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| 1 These things I have spoken unto you that ye may not be offended.
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| 2 They shall put you out of the synagogues; but the hour is coming that every one who kills you will think to render service to God;
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They – Those who had charge of the synagogues were not always bad people, but they were mistaken, as was Saul of Tarsus when he hauled men and women to prison. (Acts 8:3) The same conditions exist today. R5172:6, 5479:2
Put you out – The faithful servants of the Lord will be ostracized by the world. Their attitude of full consecration to do the Father's will is not appreciated; for to the world it seems to be foolish. It is a reproof. R5173:6
The creeds of men have been barriers to keep out those who understood the Word of God. R5172:6, 5479:2
During the present life the Kingdom of Heaven, the true Church of Christ, suffereth violence. The meek have not yet inherited the earth; they seldom get even a good slice of it. CR493:4
This was so much different from what they had expected, in a kingdom of earthly glory, no wonder they were despondent and silent. R102:2*
The sufferings of Christ include physical persecution and other less direct persecutions, ostracisms. The latter is perhaps most especially the portion of the Lord's people at the present time. NS460:2
Those who hear the voice of present truth, and who obey the call to come out of Babylon, are usually subjected to persecution. R5479:1
Of the synagogues – The Lord and the apostles could go into the synagogues and teach the people there for a time, but as they shunned not to declare the whole counsel of God, they soon found little and finally no such opportunity. R986:5, 356:5
As Cain slew his brother Abel, thus Jesus and the apostles received their persecution chiefly from Jewish brethren. Similarly Christians have suffered martyrdom at the hands of fellow Christians. PD13/23
Whosoever killeth you – Not only the Lord, the great Light-bearer, was persecuted unto death, but similarly all the light-bearers who follow in his footsteps must be sharers also of his persecution and suffering. E294
Literally fulfilled when Michael Servetus' horrible death at the stake was brought about by John Calvin. R5172:6, 5479:2
To suffer persecution for righteousness' sake is not because it is either reasonable or proper, but to serve the Lord's cause in the preparation of his elect for a future work of service. R2415:3
They expected earthly glory, and instead of this, he whom they loved and trusted now spoke to them of suffering and death. R102:2*
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Whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service – Consider the story of Stephen. Acts 7 |
| 3 and these things they will do because they have not known the Father nor me.
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Have not known – Though the darkness recognizes the reproof of the presence of light, it comprehends it not. They have always persecuted the light-bringers because they knew not our Father, nor our Lord, nor his Body. R375:4
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| 4 But I have spoken these things to you, that when their hour shall have come, ye may remember them, that I have said them unto you. But I did not say these things unto you from the beginning, because I was with you.
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These things – Not all that they might expect (verse 12). The same is true of all the Lord's disciples. They see a sufficiency for one step at a time. Future difficulties are withheld that they be not overwhelmed by them. R4164:3
Ye may remember them – He sought not needlessly to make them mourn, but as the time drew near, he sought to prepare them for the ordeal. R102:2*
It was not merely the disappointment, but there must have been coupled with it a terrible fear that he had deceived them; that they had loved and trusted an impostor. R102:3*
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| 5 But now I go to him that has sent me, and none of you demands of me, Where goest thou?
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None of you asketh – They did not ask where, for they believed his word, that he had come forth from the Father and that he would return to the Father who sent him. R4165:3
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| 6 But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.
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Sorrow hath filled – What would they do without the Lord! How could the promise of the Kingdom ever be fulfilled if he went away! Had they been following a delusion for three years? R4165:3
While his departure remained to them an unsolved mystery, is it any wonder that sorrow filled their hearts? R102:2*
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| 7 But I say the truth to you, It is profitable for you that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you; but if I go I will send him to you.
