“I will not leave you as orphans; I will
come to you.” John 14:18
I was seven years old when my father died. My brother was nine and my sister was about to turn three. You can imagine the devastation of losing our father who we loved so much; picture, also, my mother overwhelmed by a future of raising three children well, alone.
It was not too long afterward that someone shared with Mom Psalm 68:5, which reads, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows is God in his holy dwelling.” Though I didn’t know it until many years later, she clung to that promise from that time, on.
What I did know, however, was that, at critical times along the way, God always sent a father-figure into my life. At times, it was an uncle, a pastor and even my brother who courageously blazed trails ahead of me. A gym teacher (a former Marine drill instructor), an executive who took me under his wing, my father-in-law. These men and others instructed me in the ways of the world and in the ways of God. They taught me how to build things and repair things; in them, I saw character, confidence, faith and strength. God never left me alone; he always sent someone to counsel, shape, teach, encourage or lead me ... and always for a purpose.
Knowing he was about to be betrayed, crucified and leaving this earth, Jesus – this same God, now in human form – assured his disciples: “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.” He promised that his Holy Spirit would not only live with them, but, greater still, he would be in them. He gave his assurance that the Spirit would teach, remind, convict, guide and be with them, forever.
And always for a purpose! Three times in today’s brief text (John 14:15-24), Jesus established this foundation – this context – for sending his Spirit: If you love me, you will obey my command; who obeys my command, he is the one who loves me. Just as Jesus did exactly what his Father commanded (John 14:31), so we are called to do as Jesus commands (John 14:15, 21, 23). On our own, as if orphaned, we would be helpless to hear his call, much less obey it. But with Christ living in us through his Holy Spirit, we can do whatever he calls us to do. Ours is simply to obey, and he will accomplish his work through us. For as he said, “On that day, you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. (John 14:20).”
God cares. He really cares. We are never abandoned, never alone, never orphaned.
Instead, Jesus comes to us. He calls us ... he chooses us ... he fills us ... even to the point of accomplishing his loving will and miraculous work through us.
What an honor! What comfort! What joy!
I was seven years old when my father died. My brother was nine and my sister was about to turn three. You can imagine the devastation of losing our father who we loved so much; picture, also, my mother overwhelmed by a future of raising three children well, alone.
It was not too long afterward that someone shared with Mom Psalm 68:5, which reads, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows is God in his holy dwelling.” Though I didn’t know it until many years later, she clung to that promise from that time, on.
What I did know, however, was that, at critical times along the way, God always sent a father-figure into my life. At times, it was an uncle, a pastor and even my brother who courageously blazed trails ahead of me. A gym teacher (a former Marine drill instructor), an executive who took me under his wing, my father-in-law. These men and others instructed me in the ways of the world and in the ways of God. They taught me how to build things and repair things; in them, I saw character, confidence, faith and strength. God never left me alone; he always sent someone to counsel, shape, teach, encourage or lead me ... and always for a purpose.
Knowing he was about to be betrayed, crucified and leaving this earth, Jesus – this same God, now in human form – assured his disciples: “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.” He promised that his Holy Spirit would not only live with them, but, greater still, he would be in them. He gave his assurance that the Spirit would teach, remind, convict, guide and be with them, forever.
And always for a purpose! Three times in today’s brief text (John 14:15-24), Jesus established this foundation – this context – for sending his Spirit: If you love me, you will obey my command; who obeys my command, he is the one who loves me. Just as Jesus did exactly what his Father commanded (John 14:31), so we are called to do as Jesus commands (John 14:15, 21, 23). On our own, as if orphaned, we would be helpless to hear his call, much less obey it. But with Christ living in us through his Holy Spirit, we can do whatever he calls us to do. Ours is simply to obey, and he will accomplish his work through us. For as he said, “On that day, you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. (John 14:20).”
God cares. He really cares. We are never abandoned, never alone, never orphaned.
Instead, Jesus comes to us. He calls us ... he chooses us ... he fills us ... even to the point of accomplishing his loving will and miraculous work through us.
What an honor! What comfort! What joy!
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