"Worship
in the Fourth Gospel: A Cultural Interpretation of John 14-17," Biblical
Theology Bulletin 36 (2006) 107-17
Worship
in the Fourth Gospel:
A Cultural Interpretation of John 14-17
Jerome H. Neyrey
University of Notre Dame
Chapter 6
Introduction, State of the Question, and Hypothesis
As
the title indicates, this chapter employs the model of worship developed previously
as the lens through which we proposed to read and interpret worship in the
Fourth Gospel, in particular John 14-17. To be sure, discussions of worship
in the Fourth Gospel are rare,
[i]
and in most commentaries worship does not even
rate a place in the topical index. Yet the author of the gospel formally attends
to matters of worship when he himself raises certain topics: (1) where
to worship? (2) how to worship? (3) of what does worship consist?
(4) when to worship? and (5)
who participates?
Where?
At Jesus’ inaugural visit to
How? True worshipers will perform actions that do
not consist of sacrifice or require temple clergy, tithes and revenues. Neither
will they worship in fixed sacred space, nor in the manner of the
When?
Although Jesus attended certain feast days in
Who?.
Worship, of course, is directed to God. And God, who is spirit, seeks worshipers
who worship in spirit and truth. Clearly, then, both God and a worshiping
group are envisioned. But other figures function in this worship, Jesus, in
whose name the disciples petition God and the Paraclete, who mediates Jesus’
words to the group. But those who refused to or are afraid to acknowledge
Jesus as sent from God are not true worshipers (17:3). But is there any formal
pattern to relationship of those who worship?
What,
then, do we know? Oddly, we know where
not to worship, how not to worship, and perhaps when
not to worship. But the gospel does not
tell us of what worship consists, nor does it define roles and status of members
of the worshiping group. Much more needs to be learned about worship so as
to interpret the Fourth Gospel. 1. Our task begins with “worship” itself.
While descriptive catalogues of early Christian “worship” are helpful, we
search for a formal definition of it and a social science model which will
help us interpret its forms. From this perspective, we will interpret four
forms of worship: prayer, prophecy, homily, judgment. 2. Since the author
puts so much emphasis on where the group worships, we need a model
which compares and contrasts fixed and fluid sacred spaces. This will aid
us in interpreting Jesus’ remarks about “my Father’s house” and
“many rooms” (
[1]
¡, 14:2). And in this light we will examine other aspects of where
worship occurs: “being in” and “dwelling in.” 3. Finally, in attempting to
understand the structural relationships between God, Jesus, Spirit and the
group in worship, we turn to the model of patron-broker-client. The roles
of God and group are clear, but modern scholarship often misunderstands the
structural place of Jesus and the Paraclete in Johannine worship.
Worship in the Early Church.
The
Shape of Early Christian Worship. As
we saw earlier, scholarly surveys
[iv]
of early Christian worship agree that: (1) the
early church borrowed heavily from synagogue worship both in form and contents,
especially prayer and the study of the Scripture; (2) its activities were
not tied to particular places, but could be practiced virtually anywhere;.
and (3) the central forms of worship were verbal.
[v]
Because of its comprehensiveness,
David Aune’s description is worth repeating:
Christian worship had a primarily
verbal character, and in this respect it was similar to synagogue Judaism.
. .Yet Christians did have religious gatherings where various types of rituals
were practiced. Christians gathered to eat together, to baptize new members,
to read Scripture, to listen to God speaking through other Christians, to
experience healing, to pray and sing hymns and thanksgivings to God. These
activities were not tied to particular places, but could be practiced virtually
anywhere.
[vi]
Aune, following Delling, Cullmann and Martin, identify
a variety activities which fall under the genus “worship”: (1) prayers, creeds
and confessions, doxologies, hymns, songs and psalms, (2) prophecy (oracles
of judgment, salvation, and the like), (3) sermons and homilies and (4) public
reading of scripture. To this Cullmann added another, remembering specifically
the words and deeds of Jesus. The archetype of worship in the New Testament was and is the
remarks found in Acts 2:42 (“they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching
and fellowship, to the breaking of the bread, and the prayers”), the letters
of Paul (i.e., 1 Cor 11:20ff; 14:1-36), Pliny’s letter to Trajan (Ep
10.96), and reconstructions of early synagogue worship.
