John 14:18 - Meaning and Application

When friends part, they often say, “Keep in touch as often as you can.” Christ made a similar promise to his disciples, that even when he was out of sight, he would not be out of mind. He first promised that he would still care for them, as in John 14:18: “I will not leave you as orphans, or fatherless. Though I leave you, I still leave you this comfort: I will come to you.” His leaving grieved them, but it was not as bad as they feared. It was neither complete nor final.

It was not complete. Though he would leave them without his bodily presence, he would not leave them without comfort. Though they were like children left with little, they had received adoption, that is, the place of sons and daughters in God’s family. His Father would be their Father too, and God shows mercy to those who otherwise would be fatherless. True believers may have sorrow at times, but they are never without comfort, because they are never truly orphans. God is their Father, and he is an everlasting Father.

It was not final either. “I will come to you,” meaning, “I am coming to you.” He would come soon after his resurrection, and he would not be away long. He had often said, “On the third day I will rise again.” He would also keep coming to them daily by his Spirit, in his love and gracious visits. And he would surely come at the end of time to bring them into the joy of their Lord. The thought of Christ coming to us keeps us from feeling abandoned when he seems to withdraw for a while. If he leaves for a season, it is so that we may receive him forever. Let this soften our sorrow: the Lord is near.

He also promised that their knowledge of him would remain, even when the world lost sight of him, as in John 14:19 and John 14:20. “In a little while the world will see me no more,” that is, “I am no longer in the world.” After his death, the world would not see him again, because even though he rose, he did not show himself to everyone (Acts 10:41). The hostile world thought it had seen enough of him and cried, “Away with him. Crucify him.” So their judgment would be that they would see him no more. Only those who see Christ by faith will see him forever. The world will not see him again until his second coming, but his disciples still have fellowship with him in his absence.

“You see me, and you will keep seeing me, when the world sees me no more.” They saw him with their physical eyes after his resurrection, when he showed himself to them by many convincing proofs (Acts 1:8). Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. They also saw him by faith after his ascension, seated at God’s right hand as Lord over all. They saw in him what the world could not see.

“Because I live, you will live also.” What troubled them was that their Master was dying, and they expected to die with him. But Christ answers, “I live.” This is the great truth God delights in, “I live,” says the Lord, and Christ says the same. He does not merely say, “I shall live,” but, “I do live,” because he has life in himself and lives forever. We are not left without comfort while we know that our Redeemer lives. Because he lives, those united to him by faith will also live. They will live spiritually, sharing in the divine life of fellowship with God. Their life is hidden with Christ, and if the head and root live, the members and branches live too. They will also live forever. Their bodies will rise by the power of Christ’s resurrection, and it will be well with them in the world to come. It cannot fail to go well with all who belong to him (Isaiah 26:19).

He also promised them assurance of this, as in John 14:20. “At that day,” when I am glorified and the Spirit is poured out, “you will know clearly and surely that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.” These glorious truths will be fully known in heaven, when he receives his people to himself. Then they will know perfectly what now they see only dimly, as through a cloudy glass. Now it is not yet clear what we shall be, but then it will be clear what we were.

These truths were also understood more fully after the Holy Spirit was given to the apostles. Then divine light shone, their eyes saw more clearly, and their knowledge grew much stronger, broader, and clearer. It was like the blind man after Christ touched him a second time, when at first he could only see people as if they were trees walking around. These truths are known by all who receive the Spirit of truth, and that knowledge gives them great joy. From this knowledge comes their fellowship with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

They know that Christ is in the Father, that he is one with the Father, from their experience of what Christ has done for them and in them. They see how wonderfully Christianity agrees with natural religion, and how the one is joined to the other, so they know that Christ is in the Father. They also know that Christ is in them, because believers experience by the Spirit that Christ lives in them (1 John 3:24). And they know that they are in Christ, because the relationship is mutual and equally close on both sides. Christ in them and they in Christ means an intimate and inseparable union. Because of that union, since he lives, they will live also.

Union with Christ is the life of believers, and their relation to him, and to God through him, is their happiness. The knowledge of this union is their deep joy and satisfaction. They already were in Christ, and he in them, but he speaks of it as a further act of grace that they should know it and enjoy its comfort. Having an interest in Christ and knowing that we have it are sometimes two different things.

He then promises that he would love them and reveal himself to them, in John 14:21 to 24. Here we see who Christ receives as those who truly love him: those who have his commandments and keep them. This shows that the kind words he was saying to his disciples were meant not only for those who followed him then, but for all who would believe in him through their word.

This is the duty of everyone who claims the honor of being a disciple. We must keep Christ’s commandments. As Christians in name and profession, we have his commandments near us. We hear them, we read them, and we know them. But that is not enough. If we want to prove ourselves true Christians, we must obey them. Having them in our minds is not enough; we must keep them in our hearts and lives.

It is also the honor of those who do this duty. Christ counts them as those who love him. He does not look first at those with the sharpest minds or the most skill in speaking for him, but at those who keep his commandments. The surest proof of our love for Christ is obedience to Christ’s commands.

This is the kind of love a subject gives to his king, a loyal, respectful, obedient love. It is a love that agrees with the king’s will and finds rest in his wisdom. Christ will make rich return for such love, for no one ever loves him without being rewarded.

First, those who love Christ will have the Father’s love. “He who loves me will be loved by my Father.” We could not love God unless he first gave us grace, his free help, to love him. But there is also a special love of approval promised to those who do love him (Proverbs 8:17). He loves them, shows them that he loves them, smiles on them, and receives them kindly. God loves the Son so fully that he also loves all who love the Son.

