OUR FATHER WHOSE SON DIED AND ROSE AGAIN FROM THE DEAD

The book of John chapter 20 verses 1 -  10 records the early morning hours that changed human history forever.

1 Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

The devoted Mary Magdalene visited the tomb that Jesusˋ body was placed in early but found that the large stone that blocked the entrance had been moved aside and the body of Jesus was not there. She raced to see the disciples to alert them that Jesusˋ tomb had been tampered with.

3 Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. 4 So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. 5 And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. 

8 Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. 9 For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

The disciples scrambled back to the tomb and found that the tomb was open as Mary Magdalene had said. 

They looked in the tomb and saw the linens that had wrapped Jesusˋ body ( along with the separate one that was on His head ) were laying in the tomb.

They now believed that Jesus was not there as Mary had said but they did not put that fact together with the prophetic scripture that foretold that the Messiah would rise from the dead.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WAS REJECTED

The book of John chapter 19 descibes the actions that were taken after Jesus had died on the cross. 

Because it was a high Sabbath approaching the next day, the customs of the Jews was to remove bodies from the cross so that there were no bodies left hanging during the sabbath.

This meant that anyone who was still alive that afternooon needed to have their death hastened so that they could be removed and as such, any who were alive would have their legs broken which would prevent them from being able to push themselves up to breath and they would die quickly.

They did this to other people around Jesus but when they came to Jesus, they found that He was already dead and to ascertain this, one of the soldiers pierced His ribcage with a spear and water and blood pour out of His chest cavity and thus they did  not break His legs. 

31 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. 32 Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. 33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. 36 For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, “Not one of His bones shall be broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”

Two prophecies were directly fulfilled by this event. 

1) Zachariah 12 verse 10 which says; “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.

2) Psalm 34 verse 20 which says;  The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.

38 After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus. 39 And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. 40 Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. 41 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews’ Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby.

One of Jesusˋ followers named ,Joseph of Arimathea, asked Pilate for permission to remove Jesusˋ body from the cross for burial and when permission was granted, Joseph and Nicodemus (a pharisee who had believed that Jesus was from God) took  Jesusˋ body down  and treated it with myrrh and aloes and covered it with linen.

The men then took the body to a nearby tomb that had recently been hewn out of the stone and had no one buried in it yet. They placed Jesusˋ body in the tomb and completed this before the end of the day of preparation.

Amen.

2

 OUR FATHER WHO

The book of John chapter 19 verses 23 - 30 says this;

23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. 24 They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says:

“They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.”

Therefore the soldiers did these things.

25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” 27 Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.

28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” 29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

The Lord Jesusˋ clothes were divided by the soldiers but there was a seamless tunic that He was wearing that the soldiers decidet and to keep intact rather than tear it into four sections. They played a game of chance for it and this detail was captured in the prophetic record in Psalm 22 verse 18 that foretold it this way;

They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.

There were four women recorded in this passage who had travelled to the crucifiction site. Mary the mother of Jesus, Jesusˋ aunt, Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene.

John the writer of the book was also there. Jesus, getting close to the end of His strength, speaks to His mother and says to her that John was her now her son and then to John he said that Mary was now his mother.  Knowing that He had finished the mission that He had been sent to accomplish, He finalised His earthly business by handing His mother into the care of His trusted disciple.

He asked for a drink to slake His thirst and they gave Him a sip of vinegar and once He took it, He was able to declare, ˋIt is finishedˋ and He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

4

OUR FATHER WHOSE PERFECT SON WAS CRUCIFIED AMONG CRIMINALS

The book of John chapter 19 verses 17 - 22 says this;

17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, 18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center. 19 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was:

JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

20 Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.

21 Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘He said, “I am the King of the Jews.” ’ ”

22 Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

The Lord Jesus, now in a weakened state, was now to carry a wooden cross to the location of His crucifixion. Mathew chapter 27 verse 32 records that a man called Simon the Cyrenian (Lybia) was shanghaied into carrying the cross for Jesus at least part of the way to the crucifixion site.

