IN the previous chapter He tells them He was going away; here He tells what would be their 'comfort. He went to prepare a place for them He brings us into the same place as Himself. He would come for them Himself-not send for them.
To be conformed to the image of His Son is the end of all knowledge; and God's purpose was to give us a place with His Son; He is the Firstborn among many brethren. " He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified, are all of one;" one set: that is the key of all blessing.
Question. Verse 7 says: " Ye should have known my Father also, and from henceforth ye know him and have seen him." How does He mean they would have known the Father? not in relationship?
No; not in relationship till the Holy Ghost came; but He was there the revelation of the Father; purity, holiness, love, all that the Father is was manifested in Him; and He was going to, the Father, so they knew where; then they knew-the way, for He was the way. The moment the Son was there the—name of the Father was revealed. God has come out in Christ, man has gone in in Christ. When God does come out, it is the Father revealed in the Son. There are four names by which God has revealed Himself To Abraham it was as God Almighty; to Israel as Jehovah; Most High in the millennium; and to us, the Father revealed in the Son. This is the " hidden wisdom ordained before the world unto our glory," not revealed before; but God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit." I get the revelation by the Holy Ghost; the words by which the revelation is communicated, and the Holy Ghost working to make me know it.
Heb. 9:88The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: (Hebrews 9:8), and 10:19. " The way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest;" and." Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest." You do not get the Father in Hebrews, you get the priesthood; you do not get all the privileges, but you can go in. There is no hindrance to our going in, but it is God's throne, not the Father's.
John 17:21,2221That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. 22And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: (John 17:21‑22). " That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee." The world will know it when we appear in glory, but we know it now, though the treasure is in a poor earthen vessel.
Question. But our apprehension of it does not depend on natural intelligence?
No, it is spiritually discerned.
Question. Then as it is by divine power, there-is no limit to what we may have or to our.going in?
No; only we do not get it all at once; but what we learn makes us capable of getting more.
Question. When He says, verse 18, " I will come to you," does He mean by the Spirit?
No, that is Christ Himself.
Verse 20. He does not say here, " the Father in me:" that had been while He was on earth; but in that day which was coming they should know another thing: " I in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you." The Father had been revealed in Him; they were dull, but the thing was there for them.. They never once understood what He said, never on any occasion; when they said they did, they only proved that they did not. In chapter 16 they say: " Now speakest thou plainly;" but they dropped the Father, and' said He came forth from God. And the Lord responds: 1 " Do ye now believe?" We have the Spirit to enable us to understand. " I in the Father," not " the Father in me."
When the Spirit is come I know that Christ is, in me and I in Him, and that gives me everything if I am in Him.
Question. Is there an intended difference between" abide " and " in? " Verse 17; I get as a consequence of verse 16 He in me. We get in Acts 1:22Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: (Acts 1:2) what was a great comfort to me; that the Holy Ghost was in Christ after His resurrection. We shall have the Holy Ghost forever in us. The Holy Ghost is always working; we find Him working in creation, in Christ's miracles always. By His Spirit He garnished the heavens. There is a remarkable verse in Hag. 2:55According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not. (Haggai 2:5): " So my Spirit remaineth among you."
Question. Is not the Holy Ghost's work now to take us (the Church) to Christ? The Holy Ghost is like a steamship, not dependent on the wind. There are difficulties and hindrances by the way which He has to surmount; but, when He has brought us to heaven, there is nothing to do but to unfold to us, what is there. Christ never glorifies Himself, He says: " Father, glorify thou me." He never glorifies Himself; He even gets the Holy Ghost for us from the Father. "Ye in me " brings us into all that He has received: " Not as the world giveth." The world gives away, but Christ gives by bringing us into all that He has as man.
" That I am in my Father;" that introduces me to heavenly things. They ought to have known the Father in Him down here; but now we know Him in the Father. I am there as a son as He is. When on earth He spoke of God as " my Father;" when made sin it is " my God." Afterward as His God and Father; but it is also " My God and your God, my Father and your Father." In the Epistles we get constantly God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. " Because ye core sons," &c.; we have the Father's love and Christ's love, but besides we are conformed to the image of the Son.
Question. And that is true Christianity?
Yes. Christianity is heavenly; everything will be gathered up under one Head in heaven and on earth. We have the heavenly place; blessed in heavenly places.
Remark. How few have really got that!
They have not got into it, but it is theirs. Many stop at being cleared from the first Adam, at the debt being paid, but they do not get hold of being put into the last Adam; and every one brought into glory is glory to Christ, and I have got to rejoice in His glory, not merely that I am glorified.
The love of the Father-is the spring and center of the new creation.
The spirit of the world is opposed to the Spirit of Christ. I have one thing to desire, to please Christ here, to walk as He walked.
Another thing we get is God's rest; He would have us enjoying that. You do not find rest here. If you get a meeting very happy, you may be sure the devil will try to spoil it; there is no rest here.
Question. How do you understand verse 23, " Make our abode with him "?
When we get into their abode, they make us their abode. All in this part of John is conditional. We might to realize these things. It is from the lack of obedience that there is lack of joy.
There are two things in verse 21; he that hath, and keepeth.
Having His commands is one mark of the obedient child; a careless child would not know them. It is a wonderful thing to know that we are in Christ, and Christ in us now. Knowing what He has brought me into is another thing from knowing what He has brought me out of.
We get another thing-peace; not merely peace of conscience, though we get that, hilt Christ's peace, the peace He had when walking through this world.
Question. Would that be the same as the peace of God in Phil. 4?
No, the peace of God is another thing; nothing can trouble God's peace. But Christ's peace fills_ my heart-walking through a scene where disturbing things are. How the blessed Lord reckons on our hearts entering into His joy. " If ye loved me ye would rejoice;" if you are thinking of yourselves you will not; but He counts on our hearts.
( J. N. D.)