John 13-21

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Adult QuarterlySUNDAY SCHOOL WINTER QUARTER, 2008-2009

7He Humbled Himself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

14He Prepared for Departure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

21He Promised Another Comforter . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

28He Assured Fruitfulness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

4He Warned of Persecution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3311He Guaranteed Guidance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

18He Revealed His Death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

25He Interceded for Saints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55

1He Yielded Himself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63

8He Bore His Cross . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72

15He Arose from the Tomb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

22He Commanded His Disciples . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88

What Did Jesus Do?Christs Mission for His People

A Study in John 1321

Writer: David Robinson

DECEMBER

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

EDITOR IN CHIEF:

Larry E. [email protected]

BUSINESS MANAGER:

Wayne [email protected]

PRODUCTION EDITOR:

Sally McInvale

ADULT EDITOR:

Jim Jones

CHILDRENS EDITOR:

Libby Gill

ILLUSTRATOR:

Connie Spears

GRAPHIC ARTISTS:

Shawn Blase, Jeff Allen,Greg Hilterbrand, GeraldMartin, Ashley Carozza

LAYOUT DESIGNERS:

Bonita McKnight, Kyle Elkins,Cindy Butler

CONTENT EDITORS:

Terry McKellar, Carolyn Burks,Deby Turrentine

PRINT PRODUCTION:

Charles Easley

COVER DESIGN:

Jeff Allen

Copyright 2008

Baptist Sunday SchoolCommittee4605 N. State Line Ave.Texarkana, TX 75503-2928www.abaptist.org1-800-264-2482

QUARTERLY AIM: The pupil will grow in under-

standing of what Jesus did and deepen his commitment

to serve Christ.

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Genesis 1250

Romans

Matthew 113

LeviticusNumbers

Deuteronomy

Luke 113:21

1 Timothy2 Timothy

Titus

Ezra; NehemiahHabakkuk; Haggai

Malachi; Esther

Revelation 111

Matthew 1428

Hebrews

Luke 13:2224

Jeremiah

Lamentations2 Kings 24; 25

2 Chronicles 36

1 Peter

2 Peter

Revelation 1222

Exodus

Joshua

JudgesRuth

Hosea; Amos;Micah; Jonah;

2 Kings 1416;2 Chronicles 2528

John 112

1, 2, 3 JohnJude

Genesis 111

Job

Proverbs

EcclesiastesSong of Solomon

Ephesians

John 1321

DanielEzekiel

Zechariah

2012

American Baptist AssociationThrough-the-Bible Series Sunday School Lessons

Acts 1528

2 Samuel 524

1 Chronicles 1129

1 Kings 1; 2

Galatians

1 Samuel

2 Samuel 141 Chronicles 110

James

1 Thessalonians

2 Thessalonians

1 Kings 3222 Chronicles 124

2 Kings 113Joel; Obadiah

Mark 18

Psalms 172

1 Corinthians

Acts 114

Mark 916

Psalms 73150

Winter Spring Summer Fall

2013

2014

2015

2016

Isaiah 1392 Chronicles 2932

2 Kings 1720Nahum

Isaiah 40662 Kings 2123

2 Chronicles 3335Zephaniah

Philemon

PhilippiansColossians

2 Corinthians2017

2018

2009

2010

2011

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Jesus Christ is the Creator of the world. He made allthings that are and without Him nothing was made thatexists (John 1:3). He was rightly hailed as the Messiah andthe King of Israel. Yet, Jesus did not come into Jerusalem torule as a king; He came to die as our Savior. The first signif-icant thing about the lesson today is Jesus humbled Himself.As we live, situations and circumstances can often humble

us. We can be humbled by other people in our lives as theyact and react quite differently than we expect.

But no situation is ever beyond the control of our Lord. Nohuman being has had more power or authority than He did.He literally chose to do everything He did, and He chose tohumble Himself. Jesus took on Himself the form of the lowli-est of servants.

The second thing weshould note is there is a pro-cess. This is not a randomseries of events. EverythingJesus did teaches us a greatlesson and the order of

3

He Humbled HimselfText: John 13:1-30 Focus: John 13:1-17

Sunday Devotional: He Be-came Poor, Making Many Rich, 2Corinthians 8:9.

Application: Jesus is the per-

fect picture of humility. He setthe pattern for every believer tofollow as He selflessly and sacri-ficially served others. Whom doyou serve?

Daily Devotionals

M. Prediction of the Betrayal, John 13:18-30.T. The Pattern of Humility, Philippians 2:5-8.

W. No Vainglory, Philippians 2:1-4.

T. Preferring One Another, Romans 12:9-16.

F. Please Others First, Romans 15:1-3.

S. Serve To Gain, 1 Corinthians 9:19-22.

1December 7, 2008

Key Verse:

Now before the feast of thepassover, when Jesus knew thathis hour was come that he shoulddepart out of this world unto theFather, having loved his ownwhich were in the world, he lovedthem unto the end.

John 13:1

A FIRST LOOK

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events is instructive as well. Voluntary humility must befirst, then spiritual cleansing will follow, and the result willbe happiness.

This sinful world will exactly reverse this order. We thinkonce we achieve happiness we can find spiritual righteous-ness, and, if we choose, we can be humble. The worlds orderof things will never work. It will produce human misery, nottrue happiness. In Jesus, the way to rewards is to become theservant of all, not the ruler.

I. Knowledge

John 13:1-3

1. Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his

hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the

Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them

unto the end.2. And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart

of Judas Iscariot, Simons son, to betray him;

3.Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands,

and that he was come from God, and went to God.

In these verses we see the things Jesus knew His discipleshad not yet grasped. Jesus had plainly told His disciples that

He would go to Jerusalem, suffer many things, be crucifiedand rise again on the third day. But these prophetic wordsfell on deaf ears (Luke 9:22). Jesus came into Jerusalem todie for the sins of the world; the disciples came to observe onemore Passover.

Jesus knew His hour, or time, had come. God is not boundby time in the way we are, but He bound Himself to timing.

God sent Jesus into the world when the fullness of time wascome and Jesus ministry proceeded according to a timeschedule. That schedule was not known to men, but it wasknown to our Lord. Jesus had previously stated that His hourhad not come and how He knew now that it had. Jesus knewHe would soon leave this world and return to His Father inHeaven.

4 He Humbled Himself

A CLOSER LOOK

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Text: John 13:1-30 5

Jesus also knew that He loved those who were His own. Thelove God has for us is not circumstantial or limited to a time anda place. The actions of Jesus were motivated by His love for His

own. This is a great example to any teacher or leader. There isno better thing a teacher can do than to love those he teaches.

But the love of Jesus and the work of Jesus did not excludethe activities of Satan. Jesus also knew Satan was at work inthe heart of Judas. Perhaps Judas did not initially intend tobetray Jesus. Certainly, Judas did not begin to follow Jesusknowing that in a few years his own life would end in disgrace.

But Satan is a liar and he lied to Judas. Judas believed moneywould solve his problems. He was greedy when the ointmentwas poured out in the home of Lazarus and he was greedywhen offered a chance to make money by betraying Jesus.

Jesus knew the Father had given all things into His hand.Jesus is in control of the earth and all that is in it. Often, itmay seem to us that things are out of control, but they nevertruly are. The next few days would be chaotic from the view

of the disciples, but, from Jesus standpoint, they proceededaccording to a strict plan as He knew they would.

Jesus also knew where He came from and where He wasgoing. He endured the shame of the cross because of the glorythat was waiting for Him in eternity. When His redemptivework on earth was finished, Jesus knew He would return toHeaven to be with His Father.

There is a wonderful comfort in the simple fact we will goto Heaven when we die. That fact should put a smile on yourlips and a spring in your step, no matter what else may hap-pen to you. Life can indeed be filled with troubles. The nextfew days would be days of heartbreak and trial for Jesus; yet,at the end of it He returned to Heaven. We can face our trialssecure in the knowledge that, because of our faith in Jesus, wewill one day be taken to the presence of God Himself. What awonderful and comforting knowledge.

II. Service

John 13:4-12

4. He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a

towel, and girded himself.

