John 15:9-17
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- Reading the Text:
- NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
- Greek Interlinear Bible, ScrTR, ScrTR t, Strong, Parsing, CGTS, CGES id, AV.
- The Bible Gateway: NRSV, RSV, NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
- The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Greek text with concordance, commentaries.
- The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary & sermons.
- Historical References, Commentary and
Comparative Texts:
- The Five Gospels Parallels, John W. Marshall, University of Toronto.
- Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit:
- Primary comparative texts of Rabbinic Wisdom, including "greatest commandment" parallels, from Mahlon H. Smith's Into His Own: Perspective on the World of Jesus, Rutgers University.
- "Ask, Seek, Knock," The Jesus Database, an online annotated inventory of the traditions concerning the life and teachings of Jesus. Dr. Gregory C. Jenks, FaithFutures Foundation.
- XLVI.25-33; Tatian's Diatessaron (c. 150-160).
- III.XX.2, IV.XIII.4, IV.XIV.1, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180)
- II.15, Stromata, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
- Epistle VII -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 250)
- I.31, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Origen. (c.228)
- On the Unity of the Church, Cyprian of Carthage (c. 250)
- Epistle LXII -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 253)
- From Augustine's Tractates on John:
-
Tractate 82 (15:8-10)
- "Love brings about the keeping of His commandments; but does the keeping of His commandments bring about love?"
-
Tractate 83 (15:11,12)
- "And so, where there is love, what can be wanting? and where it is not, what is there that can possibly be profitable? The devil believes, but does not love: no one loveth who doth not believe."
-
Tractate 84 (15:13)
- "But if any one shall set himself in comparison, I say, not with the power. but with the innocence of Christ, and (I would not say) in thinking that he is healing the sins of others, but at least that he has no sins of his own, even so far is his avidity overstepping the requirements of the method of salvation; it is a matter of considerable moment for him, only he attains not his desire."
-
Tractate 85 (15:14,15)
- "Let us, brethren, let us understand, and may the Lord enable us to understand, and enable us also to do what we understand. And if we know this, we know of a truth what the Lord doeth; for it is only the Lord that so enables us, and by such means only do we attain to His friendship."
-
Tractate 86 (15:15, 16)
- "See then, beloved, how it is that He chooseth not the good, but maketh those whom He has chosen good."
-
Tractate 87 (17-19)
- "For who can truly rejoice who loves not good as the source of his joy? Who can have true peace, if he have it not with one whom he truly loves? Who can be long-enduring through persevering continuance in good, save through fervent love? Who can be kind, if he love not the person he is aiding? Who can be good, if he is not made so by loving? Who can be sound in the faith, without that faith which worketh by love? Whose meekness can be beneficial in character, if not regulated by love? And who will abstain from that which is debasing, if he love not that which dignifies?"
-
Tractate 82 (15:8-10)
- From the Geneva Notes.
- "The love of the Father towards the Son, and of the Son towards us, and of us toward God and our neighbour, are joined together with an inseparable knot: and there is nothing more sweet and pleasant than it is."
- From
Matthew
Henry's Commentary.
- "If the same power that first shed abroad the love of Christ's in our hearts, did not keep us in that love, we should not long abide in it. Christ's love to us should direct us to love each other."
- From
Wesley's Notes.
- "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you - On this condition, not otherwise. A thunderbolt for Antinomianism! Who then dares assert that God's love does not at all depend on man's works?"
- From the
Commentary on the Whole Bible
(Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
- "...not, 'Continue to love Me,' but, 'Continue in the possession and enjoyment of My love to you'..."
- From The People's
New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
- "Christ's disciples serve him, but their service is not bondage, but that of love. Hence, they are friends instead of servants."
- Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
- Commentary,
John 15:9-17, James Boyce, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2012.
- "If last Sunday's lesson ended on the note of disciples glorifying God the Father through the bearing of "much fruit," then in this Sunday's continuation that fruit fairly bursts open as a veritable flood in the exercise of love."
