John #13 (2)

Northside Church

The Gospel of John

Dec 19th 2021

John #13 Jn 16:4-15 and 14:15-18

Good morning, My name is Jamey. I am the lead pastor here at Northside… I'm so excited to be with you guys today…

Merry Christmas… COUPLE THINGS

I know you just heard about it… but I want you to know I think our Christmas Eve service is going to be really good… I am so excited about it. For years… history… the truth about Jesus was shared by what is known as oral tradition… shared from the very ones who saw it, lived it and experienced it…You’ll hear from Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Simion, and more…

I really want to encourage you to invite someone to come and to sit with you… People tend to be more open to an invitation this time of year. Northside is an inviting Church.

We are NOT having a live service on Dec. 26th. If you show up next week, you will find the doors locked… it will be online early so whenever works best for you… I am also excited about that service… its going to be good.

I am directional challenged… and it drives my kids nuts.

I have always been… and so when I am out on motorcycles or mountain bikes… I have to go a few times before I will head out anywhere alone…

It’s funny, my truck has a built in compass and every once in a while I will look at… and it was saying I was headed North… when I thought I was headed East… and literally in that moment… It's like… Cleetus you idiot… that’s what I named my truck… and then I will turn a corner and see the coastal range and realize… Cleetus might be better off than I am at telling me where to go.

GPS navigation both saved and ruined me… i was getting better… but now i don't have to… Everyday after work, I can just hold a button down and say… Siri take me home…

When we first moved to where we are now, Zucherberg hadn’t put in on the map yet… and so people would constantly go to the wrong neighborhood and I had no idea how to help them find us…

And even though it’s incredibly helpful if you have to navigate a new city… I am sure we all know what it's like to have it lead us to a dead end… or the wrong way… or it gives a bad direction… or worse of all when it messes up and just goes silent.

So there we are… just Cleetus and I sitting in the middle of the freeway… waiting for the next direction… everyone's honking… but I have learned the best thing you can do is just stop… and wait for the next direction.

I’d guess that's how the disciples felt. They’d given up careers, upended their lives and walked away from so much of what they’d worked for to follow Jesus, sit at His feet, and hear His teaching… and no doubt they knew He was different.

They’d seen His miracles and I really do believe that they knew He was from God… They did believe that He is the way, the truth and the life… but there was a lot they didn’t understand… I mean… how could they.

So when Jesus started changing the language… telling them that the time has come… that He’d face the cross, rise again and return to the Father…

They had all kinds of thoughts and all kinds of feelings… They knew the tide was turning… that things were changing… and while it was “good”... it was… terrifying and would lead to great difficulty.

With Jesus… was the only kind of faith they knew… what now…? How would they face this alone… w\o Him.

Jesus knew where they were at… and that difficulty was coming…

Jn 15 ends with Jesus telling them that the same world that is putting Him to death will not treat His followers any better, and they didn't…

Every single person that heard Jesus say these things… was tortured and most even killed for their faith. These men who were closest to Jesus… either foolishly died for a lie (incredibly unlikely that they all would)… or found the truth so great it could not be denied.

Jesus saw it in their eyes and knew tough times were coming… but said to take heart… that He’d send the advocate… the Holy Spirit that would be a constant reminder of Jesus in and through us.

Disclaimer…

We are a non-denominational independent Christian Church...which really is a rich and wonderful thing… but many churches like ours sort of take a hands off approach to the HS… I remember asking a prof at undergrad about it… and literally He said it’s hard to teach about something you don’t understand… and that was enough for me at the moment…

The Holy Spirit was then… and in some ways still is a hard thing for me to wrap my mind around… The last Church I served at had a much healthier view and it really helped me… but I want you to know this…

If you aren’t sure what to think… if it's hard for you to wrap your mind around… I get it but at the same time… that doesn’t mean He doesn't exist. The Holy Spirit is given to us… and plays an important role in our life and in our faith… and like any relationship, we can learn what it means to grow not only in our understanding of who He is and how He works… in our ability to recognize and respond to His leading in our lives… and I for sure… am somewhere on that journey myself.

John 16:1–4 NLT

“I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. This is because they have never known the Father or me. Yes, I’m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning. I didn’t tell you earlier because I was going to be with you for a while longer.

(NLT)

“I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. 2 For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. 3 This is because they have never known the Father or me. 4 Yes, I’m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning. I didn’t tell you earlier because I was going to be with you for a while longer.

Jesus told them… and us that we will face trouble… Not just so they’d know… but so they could stand firm and not waver in the face of it. He says there will be a day that those who knock you down or do away with you think they are doing the world and even God a favor.

Every single one of those guys faced that… and it’s still happening in the world around us today.

I read a few articles these week that said

13 Christians are killed because of their faith.

That everyday 21 churches or christian institutions are attacked, a huge # of them in China.

Places like North Korea, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Yemen, Iran, Nigeria and India are considered to be the most deadly… and difficult places for Christians to live. 4 new countries hit the top 10 this year and one of them was Mexico.

But what is the result of it? This year, 309 MIL christians are living in these highly persecuted countries compared to just 260 a year ago. Not imagration, it’s people coming to know the Lord.

God’s church is on the move in places of deep and dark oppression.

Jesus said it will be hard… I told you that… Don’t abandon your faith.

John 16:5–13 NLT

“But now I am going away to the one who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged. “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.

5 “But now I am going away to the one who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. 6 Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. 7 But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. 10 Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. 11 Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.

12 “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.

Their grief and uncertainty about what life would look like post Jesus… they couldn't really see past themselves… They didn’t know a life of faith without Jesus physically being there… (Its like their GPS had gone silent)

And Jesus reminded them and us… that He wouldn’t abandon them. That he would send His advocate… His helper that would guide them and us into all truth.