Jesus was nailed to a cross and lifted up between two men who were being crucified for their crimes.

Pilate ordered that a plaque with the words, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" be placed on the cross above Jesus' head.

This title was objected to by the chief priests and they tried to get Pontius Pilate to change it from a title plaque to a indictment plaque where it would reflect that Jesus made the claim that He was the king of the Jews.

Pilate, in a repudiation to the priests, refused to change the plaque saying, " What I have written, I have written".

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WAS WOUNDED IN OUR PLACE

The book of John chapter 19 verses 1 - 16 records the continuation of Pontius Pilateˋs interaction with Jesus who had been brought to him for trial.

Pilate could not find any fault in anything Jesus had said or done. In an unjust but prophesied manuever,  Pilate tried to avoid having Jesus put to death by having Him scourged and then presenting Him as having been punished to show Jesusˋaccusers that Jesus was harmless to them. Pilate was hoping to placate the religious leaders  by doing this and then he would release Him.

Jesus was brought out so the crowd could see Him and Pilate again declared that He found no fault in Jesus but seeing Jesus in a bloodied condition galvanized the religious leaders all the more to call for His crucifiction.

The route of scourging that Jesus endured was foretold in the book of Isaiah chapter 53 verse 5 as a costly provision of God that was made to exchange our injuries and physical afflictions for Jesusˋ health and thus the passage says;

But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

Jesus, after being flogged by the Roman scourges, was now going into deep shock in response to the physical trauma that had been inflicted on Him. In this state, a person goes in and out of lucidity and pain from injuries fades in and out as the body tries to make it possible to defend against or escape the circumstance.

Jesusˋ enemies pressured Pilate to crucify Him saying that Jesusˋ crime of equating Himself with God was a capital offence.

Pilate was agitated because the Jewish leaders were so commited to having Jesus killed that they were willingly abandoning their own national identity and strongly aligning with their foreign occupier and declaring they had no king but Ceasar.

Pilate went back to Jesus and asked Him where He was from (probably to refer the matter to that region's district magistrates) but Jesus refused to answer Pilate. Pilate, in effect, said to Jesus, ˋCanˋt you see I am trying to help you? Refusing to answer my questions is not helping your causeˋ.

1 So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him. 2 And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe. 3 Then they said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck Him with their hands.

4 Pilate then went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him.”

5 Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!”

6 Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him.”

7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.”

8 Therefore, when Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid, 9 and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.

10 Then Pilate said to Him, “Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?”

11 Jesus answered, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”

12 From then on Pilate sought to release Him, but the Jews cried out, saying, “If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar.”

13 When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!”

15 But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”

16 Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led Him away.

Jesus, in response to Pilatesˋ claim to being  Jesusˋ only hope, told Him that the only power that Pilate had over Him was power given to him from above and those (the chief priests) who had handed Him over to Pilate was guilty of a graver sin than the sin of putting an innocent man to death. 

Pilate recognized that there was a great moral infraction being engineered under his watch and he desperately did not want to have any part of it but with the unrelenting political pressure being applied by the leaders of Judea, Pilate ultimately washed his hands of the matter ( recorded in Matthew chapter 27 verse 24 ) and at around noon, surrendered a badly injured and innocent man to be executed by Roman crucifiction.

Have mercy on us O God.

2

 OUR FATHER WHOSE SINLESS SON WAS EXCHANGED FOR A ROBBER

The book of John chapter 18 verses 39 - 40 records the exchange that Pontius Pilate offered to the religious leaders who were calling for the death of Jesus. 

In view of the custom where the Roman rulers released one prisoner of their choice during the feast of Passover, he proposed an option where the people could have Jesus released to them. 

39 “But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”

40 Then they all cried again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

The incensed crowd of the leaders of Israel loudly rejected Pilateˋs offer and demanded that the robber Barabbas be released to them rather than Jesus.

