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John 14:21-23 KJV

21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. 22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? 23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

The passage in John 14:21-23 presents a clear assurance of both the manifestation of Jesus to those who love Him and the promise that the Father and the Son will establish their abode with faithful believers. However, the precise nature of this manifestation and the implications of the Father and the Son making their abode with believers remain unspecified in the text. Essentially, the passage leaves unanswered questions about what this manifestation entails and what practical implications arise when the Father and the Son choose to dwell with the believer, promises that seem deliberately worded in metaphorical language. Put simply, the passage doesn't explicitly detail the expected outcomes in concrete, practical, and non-allegorical terms.

How, in concrete and practical terms, do the Father and the Son manifest themselves to Christians based on the promises laid out in this passage?

I'm looking for relatively recently published (1900 - present) testimonial books that exemplify the manner in which the revelation described in John 14:21-23 unfolds in the lives of Christians in the modern world.

Note: this question was inspired by the answer for What is the success criterion for the task of 'seeking God' in Christianity?.

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    the passage doesn't explicitly detail the expected outcomes in concrete, practical, and non-allegorical terms. That is because it is a matter of experience. Some are able to testify from soul experience of these things. But that is not the object of this website. The question is actually off-topic if it is seeking testimonies. The 'unanswered questions' to which you refer are exactly that - unanswered until one experiences the reality for oneself. That is what the answer (to which you link) was trying to tell you.
    – Nigel J
    Commented Dec 29, 2023 at 19:27
  • @NigelJ Is it off-topic to ask for published books containing testimonies? I added the resource-request tag.
    – user61679
    Commented Jan 6 at 14:38
  • Your original Q 8 days ago was, "What is the manner in which the Father and the Son reveal themselves to Christians, as outlined in John 14:21-23?" On 3 Jan you significantly changed the main Q by then asking for book references. And now you have added another tag: 'resource'-request'. Notice Aimee Simpierre's brief answer, showing that she was answering the original Q, not this one. Why don't you just post a fresh Q?
    – Anne
    Commented Jan 6 at 17:42
  • @Anne I already got answers for the other one on Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange.
    – user61679
    Commented Jan 6 at 18:12
  • Oh, I know, but that was a much more general Q: "What is the success criterion for the task of seeking God in Christianity?" For this Q, focusing on John 14:21-23, I could have told you about my own book which details my testimony but I don't want to use Stack to advertise it. Nor do I want my full name to be revealed on here (which would have to be done if I detailed its title and author). I'm very cautious about such things on social media, guarding my privacy. So, I cannot recommend my book here, for those reasons.
    – Anne
    Commented Jan 6 at 18:35

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I do think the answer is the same as the answer given to the question you linked to. The Father and Son manifest themselves as a transformative presence in the life of the believer. Their presence is made obvious by the life-heart-spirit-change that result.

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    – Community Bot
    Commented Dec 30, 2023 at 14:45
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15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. (John 14 ESV)

These words of Jesus connect Himself, the Father, and the Spirit of the Truth. These three were first placed together when Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman:

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4)

The Father is seeking true worshippers, those who worship Him in Spirit and Truth.

Jesus is the Truth and He will ask the Father who will give the Spirit of the Truth.

The Father and the Son manifest themselves when true worshippers, worship God. In this way their manifestation will be selectively to believers and not to the world.

Judas could not understand how the Father could be manifested and the world not also see the manifestation. For example, Judas cannot imagine how the Shekinah glory could only be seen by believers and not the world.

Contemporary experiences cannot be different from those of the first disciples. Therefore, experiences which are common throughout history are those which explain how the Father and the Son manifest themselves to the believers and not to the world. This is true whether the literature purposefully approaches the issue from the discussion in John 14, or from the experience of true worship, or from another experience which meets the criteria in the question Judas raised.

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  • Notice the question is asking for books with illustrative testimonies.
    – user61679
    Commented Jan 6 at 3:34
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    @Mark You ask two questions. The first is, “ How, in concrete and practical terms, do the Father and the Son manifest themselves to Christians based on the promises laid out in this passage?” The material you seek (the second question) might be found in works pertaining to true worship or worshipping in spirit and truth.
    – Revelation Lad
    Commented Jan 6 at 5:47
  • So, by your own admission, you didn't fully answer the question (since the comment section doesn't count). Notice also that the second question is the primary question (it's explicitly stated in the title).
    – user61679
    Commented Jan 6 at 10:56
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    @Mark I have edited to respond to your comments. I am simply pointing out the literature you seek may not have its primary focus on John 14. Literature on true worship may not even directly address the question Judas raised. Yet the experience of true worship is a place in which the answer is found.
    – Revelation Lad
    Commented Jan 6 at 14:25
  • You didn't reference any books, so this doesn't actually answer the question.
    – user61679
    Commented Jan 6 at 14:28

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