The Gospel of John: John 16.1-15

Read and meditate on John 16.1-3.
Jesus wants us to know that the path by which we follow Him will be strewn with things that could trip us up. He does not want us to stumble, so He tells us in advance what to expect.

¹“These things that I have spoken, I impart
to you so that you will not stumble. ²They
will put you out of synagogues; the day
is coming when whoever kills you will
consider that in doing so, the will
of God is being satisfied, and he
is serving God. ³Because they know not Me,
and do not know the Father, they will do
these things to you.”

- John 15.1-3

Reflect
1.  When we think about following Jesus, what is implied in the idea of stumbling? Should we be aware that the possibility of stumbling is real? Explain. What does it look like when a believer stumbles? Complete this prayer: Lord let me never stumble over You, or in walking the path You have marked out for me, but…

2.  What kinds of threats might cause us to stumble? First, Jesus notes the threat of exclusion (v. 2). What forms might this threat take in our day? How would a believer stumble when faced with this threat? Nothing matters more to me, Lord, than abiding in You, so let me not be afraid when…

3.  A second threat is more serious: bodily harm, or even death. Over the centuries, many Christians have suffered physical injury or death because of their faith in Jesus. We don’t think about this much, perhaps; but should we? Should we at least set our minds concerning such a threat? How can we do that? Should it come to harm or injury or the threat of death, Lord, help me to…

4.  A third threat is more implied than overt here. People might mock our faith, exclude us, or do us bodily harm, all the while claiming that they are doing God’s will, not we (v. 2). They know the truth, and we are wrong, and thus we deserve whatever they might choose to dole out. How can we avoid stumbling over this threat? Let me so abide in Your truth, Lord, that…

5.  Why would people do such things to us (v. 3)? Since this is so, what should our attitude be toward them? How did Jesus manifest this attitude?  Bring together into one the prayers you composed for questions 1-4.

Summary
“No one should wonder that we are harassed with constant persecutions and continually tried with increasing afflictions when the Lord before predicted that these things would happen in the last times. He has instructed us for the warfare through his teaching and exhortation. Peter also, his apostle, has taught that persecutions occur to test us. We are to look to the example of the righteous who have gone before us and are to be joined to the love of God by death and sufferings. For he wrote in his epistle, ‘Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that comes on you to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and of God rests on you.’ The name of Christ is indeed blasphemed by them but is glorified by us.” Cyprian of Carthage (fl. 248-258 AD)

We should not avoid those things that might make us stumble. We must recognize them, and prepare for them, but we will compromise our witness for the Lord if we try to avoid these threats by remaining silent when we should bear witness for the Lord. And remaining silent at such times is but to stumble. How can you prepare each day so that you will not stumble in your walk with the Lord? How can believers help one another not to stumble?

Closing Prayer
Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
For the LORDknows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Psalm 1

Psalm 1 (St. Thomas: I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord)
How blessed are they that shun sin’s vain and wicked ways.
For them has Christ salvation won; He loves them all their days.

God’s Word is their delight; they prosper in its truth.
In it they dwell both day and night to flourish and bear fruit.

Firm planted on the banks of God’s great stream of grace,
They raise unending praise and thanks to His great glorious face.

The wicked are not so, but, driven by the winds,
They fall and perish, weighed with woe, when once God’s wrath begins.

In Jesus’ righteousness, though sinners fail and fall,
His flock He will preserve and bless, who on His favor call.

T. M. Moore

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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.