Three Minute Bible

Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.

Jesus continues his dissertation on his battle with the world by explaining why the world does not accept his followers. He explains this in the context of his ongoing conflict with the Jewish leaders. His words are prophetic in that they apply equally well to his followers in the Gentile world.

“They will treat you this way because of my name…”

The name of Jesus is special. Because of who Jesus is, His name has power. It has the power to irritate and offend the people of this world who do not want to believe in a Creator and a Judge. The world believes it is accountable only to itself.

When Jesus says, “… they do not know the one who sent me,” he is referring to his Father. People do not know their Creator because they do not want to believe there is one. Having a Creator is a messy business. Suddenly you have to worry about who your Creator is, what kind of Creator they are, how many Creators there might be, and what we have to do to stay on the right side of a Creator. That is a lot of stuff to worry about. It is much easier for the world to simply pretend that life is an accident and we basically create our own right and wrong.

Unfortunately for the world, God, the Creator exists. He has a son named Jesus. Jesus came to earth to demonstrate his authority and power with miracles and signs. Then he gave his life as the final sacrifice for atonement between man and God. The name of Jesus rattles the people of the world because of who he represents and what he claimed to be.

Don’t expect life in this world to be easy if you decide to follow Jesus. On the other hand, you can expect to have real life for all of eternity when you do.

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Continue reading “The Name – John 15: 20-21”

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.

Sometimes I get the impression that Jesus sees “the world” as we might see a sports team: “Us” versus “Them.” It is kind of like that in that there is a sense of competition between the two sides. Each side is trying to “score” more points than the other side. Points are racked up in a place we can’t see yet called “Eternity.”

The winners and the losers in this game between God and the world are real. The consequences of our choices are eternal. (See “Perspective”)

Somehow those who are not chosen by God, who do not choose God, know that any acknowledgment of God is a threat to them. When they see a person choosing God (a.k.a. being chosen by God) there is a sense of being threatened. The world’s people cannot abide a threat. Their only hope is in their own power. The power they have is only good when it is used for evil.

Emotions run high in the world. When someone turns to God, others feel betrayed. Betrayal, envy, anger, and insecurity all contribute to the response the world has toward’s God’s people. Death to the Christians!

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Continue reading “Us vs Them – John 15: 19”

If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.

As Jesus teaches his disciples on his last night on earth he starts with a lesson in feet washing. Then, after dealing with the traitor Judas, Jesus begins to give them last minute instructions. In Chapter 13, verse 34 he begins with, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” Then he says that this is a sign that people are truly his disciples.

In Chapter 14 Jesus lays the foundation for his instruction to abide in Him. He talks about He and the Father being one, and what that means. He speaks of the Holy Spirit and how the world will not be able to accept Him. He speaks of peace and life and his coming departure from the world.

Then we come to Chapter 15 where Jesus begins to teach about what it means to abide in Him. He talks about bearing fruit and how this brings glory to God. Finally, he gets to the scary part.

“If the world hates you…” It doesn’t seem like much of an “if” after all that happened to the disciples and the persecutions that have dogged Christians throughout the ages. The world doesn’t really like the idea of people knowing about God and judgment and the salvation that Jesus offers. The disciples still have no idea what is about to befall their Teacher. They have no clue about the hate that surrounds their Lord and is lurking outside the door. Jesus prepares them for life as a Follower of the Way by giving them a heads up: The world might hate you. Don’t be surprised.

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Continue reading “The Scary Part – John 15: 18”

This is my command: Love each other.

One thing you can say for Jesus: He was not shy about repeating himself! Is there any doubt in your mind after reading these last two chapters that Jesus has one main task for us? Love each other. Not a casual love, not a “feel good” type love, but a Jesus kind of love … sacrificial love.

Let’s Discuss: What comes to mind as a modern day example of sacrificial love?

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Continue reading “Megaphone – John 15: 17”

…and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.

Have you ever noticed that when people pray to God they often end their prayer with the words, “… in Jesus name?” Have you ever wondered why people do that? I think the answer is in these verses where Jesus says, “…whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.” But he is not offering this spectacular offer to just anyone, is he?

Jesus is talking to people who will be “in Him.” They have been instructed to remain in Him. They are to be one with Him. After Jesus ascends into heaven he sends his Holy Spirit to abide in those who remain in Him. There is a oneness implied in such a relationship.

It is the same kind of relationship that Jesus has with His Father. Jesus and the Father are one. The Father would do anything that Jesus asked and Jesus would do anything the Father asked. When it comes to being crucified, Jesus asks to take a pass. The Father would have said yes except for you and I. His love for us is so great that he did not give Jesus the way out that he asked for. Yet even in this moment of conflict, Jesus was clearly obedient and subordinate to the Father’s wishes.

When we ask for something in Jesus’ name, it seems like a good starting point would be in Him. Abiding in Him, remaining in Him, our will commingles with His. Our desires are His and what we ask is something He wants to do.

