Albert Barnes Commentary John 14:23

"Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." — John 14:23 (ASV)

Will keep my words. See John 14:15.

We will come to him. We will come to him with the manifestation of pardon, peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Ghost. It means that God will manifest Himself to the soul as a Father and Friend, and Jesus will manifest Himself as a Saviour; that is, that right views and proper feelings toward God and Christ will be shed abroad in the heart.

The Christian will rejoice in the perfections of God and of Christ, and will delight to contemplate the glories of a present Saviour.

The condition of a sinner is represented as one who has gone astray from God, and from whom God has withdrawn (Psalms 58:3; Proverbs 27:10; Ezekiel 14:11). He is alienated from God (Ephesians 2:12; Isaiah 1:4; Ephesians 4:18; Colossians 1:21). Religion is represented as God returning to the soul, and manifesting Himself as reconciled through Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:18; Colossians 1:21).

Make our abode. This is a figurative expression implying that God and Christ would manifest themselves in no temporary way, but that it would be the privilege of Christians to enjoy their presence continually. They would take up their residence in the heart as their dwelling-place, as a temple fit for their abode. See 1 Corinthians 3:16: Ye are the temple of God;John 14:19: Your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost; 2 Corinthians 6:16: Ye are the temple of the living God.

This does not mean that there is any personal union between Christians and God, or any peculiar indwelling of the essence of God in us. For God is essentially present in all places in the same way. It is, rather, a figurative mode of speaking. It denotes that the Christian is under the influence of God, rejoices in His presence, and has the views, feelings, and joys that God produces in a redeemed soul, and with which He is pleased.