown in hell. God is concerned about fruit bearing branches that stand to lose the most if fruitless branches are allowed to remain on the vine. God takes offense at people who do not produce fruit. Jn 15,7-11 (78l) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind >> Abiding in Jesus -- These verses go with verse 4 (100c) Thy kingdom come >> Perseverance >> Persevere in abiding in Christ (231i) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> Body of Christ is the organism of God’s kingdom >> Jesus is the head of His body’s kingdom >> To be in Christ is to be in the great city (247c) Priorities >> God’s priorities >> God’s interests >> God is interested in His people >> God is interested in our freedom – When we think of Jesus in His glorified state, He is truly an amazing person. At this very moment He is managing His entire Church all around the globe. Although it is faltering, that does not mean Jesus is a lousy manager. What supercedes it this man’s will, depicting the high value that God places on freedom. He values it far more than we do. Even though we fight wars for it, God values it so much that He is willing to let us kill each other, rather than infringe on our freewill and come save us from ourselves. KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,7-10 (68h) Authority >> We have been given authority through prayer -- These verses go with verse 16 Jn 15,7-9 (114k) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Working God’s grace through Christ >> Jesus is the way to the Father -- These verses go with verse 15 Jn 15-7,8 (30l) Gift of God >> God favors you through your prayers -- These verses go with verses 16&17 (35e) Gift of God >> God is willing to Give >> Ask to receive -- These verses go with verse 16 (80h) Thy kingdom come >> Know the word to minister to God >> In your inner man (107b) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Word creates faith >> Jesus’ words create faith (114a) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Obeying the Holy Spirit >> Believing the Father by obeying the Son >> Obeying Jesus’ word (146l) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Jesus’ works bear witness of Himself >> Purpose of Miracles, Signs And Wonders >> Evidence to trust Him – The word that God places in our hearts acts as evidence to trust Him for miracles, and answered prayer is evidence to trust Him with out lives, so it is intrinsic within this passage that those who abide in Jesus are people of prayer. Jesus wasn’t talking about nominal Christians; God has promised nothing to them. Answered prayer is the work of God, making it the mark of a true disciple, someone who develops a life of prayer and bears the fruit of it. (153a) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> Witnesses of the father >> Church bears witness of the Father through Christ – It glorifies God that we should ask Him many things and that He would answer our prayers. We think God should answer our prayers more often, since it is His will, but things simply are not in place in the Church these days. Most Christians hardly have a prayer life, and many who pray are not living in a way that glorify His name. How we live is a reflection on Him, and the last thing He wants to do is answer the prayers of someone who is not living for Him, and thus condoning their lifestyle and encouraging others to live the same. Just the opposite is God’s purpose for answering our prayers; He protects His name by rewarding the faithful, answering their prayers and giving incentive for others to live like them. He does not answer the prayers of those who do whatever they want and live however they feel. (156a) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of salvation >> You will know them by their fruits >> You will know them by their productivity (253f) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Father and Son glorify each other >> Holy Spirit honors the Son through the Father >> Father honors the Son who honors the Father -- These verses go with verses 1&2 Jn 15-7 (150i) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness of Jesus >> Speak the word of the Spirit >> Speaking the words that God has spoken to you – That’s a power-packed promise! Why, then, don’t people enjoy answered prayer more often? Psalm 119-11 says, “Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.” If we hide His word in our heart, He will abide in us, so all that remains is to abide in Him, and we do that through prayer, which is the highest form of obedience. If our prayers go unanswered, then the problem lies with us; we are not abiding in Him as we should. If we heed the Scriptures and pray according to His word and do the things that are written and live according to His will, He will open our ears to hear what the Spirit is saying, and if we can hear His voice, He will tell us what He has created us to do, and if we do it, that should suffice for the definition of abiding in Him. If we do these things, we can ask God for whatever we want, and he will answer or prayers. We will be praying along the narrow way that He has prepared for us, so we will not be praying amiss. If we are fulfilling His calling, we will probably ask Him for things that He wants us to have that will help us achieve our goals, which are also His goals. So we could say that abiding in Him means remaining within earshot of His voice. See also: Develop the hearing ear through the word of God and prayer; Phi 2-13; 117h (206j) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Conditions to promises >> Conditions to getting your prayers answered Jn 15,9-17 (6b) Responsibility >> Advocate God’s cause >> Jesus’ yoke of love -- As is true about all of God’s promises, if we are faithful in keeping them, a tremendous reward is in store for us, both in heaven and here in this life. In this case if we will walk in love, He will disclose Himself to us. It stands to reason that He would disclose Himself in this way, since "love" is a one-word definition of His very nature. KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,9-15 (30h) Gift of God >> God is our Father >> God favors you by His grace >> He favors you through His son (208g) Salvation >> The salvation of God >> Personal relationship >> Being the friend of God >> Father & son relationship – As we begin to obey the word of Christ our relationship with Him will change from one of a master to His slave to one of a Father to His son. This is when God will begin to intimate with us. Jesus kept secrets from His disciples during His 3-year period with