Christian Love And Wordly Hatred

I've talked to enough Christians in my life to realize that at some point in their life,

many of them feel a gap between what they think, what they believe, and how they feel.

And they're left wondering why their life looks so different from the Christian life that the Bible speaks of.

Didn't Jesus say, John 7, whoever believes in me, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.

Well, then why does my life just feel like a trickle at times?

And this sense of disconnect could cause discouragement, frustration, even cynicism.

And John 15 teaches us to connect those dots, to bridge that gap, that disconnect.

And the key to all of it, according to this passage, is abiding in the love of Christ.

And so it teaches us this passage that abiding in the love of Christ enables us to bear enduring witness amidst the hatred of the world.

And there's really simple but very profound truths that can transform your life in this passage.

And I'm going to cover those in three parts.

First, talk about the Christian love.

Secondly, about the worldly hatred.

And lastly, about the enduring witness that we're supposed to bear in light of that.

And the first part is going to be the most discernment.

So when I say second point, 30 minutes in, 30 minutes in, don't be discouraged.

I will not be going on for another hour or so.

Okay.

So Jesus starts off saying in verse 1, read with me,

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine dresser.

So catch that.

Jesus doesn't say that I am the vine.

He says I am the true vine.

This is significant because it suggests that there are false vines that people cling to but give no life, as Jesus does.

And in the Old Testament, the vine is frequently a symbol for Israel, the covenant people of God.

So for example, in Isaiah chapter 5, verses 1 to 7, God speaks of how he planted Israel as his vineyard and Judah as his choice vines, yet they bore no fruit.

Isaiah 5:1–7

I mean, they did bear fruit, but they bore wild grapes that were useless for consumption.

And similarly, in Psalm 80, 14 to 16, he prays to God, the psalmist,

Watch over this vine, the root of your right hand has planted, the son you have raised up for yourself.

So this one, this prophecy is really significant because not only does it have a picture of the vine representing Israel,

and it also calls him son, it calls Israel his son who has been rejected.

And then it prophesies about a son of man that God has raised up, that God will raise up for himself,

and that points to Jesus, who calls himself most frequently in the Gospel of John as the son of man.

And so then Jesus is saying, when he says, I am the true vine,

he's the one that fulfills what Israel, God's people, could not fulfill.

He's the vine now, and through abiding in him, being in him,

then we become the people of God through Jesus Christ.

So then if Jesus is the true vine, the Father is the vine dresser.

So he says in verse 2, and the vine dresser does two things.

The first thing he does is, every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away.

So he cuts off the dead branches and throws them away in order to give more room for the living branches,

so that they may thrive.

And note that these dead branches that the Father takes away are described already as in Jesus.

Let me sketch that.

So, and I don't think that means that we could, you know,

tease out a controversial theological point from that minor detail and analogy,

because it's an analogy, right?

So I don't think that means that genuine Christians who had real faith in Jesus are going to be taken away.

I don't think that's what it's saying here,

because John said clearly in chapter 6, verses 37 to 38,

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me,

but raise it up on the last day, right?

So Jesus will not lose any of the people that the Father has entrusted to him.

And the fact that in verse 6 that they're taken away and burned

suggests that they're not the people that God, the Father gave to Jesus.

But now, we shouldn't rationalize it away and let the verse lose its force,

because it still serves as a real warning for us.

It's possible for someone to have all the external signs of being in Christ,

yet not be in Christ, be unregenerate.

There could be baptism, church attendance, moral living.

But if the fruit are just external accretions,

things like fruit that's stapled onto a tree,

not organic internal growth that Jesus is speaking of,

then that's not real fruit.

The fruit will not last,

and the branches will die,

and they will be taken away.

And Scripture in many places speaks of

those who experience some degree of familiarity with Christ

and connection to Christ,

but nevertheless fail to persevere.

And by doing so,

betray their spiritual alienation,

the fact that they were never in Christ.

So that should serve as a real warning for us.

And then now, first,

God the Father, as a vine,

just takes away the branches that do not bear fruit.

And then he does a second thing,

and he deals with those branches that are bearing fruit.

And that's surprising,

because you would think,

well, if the branch is bearing fruit,

just let it be, right?

You leave it alone.

Don't fix it unless it's broken, right?

But Jesus doesn't do that.

He says,

the Father, the vine dresser doesn't do that.

Because if it's,

it says,

and every branch that does bear fruit,

he prunes,

that it may bear more fruit.