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5. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash

the disciples feet, and to wipe themwith the towel wherewith he was

girded.

6. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him,Lord, dost thou wash my feet?

7.Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not

now; but thou shalt know hereafter.

8. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus

answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.

9. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my

hands and myhead.

10.Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to washhis feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.

11. For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are

not all clean.

12. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments,

and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done

to you?

With these thoughts in His mind, Jesus rose from supperand began to perform the most menial of tasks. He took offHis outer garments and took a towel and began to wash thefeet of His surprised disciples. This was a kind of service thatno Hebrew, even a Hebrew slave, would be asked to perform.A Gentile slave might, but no Jew would be required byanother Jew to stoop this low. Jesus was performing the mosthumble and menial task imaginable in that day.

The man who held all things in His hands and could doanything He chose, picked up a towel and washed feet. Thisis a great lesson for us today. Often our pride keeps us fromserving. We may think the task at hand is beneath us, or wemay think those we are serving are not worthy of our service.Either way, when we refuse to humble ourselves, we lose ablessing.

When Jesus came to Peter, He found the first overt resis-tance to this ministry. At first Peter did not want Jesus towash his feet. Jesus patiently explained that Peter wouldunderstand all this in the future, and, if Jesus did not washhis feet, Peter would have no part with Jesus. Peter thenwent overboard and asked Jesus to wash his feet, hands andhead. This shows clearly Peter did not understand what

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Jesus was doing, but like most of us, this did not keep himfrom stating his opinions.

Jesus patiently explained what His actions were symboliz-

ing. Jesus was teaching His disciples the importance ofmaintaining fellowship with God. When a sinner trustsJesus as Savior, he has his sins washed away and forgiven(Titus 3:3-7). That transaction is permanent and will neverneed to be repeated. But, as a believer walks in this world, heor she can become partially defiled. Such a person does notneed to be bathed all over again; he simply needs to have

that defilement cleansed away. God promised to give us thiscleansing when we confess our sins to Him (1 John 1:9).When God cleanses us in salvation, this results in a perma-nent union with Christ. This is a settled relationship whichcannot change. It is settled once and for all. However, our fel-lowship with Christ depends on our keeping ourselvesunspotted from the world (James 1:27). If we have uncon-fessed and unforgiven sin in our lives, we interrupt our fel-lowship with the Lord, and that is when we need to have ourfeet washed.

Peter would learn this lesson painfully when he deniedJesus three times in one night. We should learn an importantlesson from the actions of Peter. Do not question the Lordswill or work, and do not try to change it. Jesus knew what Hewas doing. Peter may have had a difficult time letting Jesus

wash his feet because Peter himself was not willing to min-ister to others in this same way. It takes humility and graceto serve others, but it also takes humility and grace to allowothers to serve us. The beautiful thing about a truly submis-sive spirit is that it can give as well as receive and do both tothe glory of God.

III. Happiness

John 13:12-17

12. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments,

and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done

to you?

13. Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.

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14. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also

ought to wash one anothers feet.

15. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have

done to you.16. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his

lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.

17. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.

Jesus then asked His disciples whether they understoodwhat had happened. Knowing they did not comprehend, Heexplained this example of service to them.

Jesus was indeed their Lord and Master. But, if He will-ingly humbled Himself and washed their feet in submissiveservice, they should be willing to do as He had done. In thisincident Jesus gave us an example of humble service on anylevel, not a specific command to imitate this particularaction. We do not find this practice repeated among otherchurches mentioned later in the Bible. It is not mentioned ortaught in the church epistles. The two church ordinances are

baptism and the Lords Supper. In fact, foot washing was notan ordinary practice in early Jewish homes. It was done, butit was not required. Foot washing was a sign of special affec-tion on the part of a host. This event occurred after the mealwas completed, not when these men first entered the room.

Jesus wanted His disciples to get this picture of humbleservice, but, more than that, He wanted them to imitate this

example in the thousands of ways they could serve eachother. True happiness is not in understanding alone; it alsorequires practice. In fact, understanding without practice isusually frustrating to all involved.

The great principle taught here is that the servant is notabove his master. If Jesus could humble Himself and serveothers in a menial task with no thought of reward, we shouldbe willing to do as He did.

This kind of humble service will be unconscious. You can-not take pride in your humility. In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus

A FINAL WORD

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told about people who had helped others and served Himwithout knowing they were doing it. True humility is notthinking lowly about yourself; it is not thinking of yourself at

all. True humility is doing what is right because it is right,with no thought about position or pride.

In a world where men are constantly concerned about theirimage and status, Jesus gave this contrary but refreshingexample of a King who was willing to perform the lowliest oftasks to teach those He loved a valuable lesson about service.Most of these men never forgot what Jesus did that night.

Judas was there and this whole incident made no impres-sion on him. Satan had taken over his evil heart, and he wasno longer considering the lessons Jesus was teaching.

There is no job that is beneath us. The only promotion inthe service of the Lord is to be a servant of more people. InGods sight it does not matter how many people work for youor with you, it only matters how many you serve. Op-portunities for service are everywhere and they are eternal-

ly rewarding. Remember it is usually the CEO who has theulcers and stress, not the janitor.

1. When you reflect on the actions of Jesus as He took the

place of a servant and washed the feet of His disciples, howdoes it affect you?

2. What do you think the disciples thought as Jesus madeHis way around washing their feet?

3. What humbling acts of service can we do for ourbrethren as we emulate Jesus?

4. Discuss the difference between doing what Jesus did

and doing as Jesus did (John 13:15) in washing the feet ofHis disciples.

FOR CLASS DISCUSSION

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Jesus was with His disciples in the same room where Hewashed their feet when the lessons taught here were given.But an important thing had happened. Judas had left theroom. John tells us it was dark when this happened. It wasdark in the world, and it was dark in the heart of Judas. Inthe face of Jesus wonderful example of humility, Judas hadgone out to betray Him. He had completely missed the point

of Jesus life and teachings.As soon as Judas left, Jesus began to prepare the hearts

of His disciples for His coming death, burial and resurrec-tion and His return to Heaven. With a few words Jesuschanged the subject from humility and service to the gloryof God. There is no contradiction here. Those who truly seekthe glory of God will behumble and submissive intheir service to God andtheir fellowmen.

We often hear the com-forting words of chapter 14out of context. These words

10

He Preparedfor Departure

Text: John 13:3114:14 Focus: John 13:3114:6

Sunday Devotional: The New Com-mandment in Practice, 1 John 3:10-14.

Application:Jesus glorified the Fatherthrough His life and death. He offerseternal life, His presence, power and aplace in Heaven to all who come to Godthrough Him. He alone is the way.

Daily Devotionals

M. Jesus and the Father Are One, John 14:7-14.T. His Offering for Sin, Isaiah 53:10-12.

W. Practice Brotherly Love, Romans 12:9, 10.

T. The Only Way to God, Hebrews 10:19-22.

F. The Truth Is in Jesus, Ephesians 4:21-24.S. The Life Is in the Son, 1 John 5:11, 12.

2December 14, 2008

Key Verse:

In my Fathers house aremany mansions: if it werenot so, I would have told

you. I go to prepare a placefor you.

John 14:2

A FIRST LOOK

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would be despised and rejected of men, and He would die ahorrible death on the cross. Of all those Jesus had helped andtaught, only a few would be with Him in this dark hour. At

the last, even God would forsake Him. But from a heavenlystandpoint, this was the hour for which Jesus came into the

world. The cross stands as the centerpiece of human history.Jesus stood as a Lamb slain from the foundation of theworld (Rev. 13:8), and all Heaven was waiting for thispromised event to become history.

Now we look at the cross as a defining point in human exis-

tence. We do this without even realizing it. When we look ata calendar, it is dated BC or AD. The dividing line betweenthe two is the life and death of Jesus.

Jesus desire and goal was to glorify the Father and for God

to be glorified in Him. He accomplished this in the same wayHis followers have through the years. God is glorified whenwe do His will. Jesus glorified His Father while He was on

earth by completing the work God gave Him to do. He wasnow going to the cross to die for the sins of the world, and, in

doing so, He was acting in obedience to His Father and glori-fying Him.

