The Holy Spirit

What do you think about when you think about the Holy Spirit?

If we are honest with ourselves, many from our tradition don’t think much about him.

He is usually avoided in our circles.

We love Jesus.

We love the Father,

But the third person of the trinity.

The Holy Spirit is often overlooked.

I’m not saying that we don’t think that he is important, but that most of our attention is given to God the Father and Jesus the son.

There can be many reasons for our tendency to overlook him.

One may be that we believe that his role in the Christian life isn’t as defined as the Father’s or Jesus’.

He may be avoided in baptist churches b/c there are those who we perceive as having hijacked the Holy Spirit and we don’t want to look like them.

Whatever the reason may be, in order to view God rightly, we must understand the Holy Spirit.

And not simply our thoughts about the HS, but rather Jesus’ teachings about the HS.

The reality is that for the follower of Jesus, there is no greater gift than the HS.

As we’ve been reading through John and especially throughout the last few chapters we have seen the goodness of God in the gift of the Holy Spirit.

But it is important for us to let Jesus and the Scriptures define what the HS will look like and what he will do.

Jesus is clear in the purpose and mission of the HS.

So let’s take a few moments to go over his teachings.

The First passage is in Jn 14:16-17

John 14:16–17 CSB

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever. 17 He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive him because it doesn’t see him or know him. But you do know him, because he remains with you and will be in you.

Here Jesus is telling them that he is going to send another of the same kind.

Someone who will be like Jesus guiding and directing the disciples to live a life of following Jesus.

The Paraclete, or HS, is going to remain with the disciples, but not just remain with them, he is going to make his dwelling place with them. He will never leave them.

Next, in Jn 14:25-26

John 14:25–26 CSB

25 “I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. 26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.

We learn here that the HS is going to reveal and remind the disciples of the things that Jesus taught.

The Paraclete is going to be a teacher.

A leader and a guide to the disciples.

John 15:26 CSB

26 “When the Counselor comes, the one I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me.

The Paraclete is sent from the father and the son.

He is the Spirit of truth who testifies or witnesses concerning Jesus.

I want you to notice that when the Holy Spirit/ Paraclete is spoken of, he is spoken of not as a force.

He is a person.

Now why is it important for the follower of Jesus to know about and learn about the Holy Spirit.

Why did Jesus find it necessary to teach these things.

B/c he know that we had a mission set before us.

That we were saved not to simply reach heaven, but to preach the gospel.

We were saved to tell others about Jesus.

To make his name known.

To bring Glory to God as we walked this earth.

The mission Jesus sets us out on is bigger than ourselves.

It’s bigger than what we can see.

We are on a mission to walk with Jesus so that he can save the lost.

We need to know that our salvation is bigger than ourselves.

Jesus calling us out of darkness and into his marvelous light is more than just personal.

It’s a proclamation. It’s a calling to walk with Jesus and show the world his goodness and grace.

We have been saved to do good works.

These are our marching orders.

But we also can’t do it alone.

So Jesus together with the Father send us divine help through the holy spirit.

So we have taken a quick glance at what Jesus has said so far about the HS, and this morning we are going to look at what else he has to say concerning the HS.

But before we do, let’s pray.

John 16:4–6 CSB

4 But I have told you these things so that when their time comes you will remember I told them to you. I didn’t tell you these things from the beginning, because I was with you. 5 But now I am going away to him who sent me, and not one of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 Yet, because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.

Jesus’ Departure

Jesus begins this section by telling the disciples that he hasn’t told them these things yet?

So when Jesus talks about “these things” what is he speaking about.

First, he is talking about his departure.

He is preparing them for him leaving them.

He has spoken about his death and departure, but only cryptically.

Or in ways that the disciples wouldn’t understand or see until after his death.

But now he is concerned about their preparation for his departure.

B/c the time is soon.

He doesn’t want them to be caught off guard.

He didn’t tell them about the HS or clearly about what they would endure after his departure until this point b/c he was still with them.

He was still teaching them.

He didn’t want them to worry about the future b/c there was much for them to learn.

I don’t know about you, but if I walked with Jesus and if at any point b4 this he told me that he was going to leave and die, I would have had mixed emotions.

I would have either said to myself, what’s the point of following him if he is going to be gone.

I would have been distracted worried about the time when he is going to leave.