This encapsulated the concept of an innocent man being exchanged for a guilty man. A criminal worthy of death is set free while a sinless man is condemned to death.

That is what the Lord Jesus did for each of us. In our condemned state, we were on the way to death but Jesusˋ was condemned and put to death so that we could go free.

Have mercy on us O God.

2

 OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WAS FAULTLESS AND DID NO WRONG

The book of John chapter 18 verses 28 - 38 records the transfer of Jesus from the religious leaders to the Roman authorities. The religious establishment wanted to put Jesus to death but Roman law did not permit the local governments to impose the death penalty and so the priests began pressuring the Roman procurator of the region ( Pontius Pilate) to sentence Jesus to death on a vague charge of  ˋbeing an evildoerˋ.

Pilate was not persuaded that their indictment against Jesus was legitimate under Roman law. He told the priests and religious leaders to judge Jesus under their own law but they objected to his proposition because they would not be able to execute Jesus as they had pre-determined was the fitting sentence upon Him.

28 Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the Praetorium, and it was early morning. But they themselves did not go into the Praetorium, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover. 29 Pilate then went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?”

30 They answered and said to him, “If He were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him up to you.”

31 Then Pilate said to them, “You take Him and judge Him according to your law.” Therefore the Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,” 32 that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled which He spoke, signifying by what death He would die.

33 Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

34 Jesus answered him, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?”

35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?”

36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”

37 Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?”

Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

38 Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.

Pontius Pilate decided to ask Jesus directly about whether He was indeed claiming to be  the king of the Jews.

The Lord Jesus asked Pilate whether this question was out of his own belief or if it was just what he  had heard others say about Him.

Pilate responded rhetorically that he was not a Jew (implying that he had no stakes in the circumstance ) but that it was Jesusˋ own people who had handed Him over and so Pilate asked Jesus to explain to him what He had done to prompt His own people to try to get a foreign power to execute Him.

Jesus told Pilate that His kingdom was not an earthly kingdom and the proof that Jesus presented to verify this was that His servants did not fight to protect him from arrest.

Jesus was saying that if He was indeed attempting to create a rival kingdom to the displace the ruling establishment of Judea, He would have set up a military structure to protet himself and engage in trying to topple the existing Jewish regime. But there was was no such activity and therefore what was the religious leaders were claiming was baseless.

Pilate, understanding the absurdity of the charges against Jesus in view of the fact that that Jesus was of no military or political threat to the establishment, asked Jesus if He was a indeed king to which Jesus replied that He was a King who was born into the world to bear witness to the truth and any person who was inclined to the truth would reognized His voice. 

The procurator of Judea, himself a man from Rome, would have been familiar with the roiling debates about the nature of realiy and the pursuit of truth that would have been constantly debated in the streets and gathering places of Rome. The emergence of philosophers and preachers who claimed to have a new insight into the truth was common in Rome and their assertions were certainly not illegal.

Pilate was surprised to find that in this remote province of Rome was a man named Jesus who was taking a principled stand on what He believed to be true and he recognized that the religious leaders was probably resisting Jesus because His new philosophy was a threat to the established undertsanding of reality in the region. 

He went out to those who brought the accusations against jesus and declared that he found no fault in Him at all.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON FACED CONDEMNATION ALONE IN THE WORLD

The book of John chapter 8 verses 25 - 27 records the second and third moments that the disciple Peter denied being associated with Jesus when he was pressed by some of  the soldiers and then again by one of the servants who was present during Jesusˋ arrest in the garden of Gethsemene. 

Peter had bravely confronted the arresting party on the garden and was ready to fight but once Jesus was arrested, all the disciples fled the scene and once Jesus was in custody, a couple of disciples including Peter trailed behind to watvh what was happening to their leader.

It was at this point that the Peter, no longer charged with adrenalin, was not ready to be associated with Jesus now that Jesus was now a socially toxic brand.

25 Now Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. Therefore they said to him, “You are not also one of His disciples, are you?”

He denied it and said, “I am not!”

