Private Ministry: Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit (14:15-31)

Introduction:

We learned last week, in the context of the sobering confrontation that Jesus had with his disciples, that Jesus offered the encouraging hope that will be necessary to see them through the journey. This hope came in the form of another of Jesus’ great “I AM” statements, where he claims his own exclusive sufficiency by stating, I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life from John 14:1-14. We ended with the declaration to his disciples, that they would do greater works then he did, because Jesus goes to his Father.

This morning, we will look at the next step in his encouragement for his disciples, as we are given insight into how this work will be possible. With Jesus gone, who will enable them to carry out this work? The who, as Jesus departs to prepare a place for them, is none other then the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit, so let’s listen as we hear that Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit from John 14:15-31.

Text: John 14:15-31

John 14:15–31 ESV

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. 18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is 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 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 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. 25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 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 that I have 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 hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

Main Idea: Since Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit who will be our enduring companion, we will be empowered with divine peace and guidance to carry out his commands.

One of the amazing attributes of God, is His covenantal love for his people, a love that desires to dwell with them:

Exodus 29:45 ESV

45 I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God.

Ezekiel 37:27 ESV

27 My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

We see this played out in this passage as Jesus prepares to leave his disciples, but not without the promise of God’s presence with them.

I. Presence Promised (15-18)

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

If you love me, you will keep. The proof of love for Christ is not an oral profession but living obedience, just as Israel was to demonstrate love for the Lord by allegiance to His commands, declared in the shema, the most import Jewish confession (Deut. 6:4–6).

Deuteronomy 6:4–6 ESV

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.

What is in our heart is reveals itself in our actions.

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,  

will ask the Father, and he will give. Both the Father and the Son are active in sending the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:33). He is the Spirit of God, the Spirit of the Father (Gen. 1:2), and the Spirit of Christ, the Son (Rom. 8:9).

another (allos [adj] - one besides) Helper (parakletos [noun]). The Gk. word translated “Helper” was used in legal language for an advocate for the defense (1 John 2:1), and more generally for one called upon for help. Jesus was such a help for the disciples; and after His ascension, the Holy Spirit will assume that work. The term emphasizes the personality of the Holy Spirit as distinct from the Father and the Son, and also His unity with them in the work of redemption.

to be with you forever - he will take the place of Jesus on a permanent basis.

17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

the Spirit of truth. Here also the Spirit is noted as being equal to the Father (cf. 15:26) and the Son (v. 6). The “Spirit of truth” is the authority behind the Bible.

the world. Sinful humanity as contrasted with God’s redeemed people (1 John 2:15–17).

with you and will be in you. The Spirit lives in believers (1 Cor. 3:16, 17).

1 Corinthians 3:16 ESV

16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?

18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

I will come to you. Jesus refers primarily to the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, since the mutual indwelling, “you in me, and I in you” (v. 20), will not await the second coming of Christ. In a world that will give them tribulation (16:33), Jesus’ followers will not be defenseless orphans because He will be with them in their trials through the Spirit of truth. But these words are also appropriate for the hope of the church. Jesus will also return, visibly and bodily, to exalt the redeemed to rule and reign with Him (Acts 1:11).

With the promise of the Holy Spirit, Jesus now shows them a…

II. Love That Lives (19-24)

19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.

the world will see me no more - the human presence of Jesus will be gone shortly after his death and resurrection…

but - shows the contrast between the world system in general and God’s covenant people…

you will see me - Jesus presence will always be with his followers (as we will see here shortly), and that, mutually…

Because I live, you also will live. This emphasizes again the truth of John 11:25, 26. Life is to be found only in Jesus Christ (v. 6; 1:4). Pointing to his own resurrection…

John 11:25–26 ESV

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

Note again the emphatic verb will live, it is not a hope-so promise, or a it-might-happen promise, but it is an absolute promise that because Christ lives, we will live!

20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.

In that day - this may point to the day in which we will live also (context), but there is a right now fulfillment in the coming of the Holy Spirit.

you will know (ginosko [fut, mid, ind] - to know experientially and intimately). What will they know intimately?

I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. The mutual indwelling (perichoreses) of the persons of the Trinity is paralleled by the mutual indwelling of Christ and the believer. We will see this more fully when we get to chapter 15.

21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me - a restatement of verse 15, but from the perspective of this mutual indwelling, emphasizing the possibility of doing so.

And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him. Just as there is reciprocal indwelling, there is also the deepest mutual love.

manifest myself to him - there will no longer be any doubt, because of the Father/Son/Believer’s mutual love, the believer will experience the very presence of God in all circumstances. He will no longer view life from its content alone, but from the context of God’s love and presence, thus a constant revelation of himself to the believer in all circumstances.

22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?”

Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself - A fair question since up to this point Jesus public ministry was a display of continually revealing who he was to the masses who followed him. So what makes this different?

to us, and not to the world. Judas (not Iscariot) understood Jesus correctly, but he was probably hoping also for a political triumph that would be visible to all. After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His followers whom He commissioned as His witnesses. But Jesus is speaking more broadly of manifesting Himself to all believers, not only apostolic witnesses, whose love for Christ shows that they are His sheep.

23 Jesus answered 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.

Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him - Again, restating what he has already said, but this time Jesus answers him with both the physical revelation of a love for God that is manifested by keeping his commands, and a spiritual revelation to that believer that results from this mutual indwelling. The world will not and cannot understand this, for the essence of the trinity makes him…

our home. (Gk. monē, “room, dwelling place”) is the same word used in a different context in v. 2. Just as the Father and the Son now make their home with Christians in this age, Jesus is preparing for them a place in heaven where they will one day live with God (vv. 2–3).