Worried about when and how he was going to die.

How it was going to affect me and the rest of us.

Let’s be honest, most of the time when we get bad or upsetting news all we can focus on is how it’s going to affect us and not the bigger picture of what’s going on.

So that’s why Jesus is just now laying out his departure.

He didn’t want his leaving to weigh heavy on the disciples hearts.

The second thing Jesus is that Jesus hadn’t yet revealed their mission.

The disciples are just now learning what it will truly mean to follow Jesus.

What it will mean to lay their life down for the sake of the gospel.

And even now they don’t know everything, but in time they will learn that following Jesus is a life a sacrifice.

And that at the cross of Jesus, history is going to change for everyone.

And their purpose and mission to tell others about the beauty of Calvary.

The third thing that Jesus had not revealed but is now, is that the message of Jesus is going to stir up reactions to his followers.

The disciples are going to face the world’s hatred for Jesus.

Most of these men are going to die for the message they bring.

The world, those opposed to Jesus are going to hate his followers.

They are going to hate his message and they will lash out at those devoted to Jesus.

So what’s the main reason that Jesus didn’t tell them “these things”

B/c he was with them.

Jesus’ life and ministry took the brunt of the persecution.

He acted as a buffer for the disciples.

All of the hatred.

All of the anger.

All of the persecution was pointed at the Jesus.

But Jesus’ departure was going to remove that buffer.

That comfort and shield they had was going to be gone.

And now they were going to face the persecution.

They were going to feel the hatred.

They were going to be the recipients of the anger.

So Jesus wants them to be prepared.

He wants the to know.

So he prepares them.

And in preparing them, it overwhelms the disciples.

Their worries become selfish and self-centered.

That’s why Jesus gently rebukes them in v. 5

Jn 16:5 “5 But now I am going away to him who sent me, and not one of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’”

Some find a contradiction in this verse.

B/c both Peter and Thomas ask Jesus where he is going in

Jn 13:36 “36 “Lord,” Simon Peter said to him, “where are you going?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow later.””

Jn 14:5 “5 “Lord,” Thomas said, “we don’t know where you’re going. How can we know the way?””

But notice that these concerns are not aimed at Jesus’ departure, but rather on their future.

They have a self centered view about Jesus.

But here, Jesus is confronting them b/c they aren’t concerned about his departure.

Rather they are wallowing in self pity, and overwhelmed by what is going to happen.

What they don’t understand and fail to comprehend is that what is going to take place in just a few short hours from this teaching is more important than their comfort and safety.

The cross is greater than their problems.

But their grief is too much.

So much so that Jesus knows the sorrow they are filling.

Jn 16:6 “6 Yet, because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.”

These men had spent the last 3 years with Jesus.

And now Jesus tells them that they are going to be with out them.

But up to this point he has been telling them that they will not be alone.

They are going to be supported and empowered by the Paraclete, the HS.

And Jesus then drops this little nugget on the disciples.

John 16:7 CSB

7 Nevertheless, I am telling you the truth. It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send him to you.

Benefit

This is a pretty bold statement by Jesus.

How can it possibly be to their benefit that Jesus leaves?

They walked with Jesus.

They learned from Jesus.

They witnessed the miraculous signs of Jesus.

How is it Better that he leave?

I mean, if we are honest with ourselves, many of us, myself included, are kinda jealous of the disciples.

How many of us wished that we could go back and walk with Jesus?

That we could take the place of one of the disciples.

Or even could have been a fly on the wall to watch Jesus teach and preach.

And yet here, to those men that spent time with Jesus he is saying, it’s better that I go away.

It’s better for you if I go away.

Let’s think about how it is to our advantage or a benefit that Jesus doesn’t walk the earth anymore.

First, we now have uninterrupted fellowship with Jesus.

While Jesus walked the earth, he was limited in space and in time.

He chose to limit himself to be bound by the same things that we are bound by.

We can’t be all places at once. And the same thing was true for Jesus.

In fact, there are times in the Scriptures where the disciples were away from Jesus.

And when things went sideways, they had to wait for him to show up and do something about it.

Jesus’ earthly ministry was localized. But now it is universalized.

There is no limit to where Jesus ministers.

Through the HS God dwells with us.

One preacher put it this way. “The Spirit inside us is better than the Jesus beside us.”

