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The Scriptorium

Of Words and Works

Christ in you is the hope of glory. Imagine!

Read and meditate on John 14.10, 11.
Jesus asserts His inseparable unity with the Father, and what this means for His words and works.

                                    10“Do you not believe
that I am in the Father, and that He
is in Me also? For the words I speak
I do not on My own authority
proclaim; the Father Who dwells in Me, He
it is Who does the works. 11Believe in Me
that I am in the Father, and that He
is in Me also, or believe in Me
because you see the works.”

- John 14.10, 11

Reflect
1.  These claims of Jesus are so remarkable that we need to ponder them carefully. Let’s begin by looking at one of the smallest words in verse 10. How was Jesus using the word in here? What are the implications of each of these usages? Complete the following prayer: Lord, when I reflect on the promise that You are in me, I…

2.  In Jesus, the disciples were seeing the Father. If they could have seen the Father, they would see Jesus. Meditate on Colossians 1.27. What is your “hope of glory”? What are the implications of this for the people in your Personal Mission Field? Lord, help me, I pray. Today You are sending me out into my Personal Mission Field, as You were sent to the world, and You intend…

3.  Again, Jesus insisted that the words He spoke were not on His own authority, but that of the Father. This makes Jesus not only the Son of the Father, but His Agent and Witness as well. Meditate on John 1.12. What does it mean for you to be a child of the Father? Thank You, Father, for adopting me as Your own child. Help me also to…

4.  The words Jesus spoke were the result of the work of God in Him. Because God worked in Him, Jesus spoke certain words. Meditate on Philippians 2.13. How can you know when God is at work in you? Be at work in me today, O Lord, exceedingly abundantly beyond all I’ve ever dared to ask or think, and I…

5.  The works and words of Jesus enable people to believe in Him more fully (v. 11). What are the implications of this for your witness for Christ? For your own walk with Him? For you work of encouraging other disciples as His followers? Bring together your prayers from questions 1-4 into one prayer.

Summary
“If, he would say, my Father had spoken anything to you, he would not have used any other words than these that I am now speaking. For so great is the equality in essence between myself and him that my words are his words, and whatever I do may be believed to be his actions. For, because he ‘abides in me,’ by reason of the exact equivalence in essence, he himself does the works. For since the Godhead is one in the Father, in the Son and in the Spirit, every word that comes from the Father comes always through the Son by the Spirit. Every work or miracle is through the Son by the Spirit, and yet it is considered as coming from the Father. For the Son is not apart from the essence of the Father, nor indeed is the Holy Spirit. But the Son, being in the Father and having the Father again in himself, claims that the Father is the doer of the works. For the nature of the Father is mighty in operation and shines out clearly in the Son.” Cyril of Alexandria (375-444 AD)

The greatest mystery in the world is that Jesus Christ, the very imprint and expression of the Father, dwells by His Spirit in those who believe in Him. Not only is this the greatest mystery, but it is the most liberating idea anyone can entertain. Why?

Closing Prayer
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.

Psalm 27.1-4

Psalm 27.1-6 (Joanna: Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise)
Lord, You are our Light and our Savior most dear!
You guard us with might; therefore, whom shall we fear?
Though evil surround us, our enemies fall;
No harm shall confound us when on You we call.

One thing we request, but to dwell with You, Lord.
Your beauty to test and to think on Your Word.
In trouble You hide us secure in Your grace;
No foe may o’erride us: We sing of Your praise!

T. M. Moore

We are happy to offer each week’s Scriptorium studies in a free weekly PDF, suitable for personal or group use. You can download all the studies in our series on the Gospel of John by clicking here. Please prayerfully consider sharing with The Fellowship of Ailbe through your giving. You can contribute to The Fellowship by clicking the Contribute button at the website or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from
The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series IV a and b: John, edited by Joel C. Elowsky, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006. Verse translation of John by T. M. Moore.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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