What Advantage? -- 6/24/12

Sunday, June 24, 1012

WHAT ADVANTAGE?

John 16:7-11; John 14:16-20; Acts 1-2

            Last Sunday morning we were left with this simple question:  Do I truly believe Jesus, when He said to His apostles that it was to their advantage that He go away?  Do I believe it is to my advantage that Jesus went away so that He could send the Spirit?   Stated bluntly, do I believe that I am better off to have the Spirit than I would be to have Jesus in the flesh walking beside me day by day?  Again, we all know how we should answer those questions, but that is not what I am asking.  When we are honest, how do we answer those questions?

            Let’s refresh our memory by reading the text we read last week from John 16:1-7…

These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. 2 They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. 3 And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. 4 But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you. 5 "But now I go away 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 depart, I will send Him to you.

            Jesus is spending His last few hours before His arrest with His apostles.  Very shortly He will pour out His heart to the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane, and then the mob will come and carry Him away.  After a rushed and illegal trial, the Jewish leaders will convince the Roman governor Pilate to give the order for crucifixion.  Jesus knows these things well, but His apostles don’t have a clue.  Though He has told them more than once or twice, they have not been able to understand.  In this last visit with them, Jesus speaks more directly than He ever has.  Not only does He tell them that He is going away, but He reveals that they are going to face very hard times.  The same religious leaders who have opposed Jesus and will engineer His crucifixion will persecute those who follow Him, even killing some of them. 

            It is not difficult to imagine the impression these words left on those eleven men who had followed him for the past three years.  They are devastated.  If anyone ever needed encouragement, it was those men on that night.  What do you think they really wanted to hear?  I think I know.  Above everything else, they wanted Jesus to tell them that He would not leave them.  Maybe Jesus would say, “Fellows, I’ve changed my mind.  I realize that you need me to stay with you.  I’m just not sure how you would do, if I were to leave you right now.”  What relief they would have felt, if Jesus would have just assured them that He was going to remain with them.

            It is in verse 5 that Jesus tells them the exact opposite of what they wanted to hear.  What He had been hinting at strongly He then stated clearly and precisely:  “Now I am going to the one who sent me.”  Earlier that same evening He had said, “I go to prepare a place for you,” but they might have thought that Jesus was going to do that some day.  But this time He gives no room for misunderstanding:  “NOW I am going to the one who sent me.” 

            Why?  Why did Jesus have to leave them?  His departure was the absolutely worst thing they could ever imagine.  Without them having to ask why, Jesus gave them the answer in verse 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 depart, I will send Him to you.”  To put it simply, Jesus tells them that they are better off having Him leave and send the Spirit than having Him remain with them.  Though I am sure they could not understand it at the time, Jesus did not back up on His insistence that He must leave them; He only assured them that the Helper would come.

            Last week we dealt with the question:  “Why was it necessary for Jesus to depart before the Spirit could come?”  Notice that Jesus said, “If I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you.”  Why not?  We were reminded that John, the writer of this gospel account, gives us the answer back in John 7:39, “But this [that which Jesus has just said in verses 37-38] spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.”  His being glorified was a reference to His crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension to the Father, where He would have restored to Him the glory He had enjoyed together with the Father forever and ever.  Until Jesus gave His life on the cross and returned to the Father, there was no possibility of Him sending the Spirit.  Though the Spirit rested on Jesus, who walked with these apostles day after day, He is revealing that His future sending of the Spirit will be a far greater blessing than what they were now experiencing.

            Now comes the big question:  If it was to their advantage for Jesus to leave and send the Helper, why?  In other words, what was the advantage in Jesus leaving?  Yes, He would send the Spirit, but why was it better to have Him send the Spirit than for Him to remain with them in the flesh?  What could possibly be better than having the living Jesus walk with them every day, answering all their questions and comforting them in all their trials, just like He had been doing for the past three years?  Putting it in the present tense for us, why is it better for us to have the Spirit than to have the flesh-and-blood Jesus with us?  Why wouldn’t we want to trade what we have for seeing Him with our own eyes, hearing His voice, and being able to reach out and touch Him?  That is the basic question we want to answer this morning:  “What is the advantage?”

           

I.  The Spirit’s Conviction of Sin, Righteousness, and Judgment  (John 16:8-11)

            The first place we look for our answer is in the context of this passage.  Each time we have read from John 16 we have stopped at the end of verse 7.  Now we are ready to go on and read the following verses, because they will give us much insight into why it is to our advantage to have the Spirit.  Let’s read John 16:7-11…

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 depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

            Immediately after saying that it was to their advantage that He go away so that He could send the Spirit, Jesus tells them what the coming Spirit will do.  So when we talk about the advantage of having the Spirit come, this is where we must start.  It was to their advantage to have Jesus depart and send the Spirit because the Spirit would convict the world or sin, righteousness, and judgment. 

            Notice that word “convict.”  The King James renders it “reprove.”  The word speaks of “bringing something to light.”  The Holy Spirit will bring to light sin, righteousness, and judgment.  He will demonstrate the reality of these things.  There will be a convincing of sin, righteousness, and judgment.

            Notice also the term “world.”  The Spirit will convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment.  Of whom is He speaking?  “World” is used in three ways in the scripture.  First, the term is used to speak of the physical earth, as in Ps. 24:1, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”  Then it is used to speak of people in general, as in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He sent His only begotten Son…”  It is also used to describe the system of society which rejects the Lord, composed of those who are so self-sufficient that they think they don’t need Him.  We see this in many New Testament passage, such as I John 2:15, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world…”  Here Jesus is obviously not speaking of the physical earth.  Rather, he is talking about people in general, and even those who are in a system that rejects God.  The Spirit is able to convince lost people of sin, righteousness, and judgment.  It has been said that the Spirit also does this in the life of a Christian, at least to some extent.  I believe that is true, but that is not the emphasis here.  Jesus uses the term “world” and that is His focus.  The Holy Spirit is able to convict lost people.

            In verses 9-11 Jesus explains verse 8.  What does He mean when He says the Spirit will convict the world of sin?  Verse 9, “Of sin, because they believe not on Me.”  We know that all people are sinners, that all of us have gone our own way and rebelled against God.  We could make a very long list of our sins.  But Jesus indicates that the crowning sin of all is the sin of not believing on Jesus, the Son of God, who died on the cross to bear the wrath of God upon our sins.  The ultimate sin is to fail to trust ourselves completely to Jesus.  All other sins will be forgiven, but there is no forgiveness for the person who doesn’t believe on Jesus.  I remind us that this belief is not just a casual outward confession that says, “I believe in Jesus.”  It is a heart-felt, life-changing, throwing of one’s self completely upon the Son of God.  As a person has trusted himself, so he now trusts Jesus.  The Spirit will convict the people in the world that they are guilty of the sin of not trusting Jesus.

