Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. Jesus recalls something He had said earlier (13:16) and quotes it exactly, for a change. They certainly did persecute Jesus (5:16) and …
Author Archives: Tim Conrad
John 15:19
If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. The reason for the world’s hatred toward the followers of Jesus is that they do not …
John 15:18
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. “The favourites and heirs of heaven have never been the darlings of this world, since the old enmity was put between the seed of the woman and of the serpent.” (Matthew Henry) For example, why did Cain hate Abel? Because his works …
John 15:17
This is my command: Love each other. “This” (NIV) is actually plural “these” or “these things” which may indicate that all of the commands Jesus had spoken that evening were for the single purpose of the disciples engaging in love for each other. Jesus’ command to love each other is a repetition of (13:34; 15:12). …
John 15:16
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Jesus chose His disciples and His apostles (6:70; 13:18; 15:19, Luke 6:13, Acts 9:15). This was not the normal case, because the usual …
John 15:15
I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. He was their Rabbi and Lord (1:38; 13:13) and had previously called them servants (13:16), but not anymore. John 1:38 …
John 15:14
You are my friends if you do what I command. Jesus says that His disciples were His friends (Luke 12:4), but friendship depends upon having the same general way of looking at things and the same priorities (1 Cor 6:17). Thus the condition of friendship with the Lord of the Universe is to do what …
John 15:13
Greater love has no-one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. Laying down one’s life is the supreme test of love. Jesus is not saying that He will not lay down His life for His enemies; on the contrary. However, He is among friends and is therefore speaking only of friends. …
John 15:12
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. This is the “new command” that He gave in (13:34). John 13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. The command of Jesus that His disciples “love each other” is …
John 15:11
I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. The Lord experiences joy when He looks upon His people (Zep 3:17). “As there is a transport of joy in heaven in the conversion of sinners, so there is a remaining joy in the perseverance …
John 15:10
If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. Notice the comparison of this verse with (14:15). John 14:15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command. Jesus is speaking here of something much more than outwardly keeping …
John 15:9
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. In his commentary on this verse, Robertson observes that “Our love for Christ is the result of Christ’s love for us and is grounded at bottom in the Father’s love for the world.” (RWP) See also (1 John 4:19, …
John 15:8
This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. Jesus has previously said that the Father was glorified by the work of the Son (13:31-32). Now He notes that the Father is also glorified by the work of the believers who are abiding in the Son. What …
John 15:7
If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. Jesus moves from fruitfulness to prayer. Here He notes that the requirement for prevailing prayer is abiding in Him. Previously He noted that prayer must be offered in His name (14:14) and that obedience …
John 15:6
If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. The wood of a grape branch by itself is useless (Eze 15:2-5) and can only be burned. So it is with those who do not remain …
John 15:5
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. Jesus repeats Himself for emphasis. What He is saying is very important and He does not want His disciples (or us) to miss the point. …
John 15:4
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “remain” (NIV) = “abide” (KJV) = meno (Greek) means to stay, wait, or remain without leaving. This is like a man who came …
John 15:3
You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. They have been cleansed by the word (Eph 5:26, James 1:18); actually by the whole of His message to them. He is not rebuking them, but encouraging them. Note that “clean” (katharos) is the same word used in (13:10) which excluded Judas. …
John 15:2
He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. The preparation and maintenance of a vineyard has remained almost unchanged from the earliest of times. The ground is cleared of large stones, which are used to …
John 15:1
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. “I am” = this is another of the “I am” statements found in John. Note that each further develops the nature and mission of Jesus (6:35,41,48,51; 8:12; 10:7,9,11,14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1,5). John 6:35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who …
John 14:31
but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me. “Come now; let us leave. Jesus has previously demanded obedience from the disciples to show their love for Him (14:15, 21, 23), and now says the same thing about Himself in respect to His …
John 14:30
I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, That which was going to cause Jesus to quit speaking was the coming of Satan. When was this going to happen? It must have been in the garden with the coming of Judas …
John 14:29
I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. This is similar to what Jesus told them earlier this evening (13:19). It is not just a statement, but a prophecy. When the Holy Spirit does come to teach and remind them, and they receive the peace of …
John 14:28
“You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. “the Father is greater than I” = must be meant in the light of (John 10:30) that Jesus …
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. This is the first time peace has been mentioned in the book of John, but it is a natural result of the presence …
John 14:26
But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Here the Holy Spirit is identified with the Paraclete. He is given His full title as in (Mark 3:29; Matt 12:32; Luke 12:10). This title …
John 14:25
“All this I have spoken while still with you. “All this” will be referring to this discourse and not the whole of what Jesus taught.