them, because He knew they would never accept what He said. For example, He told them many times that He would be handed over to the Romans and mistreated and killed and on the third day rise again, but they didn’t hear a word of it. There were many other things they would have not accepted, so He never mentioned them until He rose from the dead and the Holy Spirit took His place and revealed these things to them in the Spirit, when they were ready to accept them. Once we develop maturity, then God will begin to reveal His will to us. (230i) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> Mystery of godliness >> Mystery of the trinity >> Anointing is the mystery of godliness Jn 15,9-14 (41j) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Be like Jesus >> Be godly toward one another (86k) Thy kingdom come >> Obedience >> Be doers of the word >> Clothe yourself with the word of God >> Do the words of Jesus – Jesus said that He loves us as much as His Father loved Him, which is truly amazing when we think how deep a love God has for His Son. Hence the more we agree with God the more fruit we can bear and the better we will represent Him in the world. Jesus wants us to immerse ourselves in His love. He doesn’t want us to know His love as a mere fact, but as a personal and ongoing experience. Jesus said, “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love,” hence we experience His love by keeping His commandments. He also wants us to experience His joy, which is another fruit of the Spirit second only to love on the list in Galatians chapter five. Then He said, “This is My commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you.” When Jesus commanded us to love one another, he was not talking about loving the world but those in the Church. Once we perfect love toward one another, we can start aiming our sights on reaching the lost, but not until we learn to love one another. Jn 15-9,10 (13c) Servant >> Jesus serves His Father >> He is the servant of God – Jesus serves His Father as we serve Christ. This corresponds with Jn 20-21, “As the Father sent Me, I also send you.” What these verses are describing is a delegation of authority, constituting the very essence of Christianity and the true nature of God’s heavenly kingdom. Without the delegation of authority God would be in heaven trying to make things happen, and we would just be twiddling our thumbs waiting for Him, which unfortunately is an accurate description of the Church today. People are not serving God, as though they were waiting for something, but what they don’t realize is that God has delegated divine authority to us and for this reason we are expected to bear fruit, not just any fruit, but that which God has prepared for us, to discover our calling from God and fulfill it. (42g) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Transformation >> Conform to the Love of Christ (113h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Anointed through obedience – The word “Christ” literally translates to mean “Anointed One”. Therefore, “Christians” means “anointed ones.” People who have no understanding of the Scriptures may attempt to spiritualize this or trivialize it. To abide in the love of God is to summarize everything Jesus said or will ever say. The ultimate love of God is the promise and hope of eternal life. These things are in the future, but Jesus was talking about His love in the present tense. “You will abide in my love,” not someday but right now! We know the love of God in this life through the anointing. This anointing was illustrated at the baptism of John, when the Spirit of God descended from heaven as a dove and rested on Jesus; Lk 3-22 says it had a bodily form. This means that we are to treat the anointing as it were a bird perched on our shoulder, and we are to spend the rest of our lives making it feel comfortable. It doesn't react to the outside world but to the inner man of the heart, not to loud crashing noises but to thoughts of jealousy and greed. The anointing promises to remain with us so long as we don’t frighten it with our flagrant defiance. We all make mistakes, which may cause the anointing to flutter, but it will return the moment we repent. Let’s say we’re walking along not watching where we're going and our foot falls into a pothole, and our whole body jars, but the bird remains steady on our shoulder, but in response to the accident we cuss and the bird takes flight, but then we repent and the bird returns to its perch. The anointing doesn’t like the premeditated sins that we sometimes conspire. Morning Doves are not skittish, but they will fly if we approach them, suggesting that we don't receive an anointing by pursuing it but by pursuing Him. When she’s on the nest, we can walk right up to her and she won't leave, suggesting that when we are bearing fruit the anointing is much more forgiving of the accidental sins we commit. If we reach out our hand as though to grab her off the nest, she will fly only then, so we cannot manhandle the anointing; we must be considerate as she bears fruit for God. Our purpose is to be a good host and make the anointing feel comfortable in our presence. The sins that we accept of ourselves keep the anointing at a distance, as though perched on a tree branch above our heads, but venturing no closer. God would have it that our anointing be powerful and profound, but if we won’t curb our lifestyles, and if we won’t strive to rise above our sinful passions and desires, we may never know the level of anointing that God had intended for us. This is the case with so many people in the Church today; they are too disobedient to carry an anointing. Jn 15-10 (206f) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Conditions to promises >> Conditions to the love of God >> Conditions to loving Jesus -- This verse goes with verse 14 (253l) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is subject to the Father >> Jesus is subject to the will of God Jn 15-11 (34g) Gift of God >> God is willing to Give >> He is generous with His spiritual blessings (125b) Joy (Key verse) (125f) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Joy >> Joy is the result of partaking of the Holy Spirit >> Joy is the result of receiving from God KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,12-17 (99m) Thy kingdom come >> Persevere in ministering to the body of Christ – Jesus’ commandment was that we should love one another, then He gave parameters to that love, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down His life for His friends.” This