Does the person who does not abide in Jesus have this same privilege? I think that there are prayers that Jesus answers for all who call on him, but the spectacular offer of “whatever you ask” belongs to His own.

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Continue reading “A Spectacular Offer – John 15: 16d”

…fruit that will last…

Yesterday we looked at the Fruit Stand of the Bible, today we take a closer look at the actual fruit. We talked about the various ways we can understand “bearing fruit.” One thing we did not talk about was the nature of the fruit itself.

Earlier in this chapter, Jesus tells us he is the vine and that we have to remain in Him to have life. Now what he said earlier takes on more meaning. If we want to “bear fruit” we have to be a plant or at least part of a plant. To use Jesus’ allegory, He is the trunk that provides everything needed for life to the branches. We as individuals are the branches.

When he says, “…fruit that will last….” He is not talking about a fruit that is eaten. We are not growing fruit to feed ourselves. (In the allegory, Jesus Himself provides everything we need.) Instead, the kind of fruit that Jesus is talking about is something that has to do with propagating the plant itself. It has to do with life.

Let’s suppose for the moment that Jesus allegory has some very literal elements to it. In this life, we are branches that are grafted into Jesus so that we can have life. By being grafted in, we become fruitful in this life which results in … fruit. A fruit that carries the seeds of eternal life. When our physical bodies die, we have an eternal relationship with the Father through his Son, Jesus.

Let’s Discuss: What do you “hear” when Jesus talks about “fruit that will last?”

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Continue reading “Seeds – John 15: 16c”

…and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit…

Once again we are back in the Fruit Stand of the Bible. Jesus has appointed those who believe to “go and bear fruit.” What kind of fruit is he talking about?

The word “fruit” can refer to a single kind of fruit such as a grape or an apple. (As she stood in the orchard she looked at the cherries all around her and then she reached out to pick the fruit.) But it is also a generic term that describes an entire category of seed-bearing structures that grow on plants. Did Jesus mean that we should go and bear only one kind of fruit, or was he referring to a variety of fruits?

One of the characteristics of fruit is that it always contains seeds. Seeds are the means that fruit replicates itself. Was Jesus inferring that we should be planting seeds with this fruit we are to bear?

And then there is the practical question of, “What is he talking about?!”

Without going into specifics, I would like to offer this possibility: By obeying Jesus’ command to love each other as God has loved us we plant a seed in those we love. There are many forms this love can take, which is why I do not think Jesus means a specific kind of fruit. Some are missionaries, and some are people who just look out for their neighbor. Yet all can shine the love of God on those around them.

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Continue reading “Fruit Stand – John 15: 16b”

You did not choose me, but I chose you…

John 15:16 is a summary statement of all that we have been reading so far in this chapter. There is so much in this one verse that I am choosing to break it up into four parts. The first part is “choosing.”

We understand that the context of this verse is Jesus speaking to his disciples. However there is a larger context here: Jesus speaks to us, too. He speaks to us through his disciples’ writings. He speaks through His Holy Spirit given to the disciples after Jesus ascended to be with His Father.

So does this first part of John 15: 16 apply to us as well as the disciples? Who does the choosing? If you believe in Jesus did you choose to believe or do you believe because Jesus chose you and pursued you?

The answer to this question is, in principle, similar to our discussion of John 15: 14. (See “Loveometer”) In that post we talked about how doing what Jesus commands is not a reason for our salvation, but an indication of it. In this case, we choose Jesus not because we are so smart, but because he has chosen us.

Continue reading “Perspective – John 15: 16a”

Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.

What profound words! “Everything” that Jesus has learned from his Father he has made known to his disciples. John, the disciple writing the gospel we have been meditating on, listened to Jesus every day. What did Jesus tell him and the other disciples that encompasses everything the Father taught him? What was it he learned from his Father?

Let’s look back over Jesus life and see if we can figure it out.

The first thing that comes to mind is obedience. Jesus obeyed his Father when he fasted in the wilderness for 40 days and nights. He obeyed his mother when she asked him to do something about the lack of wine at the wedding in Cana. Jesus obeyed.

The second thing that comes to mind is the primacy of God’s Word. Jesus answers Satan with God’s Word and generally uses Scripture for every defense against the hostile Jewish leaders. We should ponder the wisdom of what God has placed in the Scriptures. Jesus knew the Scriptures by heart and lived them perfectly.

The third thing that comes to mind is love. Not “love” in the worldly sense of “I love water skiing” or being “in love” or “making love,” but love in the sense of sacrificial giving.

We could make it more complicated than this if we wanted to drill down into the fine details, but in the larger sense of things the lessons Jesus learned from his Father and conveyed to his disciples were simple: Obedience, Scripture, Love.

Let’s Discuss: If you were to add to this list of things Jesus learned from the Father, what would you add?

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Continue reading “Simplicity – John 15: 15b”