I will not leave you as orphans 13/05/2021

Read John 14:18-24

As I was slowly passing

An orphan's home one day

And stopped just for a moment

To watch the children play

Alone a boy was standing

And when I asked him why

He turned with eyes that could not see

And he began to cry.

I'm nobody's child

I'm nobody's child

Just like the flowers

I'm growing wild

No mummy's kisses

And no daddy's smile

Nobody wants me

I'm nobody's child.

Karen Young sang this song in 1969 - though some other big names such as Hank Williams Jr., George Harrison, Jim Reeves, Lonnie Donegan also sang a version of the song. There was an earlier recording by someone called Hank Snow in 1949. I am not really interested in the history of this song. I just want to suggest we can never claim to be 'nobody's child' like this poor blind boy. Jesus was promising his disciples that he was not abandoning them - even though he was going to return to His Father in heaven. Jesus was about to die at the hands of the Romans and, even though he would come back from the dead, he was going to leave them and go back to his Father in heaven. This thought was making them feel unsettled and disturbed. Jesus did not want them to feel this way. He was assuring them that although they would not have his physical presence with them, they would certainly not be abandoned as orphans.

John 14:18-24

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.

John 14:18‭-‬24 NIV

https://bible.com/bible/111/jhn.14.18-24.NIV

Jesus was promising his own disciples that they would still enjoy his presence and his support and comfort - even though as far as the world was concerned he was no longer present. Those who had come to believe in Him (and that includes us) are very precious to him and he assured the bewildered and confused disciples that they would continue to enjoy a close relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit after his departure from this earth.

Look at the promises Jesus makes in this passage of the Bible. There is a great debate about who was first to sing, "I'm nobody's child" and there is an even bigger debate about the timing and meaning of the promises Jesus made in John 14. I am not going to look into all the different interpretations of these promises. I want, however, to have a brief look at these promises and relate them to us today. When Jesus said, "I will not leave you comfortless or orphans," these words are relevant to us today. I have highlighted the promises in red.

• 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.

It is not easy to work out if Jesus is speaking about the time when he will come back for his own and take us to heaven. Or was he referring to the coming of the Holy Spirit which happened at Pentecost just after the time when Jesus returned to heaven. This could be the subject of a good discussion and if you looked into the Bible commentaries on John's Gospel you will find that there are different opinions. John has referred to the second coming in this very chapter - "I will come again" (verse 3). Some suggest that he is speaking about this again when he says, "I will come to you." There is also a suggestion that when he says, "you also will live," he is referring to the second coming when there is a resurrection of those believers who have died 'in Christ.'

However, I find it hard to see that all of Jesus promises to his disciples refer to a distant future. If we say that he is speaking only about the second coming, then we are still orphans and all Christians for the last two millennia have been orphans. When Jesus says, "Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me," this seems to me to be referring to the coming of the Holy Spirit. The world has not seen the Lord Jesus Christ since they crucified him on the cross at Golgotha. But he has been present in the hearts and lives of countless believers. When he says, "I will come to you," although this may seem to refer to the future when Jesus comes back, it is difficult to see how Jesus would leave his own as orphans all that time.

In fact, as I look at this passage it is beautiful to see how all three members of the Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit are united in making sure that those who have trusted in Jesus are cared for - or are not left orphans. Here is a lovely text which indicates that Father and Son are involved in caring for us.

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. [John 14:21 NIV]

One of the disciples whose name we rarely read about, Judas but not the traitor, asks how all this is going to happen. How can Jesus reveal himself to his own but not to the world? It is all about fellowship with the Father and the Son and in order to enjoy such fellowship there needs to be obedience to the Word of God. The world in general does not follow the teachings of Jesus and so cannot enjoy this close fellowship with the Godhead.

The Holy Spirit plays an important role in all of this. Jesus explains that he is speaking to them in person but when he leaves them to return to heaven, the Father will send the Holy Spirit and he will continue the work which Jesus began with them. (John 14: 25-26) There are two aspects to the work of the Holy Spirit in this context.

• The Holy Spirit will teach you all things

• The Holy Spirit will remind you of everything I have said to you.

This tells us that the Holy Spirit would reveal aspects of truth that have still to be revealed. Some of the letters of Paul teach truths that were not revealed while Jesus was on earth. The last book in the New Testament reveals future events in symbolic pictorial form which provide a greater insight into the teachings of Jesus. But when Jesus spoke about the Holy Spirit reminding them (the apostles) But when Jesus spoke about the Holy Spirit reminding them (the apostles and disciples) about everything I have said to you he was referring to the Gospels which were the product of these eyewitnesses. So these verses emphasise the importance of the New Testament which was produced under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We also rely on the same Holy Spirit to help us to interpret and understand the Word of God.

So Jesus was not leaving them as orphans. None of the disciples could claim to be 'nobody's child.' The Father, Son and Holy Spirit were working in harmony to meet the needs of the believers in this new situation - after Jesus left them and returned to heaven.