[vii]
Aune’s first element of worship
is “prayer,” which seems more fixated on forms of prayer and not consideration
of classification of prayer according to the eight or so purposes of speech
to God. More attention, we think, should be given to variety of reasons for
which one prays, the effect one wishes to have on God and the relationship
that should be repaired. This description,
while it identifies an entrance ritual, baptism, does not include rituals
of transformation or exit rituals. Ceremonial eating together is noted, but
is there place for other ceremonies? The model of worship presented earlier indeed
fills out the enumeration of the forms of worship, even as it provides a
definition of prayer and worship and appropriate cultural lenses for viewing
their parts. Thus the complete model of worship we are employing provides
us the the most complete index of typical verbal forms of worship as we begin
our reading of John 14-17. Thus, we begin knowing several important things:
1) worship is “primarily verbal”; 2) members “pray and sing hymns and
thanksgivings”; 3) they not only speak to God in prayer, but also listen
to God through the Scriptures,
the words of Jesus, or Spirit-inspired utterances; and 4) these activities
are not tied to particular places.
Worship in John 14-17
Most
readers are comfortable with understanding
John 14-17 in terms of it form critical classification as a Farewell
Address.
[viii]
The various prayers of Jesus and especially
the so-called “high priestly” prayer in John 17 suggest that “worship” is
not a misleading category for interpreting John 14-17. We propose to examine these chapters in terms
of the two directions of worship described above: (1) speaking to God ( i.e., prayers) and (2)
listening to God (i.e., prophecy, homily and oracles of salvation and judgment).
Types
of Prayer in John 14-17.
[ix]
Malina, as we have learned,
provides readers with a sophisticated typology of prayers. All prayer is a
communication of mortals to God, but prayer differs from prayer in terms of
the effect it seeks to have with God, ranging from petition to praise: (1)
petitionary, (2) regulatory, (3) interactional, (4) self-focused, (5) heuristic,
(6) imaginative, (7) acknowledgment and (8) appreciation.
Petitionary
Prayer in John 14-16. No one can
read John 14-17 without noting Jesus’
repetitive instructions to “ask” the Father for some benefit, which in the
typology we are using means petitionary prayer. The New Testament employs
a variety of verbs in the context of prayerful petitioning. In one sense they
all mean “to ask for,” but they differ in the urgency with which the request
is made. Most frequently readers find petitionary request expressed in
8
[1]
(ask with urgency, beg) and "$ &
B0
[1]
(speak to, make requests). John’s petition, however, are expressed
by different words,
[1]
¥*84 (ask with urgency even to the point of demanding) and
…$4*64 (ask, request), but without any change of meaning. Except for
Martha’s remark that Jesus could petition God for Lazarus (11:22), the other
eleven instances of petitionary prayer all occur in the Farewell Address,
which thus constitute a distinct body of materials on this type of prayer.
14:13-14 “Whatever you ask in my name, I will
do it. . .
if you ask anything in my name. .
.”,
14:15-16 “I will pray the Father and he will send
another Counselor”
15:7 “If you abide in me and my words abide in
your, ask whatever you will. . .”
15:16b “whatever you ask the Father in my
name. . .”
16:23-24 “In that day you will ask nothing of
me. . .if you ask anything of the Father. . .”
16:26 “In that day you will ask in my
name”
In addition to the insistent instructions of Jesus,
we note several things: 1) the object of the petitions is both vastly expansive
(“whatever” and “anything” and specific (“Counselor”); and 2) while the Patron
being petitioned is always God, Jesus maintains his role as broker by indicating
that the petitions will be made “in my name” and he himself will initiate
the process by himself petitioning on their behalf (“I will ask. . .”). Petitionary
prayer, moreover, is only one type of prayer found in John 14-16. When we
turn to John 17, we observe a prayer
composed of many types.
