THE KING’S BUSINESS
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His words abiding' in us. It is through the medium of His words that Jesus comes to abide in us (cf. ch. 14:23). It is vain to talk of Christ’s abiding in us if we are neglecting His words. He imparts Him self to us through His word. Meditation upon His Word, laying up His Word in our hearts, is one df the most fundamental secrets of mighty praying. 'I t is not enough to only meditate upon His Word and lay His Word up in our hearts, if His Word is to abide in us we must also obey His Word (cf. v. 10). Over and ove> again in the Word of God obedience to the will of God as revealed in His Word is stated as the condition of prevailing prayer (1 John 3:22; John 14:13-16). v. 8 . “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit, (; and) so shall ye, be my disciples.” Abiding in Christ brings much fruitfulness, and by this much fruit fulness that comes from abiding in Christ, the Father is glorified. We ought to desire much fruitfulness for this reason, not merely for the fruits’ sake, and not merely that we should be honored because of much fruit, but above all in order that the Father may be glorified. By bearing much fruit we show that we are His disciples, and, if we are not bearing much fruit, we are not His disciples. vs. 9, 10. "As (Even as) the Father hath loved me, so have I (I also have) loved you: continue (abide) ye in my love. I f ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in , my love, (;) even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love." The same Greek word that is else where in this chapter translated “abide” is in the 9th verse translated “continue.” In verse 11 the same word is translated “remain..” In the Revised Version the word is consistently translated “abide” right through. The Greek word really means “remain,” or “continue,” or “dwell,” and of course, that is what “abide” pri marily means. It is a wonderful statement that the Lord as the Father has for Him. Stop, and ponder that. The condition of our abid ing, or continuing in His love is that we continuously do as He tells us to do in His Word. Of course, if we disobey His Word there is a sense in which He still loves us, for He loves Sinners, but there is an altogether peculiar love that the Lord Jesus has for the one who daily studies the Word to find out what His will is, and who every time that he finds out what the will of Christ is, does it. In demanding of us that we keep His commandments, He is simply demanding of us that we be like Him, for He kept the Father’s command ments and thus continued in the Father’s love. v. 11. “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and: that your joy might be full (may be fulfilled, R. V.— may be made full, A. R. V.)." We have seen much fruitfulness, and power .in prayer as the result of abiding in Christ; here we see a third great thing as the result of abiding in Him, viz., fullness of joy. The joy that we get through doing “these things” which Christ has just been teach ing about, abiding in Him, keeping His commandments, is Christ’s own joy: He calls it “my joy,” i.e. His own joy, the joy He Himself had. The world has no such joy as that to give. Everything in this lesson is related to Jesus— “my Father” (vs. 1 , 8 ; 10 ), “my words” (v. 7 ), “my disciples” (v. 8 ), “my love” (v. 9 ); “my commandments” (v. 10 ), “my joy” .(v. 11 ). The Authorized Version translated “that your joy might be full;” the English Revised Version translates “that your joy may be fulfilled;” the American revisers translated, “that your joy may be made full.” The American Revision comes the nearest to giving us the exact force of the word in this connection. Perhaps an even more expressive, as well as more exact way of putting it would be, “that your joy may be filled full.” If one abides in Christ his “cup runneth over” (Ps. 23:5), his joy is filled to the brim.
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