The simple truth of 1 Samuel 15:22 is that obedience isbetter than anything else we can offer God. In the next fewdays Jesus would have many opportunities to put His will

above the will of God. But He would pass every test, and Godwould be glorified in His death as God had been glorified inHis life.

Then Jesus told His disciples that they would seek Himbut would not be able to find Him. He had twice before told

this to the Jews. Jesus told those who had faithfully followedHim for so long that now He must go on alone. His disciplescould not go where He was going. They would eventually betogether again, but for a while Jesus had to walk alone.

Then Jesus gave the disciples a new commandment. Thiscommandment was not new in the sense that it had neverbeen taught before. This was not the first time God hadtaught people to love each other. Leviticus 19:18 teaches usthat we should love our neighbors as we love ourselves. This

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commandment was new in the sense that, once Jesus died onthe cross, love would take on a new meaning. When the HolySpirit came, love took on a new power. Jesus did not only love

others as He loved Himself. He loved them more than that.His love went beyond the capacity of legal or human love.Jesus loved with the divine self-sacrificing love that avail-able only as a gift from the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 13:13).

The power of this love is taught in the amazing truth inverse 35. When we exercise God-given love toward each other,the whole world will know we are the disciples of Jesus. This

love is exclusive. It is not found in the world and it is notfound in other religions. This kind of love is a gift from God,and it is given to those who will place their personal faith inJesus Christ.

It is the best thing we can do for a lost and dying world.

II. Peters Question

John 13:36-38

36. Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus

answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou

shalt follow me afterwards.

37. Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow thee now? I will

lay down my life for thy sake.

38.Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake?

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hastdenied me thrice.

Peter did not want Jesus to wash his feet, and now Peterdid not want to be told not to follow Jesus. Peter had impul-sively questioned what Jesus was doing before, and now Hequestioned what Jesus was teaching. Peters question wasWhy? It is a characteristic of human nature to want to dothings that are denied us. Tell someone not to do something,or that they cannot do something, or worse, dare them to dosomething and all kinds of foolishness will be the result.

No doubt Peter had taken his following Jesus for granted.He had just assumed that he would go where Jesus went andbe in on everything Jesus did. Now Jesus plainly told Peter

Text: John 13:3114:14 13

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and the others that they could not go at this time where He

was going.

Peter added to this by making a rash and hasty declara-

tion. He pledged to lay down his life for Jesus. At the timePeter had no idea he would be required to actually put his life

on the line. It is easy to offer to sacrifice things you think you

will never have to give up. But Jesus knew what was ahead,

and He told Peter that, in a matter of hours, he would deny

Him three times.

Peter did indeed do as Jesus said. Peter was not thinking

about the possible trials in the hours ahead, but Jesus was.Jesus knew what lay ahead for Him and for His disciples and

He was trying to prepare the hearts of these He loved for the

rough times ahead.

It is evident that Peter did not listen to what Jesus taught

here. When Jesus was arrested in the garden, Peter followed

Jesus even though Jesus had plainly said the disciples

presently could not go where He was going. Peter then foundhimself in the courtyard of the high priest, and it was there

he first denied the Lord. If Peter had listened to Jesus, he

would not have attempted to go where Jesus went.

When we read our Bibles we are reading the Word of God

not the opinions of men. God knows what He is doing and the

best course for our lives is to understand and implement the

Word of God in our lives as thoroughly as possible. God neverasks for our advice or vote in what He is doing. He only asks

us to believe in Him and to obey what He has taught us.

III. A Living Hope

John 14:1-4

1. Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also inme.

2. In my Fathers house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would

have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

3. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and

receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

4. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.


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Jesus knew that the events of the last few hours had upset

His disciples. He loved these men, and, out of love, He gave

them and us the comforting words of this passage. We have a

choice in the matter of troubled hearts. We do not have achoice in the troubles that come our way, but we always have

a choice in how we react to them. Jesus told us how to have

a calm heart in a troubling situation.

First, we should realize that ultimately we are going to

Heaven. Jesus taught He was going where the disciples could

not follow. This was troubling. But now He told them they

would all be together in the future. Jesus taught Heaven wasa real place and real people were there. Heaven is not mere-

ly a concept, or a dimension; it is a place. God is preparing a

dwelling place for everyone who believes in Jesus. The mean-

ing behind these beautiful words is that God is preparing a

home for us in Heaven. Knowing this will change your life.

Then Jesus told them He would come again to get them.

This is comforting. Jesus will not send an angel to bringabout the resurrection. He is coming personally to gather

those who are His. Jesus did not merely point the way to

Heaven; He is the way. His desire was that He would be

together with those who were His for all eternity. This is a

wonderful promise for troubled hearts.

Jesus said these men knew where He was going, and they

knew the way to get there. Jesus was speaking about spiri-tual things, but His disciples were still thinking about phys-

ical things.

IV. Thomas Question

John 14:5, 6

5. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest;and how can we know the way?

6.Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man

cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Thomas brought up the obvious question. He did not know

where Jesus was going and he did not know the way to get

Text: John 13:3114:14 15

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there. Thomas thinking was earthly and Jesus teaching wasspiritual.

Jesus did not rebuke Thomas. Instead, He reminded

Thomas of an all-important truth. Jesus is the way, the truthand the life. No one can come to God except through Him.This is the truth and accepting it will change your life per-manently. Jesus is not a choice among alternatives. Chris-tianity is not one of the worlds great religions. Jesus is notanother path to Heaven. Jesus is the only begotten Son of theliving God. There is no other and there is no other way to

eternal peace. This thought was an adequate answer toThomas doubt.

In this troubled world and in our troubled lives, there aremany rough and weary roads we must travel. But theseroads are all made bearable knowing they lead home. Theassurance we have a heavenly home at the end of life enablesus to bear the unbearable, to love the unlovable, to be joyfulin the middle of tragedy and to succeed in bringing honor toour Father no matter what our situations or circumstances.

The thoughts Jesus shared with these men He loved werethe same thoughts that encouraged Him personally. Hebrews

12:2 declares, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher ofour faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured thecross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right handof the throne of God. Jesus knew terrible trials lay immedi-ately ahead for Him, but He also knew that, after the cross,there was the resurrection and a joyful reunion, not only withthese weary disciples, but also with Heaven itself. That

thought still brings comfort to the hearts of all those whowould believe in Jesus and accept His truth.

1. How do you think the disciples felt when Jesusannounced His departure?


A FINAL WORD


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Text: John 13:3114:14 17

2. Why do you think the prevalent sign of true discipleshipis love among the brethren?

3. In what ways can church members show their love for

one another? How does it become visible?4. From the Lords promises in John 14:1-6, what do you

think brought most comfort to the disciples? What bringsmost comfort to you?

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It may be true that there is no area of our faith which ismore in need of clarification than the truth about the HolySpirit. Many Christians are confused about the person andwork of the Holy Spirit. Many are being misled by those whotwist and distort Scriptures to suit their prejudices. We needclear information and there is no better place to get it than

from the lips of Jesus Himself. Here we have His exact wordsconcerning Gods plan to send another person after Jesus hadgone back to Heaven.

The term used here isparaclete. This is alsotranslated advocate andcomforter. It literallymeans strengthener orhelper, literally onecalled alongs ide toassist. We also need toknow that the termsHoly Spirit and Holy

18

He PromisedAnother Comforter

Text: John 14:15-31 Focus: John 14:15-31

Sunday Devotional: TheyWaited for the Comforter,Acts 1:4-9.

Application:Jesus promisedthe Holy Spirit would cometo lead, remind, comfort, in-spire, indwell and empowerHis followers. He will guideuntil Jesus returns.

Daily Devotionals

M. Teaching by the Holy Spirit,1 Corinthians

2:12-14.

T. The Sealing of the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 1:13,

14.

W. The Renewal of the Holy Spirit, Titus 3:5.

T. The Resurrection by the Holy Spirit, Romans

8:11.

F. The Witness of the Holy Spirit, Romans

8:14-17.

S. The Interceding of the Holy Spirit, Romans

8:26, 27.

