John 14:15-31
Key Verses: 14:15,16
“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever...”
In the previous passage we learned that Jesus is the only way to the Father because he knew where he came from and where he was going back to. Jesus comforted his disciples not to be troubled due to his departure but encouraged them to trust in God and also trust in him because he was going to the Father’s house to prepare a place for them. Today Jesus teaches his disciples that there is no separation anxiety, because he will send them another Counselor to be with them forever. “Another Counselor” is the Spirit of truth. The Spirit of truth is the Holy Spirit. Let’s love and obey Jesus so that the Holy Spirit may dwell in us and lead us to have the peace of Jesus. I pray that God may bless us to remember Jesus’ teachings all the time through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
PART I. THE PROMISE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT (15-21).
Today’s main topic is the Holy Spirit. It seems good to think briefly about who the Holy Spirit is. What is the gender of the Holy Spirit? It is the masculine not the neuter. This means that the Holy Spirit is not a thing but a person. Who are the three persons in the Trinity? They are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God. When we study the Bible, we learn that there is God the Father, who made the heavens and the earth. Second is God the Son. He is called God's Son due to his incarnation, but he is also God. There was a famous minister whose son had many questions. His son said to him, "If God is the Father and Jesus is the Son, then who is their grandson?" Likewise, there are so many people who do not understand about three persons in one God. God is infinite. In order to save men from their sins, God functions in his divinity in three ways: God the Father as the Sovereign Ruler; God the Son as the Savior of the world; and the Holy Spirit as the invisible God who dwells in the souls of those who love God and his Son Jesus Christ. What are the titles of the Holy Spirit? He is nowhere assigned a formal name, such as we have for the Second Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, but is rather given descriptive titles like the Counselor, the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, the Spirit, the Holy Ghost, and the Advocate. The most common title in the Bible is the Holy Spirit. The descriptive adjective “holy” is used to distinguish Him from other spirits which are creatures.
Look at verses 15-17. “If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” As this chapter opened, Jesus encouraged his disciples to trust God and trust in him also. Jesus assured to his disciples that there were many rooms in his Father’s house. Jesus their good shepherd knew what was going on among the disciples. They were troubled with separation anxiety. They felt like homeless. (14:2) They felt like orphans. (18) The orphans are helpless because there is no one who can protect them. The disciples did not have any future security because Jesus was leaving them. They were like chicks without their mother hen. How did Jesus help his disciples? At this critical moment Jesus comforted them with the promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit. First of all, Jesus wanted to maintain his love relationship with his disciples in these troubled times. He said, “Love me and obey my command.” The coming of the Holy Spirit is linked with the love and obedience of disciples to their Lord Jesus Christ. Love is the essential element in our spiritual life. Love is measured through the obedience. According to S. Steve’s message based on Acts 1:8, the true power of the Holy Spirit is power to love. When we love Jesus, we are happy to obey his command. When we love Jesus, we can love one another. If we love Christ, obedience will follow. When children love their parents, they love to obey them by saying, “Mommy! Mommy! Can I help you this and that?” When they hate their parents, they disobey them. In this same way our love relationship is essential to receive the promised Holy Spirit. Jesus repeated their love relationship with him in verses 23 and 24. Jesus wanted to make home with those who love him and obey his teaching. In the same way the Holy Spirit will come to those who love Jesus and obey his teaching. For example, when Peter and John loved Jesus and loved each other and were united in prayer (Acts 1:14), the Holy Spirit came upon them like a violent wind and tongues of fire and suddenly Peter began to speak Spanish and Chinese.
Look at verse 16. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.” In verse 18 Jesus said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” Jesus was returning to the Father and how could he say, “I will come to you.” How could he not leave his disciples as orphans when he was leaving them behind? The answer is the sending of the Holy Spirit. Jesus will ask God to send the Counselor to be with them forever. In this way there would be no separation between Jesus and his disciples. At this point the disciples did not receive the Holy Spirit and did not understand the words “the Holy Spirit,” so Jesus told them he would give them another Counselor to be with them forever. Jesus was regarded as the wonderful Counselor according to Isaiah 9:6. Now after his departure, he would send another one like himself. Here Jesus said that the Holy Spirit, the Counselor, would be with his disciples forever. Jesus was limited in his body because he could not be in Jerusalem and at the same time in Galilee. But the Counselor has not physical or time limit. The Counselor can be with the disciples forever. Nobody is with us forever. But the Holy Spirit is with us forever. It is amazing that Jesus promised them that he would send the Counselor to be with them forever. In other words, Jesus promised to send them the Holy Spirit to be with them forever. Jesus also told them, “The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (17b). What a wonderful promise it is! The Counselor will live with them and will be in them. He will never leave them. The Counselor Jesus promised would tell them definitely what they had to do and what to expect. Jesus comes to us by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in our souls. So we are not alone, nor are we orphans. Jesus promised to be with his disciples to the very end of the age through the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:20) It is a great blessing for every believer to have the indwelling Holy Spirit. How does the Holy Spirit help us? What is the role of the Counselor? We had guidance counselors during our high school days. They guide us to graduate high schools and to go to college. They warn students when they do not make grades. They remind students to attend classes. We have advisor when we come to college. We need their signatures to sign up certain classes. We need their final signature to graduate. Ph.D. students have their advisors who hold the key for their success. But all human counselors will not stay with us forever. Sometimes they will not help us because there are bad counselors. Instead, they will bother us a lot. But the Counselor Jesus promised will be with us forever. He will be with us wherever we go. He will be with us 24 by 7. He will be with us when we eat or sleep or work or study. His main goal is to protect us from all harms and dangers. He will strengthen us when we are weak. He will guide us to the truth. He will alarm us when we go astray. He will help us remember the word of God. He will encourage when we are down. He will remind us when we forget important things.