Jesus’
Multi-Purposed Prayer in John 17. Malina’s
taxonomy of prayer provides the means to distinguish different types of prayer
occurring in John 17. In general, we
consider the whole of John 17 as an heuristic prayer: it explores the
world of God and God’s workings within the Son and his disciples, individually
and collectively.
[x]
It is not a search for meaning
so much as a revelation of the state of the relationship of the pray-er and
God. Thus it is heuristic in that it discovers and uncovers interpersonal
perspectives implicit in all the actions culminating in Jesus’ “hour.”Yet
this heuristic prayer is by no means the only kind of prayer in John 17. We
can classify the statements of Jesus to God as petitionary, self-focused and
informative, as the chart below indicates:
[xi]
| Jn 17 |
Prayer Text |
Classification |
| v
2 |
glorify
thy Son that the Son may glorify thee. . . |
petitionary |
| v
3 |
this
is eternal life, that they (ack)know(ledge) You the only true God, and
Jesus Christ whom You have sent |
acknowledgment |
| v
5 |
glorify
me in your own presence with the glory which I had with you before the
world was made |
petitionary |
| v
6 |
I
have manifested Your NAME to the men whom You gave me out of the world |
self-focused |
| vv 6-8 |
Yours
they were, and You gave them to me, and they have kept Your word. Now they know that everything you have given
me is from You; for I have given
them the words which You gave me, and they have received them and know
in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that You sent
me. |
self-focused |
| v 9 |
I
am praying for them; I am not praying for those in the world, but for
those whom You have given me, for they are Yours. |
self-focused + petitionary |
| v
10 |
All
mine are thine; and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. |
self-focused |
| v
11 |
Keep
them in Your NAME, which You have given to me, that they may be one,
even as we are one |
petitionary |
| v
12 |
While
I was with them, I kept them in Your NAME, which you have given me;
I have guarded them and none of them is lost but the son of perdition |
self-focused |
| vv
13-14 |
But
now I am coming to You; and these things I speak in the world, that
they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. V 14 I have given them
Your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the
world, even as I am not of the world |
self-focused |
| v
15 |
I
do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but keep them
from the Evil One. |
petitionary |
| v
16= |
They
are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. |
self-focused |
| v
17 |
Sanctify
them in Your truth |
petitionary |
| vv
18-19 |
As
You sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. For their sake I consecrate myself, that they
also may be consecrated in truth |
self-focused |
| vv
20-22 |
I
do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through
their word that they may all
be one; even as You, Father are in me and I in You, that they may be
in us, so that the world may believe that You have sent me. |
self-focused + petitionary |
| vv
22-23 |
The
glory which you have given me, I have given them, that they may be one,
even as we are one I in them and You in me, that they may be perfectly
one, that the world may know that you have sent me and has loved them
even as you have loved me. |
self-focused |
| v
24 |
Father,
I desire that they also, whom You have given to me, may be with me where
I am, to behold my glory which You have given me in your love for me
before the foundation of the world. |
petitionary |
| v
v25-26 |
O
just Father, the world has not known you; but I have known you; and
these know that you have sent me. I
made known to them Your NAME, and I will make it known that the love
with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them. |
self-focused |
We observe that Jesus petitions God frequently
(vv 2, 5, 11, 15-16, 17, 20-21, 24), the form of which easily discerned: 1)
a verb of “asking” in the imperative
mood, and 2) a request for a specific benefaction from God (glory, unity,
special relationship, etc.). We see, moreover, another type of prayer, which
Malina calls “self-focused” (6-8, 9, 10, 12, 13-14, 16, 18-19, 20, 22-23,
25-26),
[xii]
whose form is also clearly
expressed by: 1) a first-person speech: “I made manifest...” “I kept them
in your name”...“I have given them your word” (vs 2nd person in
petitionary prayer), which 2) celebrates the record of Jesus’ past good deeds
(vs future benefactions in petitionary prayer). In John 17 Jesus tells God
that he has fulfilled his apostleship and done what God sent him to do:
– I have glorified you on earth ( 4)
-- I have manifested your
name (6 & 26)
-- I have given them the
words which you have given me (8 & 14)
-- I have kept them in
your name (12a)
-- I have guarded them
(12b)
-- I have sent them into
the world (18)
-- I have consecrated myself
(19)
-- I have given them the
glory which you have given me (22)
-- I have “known” you
(25).