John 14:24
He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. This is the negative expression of the preceding verse, indicating its obvious importance by the repetition. It is impossible to follow Jesus without loving Him. Again, it is …
John 14:23
Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. The tense of the verb “loves” is present active subjunctive and could be translated “If anyone keeps on loving me”. It is a continuous action verb and …
John 14:22
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” Judas Iscariot had already left (13:30), but John wants to make it perfectly clear that this Judas (which was a common name like James, of which there were also two) was not the …
John 14:21
Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.” To “have” Christ’s commands is an unusual expression and is without parallel in the Bible with the possible exception of …
John 14:20
On that day you will realise that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. “On that day” = the day that Christ is resurrected. All of their doubts would be answered and they would know for certain the mutual indwelling of Christ with His Father and with …
John 14:19
Before long, the world will not see me any more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. “the world will not see me” = McGarvey notes that “The next day the world crucified him and sealed him in the tomb, and since then has seen him no more.” “you will …
John 14:18
I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. “leave” = aphiemi = this is a strong term which could be translated as “abandon.” “orphans” (NIV) = “comfortless” (AV) = orphanos = literally means “without a father.” It was also used of disciples and students who had lost their teacher. Plato said …
John 14:17
the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. “Spirit of truth” = Why is it important to the disciples that the Advocate the Father is sending to replace Jesus is called the …
John 14:16
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you for ever— “I will ask” . . . “and He will give” = The Father always gives that for which Jesus asks. What an incredible assurance that is for us since Jesus is our intercessor (Rom 8:34)! Romans …
John 14:15
“If you love me, you will obey what I command. Jesus has just given the disciples a tremendous promise about prayer but He follows that immediately with what it means to be His follower. The preconditions for Jesus to do whatever his disciples ask of Him are faith in Him, love for Him, and obedience …
John 14:14
You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. There is no object for the verb “ask” in this verse, but it seems likely that Jesus was saying that we should ask Him for anything. In other words, it is okay to pray to Jesus. This seems to be vindicated by the …
John 14:13
And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. Asking in Jesus’ name does not mean to use His name as a formula; that would be a form of magic. You do not need to say “in Jesus’ name” at the end of your …
John 14:12
I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. Jesus starts this message with “truly, truly,” again stressing the importance of what follows. “anyone who has faith in me” = Jesus …
John 14:11
Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. McGarvey notes that “To ask Jesus to reveal the indwelling Father was much the same as to ask a man to reveal his own soul.” Notice the …
John 14:10
Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. The way Jesus puts the question to Philip expects a positive answer. This was something …
John 14:9
Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Philip’s question reveals how little he knows about Jesus, and that he should have known more than he did. The …
John 14:8
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” Jansenius said, “Though Philip did not mean it, yet the Holy Ghost, by his mouth, designed here to teach us that the satisfaction and happiness of a soul consist in the vision and fruition of God.” Getting to “see” God, to …
John 14:7
If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” In a sense, the disciples have known Jesus. They spent the past couple of years living with Him, listening to Him teach, seeing Him heal the sick, talking with Him, and just …
John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me. Note that Thomas’ question was put to Jesus in a two-fold manner: what was the goal and what was the way of accomplishing it? Jesus reverses the order and tells him first the manner of …
John 14:5
Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Peter had previously asked Jesus a similar question in response to a statement Jesus had made of His going someplace where they could not come (13:33, 36), so how could they know the way? John 13:33 …
John 14:4
You know the way to the place where I am going.” They knew the way because it had already been given them (Romans 10:6-8). Jesus had just spent the last three years teaching them the way. If they follow His teaching, they will find the way to heaven. Romans 10:6-8 But the righteousness that is …
John 14:3