So the vine dressers prune their plants,

meaning they cut off branches and buds

that are diseased or structurally unsound,

so that the plant thrives,

it grows even more

and bears even more fruit.

And God the Father does this.

He prunes every single branch that bears fruit.

Every branch that's bearing fruit,

he prunes it.

It may bear more fruit.

And notice that there's no timetable here.

It doesn't say the pruning will sometime be done,

and he will not be pruning you anymore.

It doesn't say that he will be so abundant

in your fruit bearing

that you're not going to have to,

need to bear more fruit anymore.

The growth is constant,

and the pruning is to the end of our life.

He prunes always so that we could bear more fruit.

As J.C. Ryle writes in one of his books,

the Christian life is not like animal life,

which grows up to a certain point and stops,

whether it is like plant life,

which grows and keeps growing

in strength and vigor all its days.

That means we can't ever be complacent

or content with our level of growth or fruitfulness.

We have to be like Paul who says in Philippians 3,

not that I've already been made perfect,

but he presses on toward the goal to win the prize

for which God has called him heavenward in Christ Jesus.

That's always, we're always pressing on,

always growing, always abiding more deeply

so that we can bear more fruit.

So if you are then not making daily strides

to abide in Christ and bear more fruit,

then you are complacent.

And if you think that you've already arrived

and you don't need to grow anymore or bear more fruit,

then you're conceited.

And neither is an option for the Christian.

And of course, pruning involves cutting away,

and it's painful.

No matter how sinful or noxious or extraneous

the part that God trims from our lives,

it's painful.

And there's a wordplay here in this passage

between the word takes away and prunes in verse 2.

The words have the same root.

And so the purpose is fundamentally different.

The action's similar.

It involves cutting and taking away.

And recognizing this truth

will provide no small comfort for us

when we're experiencing the pain of pruning.

It's because God is jealous for our love.

He will not stand any competing affections in our lives,

the idolatries of our hearts.

So he will prune, trim, cut away,

anything that prevents, hampers our growth.

A divestment must precede his investment.

A sort of death must take place

before there can be new life.

Just as the Heavenly Father disciplines

his legitimate children,

the Heavenly fine dresser trims.

He prunes the branches that bear fruit

so that they bear more fruit.

So maybe some of you are in that stage

where you could recall

some painful removal of something in your life.

Well then that should help you realize

that it's not a sign of God's absence

that you're experiencing that

or his lack of care.

But it's his painstaking care for you.

That's why you are being pruned

and you are being trimmed.

And what is the fruitfulness

that Jesus speaks of?

What are the fruits?

So Jesus said in John 4, 36,

Already the one who reaps

is receiving wages

and gathering fruit for eternal life

so that sower and reaper

may rejoice together.

And in John 12, 24,

he said,

Jesus said,

Truly, truly, I say to you,

unless a grain of wheat

falls into the earth and dies,

it remains alone.

But if it dies,

it bears much fruit.

So the fruit,

in both of those contexts,

the other two occasions

where the word is used

in the Gospel of John

refer to the fruit of witness.

Demonstrating and proclaiming

the good news of Jesus.

That's the fruit

that Jesus is speaking of.

And the harvest of disciples,

new disciples that come after that.

So it's not referring just to the harvest,

but also to that whole witness.

And that makes sense

of this immediate context as well

because Jesus had said

in chapter 14,

we talked about this last week

or a couple weeks ago,

that whoever believes in me

will also do the works that I do

and greater works than these

will he do.

And these greater works,

we learn that,

are the works of witness,

witnessing to Jesus Christ.

And now,

after this passage about the vine,

Jesus will once again return

to the theme of witnessing

with the help of the Holy Spirit.

So that's what he has in the view here,

the fruit bearing,

bearing witness to Jesus.

And he continues

to talk about this in verse 3.

Already,

you are clean

because of the word

that I have spoken to you.

Lest we think that

this focus on fruit bearing

means that we're not going to be accepted

by Jesus

or we're not cleansed by him

unless we bear fruit,

he tells us,

you're already clean

because of the word

that I have spoken to you.

And the word clean

is spelled almost exactly

the same way

as the word prunes.

Again,

there's a word play there

in verse 2.

It sounds similar.

And so parallel,

it reinforces the connection

between the two.

It's those who are already clean

that God prunes.

He doesn't prune you

to make you clean.

You're already clean in Jesus.

So that recalls

what Jesus told his disciples.