Unlike petitionary prayer, Jesus declares to God before
his disciples his perfect fulfilment of the mission he was sent to accomplish
[xiii]
: 1) he has glorified
God on earth, 2) manifested to the disciples the divine Name
and kept them in it, 3) given the divine words to them and 4)
extended his work by sending them into the world.
[xiv]
Labeling
John 17 as a “high priestly” is clearly
anachronistic, although the label does convey the sense that Jesus enjoys
the role of mediator or broker, a topic which will be shortly developed.
[xv]
Similarly, the prayer celebrates
his effectiveness in the role of channel of God’s benefaction to the disciples. Benefits came through Jesus
and will continue to come through him. Jesus’ self-focused prayer may also
be seen as a claim to the virtue of piety or justice. Throughout the Greco-Roman
world, justice was thought of as the noble fulfilment of one’s basic duties.
Ps-Aristotle states:
First among the claims of righteousness
are our duties to the gods, then our duties to the spirits, then those to country
and parents, then those to the departed; among these claims is piety (
º&8
[1]
), which is either a part of righteousness or a concomitant of it. Righteousness
is also accompanied by holiness (±&@*() and truth (t:
[1]
) and loyalty ("<&*() and hatred of wickedness"
(Virtues and Vices, V.2-3).
The distinction of the triple focus of justice is found
regularly in the philosophical and rhetorical literature of antiquity,
[xvi]
and also in John 17. Here
Jesus acknowledges that he has fulfilled his duties to God (“I have
glorified you. . .manifested your name. . . given them your words”) and his
duties to “kin”(“I have kept them. . . guarded them, etc.”).
[xvii]
Thus the Just Jesus celebrates
his virtuous completion of the duties he owes to God, who is Father and Patron
and “kin.”
Yet
in 17:3 we find still a third type of prayer, namely, “acknowledgment”: “This
is eternal life, that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom
You have sent.” Instead of a petition, we find here an honorable acknowledgment
of God in traditional words. This prayer consists of two elements: 1) we read
“to know” in the sense of “to acknowledge,” that is, to honor, and
confess the worth, sovereignty and excellence of God.
[xviii]
The first part of 17:3 resembles
the confession known as the Shema, the leading prayer in the synagogue (see
Mark 12:29, 32; Deut 6:4). Thus acknowledgment of the “only true God” is a
appropriate confessional honoring of God. But 17:3 also includes confession
of “Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” So the complete honoring of God consists
of the acknowledgment of both the unique God of Israel and of God’s unique
agent, Jesus.
[xix]
While “confession” and “creed”
are no strangers to New Testament scholarship, rarely do we find them discussed
as “prayer.”
[xx]
John 17:3 is situated in a
continuous address to God which petitions God for the disciples, who as clients
should make the prayer-confession in v. 3 to their heavenly Patron while acknowledging
that Jesus is the true agent sent from heaven.
[xxi]
The disciples’ “knowing” of
Israel’s “only, true God” is not simply knowledge, but acknowledging and honoring
God and the deity’s existential plans. This prayer, moreover, is not possible
in Temple and synagogue (e.g., 9:22; 12:42).