            The Spirit will also convict the world of righteousness.  But what does that mean?  Verse 10, “Of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more.”  So how will Jesus going to the Father convict the world of righteousness?  First of all, understand that Jesus is speaking of His own righteousness, for He is the only person who ever lived who is righteous on His own merit.  How did the world see Jesus?  As He was speaking these words to His apostles, the religious leaders of the Jews were gathering a mob to go out and arrest Him.  After the arrest and a mock trial, what would they do to Jesus?  Yes, they would crucify Him.  And whom did the Romans crucify?  Only the worst of criminals.  At the cross, the world judged Jesus as unrighteous, smitten of God, as we read in Is. 53:4.  But the One the world judged as an unrighteous criminal didn’t remain in the grave.  He rose.  Furthermore, the apostles became witnesses of that resurrection and of His ascension back to the Father.  Jesus said the Spirit would come and convict the world that He was indeed righteous by demonstrating that He rose from the dead and went back to the Father.  No one in our world today has seen the risen Christ with the physical eyes, but He was “declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:4). 

            Finally, the Holy Spirit will convict the world of judgment.  But what does that mean?  Verse 11, “Of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”  So who is the ruler of this world?  None other than Satan himself.  Is it not Satan who has blinded the world to its own sin and to the righteousness of Christ?  As the Spirit convicts the world of its own sin and of Christ’s righteousness, He will also convict them that the ruler of this world has indeed been judged.  Though Satan masquerades as an angel of light and promises great things, he is a defeated foe. 

            Go back to John 12.  Last week we read verses 23 and 24 in relation to Jesus being glorified through His death on the cross.  Now let’s begin reading in verse 28.  Read John 12:27-32…

Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your name." Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again." 29 Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him." 30 Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.

            Notice verse 31, “Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.”  The context makes it clear that the “now” Jesus is talking about is His death on the cross.  The day is coming when Satan will be cast into the lake of fire, where he will suffer torment forever and ever, but he was judged at the cross.  He was the one behind all the forces that combined to put Jesus on the cross, though even that was the will of God.  He appeared to be the victor, but that wasn’t the case.  When Jesus bore our sins on the cross, receiving upon Himself the wrath from God that we deserved, He won the victory over the devil.  The devil bruised His heel, but He crushed the head of that old serpent, the devil (see Gen. 3:15).  The Holy Spirit will convict the world that Satan has indeed been judged, and that whoever continues to serve him will share in his condemnation.

            Now let’s see how this played out in real life.  Go forward one book to Acts.  After the Holy Spirit came upon those 120 disciples who were waiting in the upper room and they spoke the wonderful works of God in various languages to those who were attending the feast of Pentecost in Jerusalem, Peter stood up and gave an explanation of what was happening.  We looked at the climax of that last week in verses 32 and 33.  Notice in the sermon Peter preached how the Spirit used his words to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment.  Peter spoke of their sin in verse 23, “Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death.”  He also spoke of Christ’s righteousness, referring in verse 22 to Jesus as “a man approved of God.”  He also spoke of Jesus going to the Father in verse 24, “Whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.”  And Peter spoke of judgment, quoting the words of Psalm 110 in verses 34-35, “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand till I make Your enemies My footstool.’”  The chief enemy is Satan himself, but Peter also speaks of those who follow Satan in verse 40, “And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, ‘Be saved from this perverse generation.’”  

            We see from this same passage that the results for this conviction from the Spirit vary from individual to individual.  Let’s go back and read verses 36-37, “‘Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.’ 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?’"   When we read the rest of the story, we learn that in response to the Spirit’s message through Peter, three thousand people believed, were baptized, and were added to the church that day.  However, there were many thousands more who did not repent and believe. 

            Brothers and sisters, it is to our advantage that Jesus departed and sent the Helper, because He is indeed convicting the world of its sin, of Christ’s righteousness, and of the judgment of the ruler of this world.  As we proclaim the good news of Jesus, this gives us confidence.  Were it not for the conviction of the Spirit, no person would ever be affected by the message we proclaim.  Let’s read John 15:26-27, “"But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”  By itself, the witness we bear is ineffective, but praise God that the Spirit also testifies of Christ.

            So Jesus explains why it is an advantage for Him to depart and send the Spirit.  This is the advantage we see from the immediate context of His statement in verse 7, but this certainly isn’t the only advantage to having the Spirit rather than Jesus in the flesh.  There are many other advantages.  This morning let me quickly mention two others.

II.  The Spirit’s Indwelling of the Believer  (John 14:16-20)

            Let’s come back to John 14, where Jesus first introduced to us the Helper, the Comforter.  Let’s read John 14:16-20…

And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever-- 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. 19 "A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.

            Notice especially that little statement at the end of verse 17, “For He dwells with you and will be in you.”  No matter how we may interpret “He dwells with you,” there is no mistaking the meaning of “He will be in you.”  In the very next verse (18), Jesus says, “I will come to you.”  How will He come to them?  He will come to them through the Spirit who will be in them.  This truth is summed up in Col. 1:27, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” 

            This is part of the great glory of the new covenant.  Not only does God forgive our sins through Christ, but He puts His Spirit within us.  This was promised in Ezek. 36:26-27, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.”  Jesus is talking about the very same thing, when He says, “And He will be in you” (14:17). 

            So what is so great about having the Spirit of God living within you?  If you have to ask that question, you have every reason to question if you have the Spirit dwelling within you.  Yes, it is possible to be a Christian without understanding and experiencing the great advantage of having the Spirit within, but surely the Lord won’t leave a true Christian there very long.  Jesus died and rose that He might be with us through the indwelling Spirit. 

            We could go on and on with the benefits of having the Spirit within, but let me mention just one right now -- the advantage of assurance.  The Spirit who dwells within can assure us of our salvation, that we have been forgiven, that we truly belong to God through Christ.  Come back to John 14:20, “And in that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.”  Wow!  Surely this is more than just a knowing of a fact, such as 2 + 2 = 4.  This is the testimony of the Spirit.  We see the same thing in Rom. 8:15-16, “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’  The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”  We might say, “Yes, the Spirit bears witness through the Word of God, which says that the true Christian will believe the truth, will love His brothers and sisters, and will obey God’s commands.  While there is truth in that kind of reasoning, that is not really what Paul says here in Rom. 8:16.  He says that the Spirit will bear witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.  Is he not speaking of a direct work of the Spirit within us?  As supernaturally as the Spirit gave us life, He bears witness with our spirit that we have that life.

            What a tremendous advantage we have in that the Spirit of God lives within us.

III.  The Power of the Spirit Outpoured  (Acts 1:8; 2:

            When considering the advantage of having the Spirit come, we looked at the immediate context first. Then we went back and saw what Jesus had already said about the indwelling of the Spirit.  Now let’s go forward and see the advantage of the Spirit’s coming in actual history.  We don’t have to go far.  As John had already stated in John 7:39, the Spirit could not come until Jesus was glorified, until He had died, risen, and ascended back to the Father.  We have His death and resurrection recorded for us in all four of the gospel writers -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  Historically, Acts is the continuation of the story told by the gospel writers.  As a matter of fact, one of those writers is also the author of Acts.  And who is that?  That’s right, it is Luke.  So let’s just read the first few verses of Acts to see more of what happened after Jesus rose from the dead.  Perhaps it would be better to start in the last verses of Luke and then just continue into Acts.  So let’s read Luke 24:49-53 and then Acts 1:1-14…

Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high." 50 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen.

