John 14:15-31 NIV84
"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever --- the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 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 obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, "But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?"
Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He 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.
"All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
"You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.
"Come now; let us leave. ..."
How does Jesus identify those who love Him?
What benefits come from obedience to His commands?
Jesus revealed His love for the Father through obedience, even to the point of yielding to the "prince of this world" who gained his rule through mankind's disobedience in the Garden. Unadulterated obedience --- not only when it's convenient or feels good --- makes the way for intimate relationship with Father and Son by way of the Spirit. Do you love Him? Do you know His Word well enough to know if you love Him? Have you experienced confirmation of that love: teaching from the Spirit... a sense of peace... the Father's love...? Has He shown Himself to you?
Today, love Jesus. Whatever you know of His commands, obey to the extent of your understanding without hesitation and without thought for self.
Lord, You make it clear that obedience to Your commands defines love for You, it's not an emotional response. Capture my heart, bless me with a hunger for Your Word, that I might learn Your commands and reveal my love for You. I want to love You and make a home for You in my heart.
"... Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they shall see God. ..."
Matthew 5:8 NIV84
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