Tag Archives: another advocate

JOHN’S GOSPEL… THE PENTECOST EVENT – 27

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John 14:16-18 NIV
[16] And I will ask the Father, and he will give you ANOTHER ADVOCATE TO HELP YOU and BE WITH YOU FOREVER — [17] 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. [18] I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

John 15:26 NIV
[26] “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—HE WILL TESTIFY ABOUT ME.

John 16:8-11 NIV
[8] “When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: [9] about sin, because people do not believe in me; [10] about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; [11] and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.”

John 16:12-15 NIV
[12] “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. [13] But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, HE WILL GUIDE YOU INTO ALL THE TRUTH. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. [14] HE WILL GLORIFY ME because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. [15] All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

Not much in words but a whole lot in meaning!

How mystified the disciples must have been. They were steeped in Old Covenant history and teaching. They knew about the Holy Spirit. He came and went in the lives of some of the old covenant saints…but now, Jesus was speaking of Him as His equal, even His other self, His representative who would replace Him in their lives and yet be as if Jesus Himself would be with them, His unseen but real self, to carry on His work. So Paul could write… “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

First, we must go back to Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus in John 3. The starting place for the Holy Spirit’s ministry in the disciples and all who follow them could only be in their spiritual birth into God’s kingdom. No one who has not entered the kingdom in this radical way can ever have the Spirit indwelling them and doing the work that Jesus said He would do.

Second,

“He lives with you and will be in you… I will come to you.”

“When the Advocate comes… He will testify about me.”

“He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.”

“All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

everything the Holy Spirit does in believers that is not focused on Jesus…the revelation of who He is, and transformation into His image, the blueprint of God’s Son, is peripheral. What Jesus taught His disciples about the Spirit in the Upper Room is the core of everything the Holy Spirit does in, for, and through the believer.

Second, when we examine what Jesus said about Him, we see that the work of the Holy Spirit is all about Jesus. This is in perfect harmony with the relationship of the three Persons of the Trinity. Each is entrenched in the other two persons, in harmony with, submitting to, and exalting one another.

The closeness between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit cannot be more clearly revealed than in the saving work of Jesus and the aftermath, as Jesus explains here, of bringing people into God’s kingdom and transforming them into His image by the Holy Spirit’s work.

Everything the Holy Spirit does in believers that is not focused on Jesus…the revelation of who He is, and transformation into His image, the blueprint of God’s Son, is peripheral. What Jesus taught His disciples about the Spirit in the Upper Room is the core of everything the Holy Spirit does in, for, and through the believer.

How tragic that so much of modern Christianity has corrupted the Scriptures by presenting, in preaching and practice, a version of the Holy Spirit which is foreign to the Word of God. He is presented as an entertainer… doing strange things while people look on, sending feathers flying and gold dust falling, people collapsing on the floor “under the power”, muttering strange sounds and even animal noises! How do these “manifestations” glorify Jesus or change people into His image?

Even the so-called “miracle campaigns”, so common today, are an abuse of the Scriptures. Jesus’ miracles were, first and foremost, confirmation that He was who He said, he was, the Son of God sent from the Father.

To His opponents, Jesus argued…

John 10:30-33, 37-38 NIV
[30] “I and the Father are one.” [31] Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, [32] but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” [33] “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”…
[37] Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. [38] But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”

… And to His disciples, He said…

John 14:11 NIV
[11] “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.”

The works Jesus did were through the power of the Holy Spirit…

Matthew 12:24, 27-28 NIV
[24] “But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”…
Jesus responded…
[27] And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. [28] But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

How important, then, that the disciples (and we) take Jesus’ teaching seriously, not adding, subtracting, or twisting out OF shape what He said. On their shoulders rested the responsibility of correctly interpreting the events of Pentecost according to the Scriptures and faithfully passing on to the next generation the teaching and ministry of Jesus in obedience to the Holy Spirit in them.

Peter’s sermon on the Day of Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit in them confirms that he recognised the prophetic word spoken by Joel, as that moment of fulfilment.

Acts 2:14-21 NIV
[14] “Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. [15] These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! [16] No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: [17] “ ‘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. [18] Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. [19] I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. [20] The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. [21] And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

The Holy Spirit came, inspired Peter with the understanding of truth, and convicted sinners, as Jesus said He would, pointing them to Jesus as the truth and the Saviour of
sinners.

