The Gospel Part 23

If anyone hears my words and does not believe, I do not judge him, because I came not to judge the world but to save the world. He who rejects me and does not accept my words has one who judges him. He whose words I have spoken will be the judge on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own, but for the Father who sent me. He gave me a commandment of what I should say and what I should speak. I know that His commandment is for life everlasting. Whatever I speak, I speak as the Father spoke to me.

13. It was before the feast of the pa.s.sover. Jesus knew that the time had come for Him to depart from this world to the Father. Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. Supper was ended. The devil now put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot to betray Him. Jesus knew that the Father had given all things into His hands and that He came from G.o.d and went to G.o.d.

He arose from supper, laid aside His garments, took a towel, and girded Himself. After that He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet. He then wiped them with the towel with which He had girded Himself.

When He came to Simon Peter, he said to Him, Lord, do you wash my feet?

Jesus answered, What I do you do not know now but you will understand later. Peter said, You will never wash my feet. Jesus replied, If I do not wash you, then you have no part of me. Peter then said, Lord, then not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus said, He who is washed does not need to wash more than his feet, for every part of him is clean. You are clean. But not all of you are clean. Jesus said this to indicate that He knew who would betray Him.

He washed their feet, put on His garments, and sat down again. He said to them, Do you know what I have done? You call me Master and Lord. And you speak correctly for so I am. Now if I, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you should wash one another's feet also. For I have given you an example that you should do as I have done to you. Truly, I say to you, The servant is not greater than his lord. And He who was sent is not greater than He who sent Him. If you understand these things, you will be happy to do them.

I do not speak about all of you. I know whom I have chosen. But this scripture must be fulfilled: He that eateth bread with me has lifted up his heel against me. So I tell you before it comes so, when it happens, you may believe who I am. I tell you, He who receives whomever I send, receives me. He who receives me, receives the one who sent me.

Jesus said He was troubled in spirit and testified saying, One of you will betray me. Then the disciples looked at eachother, wondering who He meant. There was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter beckoned to that disciple and said he should ask Jesus who was the betrayer. The disciple said, Lord, who is it?

Jesus answered, He it is to whom I will give a sop when I have dipped it. When He had dipped the sop He gave it to Judas Iscariot. Then Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, What you do, do it quickly.

No one at the table knew why Jesus said this to him. Some of them thought, because Judas held the money, that Jesus said to him, Buy those things that we need for the feast, or that he should give something to the poor. Judas, then, having received the sop, went immediately out. It was night. After he was gone, Jesus said, Now the Son of man is glorified, and G.o.d is glorified in Him. If G.o.d is glorified in Him, G.o.d will also glorify Him in Himself.

Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me and, as I told the Jews, Where I go, you cannot come. So now I give you a new commandment. Love one another as I have loved you. By this all men will know that you are my disciples if you have love for eachother.

Simon Peter asked Him, Lord, where are you going? Jesus answered, Where I go you cannot follow now, but you will follow me later. Peter said to Him, Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for your sake. Jesus answered him, Wil you lay down your life for my sake?

I tell you, You will deny me thrice before the c.o.c.k crows.

14. Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in G.o.d. Believe in me also. In my Father's house there are many mansions. If it were not so I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you.

And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself so that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you will know, and you will know the way.

Thomas said to Him, Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way? Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you know me, you know my Father also, and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.

Philip said to Him, Lord, show us the Father and it is enough for us.

Jesus said, Have I been with you so long and still you do not known me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father. Why say, Show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me?

The words I say to you, I say not on my own but from the Father who dwells in me. It is He who does the works. Either believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me, or, at least, believe me for the very works' sake. I tell you, He who believes in me will also do the works that I do. And greater works than these will he do also. Whatever you ask in my name, I will do, so the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If you ask anything in my name I will do it. If you love me, keep my commandments.

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter to abide with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth which the world cannot receive because it will not see Him and will not know Him. But you will know Him for He will dwell with you and will be in you. I will not leave you comfortless. I will come to you.

In a little while the world will see me no more. But you will see me because I will live and you will live also. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, you are in me, and I am in you. He who has my commandments and keeps them, loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father. I will love him and show myself to him.

Judas, not Iscariot, said to Him, Lord, how is it that you will show yourself to us and not to the world? Jesus answered and said, If a man loves me, he will keep my words and my Father will love him. We will come to him and make our abode with him. He who does not love me does not keep my words. The word you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.

These things I tell you while I am yet with you. The Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things. He will explain all the things I have given you to remember.

Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you, not as the world gives, give I to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Ye have heard how I said to you, I will go away and come again to you. If you love me then rejoice, because I am going to my Father who is greater than I am. And now I have told you beforehand so that, when it comes to pa.s.s, you will believe. After this, I will not say much to you, for the prince of this world has come. He has no power over me, but, what I do, I do so the world may know that I love the Father and do as the Father commanded me. Arise, let us go hence.

15. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit He takes away. Every branch that bears fruit, He prunes and purges so it may bring forth more fruit. Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abide in the vine, no more can you unless you abide in me.

I am the vine. You are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, brings forth much fruit; for, without me, you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is a branch that is cut off and will wither.

Men gather these and cast them into the fire to be burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, all that you ask will be done. This is how my Father is glorified; that you bear much fruit and, by doing so, are my disciples.

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Continue in my love.

