“I Believe – the Holy Spirit”

Scripture: John 16:4-15

“We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.”

The Passover Supper is over, and Jesus is nearing the end of those final hours before he leaves for the garden of Gethsemane. And as a critical part of the lesson he is leaving with his closest friends, he tells the disciples that the Holy Spirit – the “Spirit of Truth” – will be coming soon, and that his primary purpose will be to “testify about [Jesus]”.

This is God’s promise to the fledgling Church – that they will never be left on their own. Earlier that evening, Jesus promised them “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:15-21) Throughout the ages, it was seldom that God was not with the people. The Spirit led them through the 40 years of their wilderness journey. Even when Judah was taken into captivity by Babylon, the Spirit went with them to nourish and sustain the people during those 70 years. The Spirit spoke through the prophets over and over, and it was only during the 4 centuries between the final prophecies of Malachi and the birth of Christ that Israel was allowed to flounder as a nation, and even then, the Spirit may have been working within the lives of the faithful few.

After Christ’s resurrection and ascension, the Spirit would officially arrive, and the Church would faithfully follow. It’s strange that it wasn’t until then that people began obeying God’s call, but regardless, the Spirit began his new work, and The Way of Christ began to prosper. Jesus had proclaimed that this would happen – that the Spirit would testify about Christ to the faithful, and that they would also testify to the world. But even with the power of the Holy Spirit working for them, life would never be easy or safe again.

Read John 16:4-7

The fact that after Jesus had left them, and would be sending the Holy Spirit to guide them in ministry, the faithful still didn’t actually understand what the presence of God’s Spirit would mean for them. And in his saying that it would all be for their good –both in his leaving and in the Spirit’s coming – they would remain focused on their past with Christ, instead of on the future that would bring Spiritual power and blessings yet unknown to them. Jesus’ success at bringing people into his presence had been minimally successful – following his ascension, we read in Acts that only about 120 believers were still holding together in faith (Acts 1:15). But at Pentecost, we read that 3,000 gave their lives to Christ (Acts 2:40-41). Unfortunately, at the Passover feast, the disciples were still focused on having the flesh and blood Jesus leading them, and the unknown Spirit was just that – an unknown.

How could this “Counselor” be as good for them as Jesus had been? How could his death be cause for rejoicing? The time had come for hard and pointed teaching, and even though Jesus had explained the importance that had been placed on his death and leaving several times, it still seemed to be only a finale, and nothing even close to the beginning of a new phase in faith. They didn’t want a Counselor, or an Advocate, or a Spirit, or anything else for that matter – they wanted, and thought they needed, Jesus. They were getting used to Jesus’ style and Jesus’ approach, and they didn’t want to lose that.

But the point that they were missing was that as long as Jesus was present in the world, the Spirit could not be sent to them, and ministry for them could never be all that it was intended to be. So far, Jesus had been doing the bulk of the preaching and teaching and healing and leading, and that was comfortable, even though it was a little confusing at times. But the reason for this Spirit was even more confusing. They didn’t understand that when Jesus left the earth, it would be their time to pick up the mantle of ministry, and they would need the Spirit of God to help them to accomplish all that was needed in the name of Christ.

But another truth for us today is that the word that has been translated as Counselor or Advocate actually means far more than that. The translated word is “Paraclete”, and the context that this word brings should have been more than sufficient to help them understand. It would imply “Teacher”, and “Witness”, and “Enabler” and “Encourager”, and “Consoler”, and “Helper”, and “Exhorter” But more on this later.

Read John 16:8-11

In John 7:37-39, the Lord expands on the theme of “living water”. He says “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” (Isaiah 55) This means that by faith, anyone who believes in Jesus as Lord and Savior, will receive “living water” – the Holy Spirit – from Christ. And this living water, or Holy Spirit, if you will, will only be given to those who have given their lives to the Lord.

Non-believers were given Jesus, and he must be the entry point for a Godly life. If we don’t accept Christ as the “Way, the Truth, and the Life” (John 14:6), the Spirit can never testify within and through us! Without Jesus, we are still citizens of earth, and God can never be in us. The Lord’s work of truth, and the conviction of sinfulness, must be carried on through the Living Water, through the power of the Holy Spirit working within us.