is the standard of our love for one another: we are to be more concerned for the welfare of others than we are of our own. Jesus wants us to go beyond our carnal ability to love one another, because He knew our efforts apart from His would not be enough to keep us from killing each another. This is what we have done throughout the age of grace, human history in the new covenant era parading one war after another, proving that we have not done what Jesus commanded. We need to love one another with the love of God, to put ourselves last, and when the whole church ministers to each other in this way, then everyone’s spiritual and physical needs will be met. This is why God must trim us of unfruitful branches, takers and not givers that attach themselves to the vine, drawing away nutrients from other fruit-bearing branches and give nothing in return, causing the whole vine to needlessly suffer. God takes care of the Church and keeps it healthy pruning these worthless branches. He is not willing that barren branches should pull down the betterment of the whole. Keep in mind that it is the Father who prunes the vine, not Jesus and certainly not us. It is unnecessary to remove them from the assembly, for they will leave of their own accord as people continue to produce fruit and love one another in the joy of the Holy Spirit. As the Church continues to walk in truth those who do not bear fruit will be exposed. God removes them by His Spirit, by the principle that darkness has no fellowship with light. (121g) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Hope >> Expecting good things based on God’s character >> Expectation based on His word Jn 15,12-14 (124a) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Love >> Acts of love >> Love takes from the rich and gives to the poor >> Love takes sacrifice – Jesus is discriminating between those who love Him and those who don’t, and look what He used as criteria, not emotions or doctrines but actions. There are many people in Christendom today who talk about loving God but don’t do what He says. Jesus said in Jn 14-15, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments,” and in this verse He said, “This is My commandment, that you love one another.” Some people seem incapable of love, while others do good deeds whenever the Spirit leads them. The general consensus in society today appears that people are not their brother’s keeper, which they have painted on their faces with an indelible mark of indifference. It is questionable if they will be able to change their minds if revival suddenly ignites and people started flocking to Christ by the droves; how could they put their hearts in reverse and abandon their apathy and begin walking in love soon enough to catch even the tail-end of what God was doing? Those who have solidified their hearts like stone against Christ will be unable to repent at a moment’s notice. People seem to have already made their decision against God. (156b) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of salvation >> Loving God is evidence of salvation >> Keeping His commandments – He doesn’t want to hear us say we love Him; He wants us to show Him, as He showed us His love. Jesus didn’t have a long list of commandments; He just said, “Love one another.” The Law of Moses is not what He had in mind; in fact, for the Ten Commandments were the Father’s Law. If we keep Jesus’ commandment, we will also keep the Father’s commandments, but we don’t obey the Law of Christ by keeping the Law of Moses; we do it by obeying the Holy Spirit, which is the new covenant in His blood. We could just as well say that it is the new covenant in His Spirit, for the blood of Jesus and His Spirit are one (1Jn 5,6-8). (130k) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Unity >> Accept one another >> Love tears down social differences in the Church – If we were to love one another the way Jesus loved us, what sacrifices would we make? First and foremost, we would need to put the concerns of others above our own (Phi 2-4). The things that people need from us, we would give them, and what do people need from us? We are all lacking a deep integration into each other’s lives. We are living in an isolationist society; this wasn’t always true. The word “community” is mostly fictitious; there is no sense of community anywhere. Go to a park and try to make eye contact with people and they won’t even look at you, let alone talk to you. We say “Hi” to them and they just grunt; is that community? They might tell us they are afraid of strangers, but that is just an excuse to ignore their fellow man. What would we find if we did integrate into people’s lives? Would we find Jesus in them and be able to draw from their spiritual maturity, or would we find an assortment of addictive behaviors and a dysfunctional personality? What do people need from us? They need to draw from our dedication to Jesus. Therefore, the best way to sacrifice our lives is to become dedicated to Christ. We need to develop a deep and abiding relationship with Him, so we have something to share with one another. Whatever God gives us is what we share with others in hope of bringing spiritual maturity to the body of Christ. (187b) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Die to the flesh >> The ministry of dying to self >> Die to self to minister to people >> Die to self to encourage the strong – John chapters 14-17 was basically Jesus' farewell address to his disciples, speaking these words only hours before he would be captured in the Garden of Gethsemane and the next day crucified. This passage works as the foundation of unity. We toss the word “love” around as if it were a stuffed toy. When we have emotional ties with things or people, we say we love them, but the word that Jesus associated with the word love was “sacrifice”. When Jesus said, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you,” He had the cross in mind. Therefore, we need to sacrifice ourselves for one another, meaning mostly that we need to prepare ourselves as a worthy sacrifice for the sake of the brethren, so that His commitment to Christ is not in vain. How would it look for a group of people to love one another to the extent that Jesus commanded us? It would bring revolution to the body of Christ! Today, we go to church and make sure to smile and shake hands with people, showing our best side, and then go home with no net change to our hearts. We see our fellow Christian an hour a week, but the rest of the week is spent with the heathen. Jn 15-12 (87i) Thy kingdom come >> Obedience >> Those who obey believe in God >> Those who obey the word KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15-14,15 (208f) Salvation >> The salvation of God >> Personal relationship >> Being the friend of God >> Relationship with God through obedience Jn 15-14 (29i) Gift of God >> God is on our side >> God identifies with us >> Jesus is our brother (206f) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Conditions to promises >> Conditions to the love of God >> Conditions to loving Jesus -- This verse goes with verse 10. The word If makes this a conditional statement. In today’s loose interpretation of the Scriptures everybody thinks he is a friend of Jesus. We sing, “What a friend we have in Jesus,” but are we doing what He commanded us; are we sacrificing ourselves for one another? If not, then Jesus says we are not His friends. Jesus spoke words that were hard to hear. How do we read the gospel today? We like to talk about the loveliness of God’s grace, and it's true, but there is the nagging word “if” that sticks in our craw. How can we be His children but not His friend? If we refuse to do what He commands, then we are not His friends; He said to certain individuals, “I never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (Mat 7-23). If we don’t do what Jesus commanded us, then He doesn’t know us; that is really hard to hear, but it is what He said, and it is what He meant. He commanded us to dedicate our lives in pursuit of faith, and every fabric of our being to doing His will, so when we come together as a body of believers, we have something to offer. This promotes unity. The whole point is to become constituents of those who are establishing and nurturing the members of His body. Jn 15-15 (114k) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Working God’s grace through Christ >> Jesus is the way to the Father -- This verse goes with verses 21-27 (152i) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> Witnesses of the father >> Prophets >> The Church holds the position of a prophet >> Church operates under a prophetic anointing >> Receiving a prophetic word from God (253k) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is subject to the Father >> Jesus is subject to God’s ability KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,16-19 (219c) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> The elect >> Man is a spectator of his own salvation >> God has chosen us – In most cases predestination is reduced to foreknowledge, but there are special cases when God stands from his throne and acts by His own sovereign authority, such as in the case when God judged Pharaoh. These moments define predestination: God causes certain things to happen by His own authority. Moses commanded Pharaoh to set Israel free, and every time he hardened his heart, God judged him, standing from His throne and personally delivering His people from their enemies. Also, when He sent His Son Jesus Christ, the Father was in constant attention over Him. Jeremiah 1-12 says, “You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it.” God did all these things in His people by His own authority, and in that sense they were predestined to happen, whereas foreknowledge is an amalgamation of wills, both His and ours. If our will were not involved in salvation, God would not value our relationship with Him. God imposed His will against Pharaoh, but He doesn’t force Himself on anyone to be saved. He wants us involved in our salvation; otherwise, we would just be robots, wind-up toys in His hand. Jn 15-16,17 (30l) Gift of God >> God favors you through your prayers -- These verses go with verses 7&8 (128l) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Bearing fruit >> Living a fruitful life >> It is a way of thriving (149e) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Evangelism >> Compel them to come in >> luring them in Jn 15-16 (35e) Gift of God >> God is willing to Give >> Ask to receive -- This verse goes with verses 7 and 8 (68h) Authority >> We have been given authority through prayer -- This verse goes with verses 7-10. Christian authority is something that is downplayed in the Church today, because people don’t know what kind of authority we received from heaven. We have authority to be the children of God by the simple fact that Jesus Christ Himself chose us to believe in Him from the sea of people in the world. One way we know He specifically chose us is that we continually bear fruit. The meaning of our fruit remaining is embedded in the concept of endurance; we are to endure the will of God and persevere in bearing fruit; these two qualities act as proof that we belong to Him. Consequently, those who stop bearing fruit are not considered His children, in that one of the definitions of a Christian is that they bear fruit and keep faith to the end. The word “remain” means to endure, so as Christians we must endure in our perseverance, which becomes the premise of getting our prayers answered. (71c) Ordained By God (Key verse) (71g) Authority >> Ordained by God >> Ordained by His sovereign will >> God chooses you – There are many things involved in answered prayer; for one, it is a function of unity. We don’t just ask God for something and get it; rather, He wants us to have the mind of Christ so we don’t ask amiss. There needs to be an entire infrastructure in place before the Kingdom of God will manifest, and the kingpin of this structure is unity. Without unity there can be no kingdom and without the kingdom there can be no answered prayer, except on a case-by-case basis. Going back to the story about how Jesus chose His disciples, it says the night before choosing them He spent the whole night in prayer (Lk 6-12,13). Therefore, His choice of us is bathed in prayer to His Father in regard to His Great High Priesthood described in Heb 8,1-6. Now that Jesus is glorified He is in constant communion with His Father making request for us, asking that certain ones in this world become His brothers and sisters in the faith, asking for their protection from the evil one that their faith may not fail and constantly delving His grace to us that we might rise above our circumstances. The Father grants every request from His Son, because they both have the same mind. Herein lies the Christian challenge to develop the mind of Christ. (128h) Bearing Fruit (Key verse) (171b) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Outward appearance >> Vanity >> Vain effort >> Vain attempt to pursue God (220b) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> Predestination >> Predestined according to the sovereignty of God -- This verse goes with verse 19. Perhaps after 3 years the disciples may have forgotten the exact nature of their relationship with the Lord, but Jesus didn’t. Here He is reminding them that He had chosen them, just as God too has chosen us, but our will is involved. It would be pointless for God to do anything against our will; what would that prove, since the test of our will is the very purpose of this earthly experience? Our relationship with God is squarely based on our willingness to serve Him. Thus, for Him to override our will and choose us without giving us a say in the matter would be counterproductive to His own interests. The concept of predestination is hard for a lot of people to accept, because it brings up a lot of complicated philosophical questions, many of which have no answer in this life, and clashes with other well-founded ideas in the Bible, but most of these problems can be resolved in a single sentence: God chooses us as we choose ourselves. Jn 15-17 (206j) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Conditions to promises >> Conditions to getting your prayers answered KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15,18-25 (17a) Sin >> Continuing in sin to avoid the light >> Man hates God – The world hates those of us who love and follow the teachings of Christ for reasons more than just being different from them. The children of God are aliens as though from another world and pose a real threat. We testify against their deeds, that they are evil, and we prophesy that another kingdom is coming that will subjugate all other nations, ending the long reign of man, and initiating a kingdom in which God Himself is ruler. It is a spiritual clash between darkness and light. Their hate is based mostly on jealousy, but there are other issues involved that motivate their distaste for us, such as we warn of their impending doom if they don't repent, and we prick their conscience after they have trashed their own. The world hates God because Satan hates God and the world belongs to him. (18h) Sin >> Twisted thinking >> Can’t distinguish between good and evil >> Jesus is evil (25a) Sin >> Poverty (Forms of fear) >> Hate the truth – These two statements that Jesus spoke side by side, “A slave is not greater than His master” and “If they keep My word, they will keep yours also,” seem to have no connection, but there is a connection. Jesus was saying that there is no comparison between we Christians and our Lord, just like there is no comparison between a master and his slaves, but to the world there is no difference. Those who believe in Jesus through the evangelist who preaches to them should respect their word as though respecting Jesus Himself. They should listen to us as though listening to Him. They should obey our word as though obeying His, because we are His ambassadors, and Jesus taught that the messenger comes by the authority of the one who sent him. To those who reject the word of Christ He said, ‘Just as they hated and crucified Me, they will also hate and make martyrs of you.’ They have no connection to God, because they have alienated themselves from Him. If the world knew any better they would realize this was a major slap in the face that they do not know God. Jesus was able to say this with certainty, for to the degree that they hated Him, was the degree that they also hated His Father. The hatred of Jesus and the hatred of His Father are two different kinds of hatred. The world hated Jesus because He testified against their deeds, and they hated His Father because of His authority over them as their creator. (42k) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Conform to the glory of Christ’s death (152e) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> Witnesses of the father >> Apostles >> Jesus is our great apostle (154e) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness that the world is godless >> Witness that the world hates God (157b) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of being hell-bound >> Rejecting God >> Rejecting Christ (164i) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world is at enmity with God >> The world hates God – Man has an affinity for evil that crowds out any desire for righteousness. It didn’t matter what nation Jesus visited, the result would have been the same. Mankind generally does not believe in God, except for a handful of people that God would choose from the world to be His sons and daughters, and the rest are hardened. Jesus didn’t say, ‘If Israel hates you,’ He said, “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.” The world prefers Satan’s secularism over God’s Truth. Jesus warned His disciples that because the world hated Him, it will hate them for being His children. The world hated Jesus Christ because He was the Son of God, and they are jealous of His children because God has chosen them from the world. Although those of the world have no desire to be His children, they are still jealous that He chose us and not them. They too could theoretically repent of their unbelief, but because God has not chosen them, they cannot become His children by their own authority. The world loves its own, but since love comes from God and they have rejected Him, the world has no love, so how could they love their own? The world loves its own only by comparison to its hatred of God’s children. This so-called love, or comparison of love, is best seen at the cross when King Herod and Pontius Pilate became friends at that very hour, “before this they had been enemies” (Lk 23-12). (185b) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Mystery of lawlessness >> Having no grounds for your hate >> Hating Christ without a cause – Mankind has a love affair with evil, with Satan, God’s nemesis, and with his secular worldview that he has used to hold mankind in the palm of his hand since Adam. The gospel of John made that crystal clear throughout his discourse. With the Pharisees constantly breathing down Jesus’ neck, and the Jews pursuing him for nothing more than another free meal, they somehow ignored the fact that He came from heaven and performed miracles right before their eyes. Israel’s response to Jesus was a phenomenon like Hitler’s Germany, only the opposite. How a man like Hitler could captivate a people and hold them in the palm of his hand, while an entire nation refused to believe in a man who performed so many miracles in their presence is a mystery. Jesus gave three or four reasons the world hated