Our Helper
John 16:13
[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.
Justice or the Rule of Law and even the term Social Justice are making the rounds in the news and in media. I think that’s okay. Justice or fairness should be something we are all concerned with. It’s been an issue since the Fall in Genesis. I think it’s part of the human condition to consider it, though many don’t seem to care or worry about justice or right and wrong. Since there seems to be some sense that there are still people who want justice, the question is though….on what basis do we derive justice. Basically “who says what’s right or wrong”. Society says follow your heart. Scripture says the heart is evil above all else. Society says do whatever feels good for you…..live by your own truth. Scripture says deny yourself and take up the cross of Jesus and that He is the Way the Truth and the Life. (No one else, nor nothing else is our foundation truth). Today’s passage is about the Spirit of truth.
Understand now when I’m talking about truth and justice it’s not just the Neuemburg trials or what goes before the Supreme Court, it’s also the small decisions in our everyday lives. Last Wednesday I read from an article that stated we make 122 conscious choices every day and around 35,000 unconscious ones. Our text today will help us know of those conscious ones which way we should go and who leads us towards the right decisions.
As we think Justice and law imagine a courtroom scene, isn’t that what you feel like the judgment seat will be like (the Bible is filled with this imagery) So we will have this term referring to the Holy Spirit in our Bibles today. Some translations say…a Counsellor an Advocate…a Helper…it’s all pointing toward the same Person. The Third member of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit. He’s here to help us…not just in the big things, but in the little everyday things that make up our witness…our character
Have you ever experienced the work of the Spirit? My guess is that you have. The question is did you recognize Him? Did you listen? Did you obey?
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John 16:4-15
[4] But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. “I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. [5] But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ [6] But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. [7] Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. [8] And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: [9] concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; [10] concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; [11] concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
[12] “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot 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 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.
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Have you ever experienced the work of the Spirit? My guess is that you have. The question is did you recognize Him? Did you listen? Did you obey?
Couple of things to notice right off the bat from our passage.
- “Part of the job of the Spirit, “the helper, will be to lead the disciples into all the truth (v. 13). The Spirit will remind them of what Jesus had already said to them. The Spirit will also guide them, nudging mind and imaginations into the ways of knowing, and things to know” – N.T. Wright
- The disciples are sorrowful (see vs 6). Interesting that they are focused upon themselves and the immediate. Humans are like that aren’t we? How does it affect me now? They are missing the bigger picture and Jesus has been preparing them.
Before we get too deep….Let’s connect some dots
Joel 2:28-29
[28] “And it shall come to pass afterward,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.
[29] Even on the male and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit.
John 7:37-39
[37] On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. [38] Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” [39] Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
*Feast of Booths where Jesus stood up
These are just a couple of passages where God tells us in scripture that He is sending the Spirit. Why? Why wouldn’t Jesus just live among us and be King and Judge and straighten this whole thing out.
Answers:
- for our advantage
John 16:7
[7] Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.
it is to your advantage that I go away. This is because while Jesus was on earth he could be in only one place at a time, but the Holy Spirit would carry on Jesus’ ministry over the entire world at all times.
It’s to our advantage to those who believe. The Holy Spirit dwells within us and counsels us, directs us, advocates for us, prays for us, nudges us. The conviction you feel is His movement in our heart.
- to help us be kingdom focused and not so self focused
John 16:5-6
“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. [5] But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ [6] But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.
It is easy to get focused on ourselves…again part of the human condition to worry and wallow in our concerns and if not plan out how everything should workout in our lives (and in reality it never works the exact way we plan it)
Being self focused (NOTE: I’m not saying to not take care of yourself and your family and work, etc. Paul had to warn the Thessalonians to work and not be lazy waiting for Jesus to return). I’m taking about being so self focused that we miss the big picture. Look though at when the world suffers crisis and everything is the end of the world. Everything is the end of the world. Climate change, killer asteroids, pandemic, AI, Politics (I really love it when celebrities tell us they’re moving out of the country when candidate X wins). See what Jesus says in our passage about the Spirit and the world.
John 16:8-11
[8] And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: [9] concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; [10] concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; [11] concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
Individually there’s a lot of drama and when self focused we don’t realize we are not alone. Truthfully there are a lot of individual challenges for all of us. It’s reality in a broken world. I talk about them almost every week. We don’t read into the Bible that “I get saved and everything is perfect”. We read in the Bible that Jesus came to be our Savior because of the brokenness of the world and that until He returns we have a Helper to help us make it through and make some sense of things.
- He guides us into truth
John 16:13
[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.
He – The Spirit is not an imaginary force. Don’t think Star Wars. He is real, He is part of the Trinity (Father, Son, Spirit).
John 18:37-38
[37] Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” [38] Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him.
I find this sad, but telling. Isn’t that really where we are at? If you don’t know truth or what it is you are lost. The truth is that Jesus lived and died and was resurrected. The truth is that He sent the Spirit to guide us. There is no justice nor righteousness without Him.
My question is the same as I’ve been asking.
Have you ever experienced the work of the Spirit? My guess is that you have. The question is did you recognize Him? Did you listen? Did you obey?
Oh I’m saved Brother John. Okay….but are you listening to the Spirit? I’ve lost hope Brother John, no justice in the world and I’ve been done wrong…or I’ve done wrong myself. Can I say I’m sorry for that….I’m sorry you’ve been wronged or even if you’ve wronged someone and can’t forgive yourself. That’s part of our struggle but Jesus is our answer for that. He sent us a Helper to dwell within us. It may not take all of your feelings away, but the penalty has been paid if you’re saved and all wrongs will be righted in the end. What I think we’re constantly being pushed toward in the Bible is acting, behaving, being like Jesus and the Spirit is here to help. You see you are saved (justified like our courtroom conversation from the beginning) but since we’re “out of jail” we’re being rehabilitated into the kind of persons we should be. Self focus will lead you down the path to dwelling on your own problems over and over and I have to ask you if continually dwelling on them is fixing anything? How about we listen to the Spirit? How about we do what He says? That will truly help us be kingdom focused and in turn help us with those personal issues.
Ephesians 4:25-32
[25] Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. [26] Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, [27] and give no opportunity to the devil. [28] Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. [29] Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. [30] And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. [31] Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. [32] Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