         The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, 3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. 4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, "which," He said, "you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 And He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." 9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel,11 who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven." 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey. 13 And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. 14These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

            Notice how the end of Luke meshes perfectly with the beginning of Acts.  That makes sense, as Luke is the author of both.  Both accounts emphasize their need to wait in Jerusalem until they have received the Promise of the Father.  And what was the Promise of the Father?  It was none other than the Promised Holy Spirit.  In Luke 24:49, after telling them He will send the Promise of His Father upon them,  Jesus tells them to wait until they are endued (literally, “clothed”) with power from on high.  Clearly it is the coming of the Promised Spirit that will provide the power they need.  But why do they need this power?  While there may be lots of reasons, Jesus has one reason in mind at this point,  and His reason is revealed in Acts 1.  In verse 4 Luke records again how He told them to wait for the Promise of the Father.  Notice that in verse 5 He associates this with being baptized in the Spirit.  Then after deflecting their question about the restoring of the kingdom, Jesus makes this statement in Acts 1:8, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.”  Again, this is the exact same thing we saw at the end of Luke 24.  But now Jesus is going to give us the purpose of that power.  “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall e witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”   The coming of the Promised Spirit would provide the power they needed to be effective witnesses.

            Did it happen as Jesus said it would?  It certainly did.  That is exactly what we see in chapter two.  In obedience to Jesus’ command, they waited in Jerusalem in that upper room for the coming of the Spirit.  In chapter two, we have the record of His coming.  Let’s read it in Acts 2:1-4…

When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

            Yes, they began to speak in many and various languages, but that is not the focus of chapter two.  Praise God that He gave them the ability to speak to Pathians, Medes, and Elamites and many other groups, but the emphasis here is not on the language in which they spoke.  The emphasis is on what they said in those languages.  Regardless of which language was being used by these 120 disciples of Jesus, they all basically said the same thing, as recorded in verse 11, “…We hear them speaking in our tongues the wonderful works of God.”  Though we are told exactly what those wonderful things of God were, we know from the larger context of Acts.  “They went everywhere preaching the word” (Acts 8:4).  What word?  The message about what God had done in His blessed Son Jesus.  And that message is summed up admirably by Peter, as we have already read some of his sermon from chapter 2.  Do you see how God gave them power to witness through the coming of His Holy Spirit? 

            A great advantage of having the Spirit is this outpouring of the Spirit’s power.  Do we need that kind of outpouring today?  We have to be very careful in answering that question.  Sometimes we want to say, “No, we don’t need that outpouring of the Spirit, because we already have it.  This is the story of how the Spirit first came to those 120 disciples, and it is paralleled in our conversion experience.  We have already received this outpouring of the Spirit.”  While there is truth is that line of reasoning, I am left with one burning question that I cannot escape, and the question is this:  “Where is the power?  Where is the power for effective witness?”  Is this what we see in the church today?  Is this what you are experiencing in your life?  I have to confess that it isn’t my experience.

            Regardless of our theological convictions, we need the outpouring of the Spirit in power for witness.  We need the Spirit to enable us to lift up Jesus in such a way that people are drawn to Him.  We say, “But we see the Lord saving people.”  Yes, and praise God for that.  Mercy drops round us are falling, but for the showers we plead.  Let’s not long for trickles of living water; let’s cry out for the rivers of living water that Jesus promised!

            And that brings us right back to the first advantage -- that of the Spirit’s conviction of sin, righteousness, and judgment.  As the Spirit works in us to empower us to witness, He also works in those to whom we speak, convicting them of their sin, of Christ’s righteousness, and the judgment of the ruler of this world.

Conclusion

            Suppose you come to service next Sunday, and you are confronted by a great surprise.  When it comes time for the sermon, Jesus Himself steps to the front and begins to speak.  Do you think we would have anyone daydreaming, any of the kids going to the restroom, anyone dozing off?  Never.  You would not hear a pin drop, because everyone would be hanging on every word from the Master.  Now suppose that after the sermon, Jesus invites everyone to stay for lunch.  But no one brought a lunch.  No problem; Jesus will bless the candy bucket and fish and loaves will appear.  (Yes, He is able to bring sandwiches out of the candy bucket!)  At 9:00 p.m. no one wants to go home.  Of course, some of you have to be at work on Monday morning.  The kids are getting tired and need sleep. 

            So what is the solution?  Shall we all set up headquarters here, throw out cots and sleeping bags, and listen to Jesus day after day?  We could all go home and plan to assemble again on Monday evening, but what if Jesus doesn’t show up.  We don’t want to let Him go.  This is like heaven on earth.

            Are you getting my point?  Jesus said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18).  We don’t have to stay here, because Jesus said He would not leave us.  We don’t have to come here to Him, for He has promised  to come to us.  But how can He do that?  “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 depart, I will sent Him to you” (John 16:7).  As we leave this place, the Holy Spirit goes with every person who belongs to Jesus. 

            We are tempted to say, “Yes, that’s great, but He isn’t as real as if He were standing here speaking to us.”  Is that so?  When we are tempted to say that, we are on the edge of unbelief.  If it truly is better for you to have Him standing here in the flesh, that means that you don’t have the Spirit.  But if you belong to Jesus and the Spirit lives within you, you have the advantage. 

           

To Your Advantage -- John 16:1-7

Sunday, June 17, 2012

TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

(John 16:7)

            We are looking at the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  Actually, our desire is not simply to look at the ministry of the Spirit.  Rather, we are longing for the ministry of the Spirit.  If we are not, then we haven’t recognized our great need.  We began with the question:  “Are we a needy people?”  Basically, I suggested rather strongly that our study of the Holy Spirit will mean very little unless we are keenly aware of our need.  When we take an honest look at the New Testament and compare what we find there with what we experience in our lives, we are immediately confronted with our need.  Though the Lord has indeed worked in many of us, we have to acknowledge that we have only scratched the surface of what the Lord has for us.  No matter how we may rationalize our present experience, the scriptures promise us a closer walk with the Savior and greater power to proclaim His gospel.  Paul could say, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable to his death” (Phil. 3:10).  O that we might have that same longing.

            After such a direct focus upon our need, then we moved to an “Introduction to the Comforter.”  As recorded in John 14, Jesus Himself introduces the Holy Spirit as the Comforter.  Literally, He is the One called alongside.  Jesus referred to Him as “another Comforter,” for He is another like Jesus.  The very same word that is translated “Comforter, Helper, Advocate, Encourager” is used of Jesus Himself in I John 2:1.  Though we are indeed a needy people, we can take courage because the Comforter is available.  Jesus has been glorified, and He has called to our side His Holy Spirit.  Praise God!

            This morning let’s step back and approach the Spirit of God from another angle.  Before we do, let’s take a little commercial break.  How many of you know the meaning of the terms “ad in” and “ad out”?  Be honest.  They are tennis terms.  When I am serving and the game has gone at least four points and is locked in a tie, then the score is “deuce.”  The two contestants have the same score, so it is “deuce.”  In order to win the game, one of the players has to get two more points than the other.  So I am serving at deuce, and then I get the next point.  Since I am the server, I am the one who announces the score, and I say, “Ad in.”  “Ad” is short for “advantage.”  In other words, the advantage is with me; the advantage is here.  If I get this point, I win the game.  On the other hand, if I am serving at deuce and lose the next point, I will then announce the score, “Ad out.”  In other words, the advantage is there; you have the advantage.  Now you can forget that important information until I come back to it later.