- The Commandment to Love One Another, audio telling, story in episodes, graphic, audio and written commentaries. Go Tell Communications, Biblical Storytelling for the Global Village, 2012.
- "Love & Obedience," David Lose, Dear Working Preacher, 2012.
- "...how do we tell the difference between right obedience (that is, from love of God and neighbor) and wrong obedience (as in caving in to abusive power)?"
- "Commands to Love, or Commands in Order to Love?" D Mark Davis, raw translation and exegesis/questions, Left Behind and Loving It, 2012.
- "...'love one another' is not the command itself. It is the purpose of the things that Jesus commands."
- "Love How?" Peter Woods, I Am Listening, 2012.
- "Would I be pushing too hard to suggest that a contemporary reading of Jesus' words would be, 'There is no greater unconditional love than when someone get's their ego out of the way for another.'?"
- Lectionary Blogging, John Petty, Progressive Involvement, 2012.
- Preaching John 15:9-17, Paul Scott Wilson, Lectionary Homiletics sample.
- "As one contemplates this passage, one has the sense of there being, in a sense, a pipeline of love from the Father to Christ, from Christ to the disciples through their faithfulness to his word, and from the disciples and out into the world."
- "Sentimentality and the Cross," Rick Fry, 2012.
- "Love made the resurrection real. And the resurrection gave love concrete embodiment."
- "All You Need Is Love? Maybe." Jodi-Renee Adams, The Hardest Question, 2012.
- Radical Gratitude, lectionary-based stewardship, Northwest United Methodist Foundation. (.pdf)
- "Many Things Are Called Love," Katie Munnik, Presbyterian Record, 2012.
- "Of Supermoons and Loving One Another," Janet Hunt, Dancing with the Word, 2012.
- "Can you think of examples of 'laying down one's life for one's friends?' Are they ordinary or extraordinary or both?"
- "Friending," Michael Coffey, 2012.
- "The Best Friend of All," Alyce M. McKenzie, Patheos, 2012.
- "[In the gospel of John] the word friend (philo) occurs six times..."
- Holy Textures, Understanding the Bible in its own time and in ours,
John 15:9-17, David Ewart, 2012.
- "So as we look around church on any given Sunday, we may see people that we know and like, know and don't like, or don't know at all. Whatever. Jesus is commanding us to look out for each other's good, so that we might bear fruit, fruit that endures."
- Commentary, John 15:9-17, Susan Hedahl, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
- Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
-
"First
Thoughts on Year B Gospel Passages in the Lectionary," Easter
6, William
Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia.
- "Perhaps the vine image was wider than that with its image of fruit bearing, but a major crisis was developing within John?s community which needed Jesus? instruction and his prayer - or, at least, the members needed to hear what Jesus would have prayed. The unity was not ?airy-fairy?, but relational and practical."
- Gospel Analysis, Pastor Edward Markquart, Sermons from Seattle, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington. Detailed background and exegesis.
- Exegetical
Notes by Brian Stoffregen, at CrossMarks.
- "I believe that if nothing else, every parishioner in our congregations should leave the worship services having heard: 'I am someone Jesus loves.'"
- "I Have Called You Friends," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Friendship," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2008.
-
"The Love of God,"
Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com: A Catholic Resource for This
Sunday's Gospel. Adult Study, Children's Story, Family Activity, Support
Materials.
- "When is love easy? When is it difficult?"
-
Join the Feast, John 15:9-17, Barry Chance, Union PSCE,
2009.
- "The theological implication is that the identity of the disciples is tied up in the fact that they are loved?they are Friends of Jesus?Friends of God."
- Marginally Mark, by Brian McGowan, Anglican priest in Western Australia.
-
"As I
Have Loved You,"
Jerry Goebel, One
Family Outreach. "Focus on scripture from a justice perspective." Exegesis, study, and teen study
and activities.
