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John 14:18

I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. (N.K.J.V.)

Comfort drips like honey from those words.  John 14 is an amazing chapter because of the introduction of the Holy Spirit as a Helper. However, I love to connect with the human element: the confusion and impending heartache of the disciples trying to piece together where their beloved Jesus would be going. In John 13:37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.” After this Jesus goes on to predict Peter’s denial of Him.

Although the disciples could not yet grasp the concept of what was actually going to happen, Jesus is assuring them of His return which was by way of the resurrection. He is comforting them with the promise that He would not leave them orphaned. He was coming back!

We can hold tight to this same promise. Wherever we are, Jesus is there. He will not leave us. There is nowhere we can go that His love cannot reach. He WILL come.

When I study specific passages from the Bible, I look them up in several translations to see if one speaks differently to my heart. I want you to see the translation for John 14:18-20 in the Message Bible.

John 14:18-20

I will not leave you orphaned. I’m coming back. In just a little while the world will no longer see me, but you’re going to see me because I am alive and you’re about to come alive. At that moment you will know absolutely that I’m in my Father, and you’re in me, and I’m in you. (M.S.G.)

When I read the words, “And you’re about to come alive.” I felt a quickening of the Holy Spirit in my heart. At the mention of Christ, how can we not come alive? When we think of His sacrifice enveloped in his undying love for us, how can we not come alive? He died that we might live.

Regardless of how alone and empty you might feel, I want you to know He will NOT leave you orphaned. He will come to you. Call on His name. Seek Him and you will find Him. Let not your heart be troubled.

C. S. Lewis said, “He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.”

He died for you. If it helps, look in the mirror and say, “He died for me.”

If it were only you, you would have been enough for Him to endure the cross. He won’t leave you orphaned. He promised…

My prayer for you today is that you cling to the promise of His presence in your life.

Remember you are not an orphan. At the moment you accept Him in your heart and life, you are a child of the King!