Author: Haverland

NOT AS ORPHANS

Readings: Gal 5:16-26, 1 Cor 2; John 13:33-14:21
Text: John 14:16-18
Heidelberg Catechism LD 20
Theme: Before his death and ascension Jesus promised to send the Helper, the Spirit of Truth to be with us and in us. 
Purpose: To comfort, encourage and strengthen us with the knowledge that the Holy Spirit is with us and in us as the Spirit of Truth, our Helper.

There are times when someone who has been very important in our life tells us they are going away. Think of someone who is hard working, much appreciated, well liked, and an integral part of the family or the organization, who then announces that he will be leaving!
This could be the principal of a school who has been there a number of years, or the pastor of a church, or the CEO of a company, or the coach of a team.
Think of a father or grandfather who knows he is dying and then tells his children and grandchildren that some time in the future he will no longer be with them.

In situations like these those left behind wonder; how will we get on without him? What will we do? How will the team cope? How will our family manage? Who will lead us now? Where will we go for advice or for someone to talk to?!

These were the questions in the minds of the disciples of Jesus as they shared their last Passover meal with him. He had said to them (13:33); “My children, I will be with you only a little longer.” And in 14:2 he assured them that he was going to his Father’s house to prepare a place for them.”

The disciples were troubled because of this news. (14:1) They had been with him for the past three years; always in his company, following him, listening to his teaching, looking to him for guidance, asking him for advice. If he were to go they would be like orphans, on their own, without help or direction. They were worried and afraid. 

In response Jesus assured them (v 16); “I will ask the Father and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you forever, the Spirit of Truth.” This is the first of a series of important passages about the Holy Spirit. 

Here we see all three persons of the Trinity: Jesus is speaking; he spoke about his Father who was the Head and Origin of all things; and he spoke about the Spirit. 

“I will ask the Father and he will give you another Counsellor….” (v 16) Sometimes Jesus said that he would send the Spirit (15:26; 16:7) and at others times, as here, he said the Father would give, or send, them the Spirit. This is why we confess in the Nicene Creed that the Holy Spirit “proceeds from the Father and the Son” - he was sent by both of them. 

Jesus gave his disciples two descriptions of the person of the Spirit and two descriptions of the presence of the Spirit. Let’s consider these.

1. THE PERSON OF THE SPIRIT

a. Jesus described him as “another Counsellor.”

“Another” does not mean that the Spirit would be very different from Jesus but rather than he would be much the same. The Spirit is a person distinct from Jesus; but he is the third person of the trinity and so is also God and he would continue what Jesus had been doing. 

The Greek word translated as “Counsellor” is parakletos. Literally it means “one called to help” or “one called alongside”. It is used only five times in the New Testament, all by John. It is difficult to find one word to translate this that captures all the meaning. 

One translation uses the word “Advocate”. This ties in with the original use of the word; a person who was called into a court of law could bring with them an advocate to stand with them. This is a common practice today where a man in court usually has a lawyer advocating for him; or a person who has a meeting with her employer over some problem may have a support person with her. 

Jesus has gone back to heaven and he is our Advocate before the Father, representing us there and pleading our cause. (1 John 2:1f)
He has also sent the Holy Spirit to be our advocate from earth, helping us in our prayers. (Rom 8:26f)

The NIV uses the word “Counsellor”. We should not understand this to be like a marriage counsellor or a counsellor at school, but rather more in legal terms, as the word Advocate conveys. 

The KJV used “Comforter” which was a fine word at that time when comfort had the meaning of strength, as it does in question and answer 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism; “What is your only comfort in life and in death.” The question is asking; “What gives you strength?” The Holy Spirit does give us comfort, in the sense of consolation, in the sorrows and sadness of life, but he also gives us strength in the trials and troubles of life.

The NASB and ESV use the word “Helper”. This too is part of his role. He helps us through our problems and in our difficulties. He helps us in times of doubt, and temptation, and uncertainty, and sickness, and death.  

Are you aware of this role and ministry of the Holy Spirit? The Father and the Son have sent him to give us comfort and strength, to help us in all the struggles of life, to advocate for us to the Father, to give us counsel and guidance in every situation we face. 