John 16:8 NIV
[8] “When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment:”…

Acts 2:37-39 NIV
[37] “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” [38] Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. [39] The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

Pentecost was the demonstration and confirmation that the Holy Spirit fulfilled and fulfills everything Jesus taught about Him.

NO LONGER AN ORPHAN

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NO LONGER AN ORPHAN


The world is an orphanage!  That’s true.

Have you ever considered the impact of Jesus’ words…

“If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you… No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you.
John 14:15-16, 18 NLT

When the Holy Spirit left Adam on the day that he chose to go his way, he became an orphan and so did every person born into the world since Adam. What a tragedy!

There are biological fathers aplenty. In today’s promiscuous world, men breed children by the thousands and leave them to grow up fatherless with no name, no identity, no security, and no heritage to pass on to their offspring.

In this climate of anchorless people, Jesus’ promise must have a powerful meaning in our lives. Only those, whether they have or had human fathers in their lives or not, have a perfect Father when they become children of God through faith in Jesus.

Jesus promised a permanent place in His family. He gave us a permanent, indwelling representative of Himself and the Father, His Spirit, to affirm and assure us of His love and to guide, protect, and provide for us throughout life’s journey.

“So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.”
Romans 8:15-16 NLT

Get hold of that! If you believe in Jesus, you are no longer an orphan. You have a Father who loves you passionately, knows you intimately, cares for you tenderly, and protects your fiercely. What more do you need?

“Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever. They will not be disgraced in hard times; even in famine they will have more than enough.”
Psalms 37:18-19 NLT

PRAYER
Thank you, Father God, for the reassurance that you are the only and true father that I need.

I know that my own father failed to be perfect because he is part of fallen humans. I forgive him for all his shortcomings, however they affected me. I release him from the debt he owes me.

I acknowledge that my debt to you is far greater. Thank you for your mercy. Thank you for your great gift of salvation, and for the grace you supply to help me in all my weakness.

Thank you for Jesus who came to reveal to the world and to me what a great Father you are.

Please help me, Father, my Abba, to live every day in the knowledge that you are my real father, and that you are Yahweh, everything you say you are. I am not an orphan! I am your beloved child.

THE HOLY SPIRIT REVEALED

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THE HOLY SPIRIT REVEALED

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 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. 1 John 14:16-18

Except for the few times Jesus mentioned the source of His power, His disciples did not know this Spirit whom He said was coming. Jesus spent the final precious hours before He was torn from them to fill them in on the Person who would take His place, both with them and in them. He told the disciples, in what we call the “Upper Room Discourse”, everything they needed to know about the Holy Spirit so that they would learn to walk with Him as they had walked with Jesus for three years.

  1. Jesus’s “other” self

So close and one were Jesus and the Holy Spirit that He could call Him His “other self”. He could say with confidence:

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. (John 14: 18)

How could He come to them since He had told them that He was going away? After His resurrection, He was only around for forty days before He left them for good. Ah, but He had another “self”, the Holy Spirit who would take up residence within them forever. The Spirit would not come and go as Jesus had done. He would not be confined to a geographical location as Jesus was. He was spirit, not flesh and blood, and would soon come upon them to be fused with their spirits in an unbreakable union. They would be His temple, individually and together. He would make real the name that was given to Jesus prophetically in the Tanakh – Emmanuel – God with us.

The Holy Spirit withdrew from fallen man in the beginning because He could not dwell with sin. Jesus atoned for and removed sin forever and promised that He would send the Holy Spirit from the Father to be in them permanently once again. Everything that Jesus was to them, He would be.

  • The “Paracletos”

Jesus promised that “another Parakletos” was coming – one who would do the same things He had done while He was with them. The word parakletos comes from two Greek words – para, meaning “alongside” as in the word “parallel” – and kaleo, meaning “to call”. “Parakletos” is in the passive voice – “one who is called alongside”.

Who was this Parakletos and what would He do? Firstly, He was “another Parakletos”, implying that Jesus was the first Parakletos. Therefore, He would take Jesus’s place and do everything Jesus did. To His disciples, Jesus was their rabbi and their model. He was their protector and provider. He was their teacher and mentor.

This “another Parakletos” was called alongside them to support them in their human weakness. He would help them when they tottered under the weight of their burdens by carrying the burdens with them. He would be there to enable them to walk “upright” on their journey to the Father.