[xxii]
Listening
to God: Prophecy. According to
our model of communication, a sender sends a message via some
channel to a receiver to have an effect. In the case
of prayer, the senders are the Johannine members who send a message via Jesus-as-channel
to God; but in the case of prophecy, the process is reversed as God speaks
to mortals, not listens to them. In prophecy, 1. God, the sender, 2.
sends a verbal message, 3. through the channel of Jesus, the
“Spirit of Truth,” or a disciple-prophet, 4. to the receivers, the
members of the Johannine group, 5. for the purpose of communicating
to them special information. But in the Fourth Gospel, the sender of esoteric
information seems to be Jesus. While in general Jesus remains mediator and
broker of God’s benefaction, in regard to prophecy he functions as the source
or sender. This may be because most prophetic materials concern themselves
with remembering Jesus’ words which are themselves mediated by the Spirit
who will bear witness to Jesus (15:26).
[xxiii]
This may be an idiosyncratic
quirk from a maverick gospel.
We
need, however, a catalogue of the varieties of prophetic speech to alert us
to what types of prophetic oracles are possible and their respective purposes.
At the end of his study of prophecy in early Christianity and the Hellenistic
world, David Aune offers the following list of “basic forms of Christian prophetic
speech”: (1) oracles of assurance; (2) prescriptive oracles; (3) announcements
of salvation; (4) announcements of judgment; (5) legitimation oracles; and
(6) eschatological theophany oracles.”
[xxiv]
“Prophet”
in the Fourth Gospel. The Fourth
Gospel occasionally records people favorable to Jesus acclaiming him as a
prophet (4:19; 6:14; 7:40 (52); 9:17), generally because of his wisdom or powers, that is, a “prophet mighty
in word and deed.” But prophet/prophecy in John 14-17, while it focuses on
the words of Jesus, also makes specific note of predictions of future events.
Among the many remarks about “going away” and “coming back” (14:3, 18-19;
16:16), we find three statements that serve a special purpose which surpasses
the mere communication of esoteric information. Some predictions by Jesus
serve a prophylactic purpose of confirming loyalty in times of conflict. For
example, after repeating the remark “I go away and I will come to you,” Jesus
states the reason for telling this to his disciples: “Now I have told you
before it takes place, so that when it does take place, you may believe” (14:28-29).
Similarly, after Jesus discloses the bleak future awaiting the disciples (16:1-2),
he explains once again the prophylactic purpose of the prediction: “I have
said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that
I told you of them” (16:4).
[xxv]
The Fourth Gospel would have
us read these statements as communication from Jesus in the course of his
career, which, when remembered, ameliorate a future crisis by indicating a
providential knowledge of, if not control of, future, painful events. Thus,
the purpose of this prophetic communication is exhortation to faithfulness,
courage and the like. Oracles of assurance? Salvation?
In
a similar vein, when Jesus tells the disciples that they will be hated (15:18-25),
he added, “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater
than his master’” (15:20). An earlier word in 13:16 reads: “‘A servant is
not greater than his master, nor is he who is sent greater than him who sent
him.’” But this remark occurs in the context of the mandate of Jesus that
the disciples wash one another’s feet: if Jesus (master) did so, then disciples
(servants) must do likewise. While in 15:18-25 the words are the same, the
context has changed. Now “hate” is the fate of both master and servants. Thus
past words can be prophetic of future events, especially trials awaiting the
disciples. And in both cases, they communicate assurance and encouragement.
Statement,
Misunderstanding, Clarification Prophecy
may also be understood as the communication of esoteric information needed
to understand Jesus’ cryptic words. Throughout the Fourth Gospel the author
regularly casts Jesus’ discourse with friend and foe in terms of a pattern
known as “statement, misunderstanding, and clarification.”
