Digging Deeper Days
Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
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The Questions
1) Who is speaking in this passage and to whom are they speaking?
2) What is the purpose of this message?
3) What is the main theme of this passage?
John 15:9-17
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 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. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another.
Original Intent
1) Who is speaking in this passage and to whom are they speaking?
Jesus is speaking to the disciples in this passage. They have eaten the Passover meal and Jesus is preparing them for what is about to happen, His crucifixion on the cross. He has broken bread with them, washed their feet, and He is giving them His last words of encouragement and instruction before delivering Himself over to the Romans guards.
2) What is the purpose of this message?
Jesus is preparing the disciples to be in this world without Him. For three years, they have traveled with Him and listened to His teachings, but now it is time for them to become the ambassadors and spread His message without Him physically by their side. He does tell them He is not leaving them alone, but rather is providing them “a Helper”, the Holy Spirit. (John 14:15-20)
3) What is the main theme of this passage?
There are two words that stand out in this passage “abide” and “love”. Jesus is taking time in His last moments with His disciples to remind them of what they already know and have been taught over the last three years, but He is preparing them for what is to come. They must both abide in Him and love one another.
Everyday Application
1) Who is speaking in this passage and to whom are they speaking?
The disciples were Jesus’ closest followers. They left their homes, their families, and their lives to follow Him in His teaching. In these last moments, He is giving them one final message of hope with His last instructions being abide in me and love one another. As believers today, we are called to be Christ followers; we are His disciples in our time in history. We are to take His instruction to abide in Him and love others as the standard for the how to live out everyday lives. The Son of God knew His time on Earth had come to an end, and He left behind Holy Spirit empowered disciples to proclaim His truths until His return. We are these empowered and equipped disciples! Are we abiding? Are we loving well? Not sure what abiding looks like in real life? Check out our 3-week Journey Theme: Dwell!
2) What is the purpose of this message?
Have you ever been so wrapped up in a book or movie, you didn’t want it to end? Maybe the story was just that good or the characters were relatable, and you found yourself entrenched in their lives. Purely conjecture on my part, but I wonder if the disciples felt that way. They didn’t want their time with Jesus to end. They were scared (terrified really) and could see that things with Jesus were different; things were coming to an end. The things He spoke about seemed final and His once-coded messages about leaving began to unfold right before them. In all of that, Jesus wanted to offer hope, direction, and assurance. He wanted to put their mind at ease about coming events and, most importantly, wanted to give them instructions about things to come. He wanted to assure them this was God’s plan all along and in Him they were capable of carrying on. So Are We! You and I didn’t walk with Jesus while He was in the flesh, but when the ends of our lives are unraveling, the same assurance is for us. He sees, He knows, He is still the “with us” God!
3) What is the main theme of this passage?
Jesus’ instructions to the disciples were clear: abide in me and love one another. As followers of Him, that is our evaluation standard before I post on social media, before I speak to a friend who has hurt me, before I speak to my disobedient child, before I confront a co-worker about their choices, before—- you can fill in the blank. My focused questions should be am I abiding in Him? And am I loving that other person? John, the writer of this book, says “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) The love we have for our neighbor that comes from our knowing Christ deeply through studying His word and growing in biblical community is the most powerful testimony to a world who does not know Him.
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Digging Deeper is for Everyone!
1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!
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Why Dig Deeper?
Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.
In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!
Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.
Study Tools
We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.
Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!
Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))
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