There may be many different interpretations of what the gospel means in John 14 related to “that day”. I believe the time that Jesus was discussing was the day, after His ascension, that the Holy Spirit would come into the apostles. That day was Pentecost when they were gathered together and the gift manifested itself in their professing the good news in many tongues with flames of fire.
I believe that day comes for us when we accept the gift of Jesus’ sacrifice and the Holy Spirit is given to us as a seal of the commitment of God that we are His adopted children.
But, that begs the question, if I’m filled by the Holy Spirit, why do I keep sinning? Why do I feel so hollow at times? Why do I fear and worry?
This is an area where not having a background in the Jewish faith puts us at a disadvantage. Pentecost was a holy day long before the receiving of the Holy Spirit by the Apostles on that day. It is called Shavu’ot. 49 days, 7 weeks of 7 days are counted leading up to the day of Shavu’ot from the second day of Passover. The 50th day is the day of celebration. The celebration is also called the Festival of Weeks because of the counting of the weeks leading to it. It jointly celebrates the First Fruits of the Harvest and it also celebrates the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai.
One point I thought was interesting, quoting from the website, jewfaq.org, “It is noteworthy that the holiday is called the time of the giving of the Torah, rather than the time of the receiving of the Torah. The sages point out that we are constantly in the process of receiving the Torah, that we receive it every day, but it was first given at this time, thus it is the giving, not the receiving, that makes this holiday significant.”
Isn’t it amazing that God used this holiday as a foreshadowing of the day of the giving of the Holy Spirit to believers in Jesus. And, like a book, especially, like the bible, we receive Him, the Holy Spirit, day after day after day, entering into a deeper relationship and being transformed by His presence in our hearts and minds. This illuminates why and how we have been given the gift of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit on the day we accept Jesus as our savior, yet we receive Him more and more each day.
My Answers:
9.
The day of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. For those in the room, it was Pentecost. For us, it is the day we accept Jesus as our savior and we are born again
10.
to have his commands and keep them is to love Jesus. Those who love Jesus are loved by the Father and loved in return by Jesus and Jesus will reveal himself to them/us/those he loves
It has helped me see things in a bigger light of a tapestry that was unwoven by sin, but now has been retied and rewoven
11.
teach you all things, remind you of everything Jesus has said – Both, because they go together. I need both teaching and reminding, more in-depth education and the day-to-day drill and practice of what I know. I know the difference between right and wrong (in most cases), but I still choose to falter and sin. I need the reminder, the coach.
The Notes are Good 