From John 16-18
Jesus is about to leave the disciples. But He tells them He will leave in order to send the Helper. This is to their advantage. The Spirit of truth will enable them to be a true witness to Jesus and speak with boldness about the consequences of rejecting Him.
This post is part of my bible in a year series.
Passage and Comments
Jesus expects his followers to be opposed and hated by the world because they hated him. He knows he is leaving and this will be a cause for grief for the disciples (Jn 15.18-25).
In today’s passage he assures his disciples another will come in his absence. One he calls the ‘Helper’.
26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning. (Jn 15.26-27)
‘I will send to you‘, ‘the Helper’. The helper is so named, because he will help. Jesus is leaving and he realises his people will need help in his absence. He doesn’t leave them to fend for themselves.
The ‘Helper’ Jesus sends is the Spirit of truth. None other than the Holy Spirit. God’s own Spirit.
‘Spirit of Truth‘. The Helper is also called the Spirit of truth. So named because is speaks the truth and leads people into truth. Truth goes beyond correct knowledge and includes a right way of living. An applied worldview.
‘From the Father’, ‘Proceeds from the Father’. Jesus sends the Spirit. The Spirit comes from the Father. We can see the interaction between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
‘He will bear witness’, ‘You will bear witness‘. The primary way the Helper helps is to bear witness. The language hints of a lawcourt situation. The disciples have been with Jesus from the beginning. This suggests they will bear witness about him before others. To the gospel of his life, words, deeds, death and resurrection.
The Holy Spirit empowers God’s people to speak about Jesus.
16 “I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. 2 They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. 3 And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. 4 But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. (Jn 16.1-4)
‘To keep you from falling away’. Jesus recognises the possibility God’s people can fall away. His disciples will face much persecution which may lead them to walk away from Jesus.
Jesus seeks to prevent his followers from falling away by telling in advance of the persecution they will face and the help they will receive from the Spirit of truth.
We know in Acts the apostles faced opposition with great boldness empowered by the Spirit (Acts 4.13,29-31).
“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. 5 But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.
7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.
8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. (Jn 16.4-11)
‘It is to your advantage that I go away’. Jesus humbles himself with respect to the ministry of the Spirit. Jesus will go away in order to send the Helper. I suspect Jesus believes what the Spirit can do dwelling within all His people is better than what he can accomplish by himself.
‘When he comes he will convict the world’. Jesus mentioned previously the Spirit will help his people bear witness. Now the Spirit stands in judgment over the unbelieving world. The lawcourt is reversed. Now the unbelieving world stands condemned.
‘Concerning sin’. The Spirit will convict the unbelieving world of sin because they heard about Jesus but did not believe in Him.
‘Concerning righteousness’. The Spirit will convict the unbelieving world regarding Jesus’ righteousness. They failed to see Jesus’ righteousness in his signs and words and validated by his death and resurrection. Now Jesus will go and they still do not believe.
‘Concerning judgment‘, ‘ruler of this world’. Satan has been defeated at the cross. His resurrection affirms his victory over the powers of this world. Christus Victor!
12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (Jn 16.12-15)
‘I still have many things to say but you cannot bear them now’. Commenting on this passage Origen said Jesus referred to the abolition of various Jewish practices (cf. Acts 10.9-16,19,44-45; 11.12,15). The Spirit will lead his people into the truth about how we should live and bring glory to Jesus.
About Jesus
The convicting work of the Holy Spirit is a courageous belief in the spiritual, moral, and intellectual bankruptcy of the world in its rejection of Jesus.
The problem with most of us is that we don’t think there is anything wrong with the world.
Our task therefore, is to be the one voice that holds an honest assessment of Jesus and the implications for the world in rejecting him.
I find this hard. But this is the courageous witness the Spirit seeks to engage and empower. This is one thing we need His help with.
Copyright © Joshua Washington and thescripturesays, 2016. All Rights Reserved.