If you keep my commandments you will abide in my love as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in His love. I tell you this so that my joy will remain in you and your joy will be full.

This is my commandment, That you love one another as I have loved you.

Greater love has no man than that he lay down his life for his friends.

You are my friends. If you do what I command you, I do not call you servants. The servant does not know what his lord does. But I call you friends because all that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you.

You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you so you will go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit will remain so that whatever you ask of the Father in my name, He will give it to you.

These things I command you, that you love one another. If the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own. But you are not of the world. I have chosen you out of the world. Therefore the world will hate you. Remember that I told you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they have kept my word, they will keep yours also. But they will do all these things to you for my name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent me.

If I had not come and spoken to them, they would be innocent of sin.

But now they have no cloke to hide their sin. He who hates me hates my Father also. If I had not done works which no other man has done, they would not have sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father.

This all comes to pa.s.s so that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law: They hated me without a cause. But when the Comforter comes, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about me. And you also will bear witness because you have been with me from the beginning.

16. I am telling you these things so you are not offended. They will put you out of the synagogues. The time will come when whoever kills you will think that he does G.o.d a service. And they will do these things to you because they have not known the Father nor me. I did not tell you these things at the beginning because I was with you. But now I am going away to the one who sent me. And none of you ask, Where are you going? But because I have said these things sorrow has filled your hearts.

But, I tell you the truth, it is best for you that I go away. If I do not go the Comforter will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send Him to you. When He comes, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. Of sin, because they do not believe in me. Of righteousness, because I go to my Father and you see me no more.

Of judgment, because the evil one who is prince of this world is condemned.

I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot hear them now.

However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth because He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will reveal. He will show you things to come. He will glorify me because He will take from what is my own and reveal it to you. All things that the Father has are mine and that is why I said He will take from my own and reveal it to you. In a little while you will not see me. And then, in a little while, you will see me because I am going to the Father.

Then some of His disciples said among themselves, What is this that He said to us? In a little while you will not see me? And in a little while you will see me because I am going to the Father? What is this little while? We cannot tell what He said. Now Jesus knew that they wanted to ask Him, and He said to them, Are you wondering about In a little while you will not see me, and, in a little while, you will see me?

I tell you, You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful but your grief will be turned into joy. When a woman is in labor she is troubled because her hour has come. But as soon as she delivers the child she remembers her anguish no more because of her joy over a new birth to the world. So you now have sorrow. But I will see you again. And your heart will rejoice. And no one can take your joy from you. In that day you will need to ask nothing of me. Whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask and you will receive, so your joy may be full.

I have said these things as examples. But the time will come when I will use no more examples because I will show you plainly from the Father. On that day you will ask Him in my name and I will not have to say that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father Himself loves you because you love me and believe that I came from G.o.d. I came from the Father and have come into the world. Now I leave the world and go to the Father.

His disciples said to Him, now you speak plainly. Jesus said, Do you now believe? The hour comes, yes, has now come, when you will be scattered and on your own. You will leave me alone. Yet, I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have said these things to you so that, in me, you will have peace. In the world you will have tribulation.

But, be of good cheer, because I have overcome the world.

17. Jesus spoke these words. Then He lifted His eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour has come. Glorify thy Son so that thy Son may also glorify thee, as you have given Him power over all flesh so He could give eternal life to as many as you have given Him. This is life eternal, that they might know you, the only true G.o.d, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have glorified you on the earth. I have finished the work that you gave me to do.

And now, glorify me, Father, with you; with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. I have manifested your name to those you gave me from the world. They were yours and you gave them to me. They have kept your word. Now they know that all things you have given me are from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me. They have received them and they know truly that I came from you, and they have believed that you did send me.

I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but for those you have given me, because they are yours. All of mine are yours, just as yours are mine; and I am glorified in them. Now I am in the world no more but they are in the world. I come to thee, Holy Father. Keep, through your own name, those you have given me, so they may be one, just as we are one.

While I was with them in the world I kept them in your name. I have kept those that you gave me. None of them is lost, except the son of perdition so that the scripture would be fulfilled. Now I come to you and speak these things in the world so they will have my joy fulfilled in themselves.

I have given them your word. The world has hated them because they are not of the world as I am not of the world. I do not pray that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from evil. They are not of the world as I am not of the world. Perfect them through your truth.

Your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, so I have also sent them into the world. And, for their sakes, I sanctify myself that they also might be perfected through the truth.

Neither do I pray for these alone. But I pray also for those who will believe in me through their word so that they all may be one, as you, Father, are in me, and I in you. They also may be one in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. And the glory which you gave me, I have given them, so they may be made perfect in one, as we are one, and so the world may know that you have sent me, and love them as you love me.

Father, I wish those you gave me may also be with me where I am. May they behold my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the world began. O righteous Father, the world has not known you. But I have known you, and the ones you have sent me have known you. I have declared your name to them. And I declare that the love, with which you have loved me, be in them, and I in them.

18. When Jesus had spoken these words, He took His disciples across the Cedron valley and went into the garden. Judas, who betrayed Him, also knew this place because Jesus often went there with His disciples. Judas then, having been given a band of officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, approached the spot with lanterns, torches, and weapons.

Jesus, knowing the things that were to happen, stepped forward and said to them, Who are you looking for? They answered, Jesus of Nazareth.