  • The Spirit of Truth

Jesus described the Parakletos as the Spirit of truth. He was not just any spirit. He was the Spirit of truth. Jesus identified Himself as the “truth”. Pilate asked rather cynically. “What is truth?” and did not even stay long enough to hear His answer. What would Jesus have said to Pilate? Would He have defined truth in abstract terms? No. As a true Hebrew, Jesus would have simply said, “Look at me. I am the truth.” In other words, everything He was, everything He said and everything He did was the truth.

Now He said to His disciples, “Just as you watched me and saw truth in action, the Holy Spirit will be in you to teach you how to be truth in action.” If they listened to Him as they had listened to Jesus, they would be in no doubt at all about who and what the truth was.

  • The Spirit of Jesus

But how would they be able to differentiate between the voice of the Holy Spirit in them and every other voice that clamoured to be heard? Jesus gave them a simple test.

All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counsellor, 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. (John 14: 25-26)

I have much more to say to you, more than you can bear now. But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. (John 16: 12-14)

What the Holy Spirit says and does is always in perfect harmony with what Jesus said and did. The test is simple and backed up by a powerful witness:

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14: 27)

How would they know they were on the right track? Jesus promised that He would replace their insecurity with the same confirmation that powered Him – peace. Peace in the heart always follows truth in the mind. Emotional disturbance is God’s warning sign that there are lies in the mind that contradict what God has said. Jesus assured His disciples that, if they followed the Holy Spirit who would lead them into the truth embodied in Him and His word, His supernatural peace would confirm that they were in the truth.

Scripture is taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

FRIENDSHIP WITH GOD

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FRIENDSHIP WITH GOD

“‘If you love me, keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and 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.'” John 14:15-17 NIV.

Talk about intimacy! Jesus described the potential of a relationship with the Trinity that could not possibly be more intimate.

What is intimacy? Our minds immediately link intimacy with some kind of physical relationship, don’t they? Cuddling, kissing, even intercourse! But that is not necessarily being intimate. Intimacy simply means being fully known and fully accepted. This is the relationship that exists in the Trinity — no secrets, nothing hidden, no dishonesty, being absolutely open and transparent.

Intimacy in the human sense involves both risk and trust; risk because it means opening up to the other person and risking betrayal; and trust because it believes that, no matter what it reveals, the other person will treasure and hold sacred whatever you reveal of yourself.

Jesus offered His disciples and He offers us a relationship like that with us, but it has a condition attached — fulfilling our side of what cements unity — obedience.

“You are my friends if you do what I command you.” John 15:14 NIV.

However, this is not the subservient kind of obedience that does what it is told because, if not, there are consequences. This kind of obedience is built on the love that wants to protect the oneness between us and the Master by not doing anything that would go against what He values.

He offers us, mere humans, the highest form of friendship with Him — friendship with God, mind you, the God who created and rules the universe through the power of His Word; this God said that He would call us friends, just like Abraham was His friend, and like David was a man after His heart — on one condition

“The Lord is friend to those who fear Him. He teaches them His covenant.” Psalm 25:14 NLT.

“Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” Psalm 34:11-14 NIV.

Jesus promised the priceless gift of the Holy Spirit to those whose love s Him is strong enough to do whatever He requires so that we will not break His heart, not to those who “receive Him so that they can go to heaven when they die!” Like the intimacy He had with His Father, He offers us an intimacy that understands His heart and co-operates with Him to carry out His will on earth through prayer and obedience.

“I will ask the Father…” Was this something that Jesus decided on the spur of the moment? I don’t think so. This was part of the plan from the beginning. The first pair lost the intimacy of the Holy Spirit when they disobeyed God’s instruction. Jesus bought back that honour for us by paying the price for our sin, but He still had to co-operate with the Father by asking Him to do what He had already planned to do.

This is the essence of true prayer; not bringing our “grocery lists” of requests to God and wanting “delivery” of the items by next Tuesday, but by getting to know the heart of the Father through intimacy with Him, and expressing our oneness with Him through prayer as we learn what He has already planned to do and then asking Him to do it.

“And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” John 13:13 NIV. This is not a blank cheque that will get you anything your heart may desire. This is an invitation to share in the glorious work of rebuilding God’s kingdom on earth by hearing the heart of the Father and asking according to the name (the nature and will) of the Son.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.