3December 21, 2008

Key Verse:

But the Comforter, which is the HolyGhost, whom the Father will send inmy name, he shall teach you all things,and bring all things to your remem-brance, whatsoever I have said untoyou.

John 14:26

A FIRST LOOK

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Ghost are interchangeable. They both are English transla-tions of the same Greek words.

The ministry of the Holy Spirit is absolutely vital to every

child of God. In fact, if we do not have the Holy Spirit, we donot belong to Jesus (Rom. 8:9). The Holy Spirit is a divineperson, as Jesus is. A person is whole. We do not receive eachother in bits and parts. We are either there or we are not, andthe Holy Spirit is either living in our hearts or He is not. Hedoes not come and go. There is no way to get more of the spir-it. He is an abiding and eternal presence in the hearts ofthose who belong to Jesus.

I. The Spirit of Truth

John 14:15-18

15. If ye love me, keep my commandments.16. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another

Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

17. Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive,

because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for

he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

18. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

There are six remarkable facts in this brief paragraph con-cerning the Holy Spirit. First, we learn He will be a gift fromGod to believers. It is important that Jesus defines one whotruly loves Him as one who keeps His commandments. We donot love the Lord because we say we do. Our actions are tes-timonies to our faith. What we truly believe will be put intopractice in our lives. Those who believe in Jesus receive theSpirit. This happens when we are saved and it will neverneed to be repeated.

Jesus stated the Comforter is another (verse 16), a sepa-rate but similar person to Himself. The word for another inGreek means another of the same kind. This is a referenceto the Trinity; three persons in one, Father, Son and Spirit,all distinct one from the other, yet, forming only one God. The

A CLOSER LOOK

Text: John 14:15-31 19

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Comforter would take over the work Jesus had been doing

with the disciples. The reason these men had been strong in

the face of opposition was because they were with Jesus.

When He was no longer physically present, they began to

come apart. While He was with them He upheld them,

strengthened them, counseled them and ministered to them.

But now He promised another would come who would do this

same work.

The third truth is that the Holy Spirit will be a continual-

ly abiding presence. He will be with us forever. It teaches us

the Holy Spirit only comes into our hearts once. He does not

come repeatedly. He comes to abide, to dwell with us. In

Hebrews 13:5 we read, Be content with such things as ye

have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake

thee. The Holy Spirit comes to us as a whole person and He

abides forever.

The fourth fact is that the Spirit will reveal the truth. Heis the Spirit of truth. We can absolutely rely on what He does

and says. There is no confusion, no deceit or disillusionment

in His message. The Holy Spirit gave us the Bible, and our

Bible, when it is understood and interpreted by the Holy

Spirit, is completely dependable. Also the Holy Spirit will not

accept anything but truth from us. We must be completely

honest in our relationship with him. Do not try to deceiveHim about who, where and what you are.

Jesus said this ministry of the Holy Spirit is unavailable to

the world. The world is in a constant struggle to keep God out

of all public institutions and situations. He is not to be men-

tioned at all. This secular attitude denies the existence of

God and the divinity of Jesus, and, therefore, it cannot

receive the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The resource of theSpirit is available only to those who believe in Jesus.

The Holy Spirit is a source of knowledge not found in any

other place in the world. As wonderful as human learning

may be, there is a fundamental knowledge about life that is

never discovered through secular learning, but is taught by

20 He Promised Another Comforter

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the Holy Spirit. Nothing else on earth or no one on earth can

do the work of the Holy Spirit.

Finally, Jesus revealed that the Holy Spirit dwells within

a believer. This will be a resource available from within. Ever

since creation, the Holy Spirit has functioned in this world

(Gen. 1:2). But this working has been from the outside in.

Now His ministry will be within the hearts of believers.

Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, literally comes into our hearts

and makes His residence there. The laws of Gods New

Testament are not written in tables of stone but in the heartsof those who believe in Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 3:3).

II. The Spirit of Love

John 14:19-24

19. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see

me: because I live, ye shall live also.20. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me,

and I in you.

21. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is

that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and

I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

22.Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt

manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?

23.Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep

my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him,

and make our abode with him.

24. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word

which ye hear is not mine, but the Fathers which sent me.

Jesus was clearly distinguishing between the knowledge

the world had of Him and the knowledge those who believedin Him could have. The world only regarded Jesus from a

physical standpoint, and, from that view, He would die and

be removed from the scene. The world would not see Him.

But Jesus would live on after death and His disciples would

know this and through their belief He would live in them.

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Jesus summed up our relationship to Him in six simple

words none more than three letters long. Here is the mystery

of the ages in terms simple enough for any child to grasp. Ye

in me, and I in you (John 14:20). When we are saved, Jesusenters our hearts, and, when we respond to His love by lov-

ing Him in return, we enter into what He is and what He

does.The manifestation of this relationship is in love. Those who

truly love Jesus are not those who shout their dedication theloudest; they are those who keep the commandments of

Jesus. It is pointless to profess a love that does not change us.That kind of love is thinly disguised selfishness. When we

love someone on any level, that love changes us, and we willdo our best to please the one we truly love. In our relation-ship with Jesus, we do this by keeping His commandmentsand these are never difficult. Jesus comes into our lives to

relieve us of our burdens, not to add to them.

Through obedience to Jesus, the love of the Father, the loveof Jesus and the presence of Jesus are manifest or shown tomankind. Many would like to have the manifestation of

Jesus love without obedience to His commandments, but thiswill never work. When we trust Jesus and follow Jesus, wewill know that Jesus is living in our hearts. We must do the

will of God to know more of the will of God (John 7:17).

Judas, not Judas Iscariot, then asked Jesus the obviousquestion. How would those who believed know Jesus whenthe world did not? Jesus repeated the truth He had just

taught and amplified. It begins with love. We must first lovethe Lord. That love will result in obedience. We must ques-tion any profession of love that does not lead to obedience. Ifwe say we love the Lord and refuse to follow Him, we are only

fooling ourselves. When we keep the words of Jesus, God willlove us and Jesus, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit,will come and make a home in the individuals heart.

So there would be no misunderstanding, Jesus plainly

stated that those who do not love Him, will not keep His say-ings. This was strong language, but Jesus emphasized thiswas a direct message from God.


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III. The Spirit of Peace

John 14:25-31

25. These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with

you.

26. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father

will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things

to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

27. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the

world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither

let it be afraid.

28. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again

unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the

Father: for my Father is greater than I.

29. And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is

come to pass, ye might believe.

30. Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this

world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

31. But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as theFather gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.

No doubt these teachings were troubling to the disciples.

Jesus reminded them this was truly a message of peace and

contentment, not of division. The future ministry of the

Comforter would be to enlighten and illuminate the truth

these men already knew. He would help them remember

what they had heard and would add new revelation they

would write down as the books of the New Testament.

Jesus, through the work of the Holy Spirit, left us a new

kind of peace. The world knows peace through strength or

through compromise. Both are unsatisfactory. Jesus gives us

peace through inner change. The renewed heart of a saved

man can be at peace with God and with His fellow

Christians. Because of this, we can have hearts that are not

troubled or afraid. What does a child of God really have to

worry about or fear? If you are going to Heaven when you

die, all other troubles are put in perspective.

Examining things from a physical standpoint, these disci-

ples were afraid and troubled. Jesus was going away and

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their lives would be permanently changed. But, if they couldgrasp the spiritual things He was teaching, they could rejoicewith Him that He was returning to the Father.

Jesus taught His disciples these things so they could usethis information in the difficult days ahead. The trouble ofthe cross was just ahead, and Jesus knew the time of teach-ing was coming to a halt. The lessons He taught would soonbecome realities for these men He loved.

Perhaps the most comforting thing in the world is to know

we are in the presence of another stronger and wiser person

who is able to handle any difficulties or threats that can come

our way. As children run to their parents for protection, so

should we turn to our Father in Heaven.

The ministry of the Holy Spirit is always comforting to thesouls of those who truly trust in Jesus. This is not the false

comfort of believing that somehow and someway things will

be good again. The Spirit of the Lord is the Spirit of truth.

Real comfort is based on truth, not the smoke and mirrors of

deceit.