[xxvi]
Jesus makes a statement (“You
know the way where I am going,” 14:4), which is misunderstood (“Lord, we do
not know where you are going, how can we know the way,” 14:5), which prompts
Jesus to offer a clarification (“I am the way, the truth, and the life,” 14:6).
| Statement |
Misunderstanding |
Clarification |
| 14:1-4 |
14:5 |
14:6 |
| 14:7 |
14:8 |
14:9-11 |
| 14:18-21 |
14:22 |
14:23-24 |
| 16:16 |
16:17-18 |
16:19-24 |
| 16:25-27 |
16:29-30 |
16:31-33 |
Although instances of this pattern occur regularly
throughout the gospel, we observe a concentration of it in chs 14 and 16,
which is Jesus’ final address to his inner circle of disciples. Previously
this pattern served as catechetical enlightenment of enlighten-able disciples,
such as the Samaritan Woman, but also as a wall shutting out un-enlighten-able
disciples, such as Nicodemus and the Jerusalem crowds. Here, insiders and
core disciples require special information about the cryptic world of Jesus,
which is provided for them eventually, we suggest, by prophets speaking in
the name of Jesus. Although we will take up the topic of the “Spirit
of truth” enlightening or reminding the disciples, Spirit is presumed in this
discussion as a broker of Jesus. Thus, this pattern functions to make and
maintain boundaries; it informs, but by doing so marks and confirms certain
persons as elite insiders.
The
quest for esoteric information may be observed also in the pattern of questions
and answers found in John 14-16. In addition to the question of Thomas noted
above (14:5), Judas, not the Iscariot, asked
“How is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” (14:22).
In several places Jesus himself asks their question to facilitate his next
remarks. Although Jesus’ question to Philip has much of the reproach in it
(14:9), it issues in a remarkable revelation of Jesus’ union with God (14:10-11),
surely a singular favor. Similarly, Jesus questions the failure of the disciples
to ask about a cryptic remark (16:5). At the very least, this pattern indicates
that Jesus’ speech is filled with esoteric information and double-meaning
words, which the receivers do not fully perceive at first and which require
explanation. Here at least, Jesus can
lead the disciples into fuller insight by his subsequent clarifying statements.
But in terms of group worship, a prophet during the group worship would presumably
access the questions and provide an enlightened answer.
[xxvii]
As regards function, the providing
of special, esoteric knowledge both designates and confirms elite membership.
Furthermore,
this gospel records Jesus declaring that “I have said this to you in figures;
the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures” (16:25).
Does this cover only the metaphor of hard times resembling childbirth (16:20-24)
or also the cryptic statements about “going away” and “coming back”? Minimally,
a communication is given to the disciples which is admittedly “in figures,”
liable to “misunderstanding,” or containing double meanings. But the veil
will be lifted when in the future a prophet remembers, studies, examines and
interprets Jesus’ words.
Homily. Scholars who write on early Christian sermons
or homilies draw on two sources: 1) the ancient synagogue service and (2)
summary remarks like Acts 2:42 (“devoted to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship,
breaking of the bread, and prayers”).
[xxviii]
In the last chapter we examined
types of Israelite “homilies,” identifying two types: the proem and the yelammedenu.
In the proem, a scripture is read, which is actually two different
citations which at first glance have nothing in common. The teacher’s task
is to tease from each esoteric meanings so that at the conclusion, the two
citations are shown to be complementary and mutually illuminating.
[xxix]
In the yelammedenu
type, which means “Let our teacher instruct us,” again an authorized person
reads from the Scriptures and explains them.
[xxx]
From the Hellenistic side, speeches structured
in Greco-Roman rhetoric are discussed. In both Israelite and Greco-Roman contexts,
we know of some sort of sermon or homily, although its precise form eludes
us.
[xxxi]
Although
neither the Jewish nor the Greco-Roman types of homily apply to materials
in John 15-16, we find, nevertheless, two side-by-side exhortations. In 15:1-8
and 9-17 the audience is exhorted in the type of rhetoric called deliberative to choose and keep on choosing loyalty to Jesus
and his Father. In terms of our communication model, “teaching” or “exhortation”
or “instruction” is diagramed as follows: 1. a sender (God), 2. sends
a message (teaching, exhortation), 3. via some channel (Jesus _ Spirit _ teacher),
4. to receivers (Johannine group), 5. to have some effect on
them (to confirm and to urge loyalty). We focus, then, on 15:1-8 and 9-17
because these exhortations most closely accord with the elements of deliberative
rhetoric.