Second, they will have Christ’s love. “And I will love him,” as the God-man and the Mediator, the one who brings God and people together. God will love him as a Father, and Christ will love him as a brother, indeed as an older brother. The Creator will love him and be the joy of his life. The Redeemer will love him and protect his good. Nothing shines more clearly in God’s nature than this, that God is love. Nothing looks more glorious in Christ’s work than this, that he loved us. These two loves are the crown and comfort, the grace and glory, of all who truly love the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ was about to leave his disciples, but he promised to keep loving them. He does not merely keep a kind feeling for believers when he is absent. He is doing them good even while absent, because he carries them on his heart and always lives to pray for them.

Third, they will have the comfort of that love: “I will show myself to him.” Some take this to mean Christ showing himself alive to his disciples after his resurrection. But because this promise is for all who love him and keep his commandments, it must reach beyond them. There is a spiritual showing of Christ and his love to all believers. He shows himself when he brightens their minds to know his love and its full reach (Ephesians 3:18, 19). He also strengthens their graces and calls them into action, which enlarges their comfort in him. He shows himself when he clears up the signs that they belong to him, gives them signs of his love, lets them feel his tenderness, and gives them early signs of his kingdom and glory. Christ is shown only to those to whom he chooses to show himself.

Then one of the disciples was surprised by this promise (John 14:22). It was Judas, not Iscariot, one of the twelve. Judas, or Judah, was a common and honored name. The most honored tribe in Israel was Judah, and two of Christ’s disciples bore that name. One was the traitor, and the other was Judas, the brother of James (Luke 6:16), one of Christ’s own relatives (Matthew 13:55). He is also called Lebbaeus and Thaddaeus, and he wrote the last of the epistles, the book we call Jude. This was the disciple who spoke here.

It is worth noting that a very good man and a very bad man had the same name. Names do not make us acceptable to God, and they do not make people better or worse. Judas the apostle was no less faithful because of the name, and Judas the betrayer was no better because of it. The evangelist carefully keeps them apart by saying, “not Iscariot.” We must be careful not to confuse the precious with the worthless.

Judas asked, “Lord, how is it?” This may show weakness in his understanding. Some think he expected the Messiah’s kingdom to be earthly, shown in outward glory and power, the kind the whole world would admire. If so, he may have wondered why Christ would show himself only to the disciples. People often create trouble for themselves by misunderstanding Christ’s kingdom, as if it were of this world. Or Judas may have meant to express deep wonder and humble gratitude for Christ’s special kindness to them. “Lord, how is it?” is then a cry of amazement at divine grace, like David’s words (2 Samuel 7:18). What is there in us that should deserve such a great favor?

Christ’s showing himself to his disciples is a special gift. He shows himself to them, not to the world that remains in darkness. He shows himself to the lowly, not to the proud and powerful. He shows himself to children in spirit, not to the wise and clever. Such special favors should move us deeply, because of who is passed over and who is chosen. They are truly amazing, and we must explain them by free and sovereign grace alone. “Yes, Father, because this was your good pleasure.”

Christ answered by explaining and confirming what he had said (John 14:23, 24). He did not stop to correct the weakness in Judas’s words, but went on comforting the disciples. He explained again the condition of the promise, love for him and keeping his commandments. And he showed how closely love and obedience belong together, with love as the root and obedience as the fruit.

If a person truly loves Christ, that love will rule and guide him, so he will keep Christ’s words. Real love for Christ includes a value for his favor, respect for his authority, and a full surrender of oneself to his rule. Where love is real, duty follows naturally. It is easy and willing, flowing from gratitude. But where there is no true love for Christ, there will be no care to obey him. “He who does not love me does not keep my words” (John 14:24). This also exposes those who do not love Christ, whatever they may claim. Certainly, those do not love him who do not believe his truth and do not obey his law, and to whom his words are like empty stories or harsh sayings they dislike. This is also why Christ will not reveal himself to a world that does not love him. They dishonor him by refusing to keep his words. Why should Christ be close to those who keep themselves distant from him?

Christ then explains the promise itself again (John 14:23). “If anyone loves me, I will show myself to him.” First, “My Father will love him.” Christ had said this before (John 14:21), and he says it again to strengthen our faith. It is hard to believe that the great God would love those who had made themselves objects of his anger. Judas wondered that Christ would show himself to them, but this answers it: if the Father loves you, why should not Christ be free and open with you? Second, “We will come to him and make our home with him.” This explains what it means for Christ to show himself to a believer, and it makes the favor seem even greater. It is not only, “I will come,” but “We will come,” I and the Father, who are one in this. See John 14:9.

The light and love of God come to us through the light and love of the Redeemer, Jesus Christ. So wherever Christ is formed in a person, the image of God is stamped on that life.

It is not only, “I will show myself to him from a distance,” but, “We will come to him and be near him, and be with him.” This is how God’s gracious work and comfort act in the souls of those who love Christ truly. It is not only, “I will give him a brief glimpse of myself,” or make a short visit. It is, “We will make our home with him,” which shows both God’s delight in him and his steady presence with him.

God will not only love obedient believers, but he will take pleasure in loving them. He will rest in his love toward them (Zephaniah 3:17). He will be with them as one who is at home.

He also gives a strong reason both to bind us to obey the condition and to encourage us to trust the promise. “The word which you hear is not mine, but his who sent me” (John 14:24). He had said this often before (John 7:16; John 8:28; John 12:44), and it fits here very well.

First, the duty is pressed on us because Christ’s command is our rule, and rightly so. The word of Christ that we must keep is the Father’s word, and Christ’s will is the Father’s will. Second, our comfort rests on Christ’s promise. But since trusting that promise means denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and giving up all, we need to know whether the security is strong enough to risk everything on it. This is enough to satisfy us, because the promise is not only Christ’s word, but the Father’s word, the Father who sent him. So we may safely rely on it.