This is the spirit of love. Sadly, this world is longing to

know that it is loved. Every day all over this planet men and

women are literally desperate for love. Many take their own

lives thinking no one loves them and no one cares what hap-

pens to them. This is never the case. You are loved. God loves

you and He sends His Holy Spirit to tell you so.

The Spirit of God is also the Spirit of peace. The world only

knows the peace that is the absence of strife. True peace is

not merely the absence of trouble any more than health is the

absence of disease. Peace is a positive thing that grips our

hearts and sets us free from worry and doubt. This is the

peace Jesus gives.The wonderful ministry is available to anyone who will

obey the words of Jesus and allow Him to come into theirhearts and abide.

A FINAL WORD


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1. What did it mean to the disciples that Jesus would notleave them comfortless?

2. Discuss what the Bible teaches about the work of theHoly Spirit within and among saints.

3. Did the work of the Comforter influence the writing ofScripture? How?

4. Discuss the threefold work of God the Father, Son and

Holy Spirit in the salvation and security of believers.

Text: John 14:15-31 25


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back to them. This must have been puzzling to them. Jesushad introduced them to the wonderful and yet strangephrase, Ye in me, and I in you (John 14:20).

As was His custom, Jesus used what was at hand to illus-trate what He was teaching, and so He turned to a humblevine and gave us this great lesson. Over the years manyscholars have read many interpretations into these words,but we do not have to wonder about them because the LordHimself tells us plainly what He meant. We need only takethe Lord at His word to learn the beautiful truth given here.

I. The Work of the Father

John 15:1-3

1. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

2. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: andevery branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forthmore fruit.

3. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto

you.

Jesus introduced us first to the characters in this account.There was a vine, a gardener, or husbandman, and there

were the branches. All these are clearly identified for us.Jesus Himself is the Vine. He used the term true vine to indi-cate He was the fulfillment of the many illustrations in theOld Testament that referred to the nation of Israel as a vine.He is not teaching that the nation of Israel was a false vine,but that He is the true fulfillment of the promises of God.

God was the gardener. In this capacity God did two things.

First, He removed those branches that did not bear fruit.Many people struggle with this, but, if we will let the Bibleinterpret itself, we can see this had just happened. God hadremoved Judas from this group. Earlier Judas had joinedwith Jesus and His disciples and was recognized as a part ofthe group, but he was never truly saved, and he never boreany spiritual fruit. In time, God removed Judas.

A CLOSER LOOK

Text: John 15:1-17 27

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There are people who join a church but are never trulysaved. They can never bear spiritual fruit, and, if they refuseto be saved, eventually God will remove them.

The second work of the Father was to prune, or purge, thetrue branches so they could bear more fruit. This takes placeas we read the Bible and commune with the Holy Spirit. Godwill take away the bad ideas and evil practices which hinderHis children in the production of spiritual fruit. Jesus statedplainly this process had already taken place in the hearts ofthose who were with Him. They had been cleansed, or pruned

and purged, by the words He had taught them.At this point we well might ask, What is the fruit men-

tioned here? Once again, the Bible declares plainly. InGalatians 5:22, 23 we have a list of the fruit of the Spirit.Nine fruits, or one cluster, are mentioned. These are likegrapes on a grapevine. The continuing application of the firstthreelove, joy, and peaceproduces the others. As the first

three reach out to control the relationships of our lives, theyare manifested as patience, loving-kindness, gentleness,goodness, faithfulness and self-control. Love, joy and peaceare the fruit Jesus expects us to bear. All these things takentogether will make us like Jesus. We will become obedient tothe will of God and dependent on the power of God, and, in sodoing, we will bear spiritual fruit. The eternal purpose of Godis that we might be like Jesus (1 John 3:2).

The more we abide in Christ, the more fruit we will bearand the more it will be necessary for the Father to purge, orprune, us. Pruning is sometimes a painful process, but weneed it to keep our lives focused and to keep our goals in linewith the overall purpose of God for our lives. One of the mostdifficult lessons for us to learn is simply God knows best andHe knows what He is doing in our lives. We should never sec-

ond-guess Him, and we should never resist His guiding hand.

II. Our Responsibility

John 15:4-6

4. Abide in me, and I in you.As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself,

except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

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5. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I

in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do

nothing.

6. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is with-ered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are

burned.

The work of the Father is twofold and our responsibility infruit bearing is also twofold. The first part is something wemust do; we must abide in Jesus. This is in the active voiceand it indicates a positive decision which we must make tolive our lives in harmony and fellowship with Jesus. We areexpected to remain in Jesus, to live in Him, to follow Him andto abide in Him.

Then, there is something that Jesus does. He abides in us.Interestingly, this is in the passive voice. We do not make thishappen, we allow God to do it for us. Here again is the sim-ple formula, Ye in me, and I in you (John 14:20). Both parts

are necessary to bear fruit. We must passively accept thepresence of Jesus in our lives and we must actively involveourselves in His service. Many Christians make the mistakeof focusing on one and ignoring the other.

There are disciplines in the Christian life. We must learnearly there is no way we can be Christlike Christians unlesswe discipline our lives. We must search the Scriptures, pray

for and with others, love each other, forgive one another, wor-ship together and implement every teaching of the NewTestament to the best of our ability. There is no possibility ofgrowth and fruit bearing unless we do. Jesus stated clearlythat, unless we abide in the Vine, we cannot bear fruit.

Discipline is necessary, but there is another part that isequally needed. Jesus summed this up in John 15:5 when Hesaid, Without me ye can do nothing. We need dependence aswell as discipline. Jesus obviously did not mean that we lit-erally could not act without Him. You can do many thingswithout depending on Christ. You can raise a family withoutHim. You can run a business without Him. You can be activein a church without Jesus. You can fill your days with greatactivity and busyness, but without dependence on Him you

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will not become Christlike. You will have achieved nothing inGods sight.

Without Jesus we can never do the things which will bring

us eternal rewards. We can never accomplish Gods will andfit into Gods plan. We should strive to achieve a balance indiscipline and dependence. We must abide in Him, but wemust also allow Him to abide in us. When we do both, theresult will be spiritual fruit born in abundance in our lives.

The definition of a wasted life is given in verse 6. Here isa person who failed to abide in Jesus. No matter how men

may have applauded him or looked up to him, or even enviedhim, that person became worthless and his lifes work wasburned in the fires of judgment (1 Cor. 3:13-15).

III. The Fruit that Results

John 15:7-14

7. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what

ye will, and it shall be done unto you.8. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall

ye be my disciples.

9. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in

my love.

10. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as

I have kept my Fathers commandments, and abide in his love.

11. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain

in you, and that your joy might be full.12. This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have

loved you.

13. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life

for his friends.

14. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.

The first result of abiding in Jesus and having Him abide

in us is answered prayer. We can ask what we will and itshall be done unto us. This is indeed a kind of spiritual blankcheck but notice the important qualifications. First, we mustabide in Jesus and He must abide in us. When we do this, Hiswill becomes our will. We will want the exact same thingsJesus wants. Jesus wanted to do Gods will in His life. Hesaid this repeatedly.


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Prayer is not about getting mans will done in Heaven. It isnot wheedling God out of a favor or getting God to see thingsour way. Prayer is about getting Gods will done on earth. It

is about trusting God to arrange our lives so His will can bedone in us. Remember, this will involve a pruning and purg-ing process. We are never wise to ask God to stop purging us.When we stop the purging process, we limit the spiritualfruit that we can bear.

Then we will glorify our Father in Heaven as did Jesus. Aswe abide in Him and He abides in us, we become more like

Jesus and we will begin to seek the glory of God, not our ownglory. In this way we become the true disciples of Jesus. Weindicate that we have a vital and lasting connection to thetrue Vine.

Then we will be able to continue in the love God has givenus. Love is both a spiritual fruit and a spiritual gift. Godgives us the ability to love, and, as we exercise it, we grow inour ability to love as Jesus loved.

Here we see obedience and dependence in perfect balance.We keep the commandments of Jesus; this is obedience, andwe abide in His love; this is dependence. We are asked to dothis as Jesus did. He kept the commandments of His Fatherand lived His life in the will of God.

