ohn spends a disproportionate amount of his letter on the Upper Room meal because it is so crucially important and central to the life and purpose of Jesus’ time on earth. John 17 begins with, “the hour has come”, which helps show that these words are truly His last teaching to His disciples. The book of John can be broken into 3 parts: John 17:1-5 – Jesus finished His work John 17:6-19 – Jesus prays for His disciples John 17:20-26 – Jesus prays for His church The writers of the Bible often used a technique called a chiasm to steer the eyes of a reader to what the point of the writing was about. The Upper Room Discourse (Ch. 13-17) is a perfect chaism: A) 13:1-35 – His hour has come…Love one another… B) 13:36-38 – Disciples Denial C) 14:1-14 – Jesus’ Departure D) 14:15-26 Holy Spirit E) 14:27-31 – Warning F) 15:1-17 – Vine and Branches E) 15:18-16:4a – Warning D) 16:4b-15 – Holy Spirit C) 16:16-28 – Jesus’ Departure B) 16:29-33 – Disciples Scattered A) 17:1-26 – The hour has come…May they be one The main point is that we are to abide in Jesus. The union of Christ is the capstone of His ministry. We can see the thread throughout the Bible:

1. The Shema (Deut 6:4-) The Lord is One
2. The Nicene Creed – We believe in One God, One Son, One Spirit, One Church
3. Communion – Common Union of Christ in us

Our union with Christ is what gives us access to everything that is His. God lavishes on us:

1. Jesus’ inheritance – Ephesians 1:11
2. Jesus’ righteousness – Romans 5:9
3. Redemption and forgiveness – Ephesians 1:7-10
4. Life everlasting – Philippians 1:21

The purpose clause of all of this is found in John 17:23 which is saying that when the world sees the body of Christ as one, they will see:

1. That Jesus came
2. God loves them

Our love and oneness is how the mission of Jesus moves forward in the world. This type of love is known as “perichoresis”, which can be defined as the eternal divine dance of love from before the foundations of the world. This defines the unity and oneness of the Trinity. We get to have that exact same type of love with the Holy Trinity because that is how united we are with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! Question: How do you think about the love of God the Father over your life? Do you see it the same as the love He has for Jesus? Ask the Holy Spirit to encourage you to understand the love that the Father has for you this week.

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Today, Pastor Jason led us through John 16:16:33. Let’s not forget that these are Jesus’ final words and instructions to His disciples, and we know that “last words” carry a weight with them. Jesus is making sure His disciples see the condition of their hearts as He is speaking to them about what is most important.

Joy is found in the same story as our sorrow

• Jesus assures His disciples that there will be weeping AND rejoicing
• Jesus tells His disciples what is to come not so they will know every detail, but He does it so they will believe and have peace in those moments
• God’s work was not to replace their sorrow with joy, but to TURN sorry into joy.

Joy is found in through abiding in Christ

• No one will be able to take our joy away if it is rooted in knowing Christ
• The work of Jesus in our lives is an expression fo the love of the Father (v27)
• Our relationship with God has forever changed through Christ and we can now rejoice in knowing Him as sons and daughters (John 20:17)
• If your pursue Christ, joy and peace WILL come

Joy is found in the victory of Christ

• God turns our questions about the “when?”, “why?”, and “how long?” in sorrow into a question of “who?” because our sorrow drives us to Jesus
• Jesus connects their story to His own – the same as He does with us – so that we can know and share in His victory
• Tribulation is certain but peace is a gift we receive because Christ has won the battle (v33)
• When we are trusting Christ, we can take heart in the confidence that He is the one writing the redemption story of our lives

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, the worst-case scenario for your life has already happened. You will not have to pay the price for your sin through a separation from the Father. Be encouraged and trust the Author who is writing the long story of your life. In Jesus, there is a happily ever after because we will be in a forever relationship with Him.

Questions to consider:

1. How have you seen God bring joy out of your sorrow?
2. Wh was the sorrow the disciples felt just for “a little while”? How is that true for us today?
3. How does prayer deepen our sense of joy in the presence of God?
4. What is the biggest challenge to your joy in Christ? How will you face that challenge with hope in the gospel?b

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In this portion of the Farewell Discourse, Jesus is very compassionate as He urges them to not “fall away”. He includes a warning of what they can expect as they continue to follow Him:

1. They will ban you from the synagogue – This is a harsh punishment for any Jewish believer since this is the hub of all community for them. It will isolate them.
2. They will kill you – The world does not like followers of Jesus and by killing them they will think they are doing a service for God. This is largely due to the fact that Jesus was considered a revolutionary and His ways went against the traditions and culture of the day. It is no different for us today. Our response to this is to love and serve our city.

In verse 5, Jesus tells them that He is going away, and that it is better that way because He will send the Helper (v7) See also Ch.14:6,26; 15:26. The advantage of having the Holy Spirit is due to the relationship of each believer’s mission. We are to point people to Jesus regardless of the context. The Holy Spirit will guide and counsel us to make the name of Jesus famous in our surroundings. The Holy Spirit will also convict towards sin, righteousness and judgement (v8). Conviction is the overarching work as the Holy Spirit convinces us of the Truth in a way that changes us. The three ways that Jesus says the Holy Spirit will convict:

1. Sin – this is the sin of unbelief. It will move people to trust and cast all of their weight on Jesus.
2. Righteousness – the Holy Spirit will convince us that Jesus is the only One that is qualified to take our sin.
3. Judgement – The Holy Spirit convinces convinces the world that Satan is a defeated foe. (Col 1:13)

The 2 extremes in the beliefs of conviction:

1. Mistake – God does everything and we just sit back.
2. Mistake – It’s all up to me and my abilities to draw people to Jesus.

TRUTH: The Holy Spirit initiates and chooses to use us as a part of people’s stories of repentance. Remember, the Holy Spirit is not less than God. He is God. He leads us to the Scriptures and He always glorifies Jesus by orienting our hearts and minds to delight in Jesus. How to live this out:

1. Reject the superlatives; embrace the ordinary – The world will not deliver on its promises. We must live out our ordinary days with faithfulness and watch Him work.
2. Reject substitutes; embrace Christ – His i the only One who satisfies.
3. Remember eternity; not the worldly – Remember the big picture that our life is but a breath, but an important part of God’s Grand Story.
4. Revive your walk with Jesus – Ask the Lord to revive your heart for Him. Remember that spiritual disciplines help us stay connected to Him; especially when we have strayed from Him.

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