Those who are already clean

do not need to,

you know,

take a bath.

They only need to wash their feet.

You guys remember that?

So Jesus' word

is the message

he proclaims and embodies.

And it's by believing

that word

that we are cleansed.

And it's those who are clean

that God prunes

for even greater

faithfulness.

So fruitfulness,

then,

is the evidence

of our cleansing.

It's not the basis

for our cleansing.

Then fruit bearing

is clearly important,

right,

because it's the evidence

of our prior cleansing.

But let me point out

the fact that

nowhere in this passage

does Jesus tell us

to bear fruit.

There's no command here

that says bear fruit.

Read what Jesus says

in verse 4 to 5.

Verse 4 to 5.

Abide in me

and I in you.

As the branch

cannot bear fruit

by itself

unless it abides

in the vine,

neither can you

unless you abide

in me.

I am the vine,

you are the branches.

Whoever abides in me

and I in him,

he it is

that bears much fruit.

For apart from me

you can do nothing.

See,

fruit bearing

is descriptive.

It's not prescriptive.

It's the abiding

that is commanded,

not fruit bearing.

He doesn't tell us

to bear a lot of fruit.

He tells us simply

to abide in him

because abiding in Christ

is the cause

and fruit bearing

is simply the byproduct

of that abiding.

That means we can't

as Christians

manufacture fruit.

The fruits are rather

an organic byproduct

of our abiding in Jesus.

So then that means

we shouldn't be obsessed

with judging our fruits,

examining ourselves

to see whether we're

doing what Christ

calls us to do.

Rather,

we assess our faithfulness.

Are we abiding in Jesus?

Are we faithful to him?

Are we clinging to Jesus?

Because apart from him

we can do nothing.

In the Old Testament,

the word abide

is used consistently

to refer to God

and his word.

And that characteristically

contrasts the eternal God

who abides,

remains,

is unchanging

and the world

that is temporal

and transitory

that's changing.

And so Jesus

points to the fact

that he remains,

the same word,

abides forever

in John 8, 35, 36

as a proof

of his divine sonship.

And last chapter

in chapter 14,

the word dwell

was used.

It's the same word

as the word abide

to refer to

the triune God's dwelling

in us,

the Father,

Son,

and the Holy Spirit.

And in that same way

Jesus calls us

abide in me

and I in you.

It's pointing to

a permanence,

kind of an inviolable

union.

But how exactly

do we do that?

How do we abide?

I think there's some clues

in the Gospel of John.

In chapter 6,

54 to 56,

Jesus said,

whoever feeds

on my flesh

and drinks

my blood

abides in me

and has eternal life

and I will raise him up

on the last day.

And then earlier

in that same chapter

Jesus explained

that feeding

on his flesh

and drinking his blood

involves looking

on the Son

and believing in him.

So then,

to abide in Christ

is to believe

in the person

and work of Jesus Christ.

So that's one way

we abide in Christ.

We cling to him

that the means,

the faith is the means

by which

take hold of him

and cling to him

and abide in him.

And that's what

Paul prays for

for the Ephesians church

in chapter 3

that according

to the riches

of his glory

he may grant you

to be strengthened

with power

through his spirit

in your inner being

so that Christ

may dwell

in your hearts

through faith

that you being rooted

and grounded in love

may have strength

to comprehend

with all the saints

what is the breadth

and length

and height

and depth

and to know

the love of Christ

that surpasses knowledge

that you may be filled

with all the fullness

of God.

And I don't know

if you ever wondered

Paul's writing

to believers

in that context

so by definition

they already have

God dwelling in them

so why does he pray

for Christ

to dwell in their hearts?

It's because

even though

through our initial faith

and being born again

yes, God,

Christ does dwell

in our hearts

once and for all

but our subjective

experience

of that objective reality

is not perfect.

We grow.