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It is expedient – It really was to their advantage, in their interest, that he should go away. R4165:4
The Church is better off under the teachings and comforting influences of the holy Spirit than they could have been under the instructions, and enjoying the presence of Jesus in the flesh. R102:3*
He was limited, as a man in the flesh, to the ordinary means of travel, and could only be in one place at a time, but the Spirit can be everywhere, and with any number of people at once. R102:4*
Their loss of his presence and teaching was to be their gain. R102:3*
If it was expedient that he should go away, would the same law of expediency not require that he remain away? An unanswerable objection to those looking for the Lord the second time in the flesh. R102:5*
That I go away – I, personally. R1820:6
Had he remained with the disciples, present but invisible, and appearing to them and to all of his followers occasionally throughout the Gospel age, of what special advantage would it have been? R2819:1
Jesus could not make any use of the ransom-price while still on earth. He could not even bring his disciples into fellowship with the Father. R4165:4
The Comforter – As the influence to be exerted would be sustaining and comforting, the Lord denominated this Spirit or power a Comforter, a sustainer, a helper. R4164:6
Not another person. No other person could deal with them better than himself. It was a spirit, an influence, a power which he would send. R4164:6
The Spirit is a Comforter, because he is a teacher, as was Jesus himself. R102:3*
Not another Messiah, or a different teacher. B265
Will not come – Hence it would not have been possible for them ever to be more than human beings, ever to become spirit beings or partakers of the divine nature, together with its glories and honors. R4165:4
If I depart – It was necessary for Christ to ascend and present the merit of his sacrifice before we could be accepted and adopted, before we could receive the holy Spirit. R4165:4, 2819:2, 2225:4, 218:4
I will send him – The Greek could with equal propriety be translated "it." Nevertheless, we have no objection whatever to urge against the use of the word "him," since the holy Spirit or influence is of or from him, the Father. R4165:5
Properly enough spoken of in the masculine, even as the Father and the Son are represented in the masculine. R4164:6
After forty days, invisibly present except on a few occasions, our Lord ascended, and after ten days the holy Spirit from the Father came, evidencing to them the fact that their sins had been forgiven. NS802:6
The disciples were not to take Jesus' words too literally, but they should look for the deeper meaning. Furthermore, they could not expect to get that deep meaning until after the Master's ascension. R5088:5
The holy Spirit is Christ's representative in his Church. R158:1*
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| 8 And having come, he will bring demonstration to the world, of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
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When he – The Spirit of truth. E291; R375:1
The masculine pronoun is applied to the Spirit of truth because it represents God, who is masculine. E291
The word "he" could with equal propriety, according to the Greek, be translated "it." R4165:5
Is come – Upon the Church. R877:3
He will reprove – Operating through the Church, by precept and example. R877:3
The Spirit of truth in us constitutes us the light of the world. It is the light which shines from the true Christian which reproves, or condemns and opposes, the darkness of this world. E293; R375:2
The light borne in the world by the true Church has borne witness to the civilized world of the difference between right and wrong, and of a coming time in which the one will be rewarded and the other punished. A308
How? All of the Church, begotten of the holy Spirit and thus enlightened, are to let their light so shine before men that it will reprove the world. That which reproves the world is the holiness of the Church. R4165:6
Not with that attitude which proudly says, "I am holier than thou," but which, on the contrary, says, "I am no better than thou, except for the influences of divine grace, which are free to all who will accept them." R2099:3*
The testimony of a holy walk and conversation cannot fail to be to the glory of God, to the reproof of unrighteousness, and to the fact of a coming judgment in which righteousness shall surely triumph. R2099:5*
The seal of the spirit is a testimony of kinship with God, but also manifest to others--in its silent eloquence convincing the world of sin, of righteousness and of a coming judgment. R2065:4*
The world – The holy Spirit does not operate at all in the hearts of the world. The power of God operates upon hearts that are fully consecrated, separating them from the spirit of the world and using them in divine service. R4165:6
It has always been the Church's mission to shine out truth and reprove evil. And its reproof has always been chiefly to nominal systems and professors. R375:4
Of sin – Showing those who see it what sin is, in contrast with righteousness. E294
That is to say, it will make the world conscious of its sinful condition. R4166:1
By showing their present life to be contrary to the will of God. R877:3
And of righteousness – By showing them, by word and example, what right is, what the will of God is. R877:3
It is not enough that the world be convicted of sin; it needs to understand something about righteousness, the opposite of sin; that a considerable measure of it is possible, only hindered by the fallen nature. R4166:2
No one can come into accord with the Father through any works of righteousness of his own; but forgiveness, the covering of sins through the merit of Christ's sacrifice, is necessary. R4166:2
And of judgment – The present life is not all that there is. There is a trial purposed in God's arrangement for the whole world of mankind, a judgment, a test. R4166:2; E294
By informing them that, though punishment does not always follow sin now, yet there will be a day and age in which every deed, whether good or bad, will have a just reward. R877:3
God has provided a day of judgment in the future for the world. Nevertheless their conduct in the present life has to do with that future judgment or trial. R4166:3
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| 9 of sin, because they do not believe on me;
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Of sin – In Christ and his Church the Lord has established a new standard for the world. The Church, not only by its words but also by its actions, is to uphold these glorious standards. R4166:2
Because they believe not – Because they do not believe in and accept of Christ and his meritorious sacrifice for sin. R4166:3
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| 10 of righteousness, because I go away to my Father, and ye behold me no longer;
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I go to my Father – Imputed righteousness which has been secured by our Lord Jesus through his sacrifice, which he presented before the Father. R4166:3
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| 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
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Prince of this world – The kingdoms of this world which, while professing to be kingdoms of God, are really under control of the "prince of this world," Satan. R5917:2
Not that he had any divine commission, but by getting possession of mankind through ignorance and misrepresentation of false as true, he has so blinded the world that he held the position of "god of this world." (2 Cor. 4:4) E113
The "world that now is," or "present evil world" (Gal. 1:4), is the one over which Satan is the prince or ruler. Because he is ruler of this present order of things, this dispensation is termed an "evil world." Q827:T
Satan is still the prince of this world. R4350:3
Is judged – Our Lord has already redeemed the world, thus securing the legal right to dispossess Satan, the prince of the present order of evil. R4166:3
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| 12 I have yet many things to say to you, but ye cannot bear them now.