The final blessing of an abiding life is joy. The joy of Jesuswill remain in us and our joy will be full. There is a worldlyhappiness which is mostly laughter at the expense of the suf-fering of others. There is nothing funny about what most ofthe world calls comedy. But there is a joy unspeakable andfull of glory, and this is the joy which comes to the hearts ofthose who abide in Jesus and allow Him to abide in them.

So that we will be certain, Jesus told us we have a com-mandment to love each other. This is not a suggestion ormerely a good idea. It is not an option. There is something

terribly wrong with any Christian who cannot love His broth-er (1 John 3:14; 4:20). Do not take these verses lightly; youreternal salvation is at stake. There were false branchestaken away and cast into the fire. If you are a child of God,you can obey the commandment to love your brethren.

And we become the friends of Jesus. What a wonderful titleand blessing Jesus gave us. Can there be a better thing said

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of any human being than simply that he or she is a friend ofJesus?

Here we have the legacy of those who believe in and followJesus. When we abide in Him and allow Him to abide in us,when we are pruned and purged from our bad habits and evilintentions, when we are cleansed through the words that weread in our Bibles and by the activity of the Holy Spirit in ourhearts and lives, we can have the blessings of love, joy andpeace.

These are the things which sustained Jesus and they willwork equally as well for us. We read in Hebrews 12:2Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; whofor the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despis-ing the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the

throne of God.When we understand these wonderful verses and applythem to our lives, we can face any situation and become morethan conquerors through Jesus who loved us. We will not justsurvive, or merely live, we will live an overcoming, victoriouslife of love, peace and joy. What a marvelous legacy from ourwonderful Savior.

1. Discuss the requirements Jesus gave for fruitfulness.Are you meeting the requirements?

2. How would you describe the fruitless branches that areburned?

3. What is involved in abiding in the Vine? How can you dothis?

4. How can you love others the way Christ commands?How important is it for us to love one another?



A FINAL WORD

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Loving as Jesus commanded involves two difficult prac-tices. First, we must learn to love those we do not personallylike. Everyone has a personality, and we are naturally drawnto some people and put off by others. But, Jesus teaches usthat we must love each other regardless of our personal likesand dislikes.

Just as difficult, we must love those who do not like us.Here we truly have only two choices. We can overcome evil orwe can be overcome of evil (Rom. 12:21). This is practical.Belief in Jesus will challenge you either to love someone youdo not like or to love someone who does not like you.

We can never do this through human strength and resolve.When left to our own de vices,we will love our friends and

hate our enemies. Butthrough the power of Jesus,through His life in us andour abiding in Him, we canlove our enemies as well asour friends. We can even

33

He Warnedof Persecution

Text: John 15:18-27 Focus: John 15:18-27

Sunday Devotional: Follow HisSteps! 1 Peter 2:21-25.

Application: Stand with Jesus

come what may! As He was perse-cuted, so His followers are calledto sacrifice, walk in His steps, sufferas necessary, serve and glorify Him.

Daily Devotionals

M. Suffering for Righteousness Sake,

1 Peter 3:13-17.

T. Fiery Trials, 1 Peter 4:12-19.

W. The Cost of Godliness, 2 Timothy 3:10-12.

T. Tribulation Worketh Patience, Romans 5:1-6.

F. Reaction to Persecution, Matthew 5:43-48.

S. Count It All Joy! James 1:2-4.

5January 4, 2009

Key Verse:

If ye were of this world, theworld would love his own: butbecause ye are not of the

world, but I have chosen youout of the world, therefore theworld hateth you.

John 15:19

A FIRST LOOK

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love those who persecute us and pray for those who despite-fully use us.

As the world grows darker and we near the second coming

of Jesus, we will be challenged repeatedly to face persecutionfor our Christian beliefs. Men and women are still beingkilled for believing in Jesus Christ as their Savior. We needto know what is behind this persecution and what we can doto face it and be more than conquerors when it comes.

I. The Fact of Persecution

John 15:18-20

18. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated

you.

19. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but

because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the

world, therefore the world hateth you.

20. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not

greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also per-

secute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.

One of the most puzzling aspects about the life and min-istry of Jesus is that His message stirred hatred in the heartsof some who heard Him. Consider the things Jesus did andtaught. He taught love, care and compassion, and He wentabout doing good. He healed the sick, restored sight to theblind and health to the crippled. Why did the leaders of Hisday want so much to silence Him and even kill Him?

This hatred still pervades society in this day. Think for amoment about what the world would be like if every human

being were a true Christian? Souls would be saved and liveswould be changed. There is absolutely nothing harmful ordeceitful in the message of Christ; yet, the world continues tohate Jesus and those who worship Him. This hatred is noth-ing less than evidence of the activity of Satan among men.

Jesus taught His disciples to expect this kind of irrationalhatred. Before the world ever hated the disciples of Jesus, it

A CLOSER LOOK

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hated Him. No man could accuse Jesus of anything, and Henever committed a single sin; yet, He was despised by unrea-sonable men.

The world hates Christians simply because we are not ofthis world. The world, that evil system which governs anddirects most activities on this planet, loves those who agreewith it and hates those who do not. The world will even lovea worldly Christian as long as that person does not practicehis faith. But, when we clearly distinguish ourselves andshow the world that we are different, the hatred will come.

Jesus had specifically chosen these men for the great jobthat was before them. To avoid the discouragement of irra-tional hatred, they needed to keep this in mind. KnowingGod has a purpose in our lives and a plan for us will be agreat help in times of discouragement. We may or may notunderstand Gods plan for us, but we can always be sure thatthings are working together for our ultimate good (Rom.8:28).

When trouble comes, our minds are torn in many direc-tions, but we should always remember that we should neverexpect to be treated better than Jesus was. The servantshould not expect to be treated better than his master.

Interestingly, Jesus set forth only two outcomes of our min-istry. We will either be hated by those who reject the gospel,or our message will be kept by those who do not reject thegospel. Jesus did not say we should seek an accommodation

with the world. The goal of Jesus was for mankind to keepHis words. When the message of the gospel is kept, love,peace and joy will naturally flow from it. When the gospel isrejected, hatred will flow toward those who preached it.These are the facts of life and we should be aware of them aswe serve the Lord.

There is nothing personal about this kind of hatred. Thesame kind of people who hated Jesus without knowing Him,

will hate you and me.

II. The Reason for Persecution

John 15:21-2421. But all these things will they do unto you for my names sake,

because they know not him that sent me.

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22. If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin:

but now they have no cloke for their sin.

23. He that hateth me hateth my Father also.

24. If I had not done among them the works which none other mandid, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both

me and my Father.

We will never eliminate the hatred the world has for Jesusand those who follow Him. This is a deep-rooted animosity,and it will only disappear as each individual heart is won toJesus. The basic cause for this is that men do not know God.

Those who did not know God, the godless, did not recognizethe Son of God when He came. In like manner, they will nothonor the children of God who walk among them.

Men fail to recognize the one true God because they areworshiping the false gods they make for themselves. Idolatryand humanism have blinded men to the truth, and, in thatblinded state they will literally hate those who expose their

error. The words of Jesus removed the cloak of sin that hadcovered the evil hearts of the men of His generation. Thegospel still works that way. When the cloak of falsehood isstripped away, men will either clothe themselves with thetruth of the gospel or react in hatred toward the messengerwho told them the truth.

We are not hated and persecuted because we have made amistake. Jesus was not hated because He was a sinner. We

are not hated because there is some character flaw which weneed to correct. We are not hated because we have behavedbadly or reacted improperly to some situation. Christians arehated because they are Christians. The message of the crossis inherently a divisive truth. You either believe it or you donot, and the consequences are life changing either way.

We learn also that men cannot claim they hate Jesus and

still love God. Such a claim is an insidious lie and an impos-sibility. The person who denies Jesus also denies God (1 John2:23). This is important because there are many who thinkthere are many paths to God, and it really does not matterwhich one is taken. They claim to find truth in all religionsand arrogantly claim that mankind can pick and chooseamong them as long as he ends up in Heaven. This is a plain


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lie. There is one God and one Mediator between God and menand that is Jesus (1 Tim. 2:5). Jesus is the exclusive way tothe Father, and no one can come to God in any other way

(John 14:6). Jesus was plain about this and that is why theworld hated Him. He was telling the truth to men who wouldrather believe a lie. It is simply not possible to hate Jesus andlove God.