I think of

a couple

that gets married

right

and they

once they're married

they say the vows

they're married

right

I mean that's

they don't have to do anything

they don't have to live

another day together

they're married

at that moment

when they say the vows

and perform the ceremony

they're married

they're now a union

that's an objective reality

but that's not to say

that 60 years later

of faithful marriage

when that couple

is now able to

finish each other's sentences

anticipate each other's needs

and to care for one another

in ways that no one else

in the world can

we could say

their union has grown

the communion

which is the experience

of the objective union

has grown

right

so that's what Paul

prays for

right

abide

so that Christ may dwell

in your heart

so then what does that

look like

let me give you some examples

abiding in Christ

means believing

that we are in Christ

and that Christ is in us

right

so then when you feel

discouraged

and defeated by sin

and Satan accuses you

and tells you

that you are a failure

and a disappointment

and he lies to you

that God has abandoned you

you are not

worthy to approach him

then you remember

that you are in Christ

for in Christ Jesus

you are all sons of God

and through faith

for as many of you

as you were baptized

into Christ

you put on Christ

we have the righteousness

the impenetrable armor

of Christ

covering us

we have put him on

we are in Christ

Christ is our surrogate

in that court

of divine justice

he is our advocate

our defense attorney

and he has never

lost the case

so then

we believe

that we are in Christ

and we don't let

Satan hold us down

in guilt and shame

as if he had any claim

on us

he has no claim

on us

just as he has no claim

on Jesus

as he said

in chapter 14

30

and similarly

that when you are

daunted

and by circumstances

present circumstances

maybe and future

prospects

and you feel inadequate

and powerless

to fulfill

God's call

on your life

then you remember

the words of Galatians

2 20

you remember

that Christ

is in you

I have been crucified

with Christ

it is no longer

I who live

but Christ

who lives in me

Christ is in you

the almighty God

the son of God

the Lord of creation

is in you

and so we can say

along with Paul

we can do all things

through Christ

who strengthens us

and so that's

a picture of

abiding in him

through believing

and this requires

daily renewal

because every day

we wake up

in the morning

the default state

that we wake up with

is hey

I need to go out there

and prove myself

I need to go out there

and make a name

for myself

I need to go out there

and win people's

affections

do you really love me

do you really think

I'm great

that's the default

pattern

the current

of this world

that's what we

wake up to

but we cling

instead to Christ

and his

words over us

so that we can be

secure in who

he says he is

that we are in him

that Christ is in us

and that we are

in Christ

so then believing

in Christ

that's one way

we're supposed to

abide in him

but that's not

the only way

that Jesus mentions

mentions in verses

9 to 11

as the father

has loved me

so have I loved you

abide in my 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

so another

indispensable way

in which we abide

in Christ

is through obedience

so faith

and obedience

this is what

John Calvin wrote

of in his

Institutes of

Christian Religion

it says

all right knowledge

of God

is born of

obedience

it's in obeying

God's will

that we abide

in his love

because in obedience

the obedience

itself shapes

our inclinations

it affects

our hearts

and increases

our faith

and just as

disobedience

every step

of disobedience

desensitizes

our conscience

and hardens

our hearts

every obedience

softens our hearts

and sharpens

our conscience

when we obey

we sense

God's pleasure

when we obey

we discern

the goodness

and wisdom

of God

in his commandments

when we obey

we become

more like him

and draw closer

to him

through that process

and what exactly

are the commandments

that Jesus

wants us to keep

he sums it all up

in verses 12

to 13

this is my

commandment

that you love

one another

as I have loved

you

greater love

has no one

than this

that someone

lay down

his life

for his

friends

we abide

in the love

of Christ

particularly

by obeying

this new

commandment

that sums

it up

to love

one another

that's why

John writes

in his first

epistle

chapter 4

if we love

one another

God abides

in us

and his love

is perfected

in us

you can't

have a relationship

with the king

without being a part

and having a relationship

with his kingdom

you can't claim

to have a relationship

with Christ

who is the head

of the church

and ignore

the body

of Christ

which is the church

you can't have

a relationship

with Christ

who is the bridegroom

and ignore

his bride

the church

the clearest

proof

of your love

for God

is not how you

subjectively feel

in your heart

it's not how great

your devotion

was that morning

the true test

of your devotion

to God