26 One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of him whose ear Peter cut off, said, “Did I not see you in the garden with Him?” 27 Peter then denied again; and immediately a rooster crowed.

Jesus had warned Peter that this very thing would happen but Peter was sure that he would be unwavering in his loyalty to Jesus when the authorities were in control but Peter, upon seeing the cold-blooded violence being exerted on his Lord with impunity and with the charges of a crime that carried the death penalty being floated by the chief priests, Peter lost confidence and evaded the attempts by various people to identify him with Jesus.

At the third denial, a rooster crowed that Jesus had indicated would be the marker that Peter would have denied Him three times. 

Peter was aghast at his own almost involuntary self-preservation when people inquired about his identity and he was emotionally devastated to find out that his own courage that he had believed, in turned out to be flimsy in the face of a threat to his life.

Have mercy on us all.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WAS UNJUSTLY STRUCK

The book of John chapter 18 verses 19 - 24 records the high priest named Annas questioning Jesus about His followers and His doctrine and it was at this time that  Jesus commented on the absurdity of the situation by saying that He has always taught at the temple alongside the religious leaders and that the open and public venue was the appropriate location to have the discussions on doctrine that the priest was now trying to have at five  in the morning. 

19 The high priest then asked Jesus about His disciples and His doctrine.

20 Jesus answered him, “I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing. 21 Why do you ask Me? Ask those who have heard Me what I said to them. Indeed they know what I said.”

22 And when He had said these things, one of the officers who stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, “Do You answer the high priest like that?”

23 Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why do you strike Me?”

24 Then Annas sent Him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.

The detail captured in this passage was that Jesus was struck by an officer for asking the chief priest why they were having a secret tribunal on His doctrine when all His teachings were always presented publically to the world. 

Jesus had not spoken anything false and yet the protocols enforced by the priest allowed for Him to be unjusty struck.

The high priest then sent Jesus to Caiaphas who was the chief priest who had articulated the principle that it was ˋexpedient for one man to die to save the whole nationˋ as the justification for capturing and killing Jesus.

2

 OUR FATHER WHOSE SINLESS SON WAS SUBJECTED TO AN UNJUST TRIAL

The book of John Chapter 18 verses 15 - 18 picks up the movements of two disciples who followed Jesus after His arrest and as the procedings at Annasˋ house unfolded, a disciple ( likey the  apostle John, the writer of this book ), was able to get into the courtyard of the high priest because John was known to the household and he was able to secure access for Peter to 

As Peter entered the complex, the lady who administered access through the compound gate, recognised him to be one of the followers of Jesus and when she mentioned it, Peter denied it.

15 And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest. 16 But Peter stood at the door outside. Then the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to her who kept the door, and brought Peter in. 17 Then the servant girl who kept the door said to Peter, “You are not also one of this Man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.”

18 Now the servants and officers who had made a fire of coals stood there, for it was cold, and they warmed themselves. And Peter stood with them and warmed himself.

In the cold morning, the soldiers who had been charged with arresting and holding Jesus, made a fire by which to keep warm as they stood waiting for the matters to conclude at Annasˋhouse so that they could take Jesus to Caiaphasˋ residence where the next tribunal would be held.

Peter stood among the men and warmed himself.

1

OUR FATHER WHO GAVE HIS SON TO DIE FOR A NATION AND INDEED THE WHOLE WORLD

The book of John chapter 18 verses 12 - 14 

12 Then the detachment of troops and the captain and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound Him. 13 And they led Him away to Annas first, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas who was high priest that year. 14 Now it was Caiaphas who advised the Jews that it was expedient that one man should die for the people.

The high priest at that time was Caiaphas and it was he who had pronounced the determination that it was necessary to sacrifice the life of one man to save the whole nation. This triggered the plot to capture Jesus and it culminated in Jesusˋ arrest in the garden of Gethsemene.