Most of the world believes in spiritual neutrality. We tendto think that we are neutral, and when we choose, we candecide to trust God or to reject Him. This denies the basic

truth that all men are sinners. Mankind is already con-demned in the sight of God (John 3:18). We do not have to doanything to be lost. The idea of spiritual neutrality is a myth.All men are sinners, and, unless we come to Jesus, we will beeternally lost. This is the message which stirs up so muchhatred in the world.

III. How To Handle Persecution

John 15:25-27

25. But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is

written in their law, They hated me without a cause.

26. But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you

from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the

Father, he shall testify of me:

27. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with mefrom the beginning.

Jesus has told us how to handle this kind of unreasonablepersecution. We must handle it in exactly the same way Hedid. First, we must realize this is a fulfillment of the Word ofGod. For Jesus, the irrational hatred of the world was proph-esied years before. Jesus quoted a prophecy mentioned twoplaces in Psalms. Often, Jesus dealt with trials and tempta-tions by simply saying, It is written. The Word of God willbe a continuing resource to us, but we must read it, under-stand it and apply it to our lives and to our individual situa-tions. Our first line of defense is found in our knowledge andunderstanding of the Bible. Conversely, those who, for what-

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ever reason, do not know the Scriptures will be ill-preparedto face the trials which are certain to come.

Then, we have the resource of the Holy Spirit. The Com-

forter is present in our lives to do for us the same thingsJesus did for His disciples while He was here on earth phys-ically. One of Satans favorite tricks is to try to convince us weare all alone; that no one cares what happens to us and wemust face our trials by ourselves. There is a false spirit whichcauses many to try to reach down inside themselves and han-dle things alone. We admire the strong, silent hero who isself-sufficient in any situation. But this is another myth.Such a person does not exist. It is not good that man shouldbe alone, and Jesus has promised to never leave us or forsakeus. No matter what a child of God may have to go through, hewill not have to go through it alone. The Holy Spirit is thereto comfort your heart and to help you find the truth in a con-fusing mess of lies and misdirection.

The Holy Spirit is always testifying about Jesus.

Remember, persecution is not about you or me; it is aboutHim. This wicked world system wants to hurt and destroyJesus.

Perhaps our best defense is a good offense. We find this inwitnessing. When we plainly, loudly and clearly state whatwe truly have witnessed, we can never be successfully con-tradicted. There is no successful argument against personalexperience. Listen to the blind man who was healed, as

recorded in John 9:25, One thing I know, that, whereas I wasblind, now I see. If you have been saved, you are an eyewit-ness to your own salvation. When we affirm our faith to oth-ers, we discover a way to handle persecution.

Persecution from a sinful world can be virulent (extremelybitter) and violent, but the Lord tells us not to run away. Weshould never invite trouble, but neither should we shrinkfrom opportunities to serve Jesus because there may be trou-ble involved. We have the Word of God to teach us, the Holy

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Spirit to lead us, and our own personal experience of grace torefresh us. Jesus will stand with us and steady us. In trou-bling circumstances keep focused on what Jesus truly means

to you, no matter how fierce the persecution. Paul said abouthis appearance before Nero, Notwithstanding the Lord stoodwith me, and strengthened me; that by me the preachingmight be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear:and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion (2 Tim. 4:17).

Persecution is the normal state of affairs for the childrenof God. Do not be surprised when trouble comes. Peter tellsus in 1 Peter 4:12, Beloved, think it not strange concerningthe fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strangething happened unto you. It is all to be expected; it is whatJesus said would happen. We must rid ourselves of the dreamof settling down comfortably in a sin-cursed world. We arecitizens of Heaven and we no longer belong to this evil world.In 2 Timothy 3:12 we read, Yea, and all that will live godlyin Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. We are in a war

with sin, but victory is certain. Our main concern should notbe the casualty count, but, are we on the right side? We neverneed to retaliate, but we do need to respond to persecutionwith truth in our minds and courage in our hearts.

1. How do you normally react when unjustly criticized fordoing the right thing? How should you react?

2. Is there unjustified hatred of Christ and His way in thispresent world? How is it manifest?

3. In what ways are Christians suffering for Christ in thispresent day?

4. What can you do to strengthen those who are sufferingfor Christs sake?


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It is important for every child of God to realize that, nomatter what happens, he or she can never be alone. The HolySpirit lives in the heart of every saved person, and He will bethere in any and every circumstance of our lives.

Equally important is to realize the Holy Spirit is not pres-

ent merely as an observer. True, He does see and know every-thing we do, but His purpose is not just to be there and seethings. God is present in our lives to offer positive help in anytroubling situation and to offer guidance in every decisionthat we make.

We divide our opportunities and trials into categories. Weseem to think that we can handle the small things, and we

depend on God to help uswith the big things. Ofcourse this begs the ques-tion, How do we decidewhat is a little thing andwhat is a big thing? Well,

40

He Guaranteed GuidanceText: John 16:1-15 Focus: John 16:1-15

Sunday Devotional: ThePromise of the Father, Acts1:4-11.

Application:Jesus guaran-

teed His followers wouldnever be left alone. After Hisascension the Holy Spiritcame to indwell, guide, re-mind, teach and empowerHis followers for service.

Daily DevotionalsM. The Blessing of Persecution, Luke 6:22, 23.T. Spiritual Blindness, 2 Corinthians 4:3-6.

W. Waiting for the Power, Luke 24:49.T. Focus on the Eternal! 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.F. Revealing Things of God, 1 Corinthians 2:10-13.S. The Spirit Glorifies Jesus, 1 John 4:1-3.

6January 11, 2009

Key Verse:

I have yet many things to say untoyou, but ye cannot bear them now.Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth,is come, he will guide you into all

truth: for he shall not speak of himself;but whatsoever he shall hear, that shallhe speak: and he will shew you thingsto come.

John 16:12, 13

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think for a moment. In the sight of God, what is a big prob-lem? To God, everything is possible, and the solution to everytrouble we might have is within His capability. There is no

trouble or decision too small or too great to be turned over toGod.

Jesus knew His disciples would need total dependence onthe Holy Spirit as He had lived in total dependence on HisFather. These verses offer us both an understanding of theministry of the Holy Spirit in our hearts as well as a practi-cal guide to what we can expect as we go into the world serv-ing the Lord.

The servant will not be treated better than the master. Wecan expect the world to treat us exactly as it treated Jesus.

I. The Coming Trials

John 16:1-4

1. These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be

offended.

2. They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh,

that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.

3. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not

known the Father, nor me.4. But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come,

ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not

unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.

An old adage teaches us that to be forewarned is to be fore-armed. Jesus was telling these things to His disciples so they

would not be offended when these events came to pass intheir lives. The Greek word translated offend literally meansto put a stumbling block in someones way. Jesus did notwant the persecution of an evil world to be a stumbling blockfor those who would serve Him.

The persecution Jesus described here was severe. Thesemen would be put out of synagogues. In the account of the

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blind man Jesus healed, the Jews had already determined ifanyone confessed Jesus, that person would be excluded fromthe synagogue. This indicates the servant of Jesus must have

made a complete break with old ways. We cannot follow Jesusand still go along with the world.

More was involved here than dislike and exclusion. The fol-lowers of Jesus would be killed and worse, those who killedthem would do so in the name of God. These deceived peoplewould think they were doing the work of God by killing the dis-ciples of Jesus. This first occurred when Stephen was stoned

and it has been going on ever since. One thought always aris-es here. If God wants to kill someone, He hardly needs ourhelp. God is quite capable of ending any human life He choos-es. Jesus said there would be selfish and deceived men whokilled Christians and did so thinking they were serving Godin the process.

This happened because these evil men did not know theFather or Jesus. There is no other way to God except throughJesus. Men have many ideas about access to God but thetruth is that no one comes to the Father in any other way(John 14:6).