In
regard to 15:1-8, the topic of the exhortation is introduced in the metaphor:
“I am the vine, my father is the vinedresser” (15:1). In this context, the
entire passage exhorts the disciples to choose to “remain,” This exhortation
occurs seven times (vv 4, 4b, 4c, 5, 6, 7a, and 7b), sometimes in the imperative mood and sometimes
in a conditional clause, surely indicative of the choice to be made. Seven
occurrences! This exhortation builds on current relationships and urges the
disciples to maintain them in the future, the value of which relationships
provides the very argument from advantage. The relationships are: Jesus =
vine, the disciples = the branches, while the Father = the vinedresser (vv 1-2, 5). The telltale signs
of an argument from advantage suggests that we consider this material an example
of deliberative rhetoric which “appeals for future action on the basis
of future benefits.”
[xxxii]
“Remaining” brings sweet advantage,
just as “not remaining” leads to bitterness. A branch which remains
and is cleansed by the vine dresser “bears much fruit” (v 2), a phrase which
is repeated 3 times (vv 4, 5, 8) to underscore the advantage that comes from
“remaining.” Similarly, branches which “remain” may petition God for “whatever
you will” and expect God’s positive response (v 7) -- advantage indeed! In
contrast, we are told of the sanctions imposed on those who do “not
remain.” They are taken away (v 1), and worse, “cast forth. . .wither. . .thrown
into the fire and burned” (v 6).
We
find clear argumentative patterns here. “Unless the branch remains. . .” is
a necessary condition frequently found the Fourth Gospel: “unless” one is
born of the Spirit or eats the flesh of the Son of Man or is washed by Jesus,
one does not experience the benefit of God. So, too, here the advantage of
“remaining” is also cast in the form of an “unless” argument:
A branch cannot bear fruit unless (…n
‹) it remains in the vine,
neither can you, unless (…n ‹)
you remain in me (15:4)
[xxxiii]
Similarly, in vv 6-7 conditional sentences articulate
the deliberative character of “remaining” and “not remaining.”
Unless (…n ‹) disciples
remain, they are cast forth. . .if (…n ) you remain in me
and my words remain in you, you may
ask for whatever you wish.
The speaker provides reasons for the right choice.
On the positive side, the “cleansing” of the vine (perhaps a euphemism for
testing gold in a furnace) serves the purpose (ª
[1]
) of causing the branches to bear more fruit, clearly an advantage.
And Jesus gives the reason why branches must “remain” in the vine: “for (²*)
without me you can do nothing” (v 5). Because we observe an argument being
made, not merely information being imparted, we consider 15:1-8 a crisp example
of deliberative rhetoric, which places before the disciples the decision of
“remaining,”a deliberation richly rewarded or severely sanctioned. The argument
from advantage is a regular feature of exhortations, homilies and/or sermons.
[xxxiv]
A
second exhortation follows immediately, which both begins and concludes with
the command, “Remain in my love” (v 9) . . .“love one another” (v 17). Evidently
the focus is on “love,” although vv 9-17 are linked with vv 1-8 by means of
four more references to “remain” (vv 9-10, 16). Thus 15:1-8 and 9-17 should
be seen as parallel and linked exhortations, the first one expressing a vertical
series of relationship between vine dresser, vine and branches, and the second
one horizontal relationships between “one another.” As was the case with vv
1-8, the exhortation in vv 9-17 is argued by: (1) imperatively urging: “Love
one another!”; (2) conditional sentences explaining this “love,” such as “if (…n ) you keep my commandments,
you will abide in my love” (v 10); and (3) analogies which clarify the topic: “as (
[1]
Â() the father has loved me, so have I loved you” (v 9). In language
using the argument from advantage, the author first tells the disciples that
“remaining” and “loving” elevate their status from that of
“servants” to “friends” (.< ,(). This echoes the contrasting statuses
of dead versus fruitful branches in
15:1-8, with the comparison now made between “servants” and “friends.” Jesus’
final argument here reminds the disciples of their debt in justice to him,
which he is calling in through this exhortation: “You did not chose me, but
I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your
fruit should remain” (v 16). The verbs indicate the extent of Jesus’ benefaction
which creates the debt of justice: “chose,” “appointed,” “bear fruit” and
“your fruit remain.” To this he now
appends one more benefaction, effective petitionary prayer: “whatever you
ask the Father in my name, he will give it to you” (v 16b), surely a significant
advantage.
