John 14:18,19 - You will see me

14:18

The disciples were naturally upset at the prospect of Jesus leaving them, and this would become more so when the circumstances became all too apparent. The disciples would sense that something significant was going to happen, but would not, at this stage, know what. They knew the Jewish authorities were out to get Jesus, but then they had witnessed the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. They would be somewhat confused, but that would quickly turn to fear. But Jesus would not leave them as orphans, He was not going to leave them alone. “I will come to you”. Now this could refer to the resurrection appearances, but more likely refers to the Holy Spirit, given the context of what He has just been saying. We have the presence of Jesus with us (Matt 28:20).

14:19

In talking about the Holy Spirit “seeing” is used in a metaphorical sense, now Jesus uses the word in its physical sense. The world had seen Jesus, they had heard Him teach, seen Him do miracles, seen His actions, but soon they would not see Him. This is contrasted with the disciples who would continue to see Him (now back to using the word metaphorically). Why the difference? The disciples had faith, the world did not.

“Because I live you also will live”. Jesus would die but then be raised from the dead, and because of this we also will live. This has two meanings. It means that we will be raised from the dead to new life at the end of time, but it also means we live now. Given the context the latter meaning is probably more to the fore. Jesus “going away” was not bad news. Now we know this, at least intellectually, but imagine how the disciples felt. Now think how often we feel as though Jesus is far away. This is not what God intended or intends. The promise of the gospel, the promise of the Holy Spirit, is that He will be with us. We need to develop an intimate relationship with the Lord through the Holy Spirit.