Him, but when it came down to it, they hated Him for no reason at all. The world denies that Jesus gave mankind an opportunity to come to know God and that man has rejected His offer. Since people refuse to acknowledge this fact, they hated Jesus without a cause, but in fact this is the reason. (186a) Works of the devil >> The result of lawlessness >> Blasphemy >> Unwilling to obey the revelation from heaven >> Unwilling to walk in God’s ability – They who do not know God, persecute those who do, all the while denying the fact, but it stands to reason that if they hated His children, they cannot know God. For this reason also they hate His Truth, because it takes away their ignorance. Man's most uproarious age was in the days of Noah when there was no knowledge of God except their conscience, but now, knowing the truth makes it their fault for not knowing God. For the revelation of Jesus Christ they killed him, and for this reason they will kill us if we speak the word of God to them the way Jesus did, because they know what it means. It is not just evidence but proof that God testifies against their deeds. Now they have no excuse for their unbelief, and the only alternative is to repent or be damned. (200l) Denying Christ >> Whoever is not with Jesus is against him >> He is against Christ who does not receive Him >> Whoever does not receive the Church is against Christ (201d) Denying Christ >> Jesus is an offense >> Truth offends error >> The word offends peoples’ sinful lifestyles – The biggest reason the world hated Jesus was that He testified against their deeds and took away their excuses. Prior to Jesus coming, the world’s sin was breaking the laws of Moses, but now that Jesus has come and given the world an opportunity to know God and they rejected His offer, this has now become their sin. Jesus said, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (Jn 14-9), so to come to know Jesus is to come to know God. The way He demonstrated this fact is by giving us His Holy Spirit, and by Him we can come to know God. The sin of rejecting the opportunity to know God is far greater than the sin of breaking the Law of Moses by just so much as Jesus is greater than Moses. People of His time knew this about Him in their hearts and crucified Him anyway, just like people in our own generation know Jesus is the way to God and have rejected Him. (202k) Denying Christ >> Running from God >> Wicked men cannot approach the throne of God >> Goats are unsaved church attendants (221i) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Kingdom hidden behind the veil from the world >> God hides his divinity from man’s corruption >> The Kingdom of God is from another realm – The world hates Christians because we are not of the world. The world doubly hated Jesus from the physical standpoint that God literally was His Father. The world hates us because we are His children and have thus rejected all that is in the world, considering it evil, and this brings offense. We possess the Holy Spirit, which originated from a realm that is completely foreign to the world. People feared Jesus Christ because of his alien quality, and in their fear they hated Him, and in their hatred they crucified Him. Like a flying saucer that lands on the earth, the first thing people want to do is make war with the creatures, because they do not understand them, much more when their message is to repent. (242c) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Persecuting the word of God – They know there is no place in their hearts for repentance; they have already committed themselves to sin and to the stubbornness of unbelief, and they know that if they don’t repent, they will incite the judgment of God. Therefore, they quickly conclude that to remove the threat is their best option, but it is a trap. They fail to realize that to martyr Jesus Christ will release the grace and mercy of God in their favor, and they will be required to receive Him, because if they reject that too, it will release His judgment against them. The devil has blinded their minds; though people could repent of their unbelief, to them it is impossible. On their own volition they could seek God and ask Him for His forgiveness, and God would forgive them, but they can’t. Most are destined for shame and dishonor. Jn 15,18-21 (217i) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> I never knew you >> Because you never knew Him Jn 15-18,19 (168f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world listens to itself >> The world receives itself KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15-19 (220b) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> Predestination >> Predestined according to the sovereignty of God -- This verse goes with verse 16 Jn 15-20 (71a) Authority >> Believer’s authority >> We have authority from God to evangelize the world >> We have an anointing to preach the gospel (239a) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Pursuing the knowledge of the kingdom >> Teachers >> Teachers "remind" their students >> Recalling the word of God (241g) Persecuting The Kingdom Of God (Key verse) Jn 15,21-27 (114k) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Working God’s grace through Christ >> Jesus is the way to the Father -- These verses go with verses 7-9. “Spirit of truth” is a beautiful phrase that suggests that without the Holy Spirit we cannot know the truth. God’s truth is a comfort to us, not just words written on a page but the origin of those words, the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from the Father. This is symbolized by the River of Life (Rev 22-1,2) that has its headwaters at the base of God’s throne and winds throughout His kingdom and into eternity. Jn 15-21 (209b) Salvation >> The salvation of God >> Personal relationship >> Counterfeit relationship through religion >> Knowing about God, but not knowing God Jn 15,22-25 (154a) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness against the world >> There is no excuse for rejecting Christ – People of the world say, ‘Why doesn’t God show up once in a while to demonstrate His presence and power to His creation, making it easier for us to believe in Him?’ He did and they murdered Him! The words He spoke and the miracles He performed that proved He was the Son of God made them accountable to Him, so the only correct response after that was to repent of their unbelief. Instead, the darkness within them would not let them, so their only alternative after that was to hate Him, which ultimately led to murder. The revelation of God’s word pushed them into a corner, and triggered their animal instincts to respond with aggression and violence. When the worldly people hate Jesus, when they hate His children for their faith, it is equivalent to hating God. If we asked them to explain why they hate us, there should be no substance to their complaints, unless we have sinned. If they were truthful, they would say they hate our spirit, but chances are they don’t believe in spirits, because of their secular views, so they don’t know why they hate us; they just do. For this reason the book of Act is filled with instances of religious leaders bringing the apostles before worldly magistrates without formal charges, because there was no substance to their complaints. They hated them according to the spirit they served. The spirit of the world hates us, which uses our enemies like puppets to manifest its hatred of God. For this reason it is written in their law, “They hated Me without a cause.” (186b) Works of the devil >> The result of lawlessness >> Blasphemy >> Cursing the Holy Spirit >> Consider the work of the Holy Spirit to be sin (221a) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Kingdom hidden behind the veil from the world >> God hides from man’s ignorance >> God hides from those who are not looking for Him Jn 15-22,23 (40h) Judgment >> Judgment of Christ >> God’s word judges the world >> It does not obey Him Jn 15-22 (246i) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm imposed on the natural realm >> Demonstration of God’s kingdom >> God demonstrates His glory >> Demonstration of His words Jn 15-24,25 (146i) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Jesus’ works bear witness of Himself >> Purpose of Miracles, Signs And Wonders >> Proof that Jesus is the son of God >> That the world may be saved KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15-24 (246g) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm imposed on the natural realm >> Demonstration of God’s kingdom >> God demonstrates His glory >> Demonstration of His power – Jesus Christ is the word of God, who performed miracles through the strength of His Father, elucidating two critical elements that are involved in everything God does: the word of God and the Holy Spirit (the Spirit and the Word). The Father gave Jesus the words to speak, and when He spoke them, He performed miracles through His Son. Jesus did not wield the power of God by His own authority but through the authority of His Father. This is essential for us to understand, for it says in Rev 19-13 that Jesus wore “a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.” Having the title “Word of God” is His position with the Father. Whenever God does something, He first reveals it to His Son, who then speaks the Word of His Father, who performs His works through Him. Christ has now turned and given us authority in the same manner that He received it. He has given us the knowledge of His will by revelation, and if we speak the word of God, He will perform His works through us, just as He did in His Son, because we are His children and brothers and sisters of Christ. We have been given the same position as Christ with the Father; as Jesus is the word of God to the Father, so are we. The Father gives His word to His Son, who confers with His Spirit, who confers with us, and we convey God's word to the world, which performs His work that men might be saved. (253ja) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is subject to the Father >> Jesus is under the authority of the Father >> Jesus did His Father's will – Jesus regularly spoke about His Father, but we have demoted its significance, and the fact that we have discounted the Father means we don’t understand the Son either. 1Jn 2-23 says, “Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also.” The point that John was making was that if we understand the relationship between the Father and Son, then we have them both, but if we don’t understand their relationship, then we have neither. This means understanding the hierarchy of authority in heaven is critical to our salvation. The Father is the origin of all things, who sent His Son for our sake. Had the Father not sent Him to die for the sins of the world, He wouldn't have come on His own, for it would be useless for Jesus to do anything without His Father's consent. As it is, we not only have His consent, we have His favor! Jesus never does anything apart from His Father, being subject to His Father, as we are subject to Christ. Jn 15-25 (19d) Sin >> Mocking God Without a cause >> Motivated by the flesh – Jesus was referring specifically to the Jews when He said they hated Him without a cause, but this fact is not limited to the Jews only but to the whole world. What did Jesus ever do to make people hate Him? Actually, there is a cause for hating Jesus: people worship the world the flesh and the devil. Whatever their flesh tells them to do is what they do; their flesh is god to them. In terms of the Pharisees and the Jews, they didn’t have an actual reason for hating their Messiah; basically, it was their sinful nature that hated Him. It wasn’t the Pharisees and the Jews themselves; it was their sinful nature that wanted Him dead. We know that Satan hates Jesus too, who is the god of this world, meaning anybody who hates God is in league with demons. (141h) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Old Testament bears witness to the new >> It bears witness to Jesus >> Prophesy about Jesus’ life (212e) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> He is the creator >> Evolution (Defaming God) >> The scientific mind cannot know God – Someone might say, ‘There just isn’t enough reason for me to believe in Jesus; the story about Him may not be true.’ However, people have the entire universe as a guide to the existence of God; all they need to do is look up and see His handiwork. We have giant telescopes that can show us spectacular details of interstellar formations, and astronomers can accurately calculate the distance of these objects, reaching far beyond what the human imagination can fathom. Ten thousand light-years is the distance of the closest neighboring galaxy, Andromeda, and the universe infinitely continues. So, there is definitely a reason to believe in the existence God, because all this stuff can’t make itself, though they are currently working on a theory that is intended to prove just that. It aims to remove the need for a creator from the celestial equation, but it is only a mathematical theory, and the only ones able to understand the formulas are top minds in the field of mathematics and applied astronomy, which is only a large handful of people, and the rest of us are stuck having to believe them. If we have no choice but to believe someone, then why don't we believe God? Their theory promises to explain how matter can exist without a Creator, that somehow matter has created itself along with the stars and galaxies, more importantly how the laws of physics came into existence. The rest of us who cannot grasp their mathematical chicken-scratch must trust them to be right. Now they say there is less reason to believe in God, but their proof will never rise above an un-provable mathematical theory. Even the scientists must believe the works of their own hands, because they will never prove their theories, which sounds like idolatry. Why believe in mathematical formulas or in scientists? The reason people will choose to believe them over God is because, “They hated Me without a cause.” KJV WEB / Parallel Gospel / Navigation Bar Jn 15-26 (68e) Authority >> Jesus Delegates the Holy Spirit to us >> Sent from heaven – Jesus said, “When the helper comes…” meaning that He hadn’t yet come when He said this, prior to His crucifixion. There are two ministries of the Holy Spirit: the first, He causes us to be born-again. Jesus breathed on His disciples after His resurrection and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (Jn 20-22). At that moment they were born-again. The second ministry began at Pentecost after His ascension. So there are two separate works of the Holy Spirit: one enables us to be the children of God and the other enables us to live victoriously over sin. It is the second to which Jesus was referring in this verse, which is termed the anointing. The name “Christ” literally means Anointed One, and so "Christians" means anointed ones. Every Christian has some level of anointing, and that anointing is a measure between what God is willing to give and what we are willing to receive. God imparts His anointing based on our knowledge of the truth coupled with our obedience of faith. (107g) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> (111c) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Spirit of truth – “Spirit of truth,” these two entities work together, so we can say with complete certainty that every truth about God we understand through the Holy Spirit. Man has proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that without the Holy Spirit we are incapable of knowing the truth, for nobody happens upon the truth by accident. When we think of paganism and all the other strange religions of the world, none of them come close to the truth that Jesus taught. His teachings were revolutionary and controversial in His time and to this day; He would say something and people would just stare at Him, not understanding a word of it, because it was so different from anything they had previously heard. If we understand any aspect of God’s truth, it is because the Holy Spirit has revealed it to us. Knowing God’s truth is comforting in itself, and when the Holy Spirit comes alongside to help, He blesses us in ways that no one else could. (113l) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Anointing establishes us in His will – Being born-again refers to the indwelling Holy Spirit; His purpose is to comfort us in our circumstances and counsel us as children of God by the witness that He lives in our hearts, and the anointing helps us establish our lives in His will. In many respects being born-again and the anointing are one and the same; in fact, there are many Christians who don’t believe in the anointing, yet they are anointed just the same through their allegiance to the Lord. They may not believe the teachings and doctrine of the anointing, yet through their obedience God endows them with an anointing in spite of their theology. There are entire denominations that reject the anointing, but that doesn’t limit God from using them if they are willing to work with Him and discover His calling and purpose that He has prepared for them. If we will walk in His works, God will endow us with His power regardless what we believe. (144i) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Witnesses of Jesus >> Trinity bears witness of Jesus >> Holy Spirit bears witness of Jesus (228c) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> Comforted >> We are comforted in the presence of God >> Holy Spirit is our comforter – It is fair to say there are certain personality types that are successful in the world, making it equally fair to say there are certain personality types that are unsuccessful in the world. The second type is more likely to get saved than the first, for it describes Jesus' chosen twelve disciples. Jm 2-5 says, “Did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” We know that the poor need comforting. Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mat 5-3), not necessarily referring to their purses, but to their self-esteem. Sometimes we get downright depressed; who could blame us? The world is a depressing place. The Holy Spirit has pulled many a Christian from the pit of despair. Jn 15-27 (144c) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Witnesses of Jesus >> The Church Bears Witness of Jesus >> Having fellowship with Him – Jesus said according to the previous verse that the disciples had a similar ministry to the Holy Spirit: “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me” (v26). It only makes sense that the disciples used the Holy Spirit in their testimony of Jesus, being His companions for three years, having fellowshipped with Him and walked with Him, sat around the campfire on many nights and enjoyed His company, witnessed His miracles and heard the gracious words fall from His lips. Jesus chose twelve disciples, eleven that remained and one son of perdition to fulfill Scripture. Judas Iscariot was replaced by Saul of Tarsus, who personally never met the Lord in the flesh but met Him later in the Spirit. That single momentary encounter accomplished the same that Jesus did after three years of intense discipleship training. In fact, Paul produced more fruit in his lifetime than any of the other disciples as a result of this one encounter with Christ along the road to Damascus. This proves the importance of living and walking in the Spirit and fellowshipping with Him, so we too can hopefully receive the commendation of our enemies, having proof through our boldness that we too have been with Jesus (Act 4-13). See next page