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The sermon teaches that Jesus reveals the Father and Himself in a special spiritual way to His people, not merely through outward or universal manifestation. This communion is presented as a gracious foretaste of heaven and is especially experienced amid faithful duty, trial, and meditation on Christ’s sufferings and saving work. Genuine communion with Christ produces humility, happiness, and holiness rather than pride or ungodliness. Spurgeon strongly emphasizes sovereign grace and calls hearers to seek greater spiritual fellowship with Christ, warning unbelievers to come to Calvary for mercy before facing Christ’s judgment.
Theological center: Christ graciously reveals Himself to His people through sovereign grace, producing communion, holiness, and blessed assurance, while the unbelieving world remains under judgment.
Applications: Seek deeper manifestations of Christ · Pursue humility and holiness · Submit to divine sovereignty · See Christ as Savior before judgment
Primary texts: John 14:22 · John 14:8-10 · John 14:22
“Judas said unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that you wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?” John 14:22 WHAT a blessed Master Jesus Christ was! How familiar did He allow His disciples to make themselves with Him! Though He was the Lord of life and glory, the great and mighty one, as well as the man of Nazareth, yet see how He talks with His poor disciples, the fishermen, just as if He had been one of the same class and order with themselves! He was none of your dignitaries who pride themselves on that dignity—none of those ecclesiastics who love to carry much of formality about them, and to walk above other men, as if they were not indeed their fellows. But He talks to His disciples just as a father would to his children—even more kindly than a master might to his pupils. He lets them put the simplest questions to Him, and instead of rebuking them for their familiarity, He condescends to answer everything they please to ask Him. Philip uttered a sentence which one would think no sensible man, who had been so long a time with Jesus, ever could have troubled Him with. He said, “Show us the Father and it sufficeth us.” A stupid idea! As if Jesus Christ could show the Father, that is to say, could show God to Philip! And Jesus kindly answered, “Hast thou been so long time with me, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” And now comes Judas (not Iscariot) and he also puts a very simple and easy question—one he needed not to have asked. But Jesus Christ, instead of rebuking him, simply passes on to another subject and forbears most wisely to answer the inquiry, because He would teach him more by silence than He could do by an explanation. We must also notice here how very particular the Holy Ghost is that a good man should not be confounded with a bad one. He says, “Judas, not Iscariot.” There were two of the name of Judas. The one who betrayed our Lord and the other who wrote the epistle of Jude, who should properly have been called Judas. Some of us, in reading the name, Judas, might have said, “Ah! it was that traitor Judas Iscariot that asked the question.” But the Holy Spirit would not allow this mistake to be made. This again should teach us that it is not an idle wish for us to desire that our name should be handed down to posterity. We ought all to wish to have an unblemished character. We ought to desire to have that promise fulfilled, “The memory of the just is blessed.” I would not wish my name to be mistaken for tha…