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Many things – These were the deep things of God, which only the spirit-begotten, spirit-taught children of God can understand. R5536:6, 5088:2
Jesus brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. (2 Tim. 1:10) Since Jesus' day yet more light shines, as he foretold it would. A22
At Pentecost, man for the first time knew the real purpose of the coming of Jesus to earth, and the object of his death and resurrection. HG512:6
Spiritual truths, those relating to our "high calling" to a spiritual nature, have only been brought to light since Pentecost. R715:6*, 493:3*; A80
Including the deeper meaning of the Memorial --that those who appreciate the sacrifice of Christ may present their bodies living sacrifices and thus have a part with the Lord Jesus in his sacrifice, as his Body. R5871:2
Including the fact that it would be a long time, from the human standpoint, between the suffering of the Head of the Body and the suffering of the last members of the Body. R3346:4, 2765:1
They did not then know of the full import of the word baptism, or the word cup. R5421:4
To say unto you – The promise of the Comforter, though it was ultimately to reach the whole Church through the ministration of the apostles, was specially given to them. R1525:3
The intimation is that our Lord could tell heavenly things, but was not disposed to do so, because they had difficulty receiving even earthly things. We are to tell the heavenly things, but not to the natural man. R5065:6; F632
Ye cannot bear them – Our Lord told his disciples only part of the truth. R4116:1
They had necessarily crude ideas regarding the manner and time of their Master's exaltation, and of their promised exaltation with him. Nor was full knowledge then necessary. B110
There was a reason why: the natural man cannot receive the things of the Spirit of God. Hence it was best for our Lord to leave the deep spiritual subjects until after Pentecost. R5608:4, 4827:1, 4314:3, 4166:4, 1524:4
This explains why our Lord Jesus did not present as deep teachings along spiritual lines as did some of the apostles. It was not his inability, but those truths would have been meat out of season. R4166:4, 5941:2, 4314:4, 1722:2
Hence the deeper things of our Lord's teachings were stated in parabolic form, which would not hurt them at the time, and which later they would come to appreciate and understand. R4166:4, 5455:5
When asked questions by his enemies who sought to entrap him, he avoided answering them or gave them evasive answers. R3675:1
Many of the Lord's people need to learn the lesson of secretiveness, not to tell everything that they know. R3674:6
We may talk of the deep things of God to those who are advanced in knowledge and prepared in heart for them. We are not to choke babes in Christ with strong meat, but to give them the milk of the Word. R3780:4, 3675:1; CR491:5
If we have the opportunity to present the message of salvation to a hungry soul, we are to be very careful not to tell him more than he is able to grasp, lest we do him harm rather than good. CR491:5
We are to be wise enough to know that all the truth even should not be mentioned at once. The Lord's people are eager to do good, but in the way that will be most effective, that will not stumble others. R5462:1
It is not wrong to withhold a part of the truth, if it is withheld for the benefit of the hearer. If the whole truth would do injury, then it is the course of wisdom and love to withhold the injurious element. R4209:5
It was not only the wisest way, but the best in every sense of the word, for God to arrange his plan so that only those in heart harmony with him would be able to appreciate it in advance of its fulfillment. R3910:4
Now – Until after his death and resurrection and the descent of the holy Spirit. R1525:4
The revelation of heavenly or spiritual things dates from Pentecost, after he was gone. R507:1
When the waiting Church were baptized with the Spirit, at once the things which the prophets had written and which they had hitherto been unable to understand, began to be made plain to them. R541:3*
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| 13 But when *he* is come, the Spirit of truth, he shall guide you into all the truth: for he shall not speak from himself; but whatsoever he shall hear he shall speak; and he will announce to you what is coming.
