The Coming of Another Advocate

Welcome

1. Good evening! (welcome to English Bible study) (as always, we like to do some introductions… type your name and where you are from)

2. Announcements: (updates and prayers requests)

3. Please keep us “up-to-date” on you how you are doing. (words of care and love from Amanda)

4. Who is your favorite helper? (preaching and baptisms) (tonight we read about someone who helps us a lot!)

The Background

1. We are continuing our study of the gospel of John. (the John is one of the four gospels... but not a “synoptic gospel.” (it’s different from Matthew, Mark, and Luke ... and there seem to be two levels of understanding … there is basic level and a deeper level.

2. Tonight, we are going to look at John 14:12-31. Read. (follow along here...)

3. The setting here is what we talked about last week. (Jesus knows that the disciples are having a tough moment) (they don’t fully understand what Jesus is about to do) (Jesus is on His way to being reunited with His Father) (through His death and Resurrection, His leaving them, yet He would open the way for them… everyone who will trust in Him... to live in union with Him and His Father)

4. Jesus wants to impress on the disciples that he was not disbanding them in anticipation of his departure but, rather, he was expecting them to continue his work and do even greater things than he had accomplished. (vs 12, “… will do even greater things than these”) (honestly, this seems difficult to believe… after all, Jesus did some amazing things - healing the sick, calming the storms, casting out demons, raising the dead....)

5. Yet, Jesus promised it, and it’s true. (we have actually seen some of this in our study from the book of Acts) (How did a group of uneducated, ordinary people without power or money build a church that has essentially changed the world?) Never forget... that God is still in the business of working in powerful ways, in us, through us and around us!

6. We could spend a lot of time talking about how God works through impossible situations. (I’ve seen this in my own life in countless ways…)

7. Not only this, Jesus promises in vs 13, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name.” (Jesus is talking about the power prayer, but we have to careful with this promise) (unfortunately this phrase has been the basis for all kinds of name-it-and-claim-it theologies) “OK, if I asked in Jesus’ name; God has to give me whatever my, materialistic heart desires.” (sometimes people think that praying in the “name of Jesus” is like the formula for a magic spell… like “abracadabra”) That’s not at all what the text means! (it’s important to know that this is not a formula for “supernatural energy”… as if it could be used as a magical charm like an Aladdin’s lamp) (in stead it is a connection to the source that’s important)

8. What this means is, you have to ask according to His will. (you have to ask according to God’s character) (it means asking alone the lines of what the Bible says about God) (if you’re asking for something that God knows perfectly well will not be good for you, will not make you a better Christian person, God is so not giving it to you)

9. By the way, one of the great answers that God gives to many prayers is simply “No.” (it is never the case that God doesn’t answer some prayers) (sometimes He answers, “No” …sometimes He answers, “Not now” …sometimes He answers, “Not in this way” …sometimes He says, “Yes, but later” …sometimes He says, “Yes, now.” (but He’s only going to give you things according to His will, and the phrase “in my name” implies that you know this person) (it means that you know His nature, because a name implies a “nature” in first-century Judaism)

10. It is important to keep the context in mind with all of this!

NT221 The Wisdom of John: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on Johannine Literature Text, Context, and Pretext

One of the things you must never do with a discourse like this is sort of sound-bite it, take a particular verse out of context in that way, distort what it means. I like to say a text without a context is just a pretext for whatever you want it to mean. That’s especially dangerous in a long discourse like this.

The Second Advocate

It is in the context of this, knowing the nature of Jesus and God, that he promises an amazing helper… this is the gift that Christians are still talking about and still depending on! (Jesus goes on to say, “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another paraklētos”) (this is a very interesting Greek word, and it is sometimes translated as “comforter” … but the better translation is “counselor” or “advocate”

Jesus promises in John 14:26 that the Holy Spirit is “our advocate,” our helper, our counselor. (the Greek word “paraklētos” literal means “someone who is called in” to save the day) (in New Testament times, it was common to use this word to describe a battle) (it was an ancient warrior's term) (when Greek soldiers go out to battle, they would go in pairs, so when the enemy attacked, they could draw together back-to-back, covering each other's blind side) (when one would fight with the sword, the other would defend with the shield) (when they would get tired, they would switch places) The Holy Spirit is a battle partner who supplies strength in the battle. (that’s good news because it means that you don’t do it alone) (you are not left to your own resources… God is sending help)