S. Mary Jagun is intensely focused when she studies a subject. But she is also very forgettable. One time she prepared snacks for those who passed the baptism tests. So she wrote in her palm. Then I announced that there would be a snack after the meeting. She still forgot it and Jennifer Roberts brought it out after most people left. How can she pass the medical school tests and take care of sheep at the same time? Does her palm help her? Impossible. But she has 24 hour help from the Counselor. The Counselor will help her and remind her and strengthen her to be fruitful at UMAB medical school. She has a separation anxiety but the Counselor will be with her and she will be alone. People like to have a cell phone. I set up a speed dial to call M. Esther. But when she leaves the phone at home. I am disconnected. Shannon Smith has a nice cell phone with individualized rings. If M. David Yun calls, the ring plays the hymn “Bring them in.” If the call comes from the center, it plays the hymn “Joyful, joyful…” But having the Counselor is like having personal palm and cell phone and alarm clock combined. Shannon Smith lost his parents in his early boyhood. But Jesus blessed him to have the Counselor to be with him forever. Now he is not alone. M. John Lee is going back to Grenada next week. He may feel alone. But he is not alone. The Counselor will be with him in Grenada and will strengthen him to do God’s work. On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to make the church His residence, indwelling every believer. Acts 2:17 says, “In the last days, God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.’” After the Pentecost the Holy Spirit outpoured to all believers. Jesus works among us through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit strengthens our faith and encourages us to live by faith. During our SBC two weeks ago I saw the work of the Holy Spirit among Young Disciples of Jesus. They overcame their weaknesses and shared many life testimonies. When Jennifer Roberts prayed for Beta team members, five people including Mary Kim shared powerful life testimonies. Even Elaine Phillips remembered all the lines as Sandra. Even Jennifer Slingland joined the drama team in a short notice. They were explosive and unlimited when they were filled with the Holy Spirit.
PART II MY PEACE I GIVE YOU (22-31)
To the disciples’ assumption, they would undergo many hardships and trials and they would become like orphans. The disciples were going through a separation anxiety. They were uncertain about their future. But this was not the case. Instead, they would remember what Jesus would do and what he promised. Look at verses 25-26. “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, 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.” Here, God the Holy Spirit would first teach them to remember everything Jesus has said to them. We study the Bible a lot and we seem not to remember them at all. When we have 1:1 Bible study, sheep seem not to remember the word of Jesus. Then we feel like pushing sheep to accept the word of God. We feel like forcing them to remember God’s word. But we don’t need to do so. The Holy Spirit must teach them and remind them the word of God. After long years of Bible study the word of God clicks through the Holy Spirit and we understand the word of God.
Jesus said in verse 27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Who can give us peace in this troubled world? Can President George Bush give us peace? Can our boss give us peace? Can the Homeland security office give us peace? No one can give us peace. But Jesus said, “My peace I give you.” Jesus’ peace and worldly peace are quite different. Jesus’ peace is permanent. It was earned through his death and resurrection while the worldly peace is temporary achieved by the military forces. The troubled disciples needed the peace of God in their hearts. Jesus assured the peace of God to them. According to the New York Times, there were 1454 known wars since B.C. 36. They said, “Peace is a fabricated lie.” People in this world live in a false peace. There is no peace in the family. There is no peace in the school. There is no peace in the working place. There is no peace in the nation. There is no peace in the world. We live in a troubled world. People try to escape from their troubles by taking drugs and alcohols. Peace is not free of trouble. It is the state of our inner person. Jesus brought us true peace. Jesus said, “My peace I give you.” Man cannot give us peace. Only Jesus can give us peace. We need Jesus’ peace. Jesus assures us true peace. At this point Jesus was going to be arrested and would suffer endlessly and would die on the cross. But Jesus was talking about peace not trouble or suffering. Judas would betray him soon and his top disciple Peter would deny him and all his followers would abandon him. His enemies are gathering to destroy him. Then he speaks of the peace that is mine. It is an inward peace, independent of circumstances, coming from his union with the Father. Jesus was calm before his enemies. He was peaceful when he was crucified on the cross. He was peaceful because he trusted God’s love.
There are many stories about people who held the peace of God at critical moments. Apostle Peter was a man of fear when he did not receive the Holy Spirit. He denied Jesus three times in order to save his life. But when he received the promised Holy Spirit, he became a bold witness of Jesus. Finally Peter was crucified, but he had the peace of God when he died because he received peace Jesus gave. Among the seven deacons there was one named Stephen. He boldly proclaimed the gospel of Jesus in view of Christian history. Then the Jews who had crucified Jesus plugged their ears, gnashed their teeth, and, out of their anger, stoned him to death. But Stephen prayed in the same way Jesus had prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep (Ac 7:59-60). Death by stoning must have given him a most sharp pain. But the author of the Acts of the Apostles says, “He fell asleep.” Jesus gave him the peace of God. The peace of God ruled and overruled his soul.
Look at verses 28-29. “You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe.” In these verses Jesus again told them that he was going back to God and that he would come back again. But for the time being, the prince of this world would come (30). Here, “the prince of this world” indicates Satan. It is indeed wonderful that Jesus planted faith by showing them that he was doing exactly what the Father had commanded him. He also planted faith in the kingdom of God (29).
Today we learned that our Lord Jesus Christ is not here, but he is in our souls reminding us of his words and counseling us to believe in the kingdom of God and to hold the peace of God. The Holy Spirit is not a deceptive people’s weapon. The Holy Spirit is one of the persons in God. When we have the Holy Spirit, we can enjoy the peace of God. Let’s read the key verse 15-16.