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The Spirit of truth – Which is, the "spirit of a sound mind." NS563:5
We see that God is a spirit, not that God is spirit; but we do not speak of the holy Spirit as being separate, as though it were a person separate and distinct from the Father and from the Son. R4165:5
Is come – At Pentecost the holy Spirit came upon the Church, enabling all such to hear the deep things with appreciation, and some to teach the same. R1722:2
He will guide you – Gradually. R1951:3
The apostles first, and through them, the whole Church. R1524:6; F218
The Spirit often uses human agencies for communicating truth. R231:5
He has sent it through channels long-since prepared: through the prophetic and typical teachings of the past opened up to us through the inspired words of our Lord and his inspired apostles. E267
The prophets and apostles had inspiration to write, and the Church has the same Spirit's help to understand. R66:6*
Not only true with the apostles: each one, presenting his Body a living sacrifice, has been accepted by the great Advocate, and then the offerer has been begotten of the holy Spirit to be a new creature in Christ. R5088:3
This he has done through the writings of the apostles and by believers all through the Gospel age. R4827:1, 368:3
Such as have full confidence in his wisdom and love, as well as in his power to make all things work out according to his prophetic promises. B262; R969:2
When we consecrate ourselves, we have a sufficiency of knowledge for that step. As we proceed, we are guided into the knowledge of the truth. So apparently the holy Spirit guided Jesus himself. R5156:3
Thus the pathway of the Church all the way down has been one of increasing light. R5055:4
They only who have the supernatural light of God's Word shall not be in darkness, these will be guided into an understanding of "things to come," not discernible from the worldly standpoint. R820:5
As each feature becomes due; in advance of the world's knowledge, and in advance of the facts themselves. R2973:6
Though the prophet's writing was held sacred as the Word of the Lord and reverently read by fleshly Israel, their understanding of it fell far short of its true significance until the holy Spirit was given. R3052:3
The prophets' words are valuable as showing many of the interests of the Jew, but except in types and shadows, discernible only by the Spirit's revelations through the apostles, they contain little spiritual food. R442:5
Scriptures written after Pentecost were devoted largely to the expounding of the Old Testament, adding new elements to make their symbols luminous. The New Testament thus becomes the key to the Old. R715:6*
Sin, punishable with the second death, could not possibly have been committed prior to the Gospel age, since not until Pentecost did the holy Spirit come as a teacher to guide the Church into the truth. R261:1, 137:5*
Into all truth – Our object as truth-seekers should be to obtain the complete, harmonious whole of God's revealed plan; and this, as God's children, we have reason to expect. A11
That is, all truth due. R309:2*, 1416:1
The present generation of Christians knows more of prophecy and God's plan than any generation preceding. R67:2*
The apostolic inspiration was threefold: a guidance into all truth concerning the divine plan; a refreshment of memory to recall and reproduce the Lord's personal teaching; and special revelations of things to come. F218; R1525:3
We want to learn what our object as truth-seekers should be: what we should seek, and what God promises we shall find. R1868:4
The Spirit witnesses that if you are a child of God you will not be ignorant of his Word, and will not only be in the light, as to present truth, but should know something about "things to come." R374:5, 231:5
It is the privilege of all who are "sons" of God to be so led of the Spirit and Word of the Father as to understand his purposes and be enabled always to be workers together with God. R1948:1
Will he guide a part of the Church into truth and a part into error? No! R309:2*
The promised power to know and to understand times and seasons, and all things pertaining to a proper witnessing, applies to the whole Church, from first to last. B120
The work of calling spiritual Israelites was the work committed to the apostles, leaving to the future the work of guiding them into all truth under the ministration of the holy Spirit. R2924:4
To understand the "mysteries" of Jehovah's plan. R1177:3
Some of the mysteries of God were due to be understood at once, and some more gradually down through the age, but the great unfolding we are expressly told was reserved until the close of the age. (Rev. 10:7) R2208:2, 368:3
God's Word is a great treasure house in which he has hid in past time all knowledge needful to his children in all ages. It is a great store house from which his servants may bring forth things both new and old. R318:2
We have the advantage of the aggregate progress of the past, besides the fulfillment of the prophecies which clearly indicate our position on the verge of the glory of the Kingdom. R67:2*
