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Bible Notes - Tabernacle Commentaries
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John 15:10
Comments
We naturally ask, what are his commandments? Is this the same as the moral commandments of God generally, the Ten Commandments, explained in the ancient law? Are Christ’s commandments the same, or do they embrace more than those specific duties? Yes, they do. This does not refer to the Ten Commandments, though these are included, but specifically to the precepts given in this discourse. They are Christ’s rules for the church. Not that we keep only them, but we should revise what they are. Looking back at the previous chapters, we see that these include, the command to wash one another’s feet, by which we understand the lesson to follow Christ’s example of humility (13:14); the command to love one another (13:34); the special rule of faith (14:1); the requirement to serve the Lord (14:12); the necessity of prayer (14:13); and the duty to be absolutely loyal to his word and to submit to it (14:23).
Application
This verse is a torpedo to the teaching that sanctification is a work of grace accomplished entirely by the Lord in our lives, like justification. So many verses teach the opposite. You can only arrive at this by misapplying justification texts to sanctification – a sad error. Of course we need to pray for the help of God, but there is something for us to do. Nowhere does Scripture say that if we imagine Christ on the cross then he will keep the commandments for us. We need to hold to traditional teaching, not be carried away by new things. There is no automatic sanctification, but all involves our effort. This is intensified by the words, ‘even as I have kept my Father’s commandments’.
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