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. “The belief of Christ’s second coming, of which he has given us the assurance, is an excellent preservative against trouble of heart” (Matthew Henry) We are …
John 14:2
In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. “House” = Jesus tells us that heaven is like a house and not like a tent or tabernacle. What is the significance of this? See (2 Cor 5:1). …
John 14:1
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. Following the previous verse was probably the institution of the Lord’s supper, then these words of Jesus in chapter 14 of John, followed by the singing of the last psalms of the hallel, which consisted of Psalms 115-118. See these words …
John 13:38
Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the cock crows, you will disown me three times! The other disciples joined in Peter’s boast (Mark 14:31; Mat 26:35) and then Jesus answers. Morris observes that “Peter’s readiness to die for Jesus is not quite what …
John 13:37
Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Peter is like Thomas was in (11:16), he is not afraid of danger, but he responds because his pride is hurt. He sees himself as the perfect disciple who would never desert Jesus. We can understand how Peter …
John 13:36
Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.” Peter is puzzled just as the Pharisees were twice before (7:35; 8:21). John 7:35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find …
John 13:35
By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The love we show for each other is to be the distinguishing characteristic of Christians (1 John 3:23, 4:7-8, 4:11-12, 4:19-21). 1 John 3:23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, …
John 13:34
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. “A new command” is not really a new command (Lev 19:18) in one sense, but in another it is. He is not speaking here of love for all men, but for those within the brotherhood; …
John 13:33
“My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. “children” (NIV) = teknion = diminutive of teknon (which means a child) which expresses affection; little children. “In the light …
John 13:32
If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once. Morris observes that Jesus is expressing three certainties. The first is that God is glorified in Him, which means in the passion of Christ. The second is that God will glorify the Son in Himself, which …
John 13:31
When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. When the traitor left, the company was purged of its evil element and the betrayal itself was now underway. The saving act on Calvary has been launched! “Now” points to present circumstances. Since the betrayal is …
John 13:30
As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night. “as soon as” = Even though the other disciples were ignorant of it, Judas knew exactly what Jesus meant and left in a hurry to do his evil. “night” = note (Luke 22:53). This is much more than just an …
John 13:29
Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the Feast, or to give something to the poor. The disciples didn’t have a clue as to what was going on and, as Morris notes, “in this matter they stand in sharp contrast with their Master.” …
John 13:28
but no-one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. This indicates that John didn’t catch the significance of the dipping of the sop at this time, which also shows why John didn’t denounce Judas to the others. As noted earlier, all of the disciples are saying, “Lord, is it I?,” which indicates …
John 13:28
but no-one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. This indicates that John didn’t catch the significance of the dipping of the sop at this time, which also shows why John didn’t denounce Judas to the others. As noted earlier, all of the disciples are saying, “Lord, is it I?,” which indicates …
John 13:27
As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. “What you are about to do, do quickly,” Jesus told him, As Barclay notes, “What was meant to be love’s appeal became hate’s dynamic.” Instead of responding, Judas gave himself even more fully to Satan. “This is the natural outcome of one who plays …
John 13:26
Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon. The words of Jesus are heard only by John and even he does not understand their importance. …
John 13:25
Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” Since they were reclining, John only had to lean back into the lap of Jesus and look up into His face to speak intimately with Him. John could easily have spoken these words to Jesus without anyone else hearing them. Note the intimate relationship …
John 13:24
Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.” They were all looking in surprise at each other with their mouths hanging open. This is the moment represented in Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper” although they were undoubtedly seated around the table on not just on one side. Peter is …
John 13:23
One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. “the disciple whom Jesus loved” = John’s description of himself (19:26; 20:2; 21:7,20). He identified himself in (21:24) as the author of this book. John 19:26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing near by, he …