True love on our part will manifest itself in obedience. Should one ask, How would it be if we should disobey through ignorance? The answer is, that the Lord has made provision against our ignorance. R5082:5, 2466:6
To become a member of one of the earthly churches means to believe neither more nor less than is stated in their creed. This leaves no room for the spirit of truth to guide into all truth. R1067:3
The cry of "change the standards," from those of the popes and councils to that of the Bible only, or "progress in religious thought," was the battle-cry which shook the Church of Rome in the days of Luther. R780:5
Not speak of himself – Greek, heautou. The same word is frequently properly translated "itself." In our Common Version it is rendered in the masculine, feminine, common, and neuter genders. E170
"From" himself. (See Diaglott, Revised Version, Rotherham, and Young) R614:2
To speak "from himself" would be to speak independently of the Scriptures and to render them of only secondary importance. R614:2
That is, he shall not teach independently and out of harmony with my teaching. E265; R372:2, 1524:6
You are not to expect a new teaching, subversive of my teaching, but rather a full development and instruction along the lines of my teaching. E266
It will be only a channel, and not an authority. R4166:4; E266
We have no intimation in the Scripture that the Spirit of God leads his children through any other medium than that of his Word. R614:2
Whatsoever he shall hear – That is, the same things which I have taught, or which have been heard, he will elaborate and teach more fully. R372:2; E266
That is, he will be my messenger to you. R1524:6
Shew you – Revelations through the holy Spirit by the apostles. R3486:6
Things to come – The favor of seeing further into the future than the world could look. It is both a comfort and a strengthener of faith to see how Scripture is being gradually accomplished. R362:1, 820:5
As future things become due to be understood by you, this Spirit of my Father shall guide you step by step into the full understanding of everything necessary and proper for you to understand. E266
We see, with wonderful distinctness of vision, his wise policy for the blessing of all in the incoming Millennial age. B16
A mark, seal or evidence of sonship, led by the Spirit of God. B169; E239; R310:5, 231:5
The things to come, as well as things past and present, are of great importance to the Church, not merely to satisfy curiosity, but in order that we disciples may more fully conform to the divine mind. R1354:1
First, that we may not be overwhelmed with fear; second, that we may be co-workers together with God; and, third, in order to be fully prepared to enter new relationships and their duties and privileges. R1354:2
Seeing beyond the trials and tribulations of the present time, we see the glories that will follow the present time of suffering. OV177:5
Students of the greatest of all sciences, divine revelation, the Bible, are guided thereby to search for its promised "things to come"; and, as promised, they find them, and thus are permitted to anticipate history. R2369:1
Only such truth-seekers, rewarded with the knowledge of things to come and the relationship of things past and present with those yet future, ever come to see the beauty and harmony of divine truth as a system. R1354:1
However willing Paul might have been to be nothing, his duty to truth led him to reveal that to him more than all the others the Lord had revealed more of those things to come. R5941:6, 1525:3; OV6:1
Showing both the future and the past. R5156:6
If, as we believe, the last members of the Body of Christ are now living, "the feet of him" (Isa. 52:7), it is time that we understood passages which clearly refer to the feet. R303:6
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| 14 He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine and shall announce it to you.
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He – The Father's holy Spirit, influence or power. E266
Shall glorify me – By showing to the Church during this age more and more of the coming glory and glorious work of Christ, and the depth of the riches of God's plans to be fulfilled in him. R372:2
Receive of mine – Those things written in the Scriptures. R614:2
It will be my things that will be shown unto you. R4166:4
The new teacher will not turn your minds from me to himself; but all of the teachings of the coming Comforter will be in harmony with my teachings, and to show you more fully that I am the Messiah. R372:2
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| 15 All things that the Father has are mine; on account of this I have said that he receives of mine and shall announce it to you.
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Are mine – There is no conflict between us: his plan is my plan, and his way is my way. R1524:6; 372:2; E266
There was a recognized oneness of possessions clearly expressed by our Lord. The Apostle says, God hath appointed the son the "heir of all things." (Heb. 1:2) R3161:2, 4166:4
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| 16 A little while and ye do not behold me; and again a little while and ye shall see me, because I go away to the Father.