Jesus was handcuffed and likely roughed up by the soldiers ( if the reading from Psalm 17 verse 11; They have tracked me down, they now surround me, with eyes alert, to throw me to the ground. could be ascribed to this point in time)  and taken to Annasˋ house ( the father-in-law to Caiaphas ) where He was held in custody and questioned by Annas.

The mis-treatment of Jesus continued at Annasˋ house when He was struck by an officer during questioning which began the deterioration of Jesusˋ condition at the hands of the religious establishment and then the Romans.

As the early morning broke, Jesus was taken Ciaphasˋ house.

4

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON LOVED HIM TO THE POINT OF OBEDIENCE UNTO DEATH

The book of John chapter 18 verses 1 - 11 records Jesusˋ arrest at the garden of Gethsemene this way;

1 When Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples over the Brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which He and His disciples entered. 2 And Judas, who betrayed Him, also knew the place; for Jesus often met there with His disciples. 3 Then Judas, having received a detachment of troops, and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. 

4 Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward and said to them, “Whom are you seeking?”

5 They answered Him, “Jesus of Nazareth.”Jesus said to them, “I am He.” And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. 6 Now when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

7 Then He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”

8 Jesus answered, “I have told you that I am He. Therefore, if you seek Me, let these go their way,” 9 that the saying might be fulfilled which He spoke, “Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none.”

10 Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.

11 So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?”

Judas, knowing that Jesus often met with His disciples at the garden of Gethsemene, led a contigent of officers and soldiers  to that location.

When the authorities arrived at the garden, Jesus identified Himself to them and they, surprised by His sudden proximity to them, fell to the ground.

He told them again that He was the one they were looking for and that they should let His companions go so that the scripture would be fulfilled that had prophesied that He would lose none of His men.

Peter, in a passionate move to protect His Lord, struck one of the members of the arresting party with a sword he was carrying and cut off an ear.

Jesus responded to Peter by telling him to stand-down because He ( Jesus ) was willingly going to drink the cup that His Father gave Him.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHO IS KNOWN BY JESUS

The book of John chapter 17 verses 20 - 26 records Jesus' tender prayer to the Father on behalf of all the believers of that time and all those who would come subsequently.

Jesus told His Father that He wanted those who believed in Him to be with Him where He was so that they may see the Glory He Had before the creation of the world. 

Jesus also prayed that His people would stand out from the rest of the world because of the unity and love that they carried as they reflected Him.

20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 

22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."

The Lord Jesus prayed to His Father saying that He has let His followers know about Him and would continue to do so in order that the same love the Father had for Jesus would be upon those who followed Him and that Jesus Himself would be in them.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHO KEEPS HIS PEOPLE THROUGH HIS NAME

The book John chapter 17 verses 6 -  19, the Lord Jesus prayed for His disciples starting with the revelation that the men were originally the Fathertˋs and that the Father gave the to Jesus and they responded the words that Jesus gave to them by receiving them and believing that Jesus came from the Father.

The Lord Jesus then said that the men were both His and of the Father and that Jesus was glorified in them (reflecting how the Father was glorified in Jesus  mentioned in verse 4; I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. ). 

Jesus then spoke of the hatred His followers would recieve from the world in the way that Jesus was hated by the world.

6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. 7 Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You. 8 For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.

9 “I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours. 10 And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.

The Lord Jesus, before his Father, asked that His followers be kept from the evil one and that they be sancitfied by the Fatherˋs Word which is the Truth. Jesus then said that even as the Father send His into the world, He (Jesus) was sending His followers into the world in a symetric reflection of the first step of the redemption enterprise.

Jesus said that He santified ( or set Himself apart ) for the the sake of the people who would follow Him. This seems to be part of what the followers would need to do for the sake of the ones who would come after them.

Amen.

4

 OUR FATHER WHO GAVE HIS SON AUTHORITY OVER ALL FLESH

The book of John Chapter 17 verses 1 - 5 records the Lord Jesusˋ continued discourse to His disciples but now with His eyes lifted to heaven addressing His Father directly;

1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 2 as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 4 I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

Jesus, approaching the last few hours of His life as a man, told His Father that He had glorified Him on the earth and that He finished the work His Father had given Him to do.