If Jesus still walked the earth could you imagine the amount of people that would be clamoring to get a glimpse of him.

Especially with the way Social Media is today.

In Jesus’ day he had immense crowds following him, but with social media it would be outrageous.

But with Jesus’ death and departure he gives us something better than his physical presence.

He gives us his dwelling presence within each and every believer.

God is with us at all times and in all places.

But with Jesus’ departure, his presence is not limited.

He is everywhere all at once.

Not only that, but Jesus’ departure brings about the fulfillment of Scripture.

Think about those verses we read just earlier.

They were about God pouring out his Spirit on people.

That pouring out was accomplished b/c of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

God’s plan of redemption would not have been accomplished without Jesus’ departure and the sending of the spirit.

Also the coming of the spirit makes Jesus’ presence no longer external but internal.

The beautiful thing about the HS is that he will never leave us b/c he is always with us.

He has made his dwelling place inside of us.

He brings us to life through Jesus’ resurrection power.

And as we walk this road of following Jesus the spirit can personally and purposfully meet our needs.

When we hurt or are suffering he comforts us.

He illumines our minds as we read and study the scriptures.

As we fellowship with other believers he is with us.

His work in us is assurance of our salvation.

Eph 1:13-14 “13 In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed. 14 The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory.”

His living in you proves that you belong to Jesus.

The Spirit living in us also conforms us to the image of Jesus.

Through the process of Sanctification, the HS changes our hearts, desires, and minds to look like and act like Jesus.

His purpose in saving us is to make us look more like Jesus.

The HS also empowers us in the ministry.

As we are doing the work set out before us by God the power works in us and through us to call people to salvation.

He pushes us to be good stewards of our time, finances, and energy.

He changes the hearts of those he calls.

So walking with Jesus would have been awesome, but lets not over look the fact that if we belong to Jesus we get to walk with him everyday.

And if Jesus said it was too their advantage or benefit that he goes, then you better believe that it was.

But what about when the HS comes, what is that going to look like?

What is he going to do not just for believers but for everyone else?

It’s and interesting question, and I’m glad that Jesus answers it.

John 16:8–11 CSB

8 When he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment: 9 About sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; 11 and about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

Spirit Brings Conviction

The mission of the spirit when he comes is to bring conviction of sin.

He comes and exposes the sin at the heart of people.

Much like Jesus did while he walked the earth, the spirit will bring light into the darkness. He will expose the wickedness and the evil in men’s hearts.

In v. 9 we see that Jesus said that the greatest sin is unbelief.

Think about that for a second.

The greatest sin in all the world is unbelief and that’s what the spirit comes to change.

The gospel of John is littered with pictures and examples of those who believe and those who don’t believe.

And time and time again, the ones who believe are the ones that are celebrated.

Too often we view people as problems to be solved.

They need to get away from their drinking, their sexual immorality, their anger, hatred, or fill in the blank.

But here Jesus is saying that the greatest sin isn’t those things, it’s the sin of unbelief.

B/c when the spirit draws people to himself and points them to Jesus and they believe then God can work on those outward sins.

But the sins of the flesh will not be overcome until those who believe are given a new heart.

Until they are transformed by the work of the HS in the belief of Jesus as the Savior.

But he will also expose and convict the world about righteousness.

There are two types of righteousness talked about in John’s gospel.

There is the righteousness apart from God, that is self-righteousness.

Then there is the righteousness of God.

When the Christian talks about righteousness he is talking about right standing before God.

Self-righteousness is the belief that you are better than you think you are.

That you are good with God based on your own works.

That you are better than people b/c you live a life that is seen closer to God.

Here’s the thing, our best efforts.

Our best attempts at righteousness will never please God.

You could be outwardly moral.

Generous. You could read your bible.

You could do all the right things, but you still stand guilty before God.

Is 64:6 “6 All of us have become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like a polluted garment; all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.”

Our good works according to our own self-righteousness is unacceptable to God.

They are tainted by sin. They are worthless.

We can’t come to God based on our own good works, b/c even our good works flow from a place of filth.

But there is only one righteousness that actually makes us right with God an that is Jesus’ righteousness.

He is the one who cleanses.

He is the one that makes us right with God and that is b/c he lived the perfect life.

He died in our place.

And he rose again.

Jesus’ work wasn’t tainted by sin. It wasn’t polluted by selfishness.

