John

Check out all the previous John readings here.

John Reading Plan | Week 9, Day 4

Prayer

Pause for a moment of quiet and calm. To be fully present in both body and mind, inhale deeply and exhale slowly. Repeat this three times. Ask God to grant you His wisdom today.

Bible Reading: John 14:15-24

Read these verses three times slowly.

“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”

Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

Reflection & Questions

Three times in these few verses, Jesus says something very similar: if you love me, keep my commands. There is an inseparable connection between loving Jesus and following what He says. While we don’t earn our place with Him through obedience, a person who claims to love God will follow what He says, even when it hurts. As the old song goes, “there is no way to follow Jesus except to trust and obey.”

But how? We aren’t left to our own devices. Jesus “will not leave us orphans.” We have another helper, the Holy Spirit. He is called a counselor, an advocate. He reminds, convicts, guides. This Spirit is fully God, so much so that Jesus can say of those who are true believers, “we will come to them and make our home with them.” God comes to dwell in us! We aren’t left alone when it comes to trusting and obeying. We have a teacher, helper and guide. Like the disciples learned to trust and obey Jesus, we learn to walk with the Spirit, to trust and obey His guidance.

1. What word or phrase from these verses sticks out to you today? Why?
2. How does it encourage and challenge you that God makes His home in you??

Prayer

Talk to God in response to today’s reading.

Worship Song

You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:

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Questions?