I.  The Glory of Hearing from God

            Let’s take a walk with Moses in the desert.  Moses is doing what he has been doing for the last 40 years – herding sheep.  Up until now, today is like every other day.  But then Moses sees something.  A bush is on fire.  That is kind of unusual, as he isn’t sure how or why this one bush burst into flame.  It’s entertaining, but he isn’t about to go out of his way to investigate why the bush is burning.  As Moses continues to lead his sheep, something catches his attention.  It has been several minutes since he first saw that bush, and it’s still burning.  As a matter of fact, it seems to be flaming as intensely as it was when he first noticed it.  So Moses decides to have a look.  As he draws closer, the bush continues to burn brightly.  Then Moses stops in his tracks.  There is no mistaking what he heard.  It was an audible voice, a strong voice saying, “Do not draw near this place.  Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”  The voice continued, “I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” 

            Wow!  There was no one around except Moses and the sheep.  Perhaps Moses looked in all directions to see who might be speaking.  No, I don’t think he looked around.  Instead, Moses immediately hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.  Moses knew that it was indeed the Lord God who was speaking to him.  It was holy ground, but it wasn’t comfortable ground.  He was in God’s presence in a way that he had never known.

            Consider Isaiah, who saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up.  He saw the seraphim above the throne and heard them crying out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory.”  What was Isaiah’s reaction to this revelation of God’s glory?  He cried out, “Woe is me, for I am undone!  Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King.”  After his lips had been cleansed by the burning coal which one of the seraphim laid on his mouth, then Isaiah heard something far greater than the words of the seraphim.  Is. 6:8, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’”  Yes, Isaiah heard the voice of the Lord Himself.

            What would it be like to hear the voice of God?  Without question, these two and others heard that voice.  Would you like to have been there?  At first, we might say, “No, that would be terrifying.”  Yes, it would be terrifying, but if we love the Lord, surely we would count it a privilege to actually hear His voice.  It is not uncommon to hear people say, “I wish I could hear the Lord speak, even as Moses and Isaiah heard Him.”

II.  The Glory of Being with Jesus

            But let’s not stop there.  Could there be an even greater revelation than the audible voice of God?  We discussed this in some depth a few weeks ago.  Moses saw a burning bush and heard God speak, but what about the people who lived in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago?  Let’s read again the words from Heb. 1:1-2, “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son…”  At first, we might say, “But Moses and Isaiah heard more than God speaking through the prophets; they heard the audible voice of God.”  That’s true, but the emphasis of Hebrews is the superiority of Jesus to all other forms of revelation.  There was the prophet-type revelation, but then there is the Son-type revelation, and there is no comparison between the two.  When Jesus spoke, He was God in the flesh communicating the divine message.  He not only spoke it, but He also lived it, demonstrating the perfect character of God day in and day out.  When His apostle Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and it will be enough for us,” Jesus responded, “Have I been with you all this time and still you do not know me.  He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:8-9).

            What would it be like to actually see and hear Jesus?  Better to sit under the teaching of Jesus for 30 minutes than to sit under my teaching or the teaching of any other man for 30 years.  Who wouldn’t have a desire to hear directly from the Son of God?

III.  Greater Glory Still

            Now let’s come to the Word of God, which points us to the Lord Jesus Christ.  I want us to read John 16:1-4…

These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. 2 They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. 3 And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. 4 But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you. 

            Let’s put these words in context.  Jesus is speaking to His eleven apostles shortly before He would be arrested, tried, and crucified.  Jesus knows what is coming, and He is preparing this little group of men.  He doesn’t want them to stumble.  They have followed him for better than three years, but now things are going to get really tough, and Jesus knows it.  So that His apostles will not be surprised by the trials that are coming, He tells them openly what awaits them.  “These things” speaks primarily of what He has been saying in chapter 15.  He has told them that the world will hate them and persecute them, just as it has persecuted their Lord.  Now Jesus goes on to tell them that not only will they be excluded from the gatherings of the religious people, but if and when those religious people are successful in killing one or more of them, they will think they are doing service for God!  How could people who claim to be godly possibly do such a thing?  Jesus says it is because they don’t know the Father nor Him, the Father’s Son.

            Why has Jesus waited until now to tell His apostles these things?  Well, we should remember that He has given them warnings about what was going to happen to Him.  On several occasions, Jesus told them that He was going to be mistreated in Jerusalem, killed, and would rise the third day (Mark 8:31; 9:30-31; 10:33-34).  Of course, His apostles didn’t understand.  They could not conceive of Jesus having to die.  How could any human force master this One who stilled the wind and the waves with His voice?  But while Jesus had predicted His own suffering and death, He had been more general about what His followers would face.  Later in this chapter, He will tell them, “In this world you will have tribulation” (16:33).  But now He is very specific, telling them they will be hated, persecuted, excluded from the synagogues, and even killed.  He hasn’t told them these things before, because He was with them.  As long as Jesus was there, everything was fine.  He had answered every question they had ever asked and handled every problem that they had ever encountered.  No matter what transpired, it was always enough to simply have Jesus there with them.

            But now it’s different.  Jesus tells them that He has dropped these heavy tidings on them so that when these things happen, they will remember that Jesus had told them.  What great comfort was there in that?  Can you imagine how the apostles felt at this point?  According to their Master, who has always told them the truth, they are going to face trials that they have never before faced.  To make matters worse, Jesus keeps hinting that He Himself will not be with them.

            If there is any question about Jesus leaving them, Jesus makes it clear in verses 5-6, “But now I go away 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.”  What an understatement.  No wonder sorrow has filled their hearts – Jesus has now stated bluntly that He is going away.  How can they possibly face what is coming without Jesus? 

            Now we come to verse 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 depart, I will send Him to you.”  There it is.  Jesus says to these men who are trembling with fear, “It is better for you, if I leave you.”  I’m amazed that our text does not immediately read, “But Peter said unto Him, ‘Lord, you will never leave us.’”  Or, “But Philip said unto Him, ‘Lord, we don’t understand how you can be the Messiah and leave those you love.’”  The way I see it, Jesus didn’t give them opportunity to interrupt, but He knew well what they were thinking.

            Now stop and think about it.  Jesus said that it was to their advantage that He leave them.  While you are thinking about that, think of something else.  Go back to our discussion about Moses and Isaiah hearing the voice of God, about how wonderful it would be for us to be able to see Jesus and hear His voice.  If we apply Jesus’ words to us, we must understand that it is better for us that we do not see Jesus and hear His audible voice.  If that is better for the apostles, then it is better for us.  It is to our advantage that Jesus left this earth and will not return until that final day when He comes for His own. 