- "Are our lives so illustrative of Christ that someone could tell that we were Christians without our words, symbols, or bumper stickers?Our Lord tells us to; 'Love one another as I have loved you.' He is the only religious leader who personalizes the Golden Rule. He doesn?t just say; 'Love others like you want to be loved.' He says; 'Love others like I loved you!'"
- Wellspring of the Gospel, Easter 6B, Catherine McElhinney and Kathryn Turner, Weekly Wellsprings.
-
"Abiding Love," William Brosend, The Christian Century, 2000. At
Religion Online.
- "The Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh has helped me as much as anyone (except perhaps Brother Lawrence) to understand what it means to practice the presence of God, to abide with Christ."
- Commentary by Hall Harris at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
- "Abiding
in Christ (John 15)," by Robert Deffinbaugh at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
- "Abiding in Christ (verses 4-8) stressed belief, dependence, and endurance. The emphasis in verses 9-25 is on obedience. This is ?how? we abide in Christ?s love: ?If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father?s commandments, and abide in His Love? (John 15:10)."
- Commentary,
John 15:9-17, James Boyce, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2012.
- Articles & Background:
- "Worship in the Fourth Gospel: A Cultural Interpretation of John 14-17," Jerome H. Neyrey, Biblical Theology Bulletin, 2006. Part 2.
- "Friendship," issue theme of Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2008. Articles, study guide, inspirational pieces, worship ideas, and more. See especially, "I Have Called You Friends," Gail R. O'Day.
-
"Friendship in the Bible," Benedict Janecko,
Spiritual Life,
2002.
- "In our culture today, there is much talk about 'love' but relatively little about friendship."
- "Joan Chittister: The Friendship of Women: The Hidden Tradition of the Bible," Donna Freitas, Publishers Weekly, 2006.
-
"Worship in
the Fourth Gospel: A Cultural Interpretation of John 14-17," Jerome H.
Neyrey, Biblical Theology Bulletin, 2006.
- "...the personnel of worship are clearly defined: the Patron Father who bestows benefaction on his clients by means of Jesus, the Broker. Jesus, in turn, brokers the concerns of the clients to the Patron. Finally, the household with many rooms is not space out of the world, but relationships brokered by Jesus."
- "That
Every Child Who Wants Might Learn to Dance," Paula M. Cooey,
Cross Currents,
1998.
- "Joy suggests the falseness of the alleged dilemma of self-fulfillment vs. self-sacrifice. Joy is ethically ambiguous. It may be generous, selfish, both, or ecstatic, though it tends to direct the self outward toward others in some way. Thus, the context in which joy occurs largely determines its ethical implications."
- Recommended articles
from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are
linked below.
ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of
selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices.
- Brosend, William, "Abiding Love,"
The Christian Century, 2000.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Burghardt, William, S.J.,
"Gospel Joy, Christian Joy," The Living Pulpit, 1996. (see
Joy issue focus of The Living Pulpit 5.4, 1996.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Esselstyn, Micki Bingham,
"The Angel of Joy Demands Our Participation," The Living Pulpit,
1996. (see
Joy issue focus of The Living Pulpit 5.4, 1996.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Gench, Frances Taylor,
"Between Text & Sermon: John 15:12-17," Interpretation, 2004.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - "Homiletical Helps," Concordia Journal, 2009. (Section on this text begins on page 181)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Killinger, John, "Wildfire," The
Christian Century, 2006.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - O'Day, Gail R., "Jesus As Friend in the Gospel of John,"
Interpretation, 2004.
(See also,
Friendship, issue focus of
Interpretation, 2004.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - O'Day, Gail R., "Preaching As an Act of Friendship:
Plain Speaking as a Sign of the Kingdom," Journal for Preachers,
2005.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Peterson, Robert A.,
"Is Christ 'The Electing God'?" Presbyterion, 2004.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Pidgeon, George Campbell, "Root and
Fruit of Christian Love: Reflections on John 13:34-35; 15:1-14,"
Theology Today, 1952.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Reid, Barbara E.,
"The Cross and Cycles of Violence," Interpretation, 2004.