how you love him

is how you love

the people around you

the church

so let me ask you

are you concerned

for the welfare

of the people

sitting around you

do you mourn

their sin

are you burdened

by their sin

you pray for them

do their concerns

drive you

to your knees

do you care

about them enough

to want to see them

to meet with them

regularly

this is my commandment

that you love

one another

as I have loved you

and the standard

for this love

that God calls us to

is not our love

but it's Christ's love

his sacrificial love

laying down

his own life

he has the cross

in view

are we willing

to love each other

sacrificially

in that way

and I don't want

you to assume

just because

John

has such an emphasis

on this

for love for one another

I don't want you

to assume from this

that then we're only

supposed to love

fellow Christians

we're not supposed

to love our neighbors

because Jesus calls us

to love our neighbors

and he calls us

even to love

our enemies

he talks about it

in Matthew 5

if you love

only those who love you

what reward

will you get

are not even

the tax collectors

doing that

he says

if you greet

only your brothers

then what are you

doing more than others

do not even

the pagans

do that

he says

but

our love for one another

comes into special

focus here

because that means

by which abide

in Christ

but even in that

Jesus reveals

his concern

for the lost

because what was

the purpose

of this abiding

is so that we

may be fruitful

and what was the fruit

it's the fruit

of witness

so that people

may see

so that our abiding

can produce the works

that authenticate

the word

that we proclaim

the gospel

of Jesus Christ

so then

our love for God

flows

into our love

for one another

and our love

for one another

flows

into our love

for neighbors

so to summarize

then there are two ways

to abide

in the love of Christ

first is faith

and second

obedience

as Dietrich Bonhoeffer

writes about this

in his book

Cost of Discipleship

only those who

obey can believe

and only those

who believe

can obey

right

if we emphasize

only the

faith

then we'll end up

with cheap grace

and lawlessness

if we emphasize

only the obedience

then we

end up with

works righteousness

salvation by works

and legalism

it's only by holding

those two things

together

that we can abide

in Jesus

and that's

the simple

but profound

truth that

that song

sings about

trust and obey

for there's no other

way to be happy

in Jesus

but to trust

and obey

and for the Christian

this abiding

is not a chore

it's because

it's a joy

Jesus says

in verse 11

these things

I've spoken to you

that my joy

may be in you

and that your joy

may be full

because it's

our relationship

with Jesus

when we go

to God's word

we don't just go

so that we can

check off that

box on our

reading plan

for that day

we go to God's word

because we know

in it we encounter

Jesus

and he speaks

to us

we pray

not just

regurgitating words

that we've

familiarized

ourselves with

over the years

no we are

conversing

with our Lord

and Savior

Jesus Christ

it's that

relationship

that gives

value

that motivates

that enables

our abiding

that's why

it's joyful

for us

it's not a chore

and those

who abide

in Jesus

get to enjoy

the wonderful

privilege

of being called

his friends

verses 14

to 15

you are

my friends

if you do

what I command

you

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

this doesn't

mean that we

become

friends of

Christ

when we

obey his

commandments

it means

that those

who are his

friends

obey his

commandments

it's what

characterizes

those who

are his

friends

and Jesus

says that

he doesn't

call them

servants

but friends

because a

servant does

not know

the master's

will

if you

imagine a

dictator

or a

master

he has

a servant

that does

his bidding

he doesn't

tell the

servant

why he

wants to

do

something

he just

needs to

tell him

what

that's

what a

master

does

he doesn't

divulge

his thoughts

inner thoughts

his plans

his desires

to his

servant

he just

says no

go do

this

but Jesus

doesn't do

that with

us

he says

no I

have called

you

friends

so he

reveals his

will to

us

he shares

his thoughts

and plans

with us

and he

involves us

even though

we're just

creatures

and he's

the creator

he involves

us in

his plans

keeps us

in the

know

longer do

I call

you servants

but I

have called

you

friends

but let's

not take

that a

little too

far

I've seen

that happen

also

and that

doesn't mean

we can go

around calling

Jesus our

homeboy

or whatever

else might

be

right

it's

that's

the meaning

to God

because it's

interesting that

in scripture

God sometimes

calls his

people his

friends like

in this

passage

but the

converse of

that statement

is never

found in

all of

scripture

Abraham is

described as

God's

friend

Moses is

described as

God's

friend

Jesus calls

Lazarus

his friend

but none

of them

ever call

God

their friend

it's almost

as scripture

is reluctant

to bring

