John 14:26-31

John 14:26 (KJB)

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.

 

Comforter - Called to one’s aid or helper

 

In the previous verse the Lord Jesus Christ had told the disciples things while He was present with them but now He goes on to tell them that the Holy Spirit will be sent to them and will indwell them. The Spirit will be sent in the name of Jesus which means that He will now come to His disciples through the indwelling Holy Spirit. This means that the Holy Spirit, who is eternal God, will teach the disciples all the things necessary for them to live out their Christian lives and to be a testimony to the world while bringing the Gospel. The Holy Spirit will also bring to remembrance what the Lord Jesus had taught them. At this point they did not have the spiritual understanding required to be the strong disciples that Christ required but with the indwelling Holy Spirit bringing the Lord’s teachings to remembrance, they will have what is needed to further the Gospel. This principle also applies to today. Whenever we read our Bibles and someone asks a question concerning that portion, the Holy Spirit will bring to mind what we have read. This is why it is important for every Christian to read and study Scripture because the Holy Spirit will not bring back to remembrance what was never studied in the first place.

 

John 14:27 (KJB)

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.

 

Peace - A binding together or a cessation of hostilities

Troubled - Inward anxiety or an emotional letdown

Afraid - To shrink in fear or be timid

 

With His impending crucifixion, the Lord Jesus Christ is now telling the disciples that He is leaving peace with them. The peace that the Lord is giving to them is a peace which begins in the spirit. (Phil 4:7 KJV) And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. The true peace of God keeps a believer fully steadied in their Christian walk no matter what the circumstances are. Before Christ went to the cross, the disciples were very fickle in their understanding of what Jesus said and done. After Pentecost, they had all become fearless in their pursuit of preaching the Gospel. This was because the peace which Christ gave them, was a settling peace that no matter what happened to them, they would have peace through the strength of Christ.

 

The world tends to give peace, but that peace is only temporary because situations change rapidly in this world. Worldly peace can consist of vacations, time off, tranquilizers, or whatever else the world can produce and when the time of relaxation or vacation is over, it is back to the same old situation. The peace that Christ gives is an eternal, enduring peace which permeates every aspect of the life of the Christian. No matter what circumstances face the believer, such as martyrdom, they have peace in their souls because they know that if they are martyred, they will be with Christ forever and all pain and suffering will end forever.

 

On the heels of the promise of inward peace the Lord tells His followers that they should not have anxiety during the coming days and that they should not shrink back but remain stedfast as His disciples. They should let the peace of Christ rule in their hearts. The Greek word behind concerning not letting your heart “be troubled” is in the Imperative Mood, which makes it a command. Christ is basically commanding them to remain strong. Now they had to disperse during the time of the crucifixion so there would be no mistake that Christ alone paid for the sins of His people. Once the Holy Spirit was given, then there would be no fear in the disciples or anxiety as is witnessed in the book of Acts.

 

John 14:28 (KJB)

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.

 

During the time of Christ’s ministry on earth, He would make it known that He was going away and it even confused the Pharisees when they thought that Jesus was speaking about suicide, especially when He told them that they could not go where He is going. Now the disciples did love the Lord but at this point it was a love with imperfect knowledge. They were still not sure about what was going to take place shortly and the reason for it. They heard Him say many times that He was going away and that He was coming back unto them again. If they had understood what that meant, they would rejoice because what was about to happen would change their lives for eternity. When the Lord Jesus Christ would ascend to the Father, then He would send them the promise of the Holy Spirit who would indwell them for all eternity.

 

Then Jesus states that “for my Father is greater than I.” This statement has been abused by the cults such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses who claim that according to this verse, it is proving that Jesus is less than God. That, of course, is a very blasphemous understanding. In Colossians 1:16, we read about Jesus being the Creator, which means that He is definitely God. The principle in understanding this

phrase can be found in Matthew 19:17.

 

(Mat 19:16-17 KJV) And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? {17} And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

 

A man came unto Jesus and called Him “Good Master.” Then Jesus redirects his focus on God, that there is no one who is Good except God. Jesus did this because the man saw Jesus as a man and not as God in the flesh. This is why Jesus pointed him to the fact that God is good. Now we come back to John 14:28 and Jesus is pointing to the fact that God is greater than He and that is because Jesus was in the flesh and God is Spirit. While in the flesh Jesus had suffered humiliation at the cross, took on the task of a servant as we saw in foot washing, allowed Himself to become subject to the powers of evil. These things the Father did not do and it was in this context that Jesus was saying His Father was greater than He. They are co-equal, but, because of the earthly ministry of Jesus, which was directed by the Father as we have seen many times in this book it was Jesus taking on a humiliation in flesh.

 

John 14:29 (KJB)

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

 

Jesus once again tells them that He is giving them information on the coming events before they come to pass, so when the events come to pass exactly as the Lord told them, then they would believe that everything was happening according to the Lord’s plan which He revealed to them.

 

John 14:30 (KJB)

Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

 

The time was now approaching when the Lord would be taken and the disciples would be scattered, so the time for any more teaching was quickly coming to a close. Jesus knew that Judas had already betrayed Him and the forces of evil were probably already on their way to the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus will be arrested. Satan was no doubt instigating this crowd and Jesus knew that Satan would be present when the crowd took Him. He also states that Satan has nothing in Him, which means that Satan was not in control of the events. It was God the Father who as in control of all the events about to happen and He used Satan as only an instrument. This meant He had no authority over Christ and this is also a comforting phrase for the Christian. He has no authority over us either. Christians are not forced to sin by Satan, whenever a Christian sins, it is voluntary.

 

John 14:31 (KJB)

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

 

Jesus had a tremendous love for the Father because He was obedient to the plan of God for the salvation of the Elect, even unto the cross. (Phil 2:8 KJV) And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. The salvation plan of God must now go forward, so Jesus tells His disciples that He and they must now go to the Garden of Gethsemane where He will be arrested and the disciples will fear and be scattered. (Mat 26:31 KJV) Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. This verse quotation is from Zechariah 13:7 as these were all prophesied events.

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