            Now let me try to illustrate what Jesus is saying.  Let’s suppose that young Tommy is having a hard time.  His parents have split up.  He lives with his mom, but he misses his dad.  The kids in his fourth-grade class are not very understanding.  One day Tommy is on the verge of tears, and his classmates respond by teasing him without mercy and  calling him a “baby.”  Because of all the hurts and disappointments in his life, he is seriously considering joining one of the gangs.  He has friends who are members of these various gangs. 

But then one day Tommy is befriended by Philip, an 18-year-old who seems to genuinely care about him.  Philip helps him with his homework, takes him on hikes, and listens to him share his heartaches.  As time goes on, it is obvious that Philip has become a huge positive influence in Tommy’s life.  Everyone around Tommy has noticed a great change in him.

Tommy’s 18^th birthday promises to be a grand celebration.  Yes, Philip is there, as always.  After the festivities are over and everyone else is gone, Philip sits Tommy down for a long talk.  Though delivered with compassion and gentleness, Philip’s words are firm.  He tells Tommy that he is going to be moving out of state.  He also shares that the main reason for this decision involves Tommy.  You see Philip realizes that Tommy has become overly dependent upon him.  Though he had been a great help to Tommy, now the time has come for Tommy to learn to stand on his own two feet.  He won’t be able to do that, until Philip is removed from his life for a time.  Though Tommy protests, Philip assures him that this is for his own good.

So what do you think of my little illustration?  Though there may be some parallels, that is not a good illustration of what we have here.  Why not?  Because Jesus did not depart so that His apostles could stand on their own.  As a matter of fact, Jesus left for the opposite reason.  He knew very well that His apostles were not capable of making it on their own.  Then why did Jesus leave?  He tells in verse 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 depart, I will send Him to you.” 

            We know the identity of the Helper (Comforter) from our study two weeks ago.  Back in chapter 14 Jesus tells us  that the Helper is none other than the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in Jesus’ name (see Jn. 14:16-17,26).  Jesus is saying that it is better for them that He depart so that the Holy Spirit can come to them. 

            We still want to cry out, “Why?”  Could anything be better than having Jesus there in person?  Later the apostle John would write these words in I John 1:1, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life.”  Yes, they had seen Him day after day, listened to Him hour after hour, and had actually reached out and touched Him.  This same John was the one who leaned on Jesus’ breast at the last supper.  Could anything  possibly be better than that?  The Jesus who never lied to His disciples or anyone else clearly said, “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 depart, I will send Him to you.”  No matter how we may feel about the situation, Jesus makes it clear that the best thing He could do was depart, so that the Helper could come to them. 

            At this point please allow me to deal with two questions.  First of all, why did Jesus have to depart in order for the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to come?  Couldn’t the Holy Spirit come while Jesus was with them?  In a sense, wasn’t the Holy Spirit with them, because the Holy Spirit rested upon Jesus?  Jesus’ words here in 16:7 clearly imply that the coming of the Spirit would be more than what they were experiencing as a result of Jesus’ present relationship with the Spirit.  His words assure us that the Spirit could not come while Jesus was still with them.  But why?

            We could give all kinds of reasoned explanations, but I think it best that we simply go back to what John said in that passage that we are deliberately setting before us again and again.  John 7:37-39, “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, ‘If any man thirsts, let him come to me and drink.  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.’  [That is what Jesus said.  Now in verse 39 we have the explanation of John].  (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified).”  The Spirit could not come until after Jesus was glorified.  But what is this about Jesus being glorified?  What does it mean?  Again, we don’t have to wonder, because Jesus Himself tells us.  In John’s account of the gospel there are many references to Jesus being glorified, but the picture becomes much clearer in John 12:23-24, “But Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.  Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.”  In the context of being glorified, Jesus begins to speak of His own death.  Then come to Jesus’ prayer shortly before He would go out in the garden and then be arrested.  Let’s read it in John 17:1-5…

Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 2 as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 4 I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

            What hour had come?  The hour, the time, of His death.  Jesus was so submitted to the will of His Father that He could speak of it as already done:  “I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work with You have given Me to do” (17:4).  Verse 5 indicates that His being glorified began at the cross and would end in His return to the right hand of His Father.  Jesus’ death would bring glory to both Him and His Father because this was the very reason He came; this was the divine plan.  And the way back to His Father and the glory they had shared together for all eternity was through the cross.

            So this is why it was absolutely necessary for Jesus to depart before the Spirit could come.   It was Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension to the Father that gave Him a reason to send the Spirit.  Until Jesus died and rose, there was no life to offer through the Spirit. 

            Let’s also deal with a second question:  Who is it that would send the Spirit?  Surely we can find the answer from simply reading the closing words of 16:7, “…but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.”  Jesus says clearly that He will send the Spirit.”  Jesus has already spoke of this back in 15:26, “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.”  Again, Jesus says that He will send the Helper, but He says that He will send Him “from the Father.”  Furthermore, He tells us that the Spirit of truth proceeds from the Father.  Now let’s go to Acts 2, where we find the fulfillment of this promise, the actual sending of the Spirit.  Peter is preaching, explaining to the people what was going on, as the 120 followers of Jesus proclaimed wonderful works of God so that everyone could understand their speech.  Let’s read it in Acts 2:32-33, “This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.”  So in the actual historical account, we read that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit, whom the Father had promised.

            However, that is not the end of the story.  Do you remember what we read last time, when we were looking at John 14?  Let’s read it again in John 14:26, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”  When introducing the Helper, Jesus clearly says that the Father will send Him in Jesus’ name.  So Jesus Himself states that the Father will send the Spirit, then a few minutes later seems to contradict Himself by saying that He Himself will send the Spirit.  There is no contradiction here.  The Father and the Son are one.  They work together.  Jesus and the Father send; the Spirit goes.  The Spirit is sent by the Father in that He is the One who initiates everything, but He is sent by the Son in that the Son is the One who executes the will of the Father.

Conclusion

            Now let’s come back to the main point.  Jesus clearly said, “It is to your advantage that I go away, so that the Helper, the Spirit, will come.”  What could be clearer?  “If I depart, I will send Him to you.”  Here is the great question I want us to consider:  Do we believe Jesus?  Someone responds:  “Of course, we believe Jesus.  We can always believe Him.  Jesus only speaks the truth.”  Okay, that’s fine.  We know how what we should believe.  We can all say the right words.  But I am asking you to weigh your response down deep inside.  Do you really believe that it is better for you to have His Spirit than for Jesus Himself to be walking beside you in the flesh?  If you could trade the presence of the Spirit for the physical presence of Jesus, would you do so?  Think about it this way:  “Do you really believe that you have an advantage by having the Spirit?”

            Please allow me to return to my tennis terms “ad in” and “ad out.”              Picture yourself across the net from Satan and all his demons.  Most of us heard Tracy remind us that all true believers are engaged in a war, and one of our enemies is the devil.  You are serving.  Can you see yourself looking across the net and saying, “Ad in”?  Do you hear yourself saying, “The advantage is mine”?  In reality, it depends upon what you believe and experience of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit.  On your own, you can never have the advantage over Satan.  Even if Jesus in the flesh were standing beside you, you would not have the advantage.  Remember that Jesus departed, that Jesus died and rose, so that He might send His Spirit.  That is when we can say, “The advantage is mine.”  It isn’t because of any confidence in yourself, but because your confidence is in Him who has blessed you with His Spirit, the One called alongside to help you in whatever way you need. 