He asked His Father to glorify Him with the glory which He had with Him from before the creation of the world.

These statements Jesus made reveal  that the ancient metaphysical plan for the redemption of mankind was reaching its conclusion.

1

 OUR FATHER FROM WHOM THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH PROCEEDS

The book of John chapter 15 verses 26 - 27 concludes the chapter with this;

26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.

The Lord gave His disciples some last minute guidance as they approached the garden of Gethsemene.

The Holy Spirit would come from heaven who Jesus calls here, the Spirit of Truth. The Spirit, who proceeds from the Father, would testify about Jesus and this would be in conjuction with the witness the disciples would bear having been with Him from the beginning.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON CALLED US OUT OF THE WORLD

The book of John chapter 15 verses 18 - 25 gave his followers a caution about how they would attract the same hatred that He attracted because they would not longer bear the identity of the world.

18 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 He who hates Me hates My Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. 25 But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.’

The reaction of the world to the kingdom of righteousness was forseen by the prophets and reflects the viscerally felt conflict between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light.

4

OUR FATHER WHO CALLED HIS FOLLOWERS HIS FRIENDS

The book of John chapter 15 Verses 9 - 17 says this:

9 “As the Father loved Me I also have loved you; abide in My love. 10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. 17 These things I command you, that you love one another.

The Lord Jesus, talking to His disciples as they travelled to the garden of Gethsemene, spoke uplifting words to them. He told them they were now included in the knowledge of the things that the Father was making known to Him and thus they were no longer servants but rather friends.

He adjured them to love one another and to use the privilege of being chosen to bear fruit.

Amen.

4

 OUR FATHER  WHO IS GLORIFIED BY THE FRUITFULNESS OF THOSE WHO BELIEVE

The book of John Chapter 15 verses 1 - 8  captures the Lordˋs words as He and disiples left the venue of the last supper.  In these last-minute exhortations, the Lord teaches His followers that they should abide in Him in order to bear fruit in the same way that  a branch must stay connected to the vine in order to bear fruit.

In the state of connection with Jesus and heeding His word, the requests we make of heaven will be heard and fulfilled.

1 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

The Father is glorified when the followers of Jesus remain connected with Him such that they look to heaven for their supply and they bear much fruit.

The Lordˋs emphasis to His disciples is that they should be permanently connected to Him.

Amen.

1

 OUR FATHER TO WHOM JESUS WAS ABOUT TO RETURN

The book of John chapter 14 verses 25 - 31 says this,

25 “These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 28 You have heard Me say to you, ‘I am going away and coming back to you.’ If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, ‘I am going to the Father,’ for My Father is greater than I.

29 “And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. 31 But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do. Arise, let us go from here.

Jesusˋ concluding statements to His disciples just as they were about to go to the garden of Gethsemene assured them that even though He was leaving them, they would not be without Him. He told them that teh Father would send the Holy Spirit to be with them and teach them and to remind them of all the things Jesus had taught them.

Jesus then promised that He would give them His peace which born again believers experience when they turn to Jesus. The apostle Paul in the book of the Phillipians chapter 4 verse 7 refers to this peace that is beyond understanding but guards our hearts and minds.

Jesus told His disciples not to let their hearts be troubled inspite of what was about to happen. He said that if they loved Him, they would understand and rejoice in the fact  that He had to return to His Father because His Father was greater than He. 

The final sequence of events, foretold from centuries before, was now unfolding and Jesus told His followers that He would not be saying much to them henceforth. 

The great test of Jesus was about to begin and Jesus told the disciples that the ruler of this world was on His way to put maximum pressure on Jesus but Jesus asserted that the ruler of this world had no claim on Him.