And Jesus tells us that this revealing will be evidenced in three ways, through which the Paraclete will continue to proclaim Jesus as “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” for each of us:
1) John writes that sin is our failure to believe that Jesus is exactly who he says he is. He is saying that our failure to believe that Jesus is the incarnate Son of God is the source of all sinfulness in the world, and that in believing, our sinful ways are overcome. The Holy Spirit is the truth and power behind this new hope in our lives.
2) Conviction in righteousness does not come by our good works, but rather by faith in Christ’s sacrifice and ascension. Christ’s death isn’t defeat – it is God’s righteous act on our behalf. It is also evidenced in the ascension, through the Lord’s words “I go to prepare a place for you”. (John 14:1-4) Godly righteousness will be conveyed to us in Christ’s return to claim his faithful.
3) Our guilty lives will be saved from the judgment, by faith in Christ, while all non-believers will only receive condemnation as citizens of Satan’s world. Believers in Jesus Christ will know his glory; non-believers will only know the same penalty that Satan has already been sentenced to.

The world will continue to be judged by the way, the truth, the life of Jesus Christ, and it will be accomplished through the testimony of the Holy Spirit.

Read John 16:12-15

Once again, the Spirit will continue the work of Christ by enabling humanity to know the truth and word of the Lord. So this Power of God will not only work to convict the world of their false ways, he will also be working within the believing community to strengthen us, to enable us, and to nourish us in faith. The lives of the disciples, and of all who would, one day, put their faith and trust in Jesus, can only withstand the onslaught of worldly hatred when the presence of the Holy Spirit has brought that life-giving “water” to us.

But Jesus wants us to know that the Spirit will not be bringing some new teaching, or some different truth to our lives. He will be reminding us of Jesus, and helping us to understand his teaching, and enabling us to live a Christ-like way as we journey within this lifetime. The Spirit of God is our future hope as we live out our faith in the Lord Jesus, and Christ tells us that he is our “Spirit of Truth” – he provides vision within Christ’s teachings.

We also read that the Spirit will share what is true, as well as what is to come. We need to see this as one more aspect of his teaching and reminding us of what Jesus has already revealed, and not something new and previously unknown. It may be to minister within the context of today, it may be an ability to reach out to the people of earth in a different way so they can understand what Jesus is for them, but truth is still truth, and that can never change.

And this is a further proclamation regarding the unity of God in Three Persons. Wisdom and truth is one in each. Salvation is one in each through the Son. Glory is one upon each. And the Spirit’s work within each of our lives, on behalf of the Father and Son, reminds and proclaims the teaching and salvation of Jesus Christ.

So the question that I expect each of you is asking yourself right now is this – “How does the Spirit do all of this?” “How do I experience the Spirit in this life?” The truth is that this will take more time and space than we have for today, so we will consider these issues after I return from the mission trip in three weeks.

So wait with Godly patience, and Christian expectation!

“I Believe – Judgment”

Scripture: John 12:44-50; Matthew 25:31-34

“He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.” (from the Nicene Creed)

The Lord Jesus had been in ministry for over 3 years, and while many had heard his message of hope and new life, few had believed any of what he had told them. The Jewish leaders, especially the priests and Pharisees, knew the scriptures regarding Messiah, and while some knew that Jesus was right in what he taught, the vast majority of them still refused to acknowledge Jesus as the Anointed One of God.

The Old Testament prophets were always proclaiming that those who wouldn’t believe in God would have their hearts hardened, and would be forever banned from knowing all that their great Jehovah was offering them (Isaiah 6:9-13). But today, we know that the Lord came to earth to change all of that – that he came to us, bringing hope and second chances for the sinners of earth, that no one would be excluded from his grace if they just believed that he is the eternal Truth.

Satan’s lies, it seems, are far more acceptable to us than the Godly truths of Jesus. We like the glitter and pleasures that we find in the world’s ways, but we seem to forget that they are all so temporary and futile! We want to fit in with this life, we want to have friends and do things with them, we want to be liked. John’s gospel tells us that “they love praise from men more than praise from God.” (John 12:43) And while these temptations will be with us throughout this life, the final Judgment will sort it all out in the light and truth of Almighty God.

Read John 12:44-46

Jesus isn’t offering us any new teachings – he is recapping all that he stands for and taught to the people. And these are his last words recorded in John’s gospel before he attends his last Passover feast – the one we know as the Last Supper.

