You Are Not an Orphan; Jesus Is With You Now and Always

David W Palmer

(John 14:18 NKJV) “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”

Directly after telling his apprentices that Father would send the “Spirit of truth” to be “in” them and “with” them, Jesus then made the above statement. The KJV translates this as; “I will not leave you comfortless.” This connects directly to what Jesus meant when he said in verse 16 that he would send “another Comforter,” referring to the Holy Spirit:

(John 14:16–17 DKJV) “And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; {17} Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it doesn’t see him or know him: but you know him; for he dwells with you and shall be in you.”

In the original languages of the New Testament, the word translated as “orphans” simply means, “bereft of parents” or “those bereft of a teacher, guide, or guardian” (Thayer). Not only is the Holy Spirit in us and with us as “another” Comforter—another of the same kind as Jesus—our amazing Lord is with us in several other ways as he promised:

(Hebrews 13:5 NKJV) … He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

(Matthew 28:20 NKJV) “… I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

The first way Jesus is able to fulfill this promise, is that he is always with us through the wonderful Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of:

Truth (John 14:17)

Holiness (Luke 11:13)

Grace (Heb. 10:29)

Faith (2 Cor. 4:13)

Wisdom and revelation (Eph. 1:17), etc.

Jesus told us that when the “Comforter” came, he would:

Remind them of what Jesus had said to them (John 14:26)

Guide them into all truth (John 16:13)

Convey to them what he hears from Jesus (John 16:13)

Show them things to come (John 16:13), etc.

So Jesus is certainly with us through the Spirit that Father has sent to be in us. We also see that Jesus is with us in some other ways:

Second, according to John 1:1–3, 14, and Rev. 19:13, Jesus is the Living Word of God. Whenever the written word comes alive—by revelation when we read, meditate, pray, or worship; when we hear an anointed preacher; or when God speaks to us—that living word is Jesus. What’s more, in Matthew 28:18 he said that he—the Living Word—has all authority. And it is in this very context that he says, “I am with you always …” (Mat. 28:20 NKJV). Jesus is always with us in unassailable authority when his word lives in and through us. No wonder he then told us to go and teach:

(Matthew 28:19–20 DKJV) “Therefore, go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: {20} Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age. Amen.”

The third way Jesus is with us is through manifestation. Jesus said that if we love him enough to obey him, both his Father and he would love us; and that he would come into manifestation and reveal himself to us:

(John 14:21 NKJV) “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Jesus said that the conditions for this appearing are primarily love and obedience, but it is also through praise:

(Psalm 22:3 NHEB) “But you are holy, you who inhabit the praises of Israel.”

When we praise God sincerely from our hearts, and especially if we add confession of his word, God will manifest himself.

A fourth way to look at this comes from another promise Jesus made:

(Matthew 18:20 NKJV) “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”

Here, our Lord and Master says that when he gathers us—say for fellowship, Bible study, prayer, worship, ministry, or evangelism—that he is “there in the midst of” us. This is pictured for us as two disciples walked and talked about Jesus:

(Luke 24:13–15, 32 NKJV) Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. {14} And they talked together of all these things which had happened. {15} So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. ... {32} And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”

Jesus didn’t leave us as comfortless orphans. And although it is quite scriptural for him to appear to us in person (as in the story above) or in a vision, these are intermittent events; we certainly relish these opportunities when they come, but they don’t always happen 24-7. On the other hand, he has promised to be with us always through his indwelling Spirit, his living word, and as we praise and confess him. This is particularly promised for when we are gathered in his name.

Today, I encourage you; Jesus didn’t leave you as an orphan—bereft of parental love, guidance, comfort, and protection. He is with you today through his Spirit; and he will manifest himself to you in his word, in praise, in visions, and especially while in corporate settings.

Jesus is real; he is alive, and he is with you now. Begin a lifestyle where you praise him, confess his word, love, and obey him continually. Add to this: love, respect, and honour for the Holy Spirit in humble submission, and then you can enjoy Jesus’s glorious manifested presence with you always—just as he promised.