The test at hand was whether Jesus loved His Father to the point where He would voluntarily obey his Fatherˋs commands even to the point of death and the last thing that Jesus said at this gathering was that He ldid indeed love His Father to that degree that there would be no daylight between His father and himself no matter how much pressure was put on Him.  This is the perfection of Christ.

Jesus then said that it was time to get up and leave the place they were.

Have mercy on us. O God.

4

OUR FATHER WHO LOVES THOSE WHO LOVE HIS SON

The book of John chapter 14 verses 15 - 24 continues with the Lord Jesus giving His disciples a last briefing before he was to leave them. 

He instructed them to keep His commandments to them as proof of their love for Him. The Lord then made the promise of the ages; He told them that He would ask the Father and the Father would give them a Helper who would be with them forever.

The Helper was the Spirit of Truth and He would dwell with them and be in them and through Him, Jesus would be with them even though is short while  would not be physically with them. Jesus also told them that because He lives, they would live as well.

The passage reads this way;

15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

19 “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will  see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?”

23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.

One of the disciples asked Jesus how He would be reachable to them while being inaccessible to the world to which Jesus replied that the distinction between those in the world and them would be that those who kept Jesus words (which were actually the Fatherˋs words) would be those in whom the Father and the Lord dwelt.

This personal indwelling was not available to the world but only to those who heeded the words of Jesus and kept them.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO IS GLORIFIED IN THE SON

The book of John chapter 14 verses   12 - 14 says this;

12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. 13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

The Lord Jesus, a few hours from His arrest, reveals a truth to His disciples that to this day, is the most shocking thing about Christianity.

Ordinary people, made out of the dust of the earth, when in a state of belief in Jesus, would be able to supernatural things even greater than those that Jesus did.

Because of a mechanism of the glorification of the Father through the Son of God when heaven underwrites a request that is made in the name and authority of Jesus, anything we ask for in Jesus' name that is in in the set of works that Jesus did, He will fulfill.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHO IS IN CHRIST AND IN WHOM CHRIST IS WITHIN

The book of John chapter 14 verses 7 - 11 continues with the intimate conversation the Lord Jesus was having with His disciples. The Lord was explaining to them that He and the Father were one and that to know Jesus was to know the Father.

Unable to comprehend what Jesus was was explaining to them,  Phillip asked Jesus to show them the Father and that they would then have what the needed to truly believe in Jesus.

Jesus was concerned because Philip, along with all the rest of them, had been with Jesus for along time  and still they did not grasp that Jesus, as He stood there with them, was the exact representation of the Father.

The passage reads this way:

7 “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.”

8 Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.”

9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.

The Lord ended this section of the passage by saying t by ere are two avenues of belief that they had access to. On one hand, they could see Jesus modeling the Father's voice and authority and believe in Jesus based on that. On the other, they could look at the miracles He was performing and understand that such astonishing works that they could derive their belief in  Jesus based on the miraculous signs He was demonstrating.

Amen.

4

 

OUR FATHER IN WHOM WE BELIEVE

The book of John Chapter 14 verses 1 - 6 says this;

1 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.”

5 Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

The Lord Jesus, preparing His disciples for His departure, advised them that He would have to leave to prepare a place for them and that they would eventually be with Him.

The Apostle Thomas asked the Lord how they would know where to find Him because they did not know the way.

Jesus' response was the widely known scripture that declared that He was the way, the truth and the life and that there was no access to the Father except through Him.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WOULD BE STRUCK AND HIS FOLLOWERS WOULD SCATTER

The book of John chapter 13 verses 36 - 38, just after the Lord Jesus had announced to His disciples that He was about to leave them,  the apostle Peter asked the Lord where He was going.

36 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?”

Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward.”

37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.”

38 Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.

The apostle Peter thought that He would be able to follow Jesus into the maw of the vengeful authorities even at the risk of his own life but Jesus corrected Him by saying that Peter would deny even the knowledge of Jesus on three occasions before morning broke.

The Lord Jesus, in this moment of imminent danger to Himself, could see the upcoming events with clarity even to the number of times that Peter would be intimidated by the circumstances. 