            This week I challenge you to ponder that great question:  “Do I believe that His disciples were better off having Him leave so that the Spirit could come?   Do I really believe that having the Spirit is better than having Jesus in the flesh?”  When you get alone with the Lord later today, ponder that question before Him.  Do the same on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday.  Let us meditate on this great truth from the words of our Lord.

            Lord willing, next week we will be looking at why it is to our advantage that Jesus departed and sent the Spirit. 

Introducing the Comforter -- 6/3/12

Sunday, June 3, 2012

INTRODUCING  THE  COMFORTER

John 14:16-27

            Last Sunday we began our pursuit of the theme:  “The Ministry of the Spirit.”  Our starting point emphasized our great need of the work of the Spirit in our lives.  Yes, the Holy Spirit is available to every believer.  However, until we see our need for His work in our lives, that truth has little meaning.  The simple fact is that because we know so little about real need, it is rather easy for us to become accustomed to life apart from dependence upon the Holy Spirit.  We have plenty to eat, much more than just a dry place to sleep, ample means of transportation, along with more comforts and luxuries than most everyone on the planet.  These conditions often lead us to an attitude of supply rather than a recognition of need.  The world lulls us to sleep with its lullaby…

                        You see that all is well;

                        So give no heed

                        To the voice that would tell

                        You of your great need.

            But as we come to the Word of God and wait upon the Lord, we begin to see that we are indeed a needy people.  As we look at our own lives in light of what we find in the New Testament, we are forced to ask questions about the presence and power of the Spirit in our lives.  While we know that it is the Spirit who gives us life, we wonder if we are availing ourselves of God’s supply of His Spirit.  When we read passages like John 7:37-39, we question the reality of those rivers of living waters in our lives.  Surely when we look away from the world and focus on the Lord and His Word, we can see our great need to be filled with the Spirit of God.

            Now let me pause and ask you some questions.  And yes, I want you to respond.  Am I by myself?  Am I the only one that is sensing a great need for the work of the Spirit in my life?  Have you been praying about the Spirit’s work in your life, or was the enemy successful in keeping you so busy that you forgot until we gathered again this morning?  Does anyone else recognize a great need for the work of the Spirit?  Does anyone else sense a need for the Spirit’s work in the life of this church as a whole?  [Give time for response]

            Please hear me.  We must recognize our need.  Down through the years great men of God have recognized this truth and have turned their hearts to seek the Lord.  Miles Stanford puts it simply:  “Now it so happens that God’s basic ingredient for growth is need” (The Compete Green Letters, p. 18).  Many of us are familiar with the slogan, “No pain, no gain.”  Though it doesn’t rhyme, just is true is, “No need, no growth.”  However, there is a danger in focusing on our need.  While it is necessary, there is a downside that can devastate us.  I am talking about discouragement.  I do my best to impress upon you our great need for the work of the Spirit in our lives.  As you think and pray about this issue, you become overwhelmed.  You see this sense of need as just one more thing to beat you down.  You feel like you are low enough already, without more guilt to bear. 

            The title of the message this morning is “Introducing the Comforter.”  According to Jesus, the Comforter is the Holy Spirit.  If we are going to spend our time examining the ministry of the Spirit, it is only right that we have a proper introduction to the Spirit.  So this morning let’s allow the Word of God to introduce us to the Spirit of God.

I.  The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament

            Consider some questions:  When did the Holy Spirit come into existence?  Did the Holy Spirit work in people’s lives before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ?  Do we read about the Spirit in the Old Testament?  Let us understand from the start that the Holy Spirit is God and He has no beginning.  Yes, He was active in the lives of people before Jesus was crucified and raised, and yes, we do indeed read about the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament.

            By the way, I need to pause for just a moment to explain something.  You will notice that I speak of the Holy Spirit as “He,” not “it.”  The King James translation of Rom. 8:16 is unfortunate:  “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”  Other translations, including the New Kin James, read “The Spirit Himself bears witness…”  When we come later to what Jesus says about the Spirit in John, we will find the Spirit referred to as “He.”  We must understand that Holy Spirit is not some impersonal force that God wields in this world.  The Holy Spirit is God and He is personal. 

            Where do we first encounter the Spirit in the Bible?  Let’s go back to the beginning and read Gen. 1:1-2, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.  And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”  There it is.  The Spirit of God is mentioned even before the Son of God.  At the dawn of creation, the Holy Spirit was present.

            We find references to the Holy Spirit all through the Old Testament, where He is referred to as “the Spirit,” “the Spirit of the Lord,” “the Spirit of God,” and “the Holy Spirit.”  While the word “spirit” is used 244 times in the Old Testament, only about 100 refer to God’s Spirit.  As we will see, though the Spirit is present in the Old Testament, there is a significant difference in the way He related to the saints of the old covenant and how He relates to the saints of the new covenant.  Here are a few Old Testament references to the Spirit…

Gen 6:3  "And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years."

Exo 31:2-5  "See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: 3.  And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 4.  To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, 5.  And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship."

Judg 6:34  "But the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him."

Judg 13:24-25  "And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him. 25.  And the spirit of the LORD began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol."

1 Sam 16:13-14  "Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. 14.  But the spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him."

2 Chr 20:14-15  "Then upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, came the Spirit of the LORD in the midst of the congregation; 15.  And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's."

2 Chr 24:20  "And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you."

Psa 51:10-12  "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 11.  Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 12.  Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit."

Isa 42:1  "Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles."

Isa 61:1-2  "The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2.  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;"

Ezek 36:26-27  "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27.  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them."

Joel 2:28-29  "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29.  And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit."

            These passages give us a flavor of the Spirit’s work among God’s people in Old Testament times.  On the one hand, we see the Spirit of God moving upon Samson, a man whose character was questionable at best.  But then we see the Lord God saying that He has put His Spirit upon His servant, and the identity of that servant is ultimately none other than our Lord Jesus Christ.  We see also that the presence of the Spirit in those times was transitory.  Just because a person had the Spirit upon him, that did not mean the Spirit would always be on him.  We read that the Spirit which had been placed upon Saul was later withdrawn from him.  We also read David’s plea that God would not take His Holy Spirit from him.  Notice also that the Spirit was often poured out on people for a specific task.  That was certainly true of Bezaleel, who was commissioned to do much work in the tabernacle.   It was the Spirit of God who equipped him with the understanding, wisdom, and knowledge to do such beautiful work.  In the same way, the Spirit came upon various judges, so that they might deliver the people from their enemies.

            We are going to be majoring on the work of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament, primarily because that is the age in which we live.  We live on this side of the cross.  Nevertheless, even in the Old Testament we see great promises of how God would send His Spirit at Pentecost and beyond.  We read such prophecies in both Ezekiel and Joel. 

