John chapter 13 tells the story of the last supper, when Jesus sat down with the disciples to prepare them for what was to come: His betrayal; His crucifixion; His glorification. Although this shouldn’t have been a surprise—He’d told them before—they’d never truly understood or accepted His fate or purpose here.

They expected their Messiah to come in power and free them from Roman bondage, but this compassionate, homeless carpenter continued to astonish. I imagine the disciples felt lost and scared as Jesus—their leader, their savior, their everything—readied them for His departure.

He told them important things still relevant today. He would send the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, to dwell within them:

And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever;
Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
~John 14:16-18

The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is the Spirit of truth, life, and grace—the very Spirit of God—that lives within us.

Jesus also instructed them to love each other selflessly, as He first loved them:

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
~John 13:34-35

He not only told them to love one another, but that this love would serve as a visible way to identify disciples of Christ.

Please join me today at (in)courage to read the rest of the post!