John 15:21-27
 
John 15:21 (KJB)
But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me.
 
This verse is an eye opener because those who claim to know God are not acting in a way that would glorify God. Christians will be persecuted because they name the name of Christ and the reason they will be persecuted is because their persecutors do not really know God and if they do not know God, then they are of Satan. It is Satan’s kingdom who attacks the kingdom of God. (Mat 12:24-25 KJV) But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. {25} And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: Let me take a principle from the above two verses. Jesus was accused by the Pharisees that He was casting out devils by the prince of the devils, who would be Satan. Jesus then goes on to state that a kingdom which is divided by itself will come to ruination. Here is the principle. If Christians are proclaiming the true Gospel of Christ and those religious systems that reject Christ are persecuting them, yet they think that they are in the Kingdom of God, then the Kingdom of God will come to ruin because it is divided against itself. Now, of course, we know that this is totally false because the way we know that a church or religious system is in God’s Kingdom is by the way they deal with Christ. Judaism is not in God’s kingdom because it rejects Christ. Islam is not in God’s kingdom because it rejects Christ. Christianity is in God’s kingdom because it is of Christ. So therefore those religious systems which reject Christ are in the kingdom of Satan and it is the kingdom of Satan which persecutes the true believers. Just because something is religious, does not mean they are in God’s Kingdom. So God’s kingdom never fights among itself but is persecuted by the kingdom of Satan and its religious systems which is Revelation 17 speaks about.
 
John 15:22 (KJB)
If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin.
 
(Rom 5:13 KJV) (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. What Jesus is stating here is that the Jews thought that they were not sinners because they had the law of God and Moses. When Jesus came on the scene, He exposed their sins and corruptions concerning not only physical things but spiritual things. In Romans 5:13, we read a principle that if there is no law, then there can be no violation because a law was not written. For example, if you are on a road with no posted speed limit and you are doing 80 mph, you cannot get a ticket. However, if there is a posted speed limit of 55 mph and you are doing 80 mph, then you are violating the law and can legitimately be given a speeding ticket. When Jesus exposed the corruption of the Pharisees, He pointed out their sins and now that those sins have been pointed out, they are now responsible for them and no longer can they hide behind the law. They must have a Savior like everybody else or they will be sent to hell on the last day in judgment. Their sins are now open and no religious clothing or speech can cover them.
 
John 15:23 (KJB)
He that hateth me hateth my Father also.
 
Jesus revealed to us the Father and those who do not like what they see in Christ are saying that they also hate the Father. You cannot hate the Son and love the Father because that is inconsistent. Those religious systems that reject Christ and vilify Him, are also showing their contempt for the Father. If you do not have the Son, you do not have the Father. False systems like Judaism, Islam, Jehovah’s Witnesses, New Age, and many others reject Christ and therefore anyone who is an adherent of these systems at death will be judged on the last day and sentenced to an eternity in hell. You cannot have the Father without the Son because it is written and the Scripture cannot be broken.
 
John 15:24 (KJB)
If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.
 
Now Jesus widens the witness stating that He did works among the people of Israel that no one ever did before He came on the scene. These works had testified to the legitimacy of who He had verbally stated He was. Before many of the miracles, He would pray to the Father. When He was at the tomb of Lazarus, He prayed to the Father and then a few minutes later, Lazarus came out of the tomb alive. The works were a confirmation of the harmony between Jesus and the Father. If these works were not done and all Jesus did was preach and tell the people who He was, then they would not be guilty of the sin of rejecting Him, but the fact remains that they saw the miracles and heard the messages and because they have rejected Him, they are guilty of sin. The hardness of the sinful heart is shown well throughout the ministry of Jesus because all the people He ministered to and were witnessed by many others, yet they still rejected Him and hated Him. This means that they also hated the Father, whether they realized it or not, and this is part of the revelation of their sin that Jesus made known to them which will cause them to stand for those sins on Judgment Day.
 
John 15:25 (KJB)
But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
 
(Psa 69:4 KJV) They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away. David, who was a type of Christ, also faced the kingdom of Satan in such a way that Saul wanted to kill him out of envy. David did nothing to warrant the hatred of Saul. Jesus also did nothing to warrant the hatred of the Jews. It was the greed and corruption of the leaders of Israel who wanted Jesus dead. Jesus never even broke one law yet the Jews were breaking it constantly. How could you hate someone that brings back a loved one from the dead or heals a child who is almost dead from sickness? Therefore, their hatred of Jesus had no cause. The only cause to be found was in themselves and their unsaved, hate-filled natures. Many Christians are hated just because they bring the Gospel and want to see people saved. How could you hate someone who wants you to live in paradise for eternity? Yet this world does!
 
John 15:26 (KJB)
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:
 
Here is a declaration of the deity of Jesus. He has the authority to send the Holy Spirit to those that are His. When He ascends back to Heaven forty days after the resurrection, then ten days after that on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit will be given to the true believers to indwell them. Now the term “Comforter” is a great description of the Holy Spirit because in the coming years, the disciples and many other Christians are going to face massive persecutions. These persecutions of Christians continue up to this day and it is only through the divine comfort given by the Holy Spirit to the believer, can they endure these persecutions. Jesus also tells His disciples that the Holy Spirit is going to testify of Jesus. Jesus calls Him the Spirit of Truth because He is going to reveal more about Jesus through the written Scriptures and will help us understand those Scriptures so we gain a better understanding of Jesus and our relation to Him. Then as the Holy Spirit testifies to us about Jesus, we in turn, testify to the world what He teaches us.
 
John 15:27 (KJB)
And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
 
Just continuing the teaching from the previous verse, not only does the Holy Spirit testify of Jesus, but the believers, through the power and teachings of the Holy Spirit will also testify of Jesus and it will cost the lives of countless numbers of believers. The disciples will also have a special insight because as the Holy Spirit brings back the words of Jesus, they will, in turn, testify to those words and works. Since they were eyewitnesses they would be able to testify to the verity of the works of Christ’s earthly ministry since they were with Him from the very beginning. The original eleven disciples, present here with Jesus, will be the catalyst for the evangelism of the world with the word of truth.

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