So if you want to be made right with God it isn’t about what you do, It’s about what Jesus Did.

Jesus also said that the mission of the spirit is expose the judgement of the world.

The world, those hostile to Jesus, acted as judge, jury, and executioner towards Jesus.

They viewed Jesus as guilty.

So they judged him and crucified him.

They Judged wrongly.

They were enticed and led astray by the ruler of this world. Satan. The prince of darkness

But the HS when he comes is going to expose their wrong judgement.

He is going to judge them according to the standard of Jesus.

And he can rightly Judge b/c Jesus overcame sin and death.

He defeated the prince of darkness.

He rightly holds the keys to life and has overcome the grave.

The ruler of the world is guilty. And he will receive his punishment.

One of the things I want us to see throughout these few verses is that the HS is the ultimate Evangelist.

He wants to expose sin for the purpose of belief.

And one of the beautiful things about it is that He calls us along to see his work.

The Spirit of the Lord is at work in the World. He is accomplishing his purpose and his mission.

And he invites us to walk alongside us.

And uses us as his instruments to bring many to salvation.

This is seen in Acts 2. The spirit comes down on the disciples of Jesus and they go out preaching the gospel.

At that meeting in the upper room there are 120 followers of Jesus.

By the end of the day there were now about 3000 new believers.

Why?

B/c the disciples went out and preached the gospel.

And the Spirit convicted those listening of their sin, their lack of righteousness, and the judgement to come.

We can’t be faithful or fruitful without the help of the HS.

We can’t be evangelists on our own.

In our own power.

We can’t do what we have been called to do as followers of Jesus alone.

So God graciously sends us the HS to help us accomplish what he has called us to do.

So as followers of Jesus we should be out telling the world about the good news of Jesus.

We have the best news in the world. Why do we hold it so close?

There is power in the gospel message b/c there is power in the HS.

Listen to what Paul said in 1 Thes1.5 “5 because our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, in the Holy Spirit, and with full assurance...”

Rom1:16 “16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek.”

But the HS, the Paraclete doesn’t just have a mission, he also has a ministry toward all believers.

John 16:12–15 CSB

12 “I still have many things to tell you, but you can’t 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, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come. 14 He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. 15 Everything the Father has is mine. This is why I told you that he takes from what is mine and will declare it to you.

Ministry of the Holy Spirit

There are still instructions and teachings that those First disciples needed in order to set up and lead the churches that God was going to establish.

But they are overwhelmed by what they are hearing and the events that they will face.

So Jesus in his goodness, tells them that the HS is going to minister to their needs.

He is going to lead them into all truth.

He is going to teach them and guide them to know what they need to know.

He is going to answer the questions they may have.

He is going to minister to their hearts, minds, and souls.

And they can trust what he teaches b/c he only teaches what comes from the Father.

The HS will not and cannot contradict what has already been said.

For these first followers of Jesus, the HS was going to lead them to truth so that they can teach and pass on the truths they learned to those that will follow them.

Jesus said that the HS will remind them of all that he said (Jn 14:26) “26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.”

And here Jesus tells them that the HS will lead them into all truth.

So for these first followers of Jesus the HS was inspiring them to write the Scriptures that you hold in your hand.

It’s beautiful that God would preserve his word for over 2000 years so that we can have access to the same truths that those first followers had.

But there is a difference between the HS leading those first disciples into truth and him leading us into truth today.

Those first followers of Jesus were reminded of what Jesus said, did, and taught.

We don’t have that advantage.

We didn’t walk with Jesus.

But We do have the advantage of the retellings of what Jesus did.

We find this same truth that the disciples had in the pages of the Scriptures we have.

One of the desires of the true believer’s heart is that they want to know God more.

I hear it often that I want to hear God speak.

I want to hear from God.

And Yet those who want to hear from God don’t open the word he has given us.

Our search for truth and for God is found in His Word.

That as we read and study the HS opens our eyes to the truths within.

Are you searching for truth?

Find it in God’s Word.

Do you want to hear God speak?

Read your bible.

Do you want to hear him speak audibly?

Read your bible out loud.

There may be some of you here who haven’t given your life to Jesus.

The HS may be convicting you of sin right now.

Turn to Jesus.

Turn away from your sin and find life in his Name.

Let’s Pray.