II.  The Holy Spirit Introduced By Jesus

            Now let us come to the New Testament, where there are ___ references to the Spirit of God.  Our introduction to the Holy Spirit does not come through Pentecost, but rather through the lips of Jesus.  The work of the Holy Spirit is scattered throughout the New Testament, but it is in His words to His apostles on the last night that Jesus gives us an explanation of who the Spirit is.  In your mind mark John 14-16 as the place where you find Jesus’ teaching on the Holy Spirit.  This is a great place to start in our quest to understand and experience the ministry of the Spirit.  We will be coming back to these chapters again and again.  This certainly isn’t the first time Jesus has mentioned the Spirit, but it is here that He takes time to give some careful explanation of the Spirit’s ministry.  This morning I want us to look at Jesus’ words in John 14.  Let’s read John 14:13-27 (NKJV)...

And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. 15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper [KJV – Comforter], that He may abide with you forever-- 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. 19 "A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 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." 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?" 23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me. 25 "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper [KJV – Comforter], the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

            Notice that in this passage Jesus gives three names for the Spirit – Helper (Comforter in KJV), the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit.  Let’s take a moment to consider these three designations.  All three refer to the same Spirit, but each tells us something about the Spirit.  We are going to wait until last to consider Him as the Helper, or Comforter. 

            The Spirit is the Spirit of truth.  The first thing we notice is that the Spirit is closely connected to Jesus.  What did Jesus say about Himself earlier in this same chapter?  John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life…”  Jesus not only spoke the truth, but He is the truth.  Not only is He the truth, but He promised that the Spirit of truth would come to His followers.  So let us understand that the Spirit stands for truth.  He will reveal truth.  He will oppose all lies and falsehood.  In the fifth chapter of Acts, we find a husband and wife who lied to the Spirit and immediately died as a result.  Note that Jesus said the world cannot receive the Spirit of truth because it does not know Him.  That is because the world is under the dominion of Satan, who is the father of lies. 

            Jesus also identifies the promised Spirit as the Holy Spirit.  This is likely the most common designation that we use for the Spirit, but understand that it has meaning.  May we never forget that the Spirit is holy!  That is, He has been set apart to do heavenly work and He sets people apart to join Him in that work.  To put it bluntly, the Holy Spirit works to make people holy.  What shame it brings on the name of Christ when those who claim to follow Him give no evidence of a connection with the Holy Spirit because they don’t live holy lives.

            In this passage Jesus not only gives us three names for the Spirit, but He also tells us some things that the Spirit will do.  First, Jesus said that the Spirit will abide with us forever.  This is the very first thing Jesus said about Him.  Praise God!  That was great news for the apostles.  Jesus has been telling them and will continue to tell them that He is going to leave them, but the Spirit will come and abide with them forever.  Though Jesus would leave them, the Spirit will never leave them.  Nor will He leave us who belong to the Lord Jesus. 

            But it gets even better.  Notice what Jesus says in verse 17, “But you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.”  I have tended to make a sharp distinction between “with you” and “in you,” contending that in Jesus’ presence the Spirit was with them but after Pentecost He would be in them.  However, in light of what we read in verse 23, I have come to see that such a distinction is not valid, for there we are told that the Father and the Son will come and make their home with us.  Nevertheless, it is true that the Spirit would come to dwell within them.  Later on, we will explore more of the beauty of that truth.

            Because of the ministry of the Spirit, Jesus promises that He will not leave them as orphans.  We actually get our word “orphan” from the Greek word that is used here.  A father who is about to die and depart from his children, in a sense leaves them as orphans, for he has no choice.  But Jesus says in verse 18, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”  This is not some fairytale; this is reality.  This is the glory of the Spirit.  When we have the Spirit, we have Jesus.  When He said, “I will come to you,” He meant exactly what He said.  He would come to them in the presence of the Spirit.

            Then in verse 19 we see that the Spirit brings life.  Let’s read 19 again, “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.”  Don’t miss the connection.  Jesus is the one who will give them life, but He will do it through the Spirit.  That is the meaning of “But you will see Me.”  They will see Him through the Spirit.  This will not be physical sight, but it will be a real “seeing.”  After the Spirit has come, their sense of Jesus will be fully alive.

            Later on we will talk about the promise in verse 26, where Jesus says that the Spirit will teach them all things and bring to remembrance all the things He had said to them.  But now let’s go back to what Jesus said about the Helper, or Comforter.

III.  The Holy Spirit As Our Comforter

            Now let’s come back to what Jesus said about the Holy Spirit as the Helper or Comforter.  (Although we read the passage out of the New King James, I may have a tendency to use the term “Comforter” instead of “Helper”).  Notice first of all that while we most often use the term Holy Spirit, that isn’t the way Jesus introduces the Spirit to us here in John 14.  While He has spoken of “the Spirit” (using that very term) several times throughout His ministry, now that His departure is very close and He is giving His last instructions, He says, “I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Comforter…” (14:16). 

            Let’s be clear that this has direct application for us.  We will look at this in more detail later, but for now let me just assure us that the Father sends the Comforter to everyone who repents and trusts Jesus Christ.  There are no exceptions.  So this is a promise which we can claim.  The Comforter would come to those apostles over almost two months later on the day of Pentecost.  Ever since Pentecost, the Comforter comes to a person in association with His conversion.  If you are a child of God, the Comforter has come to you and dwells within you.

            I began this morning by talking about the real possibility of discouragement, when we consider our great need.  For when we think about our need, it is only natural for us to be reminded of our failures.  I don’t know about you, but a record of my failures would fill books.  I’m not talking about failures in business ventures, etc.; I’m talking about failures in loving and serving the Lord who loved me and gave His life for me.  When those things flood my mind, what is to prevent me from being overwhelmed with discouragement?  I have the Comforter within.

            That word is translated in a variety of ways – Comforter, Helper, Counselor, Advocate.  The Amplifed reads:  “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strenghener, Standby), that He may remain with you forever.”  This word is used five times in the New Testament.  Besides here in 14:16, we find it again in 14:26,”But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”  15:26, “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me.”  16:7, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come into you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.”  Repeatedly Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as the Comforter.

            If you were counting, you probably noticed that I only listed four references.  Where is the fifth?  It is in I John, and it does not refer to the Holy Spirit.  Let’s read it in I John 2:1, “My little children, these things write I unto you that ye sin not.  And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”  “Advocate” is the translation of the exact same word we find Jesus using to refer to the Holy Spirit.  But who is the Advocate in this verse?  It is Jesus.  So how can it be that the same term is used to refer to both Jesus and the Holy Spirit?

            Come back to John 14:16, “And I will pray the Father, and He will send you another Comforter” – not just a Comforter, but another Comforter.  In the Greek language there are two words for “another,” but they differ in meaning.  One means “another of the same kind,” while the other means “one of a different kind.”  Here it is the first.  Jesus said that the Father would send another Comforter of the same kind?  The same kind as what?  As Jesus Himself.  Jesus is the Comforter, the Advocate, the Counselor and Helper, but He is getting ready to leave them.  But the Father will send them another one like Jesus, and that other one is none other than the Holy Spirit.

            Now as to the meaning of that word, all of the translations we have read are fine.  Each one adds another facet of the Spirit’s ministry, but I also find the literal meaning of the word very helpful.  It literally means “one called alongside” (paraklhtoV).  Jesus was leaving, but in His place another like Him has been called alongside them and us.  Isn’t that a glorious truth!

