Thoughts on the Gospel of John (153) - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2025

But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, where are You going? But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.

John 16:5–7

Thoughts on the Gospel of John (153)
Jesus, the Son of God, was about to return to His heavenly Father. On earth He had shown who and how God is in His holiness and in His love. And now the climax was imminent: His sacrificial death on the cross. He, the Holy and Righteous One, had to suffer and die for us, the unrighteous, so that we could come to God (1 Peter 3:18).

In the time that had passed, it had truly been a great blessing for the disciples to be able to accompany their Lord at every turn: they saw His works of power, heard His words of love, contemplated His majesty and experienced His care. Wouldn’t it be an irreplaceable loss for them if all this were to cease?

But the gain would outweigh the loss. Jesus would leave them, but He would not leave them alone. God, the Holy Spirit, would come to earth as a person to dwell in the believers. He would take up their cause as an Advocate on earth. And He would indissolubly unite them with the risen Christ, their Advocate with God in heaven. And that was going to be a great blessing for them.

Aren’t we sometimes like the disciples: our thoughts are completely taken up by some kind of loss, and we overlook how God nevertheless wants to bless us through this in the end?

Today’s reading: 1 Kings 14:1-20 · John 10:7-21