The world is a troubling place; fear and despair grips people. Jesus gives us a powerful promise: The Spirit will be with you!
Scripture:
Jeremiah, chapters 10-12; John, chapter 14
John 14:15-17 (CEB)
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. I will ask the Father, and he will send another Companion, who will be with you forever. This Companion is the Spirit of Truth, whom the world can’t receive because it neither sees him nor recognizes him. You know him, because he lives with you and will be in you.”
Observations: Don’t Be Afraid – The Spirit Will Be With You
In chapters 14-16 of John’s Gospel, Jesus explains to his disciples what will happen “next.” Judas Iscariot has gone to betray Jesus to the religious leaders. Jesus warned the other disciples that they could not follow him where he was going now (see John 13:34-38). When Peter boasted that he would give up his life for Jesus, Jesus told Peter that he would deny Jesus three times before the rooster crowed the next morning. As the disciples struggled to absorb and understand what Jesus was saying, Jesus comforted them: “Don’t be troubled. Trust in God. Trust also in me. My father’s house has room to spare…When I go to prepare a place for you, I will return and take you to be with me…” (John 14:1-3).
Thomas, in what must have been typical fashion for him, asked Jesus bluntly: “We don’t know where you are going. How can we know the way?” (John 14:5). Jesus’ response to Thomas is well-known and loved: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Philip then said, “Lord, show us the Father; that will be enough for us” (John 14:8). Jesus replied, “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been with you all this time? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9, emphasis added).
So Jesus has manifested God’s presence with them, just as John explained in chapter 1: “No one has ever seen God. God the only Son, who is at the Father’s side, has made God known” (John 1:18). In one way, that makes Jesus’ departure even more difficult. How can the disciples function when they no longer have Jesus with them?
The Spirit Will Be With You: Another Companion
In our passage, Jesus answers that question: “I will ask the Father, and he will send another Companion, who will be with you forever.” The Greek word that is translated another in this passage means another one numerically, but of the same kind and quality as the first. In other words, this Companion whom God will send will be the same kind of Companion that Jesus has been for them. Jesus goes on through the rest of chapter 14, and chapters 15-16, to explain the Companion’s ministry.
So what can we learn about the Holy Spirit – this Companion – from what Jesus tells us? Just in chapter 14, Jesus says that the Spirit
- Will be with you forever (v 16)
- Is the Spirit of Truth (v 17)
- Lives with you and will be in you (v 17)
- Will teach you everything and remind you of everything I told you (v 26)
I have always honed in on the phrase that the Spirit has been with you and will be in you. The disciples have experienced the Spirit’s presence as Jesus ministered to them. They recognize that the Spirit is the power of God at work – and has been from the beginning. And just as Jesus has demonstrated that power to them while he was with them, the Spirit will continue to do so forever. No wonder Jesus told them – and us – not to be troubled or afraid!
Application: The Spirit Will Be With You: Keep My Commandments
At the beginning of the passage I quoted above, Jesus tells us the result of the Spirit’s presence: If you love me, you will keep my commandments. Most of what Jesus tells us about the Spirit is related to truth. He is the Spirit of truth; he teaches us and reminds us of what Jesus has told us. In chapter 16, we will see that the Spirit will “show the world that it was wrong about sin, righteousness, and judgment” (John 16:8). Teaching about truth leads us to do what is right and shun what is wrong.
Those of us who follow Jesus should recognize and remember something important. Jesus says that the Spirit will “show the world that it was wrong.” We demonstrate the presence of the Spirit through the fruit of the Spirit, and allow the Spirit to “do the talking.” The fruit of the Spirit evidences the Spirit’s presence. When people who are troubled and discouraged experience the Spirit’s presence through his fruit in us, they will be drawn to the Spirit – and to Jesus, to whom the Spirit testifies.
If you love me, you will keep my commandments. That’s not because God is a control freak; it’s because Jesus understands that living God’s way is the best way for us. When we live God’s way, it shows others that it is possible – and that we can experience God’s peace in this life. “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I give to you not as the world gives. Don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27).
Prayer:
Father, thank you for Jesus’ promise of peace through the presence of the Holy Spirit. Help us today to recognize how the Spirit leads us in your truth. May your Spirit show us how to walk in your way, that we may keep your commandments and demonstrate your love to others. Strengthen us so that we will not be troubled or afraid. Teach us and enable us to become more like Jesus every day. Amen.
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