John 14 - Wiersbe Study Bible

14:1 We are not surprised that the apostles were troubled. After all, Jesus had announced that one of them was a traitor, and then He warned Peter that he was going to deny his Lord three times. Self-confident Peter was certain that he could not only follow his Lord, but even die with Him and for Him. Alas, Peter did not know his own heart, nor do we really know our hearts, except for one thing: Our hearts easily become troubled.

14:2–4 Since heaven is the Father’s house, it must be a place of love and joy. When the apostle John tried to describe heaven, he almost ran out of symbols and comparisons (Rev. 21–22)! Finally, he listed the things that would not be there: death, sorrow, crying, pain, night, and so on. What a wonderful home it will be—and we will enjoy it forever!

14:3 This is a clear promise of our Lord’s return for His people. Some will go to heaven through the valley of the shadow of death, but those who are alive when Jesus returns will never see death (11:25,26). They will be changed to be like Christ and will go to heaven (1 Thess. 4:13–18).

14:7–11 What does it mean to know the Father? The word “know” is used ninety-one times in John’s Gospel, but it does not always carry the same meaning. In fact, there are four different “levels” of knowing according to John. The lowest level is simply knowing a fact. The next level is to understand the truth behind that fact. However, you can know the fact and know the truth behind it and still be lost in your sins. The third level introduces relationship; “to know” means “to believe in a person and become related to him or her.” This is the way “know” is used in 17:3. In fact, “to know” is also used of the most intimate relationship between man and wife (Gen. 4:1). The fourth use of “know” means “to have a deeper relationship with a person; a deeper communion.” It was this level Paul was referring to when he wrote, “I want to know Him” (Phil. 3:10). When Jesus said that knowing Him and seeing Him was the same as knowing and seeing the Father, He was claiming to be God. From now on, they would understand more and more about the Father, even though Jesus was leaving them.

14:12 The “greater works” would apply initially to the apostles who were given the power to perform special miracles as the credentials of their office (Rom. 15:18,19; Heb. 2:3,4). These miracles were not greater in quality, for “a servant is not greater than his master” (John 13:16), but rather in scope and quantity. Peter preached one sermon and three thousand sinners were converted in one day! The fact that ordinary people performed these signs made them even more wonderful and brought great glory to God (Acts 5:13–16).

14:13,14 This is not a “magic formula” that we automatically attach to our prayer requests, guaranteeing that God will answer. To ask anything of the Father, in the name of Jesus, means that we ask what Jesus would ask, what would please Him, and what would bring Him glory by furthering His work. For example, when your employer says to you, “You may use my name” to conduct business correspondence, he or she is handing you a great privilege as well as a tremendous responsibility.

14:16,17 The Holy Spirit is given two special distinctions by our Lord: “another Helper” and “the spirit of truth.” The Greek word translated “Helper” is parakletos and it is used only by John (14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7; 1 John 2:1). It means “called alongside to assist.” This is why the term is sometimes translated “Comforter.” The Holy Spirit does not work instead of us, or in spite of us, but in us and through us.

14:17a If we want the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, we must seek to glorify Christ, and we must make much of the Word of God. When you compare Ephesians 5:18—6:9 with Colossians 3:16—4:1, you will see that both passages describe the same kind of Christian life—joyful, thankful, and submissive. To be filled with the Spirit is the same as to be controlled by the Word. The Spirit of truth uses the Word of truth to guide us into the will and the work of God.

14:17b The Holy Spirit abides in the believer. He is a gift from the Father in answer to the prayer of the Son. During His earthly ministry, Jesus had guided, guarded, and taught His disciples, but now He was going to leave them. The Spirit of God would come to them and dwell in them.

14:26 People in the world walk by sight and depend on the externals, but Christians walk by faith and depend on the eternals. The Spirit of God teaches us the Word and guides us (not drags us!) into the truth. He also reminds us of what He has taught us so that we can depend on God’s Word in the difficult times of life.

14:27 The world bases its peace on its resources, while God’s peace depends on relationships. To be right with God means to enjoy the peace of God. The world depends on personal ability, but the Christian depends on spiritual adequacy in Christ. In the world, peace is something you hope for or work for, but to the Christian, peace is God’s wonderful gift, received by faith. Unsaved people enjoy peace when there is an absence of trouble; Christians enjoy peace in spite of trials because of the presence of power, the Holy Spirit.

14:30,31 Here the Lord named our great spiritual enemy—the devil, the ruler of this world. Jesus overcame Satan (12:31), and therefore the devil has no claim on Him. There is no point in Jesus Christ where the devil can get a foothold. Since we are “in Christ,” Satan can get no foothold in the believer’s life, unless we permit it. Neither Satan nor the world can trouble our hearts if we are yielded to the “peace of God” through the Holy Spirit.