John talks about the HS a lot…

What roles does the Holy Spirit play in our lives?

14:16 The advocate that will never leave you. That leads you into all truth. Jesus reminds them that The HS is the very presence of God living in us and that even though He is going… He is not abandoning them.

14:26 He is God in us… that will teach us everything and remind us of truth.

15:26 He will testify within you as to the truth of God and through you to the world around you.

The bible also teaches that the HS comforts, counsels, teaches, empowers, guides us in all truth, intercedes for us and through us… He is the official seal (legal signature) of God’s presence in us and that we are His. THE HS is like a taste of heaven… a taste of what we will experience in terms of the presence of God there.

The Holy Spirit is the very near presence of God doing the very work of God in you and through you.

It’s an incredible thought… that the HS… the very presence of God is your advocate. It reminds me of when we adopted our kids… they both had caseworkers… advocates that knew them, fought for them, relentlessly sought the best for them in ways they never could… in ways they didn't even know existed… in ways that led them home.

The Holy Spirit is… the very presence of God in you… advocating in ways you may not always understand or even know… until you get home… He will never leave you.

A few things to note about the HS in our passage.

Jesus says the Holy Spirit convicts the world of Sin.

g, preaching, finger pointing or man made discipline or even care filled words can ever have that same sort of impact apart from the HS… This sort of conviction is unique… it’s a unique role that the HS plays and that is sort of a freeing thought… it is NOT your job to convict the world of sin… and that’s not to say the HS won't use you in that process… but understanding this as a role of the HS allows you to actually be used in that process instead of feeling like it is your God given mission to condemn…

Jesus says the issue…

What is most wrong with the world is their refusal to believe the truth and embrace the reality of who Jesus is.

It means rejecting the way to God, the truth of God and the life of God that is found in Him alone.

I believe that the HS confronts sin in all people… and it’s not my favorite thing… when the HS confronts and brings conviction when it comes to the “world’ in me… learning how to discern the presence of God’s and leadership of God’s spirit in our lives… causes us to respond so differently to that confrontation… at that moment… it is not condemnation… is it loving correction that leads to true freedom… FOR your own benefit and good… leading to life.

The crux of it… is what we do with jesus. It causes us to see and react to sin and the HS leadership differently in our lives… and in that light we seen in the light of God’s forgiveness and grace through what Jesus has done for us on the cross.

THE HS leads us in truth and convicts the world of sin…

The Holy Spirit convicts the world as to His righteousness.

Reveals what is most right in the world…

Jesus told them something that is incredibly hard for me to wrap my mind around… That is that there is something better… more advantageous for them and for you and I… than walking with and talking with Jesus like they did…

It’s easy to get to this point where we think it would have been so much easier… to believe and not doubt… if we could have just been there… and I was thinking about that a lot this week… Really? So watching someone walk on water raises no questions with you? Watching a lame man get up and walk off… we just take that? When Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead…how many of us would be like… check please…

It adds such credibility to the Bible when you see His closest followers struggling just like you and I would…

Jesus says, that having the HS in us… is to our advantage… it's better than walking and talking with Jesus… which should tell you about the significance of the HS in you.

Understanding who this advocate is… and the role that He’s intended to play in our lives… is huge.

Jesus says that what is most wrong in the world is not fully embracing and surrendering to Him…

And that in His going we see what’s most right with the world which is Christ in you… the HS dwelling within you and learning what it means to submit and surrender to His leadership in our lives…

And it is weird… is that okay? It is hard to understand. But it also changes everything. We see the disciples go from all sorts of confusion and chaos… and what feels like them running from their lives… and in a single moment… that all changed.

As Peter stood up and preached like no one had ever heard…

As they all stood before the council in acts and said kill us if you must be we cannot not share what it is we have experienced.

That caused Paul to say to live… is Christ… but to die… is gain.

We see their confusion become clarity

Their cowardice become courage

Their fear become faith

Their lives became focused

Their message became clear

Learning to see and respond and be empowered by the very presence of God in you is what it means to discover your best you…

One author said this… We live in a world where we believe all is lost because of our political climate… vaccinations… masks… and the truth is… The church may need to be convicted all over again for what is truly right and as to what its role is within that.

The Holy Spirit convicts of coming judgement.

because the ruler of this world has already been judged…

What Jesus is saying… is… it’s already over. The ruler of this world… Satan… HAS already been judged… the ending is INK we know how it goes…

And even then it's easy to get to this point where we feel like all is lost. That the Gospel is not having the impact it should… that the Church is dying and that darkness and immorality are winning.

Brookenss and the sexualization of EVERYTHING… major identity issues that are robbing us of truth, hate, confusion, division, dishonesty is everywhere…

Jesus says… there is no winning in that. It’s as much of an invitation as it is judgement… it is with as much brokenness as it is joy for those who know Him. Jesus Himself the very purpose that He came was to seek and save that which is… lost.

We know what is most wrong in the world…

It does not embrace the reality of Jesus.

We know what is most right…

When we learn to see and submit the HS leadership in our life that leads us to what is truly right.

And judgement is real…

We already know where the lines are drawn and how it goes.

Learning to see and understand the role and the work of the Holy Spirit is important… It helps us identify His presence and work in our lives.

How are you stepping away from what is most wrong…? Instead of shutting the door, stepping into the reality of Jesus in your life?

How are you doing at recognizing and submitting to the HS in your life?

God has not abandoned you as Orphans…

He has brought clarity, courage, boldness, faith, encouragement,

Communion Jamey