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A little while – That which has seemed to us so long a time, is not really a long while from God's standpoint. A thousand years with us are in his own sight as yesterday, but a watch in the night when it is passed. (Psa. 90:4) NS457:3
The entire period of his absence from the divine standpoint, as compared to eternity, would be but a little while. R4707:3
From God's standpoint only six great days of a thousand years each have elapsed since Father Adam's creation in Eden. NS457:4
Not see me – The world saw him not after his resurrection; they did not see him ascend. R579:6
A little while – Our Lord refers to the nearly nineteen hundred years of this Gospel age as "a little while." NS458:4
Ye shall see me – You shall be changed from human nature to divine nature in the resurrection and see me and behold my glory. NS458:6
We shall "see him as he is" (1 John 3:2), not as he was in the flesh. NS459:1
The world will not see him thus, because it is not the divine provision that the world in its salvation shall be changed from earthly to heavenly nature. NS459:1
The seeing that is promised in the Millennial age will be the result of the opening of the blind eyes of understanding. NS459:2
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| 17 Some of his disciples therefore said to one another, What is this he says to us, A little while and ye do not behold me; and again a little while and ye shall see me, and, Because I go away to the Father? |
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| 18 They said therefore, What is this which he says of the little while? We do not know of what he speaks. |
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| 19 Jesus knew therefore that they desired to demand of him, and said to them, Do ye inquire of this among yourselves that I said, A little while and ye do not behold me; and again a little while and ye shall see me?
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| 20 Verily, verily, I say to you, that ye shall weep and lament, ye, but the world shall rejoice; and ye will be grieved, but your grief shall be turned to joy.
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Ye – Not applying to the world, in the sense of embracing the whole human race. R526:3*
Weep and lament – In one sense it meant a little while of trouble, trial and vexation to his disciples and a little while of rejoicing on the world's part. NS459:6
Those in Zion who mourn over and lament the mighty power of evil in the high places both of church and of state. R1493:6*
Disciples of Jesus look at the fallen condition of the world with the same sentiments of the Master. They proportionately become more and more sensible of the sorrows of the world and of grief for the world. NS190:4
At his absence. R526:3*
Turned into joy – As faith perceives God's "little whiles" and takes the divine standpoint, hope reigns and counts the years that remain until their full completion. NS460:3
He had been with them a little while, he would be gone from them a little while. The more they could enter into his spirit the shorter would be that little while of his absence. NS459:6
Not only in the resurrection, but even now, anticipating that resurrection in their faith, in their hope, and passing from death unto life as risen with Christ and walking in newness of life. NS460:1
Though some earthly joys, once held very dear, are sacrificed one by one, in their places come heavenly joys that far more than compensate for the loss. F678
In harmony with this, we find the Scriptures testifying that the followers of Jesus were always rejoicing, in everything giving thanks--even in trials, difficulties and persecutions. NS191:1
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| 21 A woman, when she gives birth to a child, has grief because her hour has come; but when the child is born, she no longer remembers the trouble, on account of the joy that a man has been born into the world.
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But as soon – The sooner they are able to accept the situation by faith the sooner they may with joy anticipate the coming blessings. NS459:6
Delivered – Greek, gennao. When used figuratively respecting the beginning of the work of grace, it should be rendered begotten; and whenever to the completion of the work in the resurrection, it should be rendered born. NS100:4
For joy – The mother's joy when her pangs are over, and the child is born into the world. R303:5*
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| 22 And ye now therefore have grief; but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one takes from you.
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I will see you again – I will reveal myself to you. HG374:2
Your joy – So we, like his disciples, rejoice not merely that our Lord died as our Redeemer, but that he rose again from the dead, that he reveals himself at the end of the age and is spiritually present through the age. HG374:2
As when he went away, he lifted up his hands and blessed them; so, when he comes again, it is that their joy may be full. B154
It causes no surprise to know that the saints will be "joyful in glory," but it may strike some as peculiar that the condition of imperfection in which we groan should be a condition in which joy prevails with us. R2231:6
This joy is a foretaste of the blessings to come, and earnest of our inheritance, inspired by confidence in him whom we have believed, that he is both able and willing to perfect the work that he has begun. R2232:1
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| 23 And in that day ye shall demand nothing of me: verily, verily, I say to you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give you.