Jesus did not tell His disciples these things to frightenthem or to put them on their guard. He did not instruct thesemen to be careful and cautious or to watch what they said ordid so this would not happen. This persecution would defi-

nitely come, and Jesus was preparing these men for it. Whenthis kind of trouble came, they were to remember His wordsand know this was to be expected. Jesus had not told themthis before because He was there with them personally, butnow He was going away, and they needed to know what wasahead for them.

Jesus was not speaking about the ordinary troubles of liv-

ing. He was not speaking about the harm men do to eachother in pursuit of power or wealth. He was specifically talk-ing about persecution which arises simply because we areChristians and we serve the Lord. We should not try to blameall the troubles that come in our lives on our belief in Jesus.Most of us are quite capable of generating all kinds of trou-ble by ourselves.

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II. The Coming Comforter

John 16:5-11

5. But now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of youasketh me, Whither goest thou?

6. But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled

your heart.

7. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go

away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but

if I depart, I will send him unto you.

8. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of

righteousness, and of judgment:9. Of sin, because they believe not on me;

10. Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no

more;

11. Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

Jesus had been with these men and now He was goingaway. This is why it was necessary to tell them what was

ahead in their lives. We get a glimpse into the selfishnessembedded in the human heart. The only concern of the disci-ples was that they would be alone; that Jesus would not bethere. No one had asked Jesus where He was going. Theirconcern was not for Him but for themselves. This is why sor-row had filled their hearts.

This is natural for all of us. When someone we love goes toHeaven to be with Jesus, it is difficult for us to rejoice for

them. Instead we grieve because we are left behind. We longto hear the misleading message, do not worry, everything willbe all right. The truth is that the future for these men was atime of great trial. This is why Jesus told them the truth. Wecan always deal with the truth, no matter how unpleasant itmay be. We are never truly helped by the smoke and mirrorsof cleverly crafted lies. Men may want to hear the lies, but the

lies will never offer real comfort.Although these men probably did not believe it, the bestthat could happen to them was for Jesus to go away. The rea-son was that, unless Jesus proceeded according to Gods planfor Him, the rest of Gods plan would not take effect. For theComforter to come, Jesus had to complete His ministry onearth and return to Heaven.

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that Satan cannot win and that the least of Gods childrencan never lose.

III. The Coming Spirit of Truth

John 16:12-15

12. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them

now.

13. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you

into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall

hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

14. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shewit unto you.

15. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that

he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

Jesus did not mean to limit the work of the Comforter tothese three areas alone. Jesus had many more things toteach these men, but He realized that His time on earth waslimited. This did not mean that knowledge of Jesus wouldstop when He died.

The ministry of the Holy Spirit is to guide us into all truth.He does this primarily through the Scriptures. When we readour Bibles, we are reading the Word of God. The Holy Spiritwill never contradict the Scriptures. He will faithfully guideour hearts as we search the Scriptures and show us how the

Scriptures magnify and glorify Jesus.An important truth is given in verse 13. There is never a

spiritual experience of and for itself. The Holy Spirit nevertestifies of Himself; He is always revealing Jesus to us. A truespiritual experience will always point us to Jesus and bringus closer to Christ.

The Comforter will reveal things to come. This is not mys-

terious and secret information about the future. Instead, it isthe revelation that we are mortal and Jesus is coming backto this earth. These two simple facts constantly eludemankind. Many people are living today as if every tomorrowwould be a repeat of yesterday. This is nonsense. We need theHoly Spirit to tell us that we have a sure appointment withdeath and after this the judgment.

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If Jesus were physically alive today and you heard Himspeak to you personally, one on one, would you listen to Him?Would you change your life to conform to His teachings?Could you look Him straight in the eye and deny that He waswho He said He was or that He did what He said He did?

Most of us would be moved by such an experience. Thenrealize that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are one and the same.Whatever we do to the Holy Spirit, we are doing to Jesus. If

we reject the leadership of the Spirit, we are rejecting theleadership of Christ. If we ignore the warnings of the Spirit,we are ignoring the warnings of Christ. If we refuse to hearwhat the Spirit is saying to us, we are refusing to hear themessage of our Lord Himself.

If we refuse to accept the comfort the Holy Spirit offers ourhearts in times of trial and persecution, we are refusing the

comfort that God offered His only Son. These are soberingtruths, but we need to hear them and understand them.We cannot have God without Jesus, and we cannot have

Jesus without the Holy Spirit. They are one and the same.Whatever the Holy Spirit reveals to us has first beenrevealed to Jesus. It is literally God dealing directly and inti-mately with our hearts.

1. Do you think the disciples were surprised by the angerof the Jews toward Jesus? Why or why not?

2. Why was their hatred of Christ so intense? (Hint: John16:3.)

3. How important to you is Christs promised presence inthe Holy Spirit?

4. As the Holy Spirit revealed more of Gods Truth to theapostles, what was the ultimate result?


46 He Guaranteed Guidance

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There are two interesting and revealing thoughts set forthin these verses. First, we find Jesus continually teachingabout joy in a situation where there was little reason forrejoicing. The Jews hated Jesus and His disciples enough tokill them. Judas had left the group and gone out to betrayJesus. That same night Jesus would be arrested. In a fewhours He would be crucified, and the disciples would be scat-tered. Everything that these men had dedicated their lives towould seem to come to an end. Yet, in the darkness of thishour, Jesus continually taught them about joy.

The other thing we see here is how wonderfully humanthese men were. They were afraid and confused. They did notunderstand much of what was happening to them or whatwas going on around

them. Years later, theywould grasp the impor-tance of the things Jesussaid, but for now theywere worried and con-

47

He Revealed His DeathText: John 16:16-33 Focus: John 16:16-33

Sunday Devotional: SorrowBecomes Joy, 1 Peter 1:6-8.

Application: Jesus would beseparated from them in death,

but would reappear in victori-ous life. The hope He bringsthrough His death results inpeace the world cannot com-prehend.

Daily Devotionals

M. Death Swallowed by Life, Isaiah 25:8, 9.T. Everlasting Joy, Isaiah 51:11-13.W. Principles of Prayer, Matthew 7:7-11.T. Come Boldly to the Throne! Hebrews 4:14-16.

F. Our Eternal Intercessor, Hebrews 7:25, 26.S. Keys to Answered Prayer, 1 John 5:14-16.

7January 18, 2009

Key Verse:

These things I have spoken untoyou, that in me ye might havepeace. In the world ye shall have

tribulation: but be of good cheer;I have overcome the world.

John 16:33

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fused. This is comforting because we often find these sameemotions welling up in our own hearts.

We have our expectations of how things should go for us,

and, when they take an entirely different course, we can eas-ily become discouraged. But we should remember that Goduses ordinary men and women in ordinary circumstances todo His will. These men were chosen to write the NewTestament and spread the gospel around the world. Yet, atthis particular time they seemed weak and wounded.

Then, as now, the power of God would shine throughhuman weakness and that power would do great thingsthrough frail human instruments.

I. A Permanent Joy

John 16:16-2216. A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while,

and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father.

17. Then said some of his disciples among themselves, What is this

that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again,

a little while, and ye shall see me: and, Because I go to the Father?

18. They said therefore, What is this that he saith, A little while? we

cannot tell what he saith.

19. Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him, and said

unto them, Do ye enquire among yourselves of that I said, A little

while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see

me?

20. Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but

the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall

be turned into joy.

21. A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour

is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth

no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.22. And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and

your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.

In these verses the disciples go from not knowing whatJesus was talking about (verse 17), to knowing exactly whatJesus was saying (verse 30). Our problem with interpretation

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is never that the Bible is not plain enough; the fault is in ourunderstanding. When we determine in ourselves that wewant to understand the Word of God, we can do so.

Jesus began here by impressing on these men the ever-changing nature of life. They were with Jesus at this time.They would be separated for a while, and then they would bereunited again, and finally Jesus would return to Heaven,and they would be left on earth. The constant of life ischange. No matter what, things will change. That is not goodor bad; it is just true. We are being foolish when we refuse to

accept change. On the mount of transfiguration, Peter want-ed to build three tabernacles and just stay there. Jesus wise-ly told Peter they had to leave the experience and go backdown into the valley (Luke 9:33-37).

Whenever we are on a mountaint

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