As the Holy Spirit indwells the believer, so also the Father and the Son do so through the Spirit’s presence (Rom. 8:9–11; Rev. 3:20).

Romans 8:9–11 ESV

9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

Therefore, the short answer to Judas’ question is, God manifest himself to believers by taking up residence within them. in contrast…

24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.

Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. - this contrast is critical, for it declares the true believer from the false, and critically acclaims…

the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me - this reality once again shows that to reject the words of Jesus through disobedience, is to reject the words of the Father, thus incurring his judgment, and there will be no manifestation to them…no indwelling an unbeliever.

So what is the outcome of these truths? We’ve seen the Presence Promised of the Holy Spirit who will come from the Father and Son to be our helper. We’ve also seen a Love That Lives, a promise that the reality of the living Christ promises us that we will also live, and that in the meantime, God will manifest himself to us by taking up residence in us. Therefore, with all that said, the result is…

III. Peace Provided (25-31)

25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you.

Jesus words given to his disciples are clearly delineated, however, what has happened so often with them, they do not clearly understand, so how will they understand? How will they get it?

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 that I have said to you.

the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send. BTW, we will also see in 15:26 it is the Son who sends the Spirit. The Father and Son concur in this sending.

will teach you all things. All things that they need to know for their apostolic mission (16:13). John’s comments on events that the disciples come to understand only later (John 2:22; 12:16; 20:9) exemplify the fruit of this promised mission of the Holy Spirit.

bring to your remembrance all. This statement shows the divine intention in the teaching work of the Holy Spirit: the Spirit’s teaching agrees with the teaching of Jesus Himself.

He will glorify Christ (16:13–15) by ensuring that the words of Jesus will be preserved for the instruction of the church (Matt. 24:35). These promises given to the apostles were fulfilled in the preaching of the apostles and in the completion of the NT Scriptures.

all that I have said to you - This promise will be found in the completion of the four Gospels; the promise of John 16:13–15 found particular fulfillment in the remaining books of the NT.

John 16:13–15 ESV

13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

These promises continue to be fulfilled as God’s people learn from the Scriptures, which are inspired by God and sufficient to equip us for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16, 17).

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 hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Anxiety stems from the unknowns in our life. Whether it be direction, purpose, the future, or whatever else. Jesus is declaring that with all the has been said up to this point, the unknowns that are necessary for us, become knowns by the imparting of divine truth and therefore he says, …

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. This was a common Hb. salutation used in greeting or farewell. Jesus gives it a new and deeper sense that reappears in the salutations of the NT letters. Jesus’ peace is true reconciliation with God, purchased with His death (Rom. 5:1). It is the supreme remedy for all fears (v. 1; 16:33), and the legacy Jesus has left for His heirs.

Not as the world gives do I give to you - this peace cannot be found anywhere in the world system.

Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. - We’ve come full circle around from John 14:1, but now we have the how and why that this is true, and the results that are now possible with this peace.

It’s like Jesus is saying to his disciples, you have my peace, you have my words, and you have the mutual indwelling of the Godhead, there is nothing for you to fear.

Romans 8:31–32 ESV

31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.

I am going away, and I will come to you. - the mutual declaration of what the Lord needed to accomplish, with his promise of return when it is accomplished.

If you loved me, you would have rejoiced. The Lord’s departure from earth and return to His Father are necessary to complete His mediatorial work (v. 3); they are the end of His humiliation and the revelation of His glory, and the sending of the Holy Spirit.

the Father is greater than I. This statement must be understood in light of the witness of this gospel to the full deity of the Son and His equality and oneness with the Father (v. 9; cf. 1:1; 10:30). While equal in substance, the three persons of the Trinity have different roles in God’s works of creation, providence, and redemption (the “economic” distinctions among the divine persons). The Father purposes, the Son accomplishes, and the Spirit applies. Hence, the Son came to do the Father’s will (6:38) and, as the God-man, voluntarily veiled His divine glory to follow the way of humble obedience, thus, in this way the Father is greater than the Son.

29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe.

I have told you….you may believe. The fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecies, perhaps particularly in His resurrection and sending of the Holy Spirit, is a convincing proof that He was sent by God.

30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me,

I will no longer talk much with you - Jesus is winding down his discourse with his disciples, full knowing that the coming of the Holy Spirit will bring all he said to remembrance.

the ruler of this world. Satan (cf. 12:31; 16:11). This statement points to the momentous spiritual conflict of Christ with Satan at the cross.

He has no claim. This is a reaffirmation of Jesus’ sinlessness (2 Cor. 5:21). He is the only member of the human race about whom this may be said, the One against whom the accuser could bring no accusation.

31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father -

I do as the Father has commanded me - This is the reason the the accuser has no claim on Jesus

so that the world may know that I love the Father - Note again that the love of the Son for the Father is manifested through his obedience to him.

Rise, let us go. This statement appears to indicate that Jesus and the disciples leave the upper room at this point, but it seems that chs. 15–17 take place still in the room.

The command that the disciples get up from their couches, coupled with an exhortation meaning, let us go from here, still would not imply that the little company now immediately rushes out of the house! 

Thus, chapters 15-17 could have taken place as they were leaving the house.

So What?

Do we understand that if we say we love God, we will show that love by our obedience to him?

Do we understand that the mutual indwelling of the Godhead is the same indwelling that we experience in our relationship with Jesus Christ?

Do we understand the Holy Spirit has been given to us as our helper in our obedience to Christ?

Finally, do we understand that true peace and fearlessness can only be found in Jesus Christ?