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Ask me nothing – Not that Jesus should be no longer recognized in prayer, but that the time was coming when, with the same freedom and confidence they had in approaching him, they could approach the Father direct, in his name. R1580:6
The Father – While accepting homage, reverence, as the Son of God, he taught his disciples to make their petitions to the Father. E74
The world may not call God Father, but we "have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba, Father." (Rom. 8:15) R520:6
In my name – Meaning more than merely by his authority. It means that the petitioner must realize his own unworthiness to be received at the throne, and therefore he presents it in the merit of Christ, his Redeemer. R1410:4
This excludes Jews, Mohammedans, the heathen, all who have not a knowledge of Christ and a faith in him as the Redeemer. R2252:3
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| 24 Hitherto ye have asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
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Ask – Ask in my name. R2205:5
Not that we should pray for a Pentecostal blessing, but that we should ask for the spirit of the truth, of a sound mind, for the wisdom which comes from above. R5202:4
Whatever may be our natural inclinations as regards constancy and definiteness in prayer, we must take our instructions from the Word of God. R5836:1, 2005:5
That your joy – "In thy presence is fullness of joy." (Psa. 16:11) It is because prayer brings the soul into the presence of the Lord that it prepares the way for divine blessing and superlative joys. F679
The cultivation of the spirit of praise, thanksgiving and loving appreciation of all the manifest goodness of God, is the Christian's secret of a happy life. R2031:5
May be full – There is a special blessing to those who look for a fulfillment of our Lord's promise. R5202:3
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| 25 These things I have spoken to you in allegories; the hour is coming that I will no longer speak to you in allegories, but will declare to you openly concerning the Father.
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| 26 In that day ye shall ask in my name; and I say not to you that I will demand of the Father for you,
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| 27 for the Father himself has affection for you, because ye have had affection for me, and have believed that I came out from God.
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The Father himself – Thus new creatures need no mediator between them and the Father. R4516:5; 3916:1
There is no need of a mediator between the Father who loves his children and children who love their Father. SM720:2; NS356:4
The very presence of Christ in the glory of his enduring priesthood is the only appeal that is necessary on our behalf: for Jehovah himself loveth us. R1829:5
Puny indeed is the arm of flesh that is raised against the saints in defiance of the Almighty. The supreme Judge of the supreme court has acquitted, once forever, all that are in Christ. R1141:4
When we come to really know the God of the Bible we find him the very personification of love. (1 John 4:8) NS524:4
Loveth you – A true son of a beloved and approving father naturally experiences the fervor of tender emotion. Especially is this so of a true son of God who recognizes in his heavenly Father the perfection of every grace. R1914:3
The Father's love for them was phileo, duty love. He could not love them for themselves but exercised a duty-love toward them merely because they had attained a duty-love toward Christ and had become his friends. R2807:3
First, God loves the world. Second, in a much higher sense, he loves those who have accepted Christ as Redeemer and have consecrated themselves to him. This love can be lost, in part, or, eventually wholly. R3033:6, 5724:6; CR461:1
God loves the world with a broad, sympathetic love; but he has a special love for his true Church, those who have consecrated themselves fully to him during this Gospel age. OV423:3; R5276:1
Jesus is preeminently beloved of the Father; and the Bride class, the Church, are to be the members of Christ, their Head--members of the Beloved. R5694:5
We can readily see why our Lord Jesus was greatly beloved, for he expressed and fully manifested the Father's love. But it astounds us to know that the same love is exercised by the Father toward us! R5082:6, 5724:6
Not because of our character likeness, but because we have his Spirit. CR323:2
For such as have the evidence that they are sons of God, taught of God. NS507:5
While the realization of the Father's care for our interests is humiliating, in that it forces conviction of our weakness, yet, it is refreshing and inspiring in that it proves our Father's love for us. R5117:5
No matter how fiercely the storms of life may assail us, we must never let go of our anchor and allow ourselves to drift, but always remember such promises as these. R4817:6; 3331:2
To many it must seem as though the Lord were asleep, to many as though he were heedless or careless of his own; but the Lord knoweth the end from the beginning and will yet make the wrath of man to praise him. NS662:1
But only as we are able to realize an obedient faith are we able to apply these gracious promises to ourselves, or to rest therein. R3944:5
As we read the loving words of counsel, encouragement and warning, and the fervent prayer of our Lord for these disciples, whom he was about to leave in the world, we are constrained to say, Behold how he loved them! R847:3*
Seeing the philosophy of why God cut off fellowship for a moment from his Son should fill us with appreciation for the privilege of returning to the Father's fellowship and love. R4173:2
Illustrated by the peculiar love Jacob had for Joseph. R3971:3
Ye have loved me – Greek, phileo, duty love; the highest form of love the disciples as a whole could as yet appreciate, not yet having received the holy Spirit and its agape, or highest disinterested love and its character. R2807:3
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| 28 I came out from the Father and have come into the world; again, I leave the world and go to the Father.
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| 29 His disciples say to him, Lo, now thou speakest openly and utterest no allegory. |
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| 30 Now we know that thou knowest all things, and hast not need that any one should demand of thee. By this we believe that thou art come from God. |
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| 31 Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe?
