"We will make our home..."

14:22-24

The question in v22 shows that the disciples were still expecting that the revelation of Jesus would be something public. So the idea of a personal revelation and inner experience of God’s love given to believers, through his Holy Spirit, is a concept that they inevitably struggled to grasp. But that’s exactly what Jesus intends for them.

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Once again, as in v21, he tells them that love and obedience is the essential basis for Christian living, and that the result of that will be a profound encounter with the love of God. The personal nature of this could hardly be stated more emphatically, for the Father and the Son will themselves will make their home with them (23). The word “home” is the same Greek word used for “rooms” in 14:2; at the same time as Jesus prepares a home for Christians in heaven, he makes his own home with them on earth.

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This is why the Holy Spirit is given, not just to be with us but within us (14:17). We don’t achieve that by loving God or by obeying him – it’s a gift. But the dynamic of living in the reality of that relationship requires us to love God, for only those who love him will want to obey him (24). This was the Father’s will for Jesus, which he passes on to us too.