Of all that Jesus wanted us to believe regarding his presence and purpose, I think that this is the one that is most important for our lives. He is reminding us that when we believe in him, we also believe in the entirety of God – not that we are to also believe in God, but that true faith in Christ brings an encompassing love for the completeness and fullness of all that our Triune God is. It can’t be a partial acceptance, it can’t be a hesitant acceptance – true faith in Christ leads us to completeness in God.
At the Last Supper, Philip would tell Jesus “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” (John 14:8-14) and Jesus would reply “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” There isn’t just a familial resemblance between Father and Son as we see in human families, it isn’t just a common identity that connects Jesus to God, they are even more than being identical Beings – they are one and the same. In John Wesley’s sermon “On the Trinity”, he said that if we don’t necessarily like the term “Trinity”, that’s OK, but by faith, we must accept the concept of Trinity. And for clarification of the thought, he offers the descriptive phrase “three and one”. While we experience God in three distinct Persons, acting in three unique ways, he is still only one God.

And in that “oneness”, the truth of God exists perfectly and identically within each one. There can be no difference, no conflict – only one Godly source of Truth! And that truth is far more powerful than anything we may know or ever have known. Godly truth stands far above all other thought, and as the prophet Isaiah put it, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9) Godly truth exposes the ways and thoughts of earth as not only inaccurate, but as hopeless lies.

Gibson Corners just finished a week of Vacation Bible School, with a marvelous and record turnout of both children and adults. And our theme this year was “Recognizing Jesus”. As Jesus was telling Philip and the others, we recognize the Lord’s presence and activity in our lives through the study of his word and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. And when we see Jesus, we see the Father, and we see the Holy Spirit, and we know his truth. And from John 8:31-32, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Read John 12:47-50

And now the bottom line comes regarding “knowing” Jesus. While Jesus will not be bringing any judgment against us in this life, there is a perfect and ultimate judgment that is coming. And what will the sole criteria of judgment be? It is whether we know Jesus as Lord and Savior, or not; whether we are his disciples, or not; whether we have been freed from sin by faith, or not. Period! The word of God that has been given to us through Jesus’ life and ministry, is our only source of truth during this life – it isn’t in some false spiritual revelation that disputes and contradicts God’s truth, it’s not in our own concept of right and wrong that differs from all that scripture teaches us, it’s not in the world’s desire and way that became the judgment against the Man Jesus.

It seems, then, that the life we lead is the cause of our own condemnation! We are all sinners, we are all unworthy of a life in Jesus, we are all guilty and deserving of eternal punishment! But our only hope of redemption is in giving our darkness over to the Light of God that comes to us by faith in Christ.

This passage affirms the fact that God - Father, Son and Spirit - are One, and that they bring one word for our lives. But you may be wondering, if Jesus is one in the Trinity, why would the Father have to “tell” Jesus what to say? Remember that Jesus was just as human as you and I are, and as such, his humanness allowed temptation into his life. (Matthew 4:1-11) And yet, by the power of Godly truth, he was able to withstand the onslaught of worldly darkness, and to stand firmly in Godly Light.

Read Matthew 25:31-34

Jesus tells us that we are currently living in a “divided kingdom”, but that one day, the two will be fully identified and separated – he refers to them as sheep and goats. The sheep are those who are of his way, while the goats are of the world’s way. At judgment, the sheep will be welcomed into the Godly kingdom, , while the goats will be sent into “eternal punishment” (Matthew 25:45-46). The Judgment will be absolute and final, and the “sheep and goats” will have nothing to say about their individual fates.

Matthew 12:22-28 is even more definitive regarding the 2 ways, (the 2 kingdoms), and this passage doesn’t even begin to address the issue of final judgment – it’s about the consequences in this life! He says that a “kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every … household divided against itself will not stand” (v. 25)! We can understand this to mean that during this life, two diametrically opposed schools of thought can never exist together for very long without destroying each other.
This is exactly where we find the United Methodist Church today, and the very reason that the Commission on a Way Forward was created. Unfortunately, their efforts since being created and enabled in 2016 have only served to “kick the can” down the road for the Special General Conference to consider and debate next February! And the option that they seem to favor, as well as the option that the Council of Bishops is supporting, is the one that would keep us, seemingly, together as one divided church! And what does Jesus say about the “church” that is divided against itself? It will be our very existence that will judge us as broken, and we will become our own condemnation.

God’s judgment against evil will be held back until Christ’s return to this place, but until that time, we will be exercising our own judgment and condemnation. Evil and righteousness cannot continue to live in this life for very long without mutual destruction, and they will, ultimately, be separated in eternity.

And whether this brokenness exists in the world, or in the church, or in our human relationships, we have to take a stand on one side of the line or the other. Which side of judgment will we claim – the eternal, or the finite?