E-pistle for August 13, 2010
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E-pistle
Dr. Dan Hite, President FreeWay Foundation August 13, 2010
I will manifest myself to you
(John 14:1-31)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. Jesus taught that He is the way, the truth and the life, and that
no one comes to the Father except through Him, vv. 1-6.
2. Jesus told Phillip that if he had seen the Son, he had also seen
the Father; He encouraged the disciples to believe that He was
in the Father and the Father was in Him, vv. 7-11.
3. Jesus taught that the disciples would do greater works than He
had done; He urged them to ask anything in His name, vv. 12-14.
4. Jesus promised to send them another Helper . . . the Holy Spirit
. . . the Spirit of truth, vv. 15-18.
5. Jesus taught that He and the Father would indwell believers; He
connected loving God with obeying His commandments, vv. 19-24.
6. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would teach the disciples and
bring to their remembrance His words; He promised that they would
receive God's peace, vv. 25-31.
II. Observation: on the word "manifest" (v. 21)
"Manifest" means to make visible, to make clear, to reveal, to make known,
to uncover, to lay bare, to make apparent to the mind or senses.
III. Meditation: on what followers of Christ should do
1. Believe in Him, v. 12.
2. Present their petitions in His name, vv. 13-14.
3. Love Him with all their hearts, v. 15.
4. Keep (obey) His commandments, v. 15.
IV. Revelation: on Christ's promised blessings to His followers
1. Power to do greater works than He did, v. 12.
2. Answers to their prayers, vv. 13-14.
3. Indwelling of the Holy Spirit, vv. 16-19, 26.
4. Eternal life . . . both a quantity and a quality of life, v. 19.
5. Secure union/relationship with God the Father, v. 20.
6. Being loved by the Father and the Son, v. 21.
7. Manifestation (revelation) of Christ, vv. 19, 21.
V. Applications: as a Christian, I need to . . .
1. Believe in Christ, with ever-increasing faith.
2. Pray in his name for whatever I need.
3. Love Him, because He first loved me, I John 4:19.
4. Obey Him: "Your will be done!" (Matthew 26:42)
These promises produce peace, v. 27. "The peace of God, which surpasses all
understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus,"
Philippians 4:7.
Abide in me and I in you
(John 15:1-27)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. Jesus taught that He is the vine and His followers are the
branches, vv. 1-8.
2. Jesus taught about love, joy, commitment, "friendship" with
God, and fruit-bearing, vv. 9-17.
3. Jesus taught that since the world hated and persecuted Him,
His disciples could expect to receive the same treatment, vv. 18-25.
4. Jesus again promised to send the Holy Spirit to testify and to bear
witness of Him, vv. 26-27.
II. Observations: on some key words in this chapter
1. "Abide" is used 12 times in John 15 . . . meaning to reside with another
in personal, intimate relationship and fellowship.
2. "Vine" refers to Jesus, v. 1.
3. "Branches" refers to Christian believers, v. 2.
4. "Vinedresser" is God the Father, and the Holy Spirit is the flowing life
(or sap) within the vine and branches.
III. Meditation: on the lessons of the parable of the vine and branches
1. Interdependence: Without the vine, the branch can do nothing; without
the branch, the vine will do nothing.
2. Joint ownership: All the vine possesses is given to the branch; all the
branch possesses is received from the vine.
3. Identical purpose: The purpose of both is to bear fruit.
4. Fruit-bearing: See "fruit" (v. 2), "no fruit" (v. 2), "more fruit" (v. 2) ,
"much fruit" (vv. 5, 8), and "abiding" (lasting or permanent fruit), (v. 16).
See Galatians 5:22-23.
IV. Revelation: on what "abiding" involves . . .
1. Heeding the words of Jesus, v. 7.
2. Praying with power, v. 7.
3. Loving Jesus, vv. 9-10.
4. Loving others, vv. 12, 17.
5. Obeying Christ's commands, vv. 10, 14.
6. Experiencing joy, v. 11.
7. Being "pruned," v. 2. See Hebrews 12:10-11.
V. Applications: as a Christian, I need to abide in Christ so that . . .
1. We bear fruit, v. 5.
2. Our prayers are effective, v. 7.
3. God is glorified, v. 8.
4. We demonstrate our faithful discipleship, vv. 8-10.
5. We love God and others, vv. 9-10, 12, 17.
6. We live obedient lives, vv. 10, 14.
7. We experience the full joy of Christ, v. 11.
"Since there is nothing so well worth having as friends,
never lose a chance to make them."
--Francesco Guicciardini
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