There is something important in the theology here of being sent — We know that Jesus is the “sent one” of the Father in the first place; the Spirit is the “sent one” of the Son. (Jesus is “sent” from the Father and the Holy Spirit is the second one “sent”) (the Jewish tradition of being sent, means that you embody the nature, the character, and the mission of the One sending you) (it means that Jesus… and we know this was true… didn’t say or do anything outside of God’s plan) (shortly after this moment in time, Jesus is praying in the Garden, “Lord, your will, not mine”)

The Holy Spirit acts in the same way. (when Jesus says things like, “He who has seen me has seen the Father,” He’s saying that He fully embodies and represents the one who sent Him, just as the Spirit will fully embody and represent the One who sent Him)

So if you hear somebody today saying, “Well, the Spirit told me do this and that” but it doesn’t line up with what Jesus Himself has taught, you can be sure this did not come from the Holy Spirit) (there is an intricate and intimate relationship between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit)

The amazing thing is the God invites us into this relationship. (in verse 20, Jesus, “On that day, you will realize that I am in the Father and you are in me and I am in you.”) (He’s speaking of the coming of the Holy Spirit and the relationship that He will help us have)

The Work of the Spirit

In this passage, we a little of how the Holy Spirit will help us. (in verse 26, Jesus says, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

First of all, the Holy Spirit teaches us. (this means that He helps us understand the will of God) (the Bible is an amazing very real story of God, that is actually not always easy to understand) (just read the Old Testament, and you will know what I’m talking about) (the Holy Spirit helps us understand the nature of God through it)

Secondly, the Holy Spirit help us see things. (we have vision for the things of God) (we can be drawn to people who need to hear the good news of Jesus… the Spirit prompts us) (we can be lead to “go on mission” in certain ways and in certain places) (the Holy Spirit worked in some incredible ways to send us to Hungary)

Thirdly, the Holy Spirit gives us gifts that we can use in ministry such as teaching, or encouragement, or healing, or preaching. (any way that God uses you supernaturally (beyond your physical ability) is a gift from the Spirit. (for me it is preaching… story here)

There are so many ways the Spirit helps… but perhaps the most important is that He pursues us! (let me explain what I mean by that…)

Pursued by the Spirit

The Holy Spirit pursues an intimate and growing relationship. (and He passionately wants to catch you)

We actually have a sense of what that’s like. (I remember the days when Amanda and I were just beginning our relationship) (there was a point when I knew that Amanda was the one for me) (I was thoroughly convinced and so I just had to convince her) *And so I began to go above and beyond the boundaries of a normal relationship.

I began to write her letters. (this was before email and texting… and so I actually had to hand write letters) (which by the way wasn’t easy for me to do, because I had to write them in a way that she could actually read them) (my handwriting was and is so bad that on most days I can’t even read it) (but for Amanda I wrote as neat as I could)

But that’s not all. I would go to her music recitals. (I would sit through classical music being sung in Latin, French, and Spanish and German languages) (none of which did I understand, but it didn’t matter because I loved the one singing them)

But that’s not all. I read to her, and I’m not talking about college text books. (I read children’s books with sentimental stories) (you can tell that I was trying really hard to catch her) (and finally, all the pursuing paid off. I asked her, “Will you marry me?” and she said, “Yes.”

After that, by the way, I received some very good pre-marriage counseling. The pastor said, “Jon, now that you’ve won the affection of your soon-to-be wife, the winning is not over. The wedding celebration is not end of your relationship, it’s just the beginning. So keep trying, keep pursuing her and your marriage will be a good one.” (that was some the best advice relationship advice I’ve ever received, because it’s the "pursuit" that makes all the difference)

The Important Question

Do you believe that God is pursuing you? (even now, He is wanting to bring you into a closer relationship with Him) (God is pursing you right now and He has been since the very beginning of your life)

The amazing gift of the Holy Spirit is that he helps us face the challenges of life and yet “grow” through them. (He is the One who turn troubles into opportunities) (He is the One who can use all things for something good in our lives)

God has been pursuing you for a long time, the question is will you allow Him to draw you close, to work in your life, to be the strength that you need for every moment in life?

The question for tonight is:

How does the Holy Spirit help you grow in your relationship with God?