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| 32 Behold, the hour is coming, and has come, that ye shall be scattered, each to his own, and shall leave me alone; and yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me.
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Shall be scattered – Specially true in the Harvest when the sickle of truth is doing its work of separation: not only wheat from tares, but the ripe wheat is also to be separated from the unripe. R1069:3*
I am not alone – In his last moments, treated exactly like the sinner whose ransom he was giving, mental communion with the Father was interrupted; and he felt for the moment alone, separated from the Father, cut off and condemned. R960:1
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| 33 These things have I spoken to you that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye have tribulation; but be of good courage: I have overcome the world.
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Ye might have peace – In your hearts. R1652:3, 4818:4
Do any of the faithful in tribulation for Christ's sake yet lack the peace? It is because you lack faith to lay hold of the promises. R347:6
If you have peace without the suffering, while all men speak well of you, beware! That is the peace of a sleep in which one dreams that he is filled, and awakes to find himself empty. R348:1
In the world – But "in me ye shall have peace," not peace outwardly, but the peace of God abounding in the heart, enabling one to endure the trials joyfully. R4818:4
Ye shall have tribulation – We may have both tribulation and the peace at the same time. R347:6
Charmed with the prospects, these are not daunted by the trials and difficulties of the way. HG652:3
Sufferings in the present time, for the truth's sake, are part of our wages. All who think they are running for the prize should look for these wages as a proof that they are so running. R347:3, 4730:3
Because "the darkness hateth the light." Because we are being more and more transformed, hence we do not find the satisfaction in the world that we otherwise would and that others find. R4761:2
There is no suggestion that we can escape similar tribulation. Indeed, if we escape the sufferings of Christ, we will be denied a share in his coming glories. R4417:4
There is no other way to enter the kingdom than by self-sacrifice, mortifying the flesh. In proportion as the new creature grows, the old creature perishes, until the sacrifice is completed in death. R5118:2
If you do not suffer you have good cause for fear that you are not living up to your covenant, that you are not confessing him and his Word before men by word or act as you should do. R347:5
Do you have any tribulation? Make sure it does not arise from natural causes. R347:2
Do you experience little or no sufferings of Christ now? Do you begin to count the time of suffering over? That is a serious mistake. It is one of the devices of the Adversary to put to sleep the saints of God. R347:3
There was no deception in the Apostle's preaching in Derbe (Acts 14), no teaching that they would prosper in business interests by becoming disciples or that Christianity would lead to wealthy and refined social circles. R4369:6
Contrasted, under Satan's reign, with "I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree." (Psa. 37:35) R492:3
Be of good cheer – Do not allow these tribulations to make you discouraged. The glories far outweigh any sacrifices you may endure. Think of the joys and honors and privileges which will be yours if you are faithful to the end. R4761:4
The Lord is represented as a refiner of silver, watching his children in the fire, and thus he will purify the sons of Levi. (Mal. 3:3) These trials are often severe, but they have their attending joys. R199:4*
He knew the imperfection of these disciples; he knew how they would all shortly forsake him through fear, and leave him alone to suffer and die; and yet he loved them, and declared that his Father also loved them. R847:3*
I have overcome – And Paul adds, "In that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted." (Heb. 2:18) R2073:5*
And is able to succor us in temptation's hour, and will do so if we but abide in his love and seek his protection. R4417:4, 4761:4, 2124:4*
Having overcome, he has long since entered into his glory; and it is the Father's good pleasure to permit those to share that glory with him who, when tried and proved, shall not be found wanting. R2124:4*
His perfection is imputed to us through faith. And now this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. (1 John 5:4) R847:6*
When our Lord Jesus was at Jordan he was an overcomer. Yet, while an overcomer at the moment of his consecration, he did not win the prize of the divine nature until the end of his race-course. R5082:1
The difficulties of this way are to act as a separating principle to sanctify and refine a "peculiar people" (1 Pet. 2:9) to be "heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ." (Rom. 8:17) A214
As soldiers under our great Captain, we have enlisted in no uncertain struggle, unless our own faint-heartedness or unfaithfulness should make it so. R4817:3
The Lord, our great Deliverer, is on our part. We have laid hold upon one who is mighty to save; yea, more, he has laid hold upon us. Neither will he let us go so long as our hearts are loyal to him. R4100:5
Remember that I am the Captain of your salvation. I have gone before you; remember my degradation before obtaining a share in this Kingdom. R4761:4
As surely as God's hand upheld the Head, our Lord Jesus, so surely will he bear up the feet. R1801:6
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