(See also entire issue:
Violence in the Bible,
Interpretation, 2004.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Segovia, Fernando F., "The Theology
and Provenance of John 15:1-17," Journal of Biblical Literature,
1982.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Wood, Lawrence, "Labors of Love," The Christian
Century, 2003.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Brosend, William, "Abiding Love,"
The Christian Century, 2000.
- Reviews:
- Review: L. Scott Kellum, The Unity of the Farewell Discourse: The Literary Integrity of John 13.31-16.33. T&T Clark, 2004. Review by Joseph Matos in SBL's Review of Biblical Literature.
- Review: George L. Parsenios, Departure and Consolation: The Johannine Farewell Discourse in Light of Greco-Roman Literature. Brill, 2005. Review by Jan van der Watt, Review of Biblical Literature, 2007.
- Sermons:
- "The Little Golf Club," John Smylie, SermonSuite.
- "As the Father Has Loved Me," the Rev. Dr. James C. Howell, Day 1, 2009.
- "Among Friends," Dr. Fredrica Harris Thompsett, Episcopal Divinity School, 2004.
- "It's About Love, Love, Love," "It Is So Simple," "The Happy Prince," Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington.
- "Faith, Friendship, and Fruitfulness," Bishop L. Bevel Jones, Day 1, 2003.
- "Everyone!" John Jewell, 2000.
- "We Don't Choose All Our Friends," the Rev. Duane Steele, Day 1, 1997.
- "The Meaning of Joy," Paul Tillich. From The New Being (1955), at Religion OnLine.
- Father Andrew M. Greeley, "Priest, Author, Sociologist," Commentary and Homily
- With Children:
- Worshiping with Children, Easter 6B, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2012.
- "Children's Literature: A Resource for Ministry," May 13, 2012, Union Presbyterian Seminary. Connections: Acts 10:44-48 and We All Sing with the Same Voice, by J. Philip Miller and Sheppard M. Greene, 1 John 5:1-6 and How Dalia Put a Big Yellow omforter Inside a Tiny Blue Box by Linda Heller, John 15:9-17 and Three Bags Full by Reginald Scarnell.
- "The Greatest Commandment - Love," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
- "As I Have Loved You," Charles Kirkpatrick, Sermons4kids.com.
- "Bernie's Payback," children's story by Larry Broding, word-sunday.com.
- "A Basket of Summer Fruit," "Jesus Calls Us Friends," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
- John 15:12, John 15:14, memory verse activity, MSSS Crafts and Resources for Bible Stories.
- Drama:
- Father & Son -- Three minute skit based on John 15:9-17 by Robert F. Crowley from SermonSuite.
- Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
- Clip Art, John 15:14, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
- Clip Art Images: John 15:9-17, Misioneros Del Sagrado Corazón en el Perú.
- John 15:9-17, at Cerezo Barredo's weekly gospel illustration. Liberation emphasis.
- Images for this week's readings, Pitts Theology Library Digital Image Archive.
- John 15:1-17, John 15:16, John 15:16, Heartlight - Free Christian PowerPoint Backgrounds.
- John 15:9-11, John 15:12-17, John 15:9-11, John 15:9-17, Liturgical Drawing, Maria d.c. Zamora, Claretian Resources, Philippines. ("Download and use these for free.")
- Commercial Site: "Abide in Me," (John 15) Visual liturgy for Easter 5B, The Work of the People.
- Hymns and Music:
- Hymnary.org, hymns, scores, media, information.
- Contemporary/Praise Song suggestions, Together to Celebrate, David MacGregor.
- Hymns with Scripture Allusions: John 15:10, 13, 14, 15, 16. The Cyber Hymnal.
- Hymnal Scripture References, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
- At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
- Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
- Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
- Study Links and Resources for the Book of John