4

OUR FATHER WHO IS GLORIFIED IN HIS SON

The book of John chapter 13 verses 31 - 35 records the final commandment that the Lord Jesus gave to His disciples.

As the time of His arrest drew closer, He let his followers know that He was going to depart shortly but in this moment of sorrow, He adjured them to love one another in the same way that He loved them.

31 So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him. 32 If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately. 

33 Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come,’ so now I say to you. 34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

To love one another is the most universal way of demontrating to others that we are followers of Christ as we obey His command to do so.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WAS BETRAYED BY A FRIEND

The book of John chapter 13 verses 18 - 30 captures the fulfilment of a prophecy found in Psalm chapter 41 verse 9 which says : Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me.  

At this last meal, Judas, who had been covertly recruited by the authorities  to betray Jesus by giving them His location, was handed a piece of bread directly by Jesus to underline that Jesus shared His bread with the one who was about to betray Him.  

Judas was then prompted to leave the gathering and go to the chief priests to report where Jesus was going to be that night.

The passage reads this way;

18 “I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.’ 19 Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He. 20 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”

21 When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.” 22 Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke.

23 Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. 24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke.

25 Then, leaning [e]back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”

26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. 27 Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.” 28 But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him. 29 For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor.

30 Having received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.

The mechanism of the sarifice of Jesus were now in motion. 

Judas, knowing that Jesus would go to the Garden of Gethsemene to pray, was off to bring the authorities to arrest Him and Jesus, gathered the rest of His disciples to go to the garden of Gethsemene in order to be handed over to those who wanted to kill Him.

1

OUR FATHER WHOSE SON WAS GOING TO RETURN TO HIM

The book of John chapter 13 verses 1 - 17 records the last supper that Jesus shared with His disciples. This event was to celebrate the Passover meal that was a customary in Israel to commemorate the salvation of God from the angel of death by the marking the households of israel with the blood of a lamb. 

This gathering was held on the night was was to lead up to the day that Jesus was going to be arrested and put to death.

When the meal was complete, Jesus, in a demontration of humility and obedience to His Father, got a basin of water and a towel and knelt down to wash the desciples feet. Peter objected to the Jesus washing His feet but Jesus pursuaded him to have his feet washed so that he could participate in the plan of salvation that was being carried out before their eyes.

During this time, Jesus was aware of the betrayal that was being plotted by Judas and knew that it was the mechanism by which He was going to fall into the hands of the authorities and ultimately be killed and return to the Father.

The passage reads this way;

1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

2 And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him, 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, 4 rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. 5 After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. 6 Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?”

7 Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.” 8 Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

10 Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.” 11 For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”

12 So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you [b]know what I have done to you? 13 You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. 16 Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

Jesus, in this final act of servitude for his disciples, set an example for us to maintain a stance of humility and service for those around us and emulate his servant heart.

Holy is the Lord.

4

OUR FATHER WHO SENT HIS SON TO MAKE EVERLASTING LIFE POSSIBLE FOR MEN

The book of John chapter 12 verses 42 - 50 captures the tension that had formed around Jesus because many of the leaders of Israel were pursuaded that He was the awaited Messiah but because the chief priests and pharisees were campaigning against Him, they kept quiet so as not to be ostracized by the establishment.

42 Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

44 Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. 45 And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. 46 I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. 47 And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. 48 He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. 49 For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. 50 And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.”

The case that Jesus made to them was that He, though standing before them as a man, was actually the exact representation of the Father and that the  appropriate reponse to His words was to believe them because if they refused to believe, those words would serve as a witness against them on the last day of judgement.

He implored them to understand the stakes involved. The mission that Jesus was on was one of offering eternal life to men and it is because of what was being pursued by the Father that Jesus completely subjected Himself the commands of the Father in order for the intention of providing everlasting life to be realized.

This was the last entreaty that Jesus made that was recorded by the apostle John before the final countdown to His arrest by the authorities.

Holy is the Lord.

4