           

Conclusion:  Let’s Take Courage

            We’ve looked at these great truths from the Word, which tell us about the one called alongside us.  Now let’s focus on what great news that is for each of us who is in Christ.  I also want to speak to this church as a body.  Paul said, “Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (I Cor. 3:16 NKJV).  I believe this is talking about more than the individual.  The “you” is plural.  “Don’t you know that you guys are the temple of God, and that the Spirit dwells in you guys?”  The Amplified reads like this:  “Do you not know discern and understand that you [the whole church at Corinth] are God’s temple [His sanctuary], and that God’s Spirit has His permanent dwelling in you [to be at home in you, collectively as a church and also individually]?”  We as a body are the temple of God and His Spirit dwells among us.

            Brothers and sisters, let’s be honest.  Discouragement is a great temptation for us.  Furthermore, it is very possible for us to be discouraged and not recognize it.  I would say that as a church, we are discouraged, whether we admit it or not.  That discouragement may be more prevalent in some than in others, but as a body, we are facing the paralysis that discouragement brings.

            Our discouragement doesn’t come as a result of pride but rides upon humility.  We recognize our weakness and our failures.  Even when the Lord uses us, we are painfully aware that there is much more He wants to do in us and through us.  When we are honest, we have to face the fact that we get settled into our routine and have very little sense of expectation from the Lord.  As one writer puts it, “Christian expectation in the average church follows the program, not the promises.  Prevailing spiritual conditions, however low, are accepted as inevitable.  What will be is what has been.  The weary slaves of the dull routine find it impossible to hope for anything better” (A. W. Tozer, in essay entitled “Faith Without Expectation Is Dead,” from The Best of A. W. Tozer, Book Two, p. 259).  It isn’t that we want to be discouraged, but we find ourselves there.

            Brothers and sisters, the Holy Spirit is our Comforter, our Helper, our Strengthener and Counselor.  He is the One called alongside us.  He lives within us and among us.  It is through Him that the promises of God are applied to our lives in a practical way…

Ps 46

            Listen to Rom. 8:26-27 (NKJV), “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. ^27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”  Immediately after this reference to the work of the Spirit we find these most encouraging words… (Rom. 8:28-39)

²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.  ²⁹ For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. ³⁰ Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.        ³¹ What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? ³² He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? ³³ Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. ³⁴ Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶ As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. ³⁷ Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. ³⁸ For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, ³⁹ Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

            Oh the discouragement of Jeremiah and those around him, which is expressed in Lamentations.  But in the middle of these mournings we find the words of Lam. 3:21-26 (NKJV)…

This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. 22 Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. 24 "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!" 25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him. 26 It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For the salvation of the Lord.

      I love the end of Psalm 84 (84:10-12)… 

For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. ¹¹ For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. ¹² O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee. 

            What about Psalm 34 (34:6-10)…

This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. ⁷ The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. ⁸ O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. ⁹ O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him. ¹⁰ The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.

            I encourage you to go home and read the book of Haggai.  It consists of two short chapters.  Most of us know how it begins.  Through the prophet Haggai, the Lord rebukes His people for building their own houses instead of the temple of the Lord.  We make application by pointing out our tendency to do our own thing before serving the Lord.  But there is much more to the book of Haggai.  Charles Spurgeon points out that these people were being battered by discouragement.  We are really hard on them, but understand that when they came to Jerusalem, there was plenty to be done.  They did need a place to live.  We can’t excuse their neglect of the temple, but we might be a bit more understanding. 

            Here is what is so encouraging about the story told by Haggai the prophet.  After the prophet spoke to the people in the name of the Lord, they obeyed and feared the Lord.  As Spurgeon notes, “Nothing so confounds the evil one as the voice of the Eternal” (“Abiding of the Spirit, the Glory of the Church”).  After the people obeyed and began to fear the Lord, the were given this great promise:  “I am with you, saith the Lord” (Hos. 1:13). 

            With that strong encouragement from the Lord, the people began to build, but do you know what happened?  They again became discouraged.  Why?  Because they realized that the temple they were building was as nothing compared to the great temple that Solomon had built.  Their resources were meager and their labor force was pathetic.  In their minds what they had to offer was not worthy of the Lord they worshipped.  Do you ever feel that way?  Do we

ever feel that way?  Listen to the Lord’s response through Haggai (2:3-9 NKJV)…

'Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? In comparison with it, is this not in your eyes as nothing? 4 Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel,' says the Lord; 'and be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, all you people of the land,' says the Lord, 'and work; for I am with you,' says the Lord of hosts. 5 'According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!' 6 "For thus says the Lord of hosts: 'Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,' says the Lord of hosts. 8 'The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,' says the Lord of hosts. 9 The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,' says the Lord of hosts. 'And in this place I will give peace,' says the Lord of hosts."

            Discouraged brothers and sisters, weary travelers in the this world, “Be strong.  Leaders in the church, be strong.  You who have accumulated some years and are tired, be strong.  You mothers who seem to have more responsibility than you can bear, be strong.  One and all, be strong.  Be strong and work, for the Lord says to you, ‘I am with you.  My Spirit remains among you; don’t be afraid.  The silver and the gold is mine.  I have all the resources you need to do what I call you to do.  I will do more in you than I ever did in the past.’”  The book of Haggai is a book of great encouragement.  Isn’t it interesting that Charles Spurgeon preaches a sermon out of this little book and entitles it “The Abiding of the Spirit, the Glory of the Church”!  In the bulletin I have noted where you can find his entire sermon and read it.

            Recall that promise from Jer. 33:3, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”  You might say, “But that word was given to Israel, not to us.”  Do you think that God’s promises to Israel were greater than His promises to us.  The entire New Testament sings with the truth of this verse.  We see its specific application over and over again, but nowhere more clearly than in the words of our Lord from John 7:37-38 (NKJV), “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of heart will flow rivers of living water.’”  Is the promise still good today?  Notice that Jesus doesn’t say He can give us living water.  He skips that step and proceeds to say that rivers of that living water will flow out of us to others.  Can the Lord still do it today?  Yes, because the Spirit is still with us.  John explains in verse 39 that this is the work of the Spirit, the One called alongside us.  “But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, which those believing in Him would receive, for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”  Praise God; Jesus has been glorified.  He died and has risen, and from His seat at the right hand of the Father He has sent the Spirit into the life of every person who trusts His Son.  Brothers and sisters, we have the privilege of coming to Jesus and keep on drinking from Him.

            If you are discouraged, take heart, because you have the Encourager, the Comforter, the One called alongside.  Let us rise up on the wings of faith and trust Him who is able to do more than we can ask or think.  Let’s trust the One who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light, the One who delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son.  We were dead, but He gave us life. 

            Some of you are not yet brothers and sisters in the Lord.  Be encouraged this morning.  Why do you think you are here?    Why do you think you have read from the Bible?  Why is there a sense of need in you?  Is it not because the Lord is working to draw you to Himself?  Cry out to Him who is able to save you, for whosever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.  Hear the Lord say, “Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth, for I am God, and there is none else” (Is. 45:22).  He is your only hope, but there is hope in Him.  Repent of your sins and trust the Lord Jesus.