Le fils de Zébédée - 17e, 18e et 19e chapitres

In many ways these three chapters are (collectively) more straightforward than the previous ones.

Chapter 17 of the gospel of John records the prayer & priority of Jesus prior to His arrest, trial, crucifixion, death & resurrection.

Chapters 18-19, by comparison, are mostly narrative, giving attention to what happens to Jesus rather than focusing on His teachings or sayings.

..Anyone know the tune of new-ish song "O the deep, deep love of Jesus"..? Hum along, then..

O the living Words of Jesus,
Far surpassing all the rest,
They are lifelines, they are comforts
In your times of ease or test
O the living Words,
All I need to hear
Are the living Words of Jesus.
©MLTC, Friday 30th April 2010
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Now, to my usual study focus..

Ch.17
What does the 17th chapter of John's gospel seem to be telling us about
how to know God?

~ To know God is equated with glorifying Him(1),
seeing the glory(24) of Father & Son;
knowing Him is also the essence of eternal life(2-3)

~ It is also equated with knowing Jesus, whom God sent(3,
vv.8, 18, 21 and v.25);
conversely, Jesus reveals God to us by name(6)
{ie. He makes God known to us(26)};
& He keeps us safe by His Name(12).
Jesus is with those who believe in Him(12) & He is in them(26), His love in them

~ And we know God by His Word(6)
that He gave through Jesus(8, also v.13-14);
in the same way, by believing Jesus through that same Word (message, v.20) given through the disciples who were with Jesus during His ministry

~ In addition to this, we can know Him because He sanctifies us by His truth(17-19).
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What does this same chapter of John's gospel seem to be telling us about
(i) ..what God wills/wants is for us?
(ii) ..how we can know His will?


~ A re-iteration of the famous verse, 3:16..
..in that, God wants for us to have eternal life by knowing Him, the Father
& knowing Jesus Christ the Son whom He sent(2-3)

~ He also desires our obedience(6) to & acceptance(8) of His Word,
& that we know that all He has given Jesus comes from Him;
Jesus is His ultimate representative(7-8)

~ For us who believe to be as one is also high priority for God the Son;
Jesus wants His disciples to be united(11-12; also v.22-23), which is why He prays that they be protected, kept safe & not lost
- esp. protected from the evil one(15) whilst remaining in the world.

He wants His love to be in them & in all who will believe in Him(26);
& another reason for His desire that His disciples be one
is in order that the world may believe Jesus was sent by God(23).

~ Jesus also shows us His desire that His disciples be sanctified by the truth(17-19);
that we be with Him where He is & we see His glory(24)
..[this sounds very much like ch.14, verse 3]
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SUMMARY
Knowing God has to do with knowing Jesus
- believing in Him, & in His Words;
because He sanctifies us through by the truths about Him.

It also involves glorifying Him (seeking His glory);
and to know Him in these ways means that we can have eternal life.

Knowing what God wills or wants for us is entailed in
obeying & accepting His Words, as given through Jesus & Jesus' disciples (such as John Zebedee himself);
He wants us to be sure that Jesus is from Him, was sent by Him (as repeated so often in the gospel of John so far);
He wants unity among all those who have believed in Him,
& belief for those who have NOT
- and ultimately, He wants us to be with Him in glory.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

{Disclaimer - or whateveryoucallit!!}
Once again (in case any of what I've been blogging about
re:John's gospel account has made you worry about me),
I must remind any who have been looking at these notes on John 1-17 of the following:

I am but a fallen human being.

My findings are by no means comprehensive or definitive;
at the same time, since the Word of God is living, acive & powerful,
I would like to hope that I'm not completely off the mark, in terms of what I have been discovering during my readings of this part of Scripture.

And where I am in error, I earnestly hope - and expect - that my Father will open my eyes to this; that He will keep me humble, contrite & trembling at His Word.

Until then - read anything I have written with careful discernment. Thanks!

L/T.


{P.S. Upcoming reflections - on chapters 18 & 19.}