Therefore,
this material is exhortatory, and it resumes the most important behaviors
urged in the Fourth Gospel, “remaining” and “loving.” Because of its exhortatory
character, it stands apart from all other parts of the Farewell Address. But
are “homily” or “sermon”the appropriate classification? And do such things
belong in worship? The type of rhetoric in 15:1-17 is deliberative, that is,
it exhorts the hearers to make a choice which will effect their future, and
the argument rests primarily on pointing out the advantage to those choosing
to “remain” and “love.” Such rhetoric is not exclusive to homily or sermon
and may occur in many types of public speaking, especially speeches to the
Roman senate or the Greek assembly. Yet it is most compatible with sermon
and homily (see Heb 3:1-4:13; 6:1-12), which are admittedly parts of Christian
worship.
[xxxv]
Study
of the Words of Jesus. It is indisputable that the disciples in their worship told the story
of Jesus once more and examined his words and parables. This is, moreover,
where the speeches of Acts all end: what God has done to Jesus. But John 14-17 do not contain the splendid narratives
found earlier or elsewhere; on the
contrary, they contain only his words, although the self-focused prayer in
John 17 does summarize his mission. But as has been the case from John 2 onward,
the meaning of his words is by no means clear. For example, “Destroy this
temple. . .” was heard as “this [Herodian] temple.” Only after his resurrection,
“his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture
and the word that Jesus had spoken” (2:21). We have seen above the pattern
of statement-misunderstanding-clarification, which demonstrates that many,
even of the inner circle, failed to understand Jesus’ words correctly, but
required an interpreter either now or in the future. This material has been
studied according to the sociology of secrecy, which study argues that it
was a regular feature of the Fourth Gospel to have Jesus conceal and reveal.
Secrecy, we learn, is the “mandatory or voluntary, but calculated concealment
of information, activities or relationships.
[xxxvi]
Put simply, knowledge is controlled.
Not all people know everything at the same time; being “in the know” serves
as an important marker insider status.
[xxxvii]
Readers of John are already
familiar with certain types of secrecy: riddles, irony, parables, footnotes
and asides. When was the veil lifted? When did the disciples get the correct
understanding of Jesus’ words? How far afield are we to suggest that Jesus’
words were studied by the group at its gathering and given attention comparable
to the Scriptures.
Enter
the Paraclete, the Spirit of Truth. In John 14-16 this figure is described
four time, every time as the broker of special knowledge about Jesus. First
of all, we note that most of the time this Paraclete/Spirit of truth reminds,
glorifies Jesus, takes what is Jesus’ and declares it to them. The Paraclete,
then, attends primarily to the Jesus story and the words of Jesus. We know,
moreover, that this Paraclete spoke through someone in the group, a prophet.
But the Spirit has other functions as well.
| Category |
14:26 |
15:26 |
16:7-10, 12 |
| Title
or Name |
Paraclete Holy
Spirit |
Paraclete Spirit
of Truth |
16:7
Paraclete 16:12
Spirit of Truth |
| Source
& Relationship to Father and Jesus |
whom
the Father will send in my name |
whom
I shall send to you from the Father. . .who proceeds from the Father |
16:7
I will send him to you |
| Functions |
1.
he will teach you all things 2.
bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you |