God down

to our

level as

equals

it speaks

of God's

condescension

but never

presumes on

this gracious

overture of

God

so then

yes Christ

graciously

calls us

his friends

but be sure

to note that

this is

as a

king

who

condescends

to his

subjects

but that's

what makes

this gesture

even more

amazing

right

that he

offers his

friendship

to us

even though

we are

not his

equal

this is an

amazing

revelation

and whenever

in John

Jesus makes

an amazing

promise

revelation

like this

he

he

deflates

his

disciples

balloons

to make

sure

they

don't

get

too

big

headed

and so

that's

what

happens

in this

next

verse

verse 16

you

did not

choose

me

but I

chose

you

and

appointed

you

that

you

should

go

and

bear

fruit

that

your

fruit

should

abide

so

that

whatever

you

ask

the

father

in my

name

he

may

give

it

to

you

note the stark

contrast between

this statement

right and all the

conditional statements

in verses 6

to 7

right

if

anyone does not abide

in me

he's thrown away

like a branch

and withers

if

you abide

in me

and my

words abide

and you

ask

whatever

you

wish

and it

will

be

done

for

you

so

which

is

true

then

Jesus

does

our

fruit

bearing

depend

on

your

choice

and

appointment

or

our

abiding

the

answer

is

yes

to

both

right

and

maybe

one way

to

explain

that

or

frame

that

maybe

is

by

thinking

of

approximate

cost

or

an

immediate

cost

and

an

ultimate

cost

right

we got

some

Cornell

graduates

here

the

ninth

president

of

Cornell

University

he's a

geologist

Frank

Rhodes

used

this

amazing

analogy

to

explain

different

types

of

causes

he

asks

the

question

why

is

the

kettle

boiling

right

there's

two ways

to

explain

that

right

one

way

to

explain

that

is

simply

well

there's

energy

being

supplied

to

that

kettle

which

is

bringing

the

water

to

the

boiling

point

that's

why

the

kettle

is

boiling

and

that's

a

very

true

and

correct

explanation

but

there's

a

second

explanation

the

kettle

is

boiling

because

someone

put it

on

to

make

a

cup

of

tea

and

that's

a

very

valid

and

right

explanation

of that

situation

as well

right

and

they're

related

and

in fact

we need

them

both

in order

to make

sense of

what's

happening

there

they're

complementary

they're

not

mutually

exclusive

the

immediate

cause

the

fire

the

boiling

the

science

behind

that

and

the

ultimate

cause

the

man

behind

it

who's

willing

to

boil

that

tea

for

himself

and

so

we

could

think

of

that

this

way

here

yes

our

faith

and

our

obedience

our

abiding

and our

clinging

to

Christ

that's

the

immediate

cause

the

proximate

cause

that's

why

we

bear

fruit

but

behind

all

of

that

and

transcending

all

of

that

to

bear

fruit

they're

both

true

that's

why

he

calls

us

to

abide

but

that

doesn't

puff

us

up

or

make

us

arrogant

because

we're

doing

it

so

well

because

we

know

that

it's

God

who

chose

us

first

and

appointed

us

for

that

and

this

is

particularly

important

and

now

I'm

going

to

my

second

point

of

worldly

hatred

because

of

the

context

in which

we're

to

live

out

this

commandment

verses

18

to

21

please

follow

along

with

me

as

I

read

if

the

world

hates

you

know

that

it

has

hated

me

before

it

hated

you

if

you

were

of

the

world

the

world

would

love

you

as

its

own

but

because

you

are

not

of

the

world

but

I

chose

you

out

of

the

world

therefore

the

world

hates

you

remember

the

word

that

I

said

to

you

servant

is

not

greater

than

his

master

if

they

persecuted

me

they

will

persecute

you

also

if

they

kept

my

word

they

will

also

keep

yours

but

all

these

things

they

will

do

to

you

on

account

of

my

name

because

they

do

not

know

him

who

sent

me

Jesus

taught us

in

John 7

that

ultimately

the

world

hates

Jesus

because

Jesus

testifies

to the

world

that

its

works

are

evil

Jesus

exposes

the

darkness

of

the

world

because

he's

the

light

of

the

world

and

that's

why

and

because

the

world

hated

him

and

they

sent

him

to

the

cross

he

says

you

are

no

greater

than

me

I'm

your

master

if

they

treated

the

master

in

this

way

certainly

the

servants

will

be

treated

in

that

way

and

if

you're

a

skeptic

and

you

don't

believe

in

Jesus

yet

you

don't

belong

to

him

and

you're

part

of

this

world

and

at

this

point

you

might

be

like

oh

whoa

that

sounds

a

little

bit

overblown

what

do

you

mean

hatred

persecution

I

mean

that's

not

what

at

all

I'm

thinking

but

let me

tell

you

that

the

world

hatred

here

is

not

so

much

referring

to

a

vehement

emotion

but

rather

it's

referring

to

that

fundamental

opposition

that

the

world

is

diametrically

opposed

to

Jesus

and

his

cause

and

Jesus

teaches

in

Matthew

12

that

whoever

is

not

with

him

is

against

him