Jesus has assured us that “your Father in heaven will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.” (Luke 11:13) Every one of us needs this help and counsel and comfort. So ask the Father to give you his Spirit; and keep on asking that God will fill you more and more with his Spirit so that you may receive more and more of his ministry as our Helper. (Eph 5:18)

b. The second description of the person of the Spirit is “the Spirit of Truth”. (V 17)

He is not the Spirit of falsehood or error but the Spirit of truth. He is the Spirit of Jesus who was and is “the Way, the Truth and the Life.” (John 14:6) 

Jesus sent him to teach us the truth about who he is. 
Jesus had promised his disciples, he “will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have said to you.” (14:26) The Spirit did this as he revealed the truth to them and inspired them to write it down in the gospels and letters of the New Testament. 
The Spirit also teaches us the truth as he opens our minds so that we can understand what he has written in the Bible. This is why, when we read the Scriptures, we need to pause and ask the Holy Spirit to help us understand what we read. 

But Jesus went on to say (v 17); “The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him”. There are many who have no belief in God and no interest in his word. They will not accept the Spirit of Truth. They do not see him or know him. Their minds are darkened by sin. They have no desire to know him and they have no relationship with him. We read about that in 1 Corinthians chapter 2; “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (v 14)

Can you “see” the Holy Spirit with the eyes of faith? Do you know him in your own heart? Do you experience his work in your life? Do you recognise and use the gifts he has given you to serve in the church? Are you praying that he will shape and mould your character so you will grow to be more like the Lord Jesus? 

If you don’t yet see him or know him then ask God to give you his Spirit. Ask him to enlighten your mind so you can understand his Word. Ask him to change your heart and cause you to be born again. If you do that you will come to believe in him and you will experience his work in your life.

Jesus described the person of the Holy Spirit as the Counsellor and as the Spirit of Truth.

2. He also described THE PRESENCE OF THE SPIRIT 

a. He promised that his Father would “give you another Counsellor to be with you forever” (v 16) and assured them that the Spirit “lives with you.” (v 17)

This is the first assurance of the presence of the Spirit – he was with the disciples and he is with us. Jesus was about to go away but he wanted them to know that they would not be alone - his Spirit would be with them.

This was in keeping with God’s central covenant promise in the Old Testament. Through Ezekiel God said to Israel; “My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God and they will be my people.” (Ezk 37:27) 
That promise was fulfilled with the coming of Jesus who came to dwell among his people (John 1:14). 
And as Jesus prepared to leave his disciples he promised that the Spirit would be with them. The triune God is always with his people, always present with us. 

What’s more, he will be “with you forever”. Not just for a short while, nor just when our situation is really desperate, nor just in emergencies, nor only for this life – rather, forever, always, now and for all eternity! That is a great comfort, a great strength, a great hope for us as his people!

And Jesus assures us that the Holy Spirit “lives (or remains) with you”. (v 17) The verb is in the present tense; this is ongoing, continuous. The Holy Spirit is with us always. There is never a day or moment when he is absent from us. This is the promise of God in both the Old and New Testaments; “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” (Deut 31:6; Heb 13:5) LD 20 of the Catechism brings this our when it says, the Holy Spirit “has been given to me personally … and remains with me forever.” This too is a great comfort for all of us. The triune God is constantly with us.

b. The second description Jesus gave us of the presence of the Spirit is that he will be in us. 
He said to his disciples; “…he lives with you and will be in you.” (v 17)

It is easy to misunderstand this in our present day and age that is so influenced by Eastern religious thought and by the New Age movement. These religions teach that the goal of religious experience is to become one with the universe, or to be one with god, through a mystical and subjective experience. They teach that god is within us and that we are gods. But this is not what Jesus is teaching here.

The Bible always maintains a distinction between God as the Creator and his creation; and this applies to the Holy Spirit and believers who are also distinct from each other. 

When the Spirit of God lives within us this does not make us gods. The Spirit does not blend into us as Eastern mysticism teaches. 

Rather there is a relationship between the Spirit and us, which is real and personal. We are temples of the Holy Spirit. He is at work in us. He begins his work by giving us a new heart, he then enlightens our minds, he guides and directs our wills, and then he gradually works with us and in us to change our lives so that we become more and more like our Lord Jesus. This is the process of sanctification where we become more holy, more and more set apart from the world and sin. 

This is the work of the Lord Jesus through his Spirit. So Jesus could say to those disciples; “I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you.” (v 18)

We have all seen tragic pictures of orphans. The earthquakes in China and the floods in Pakistan and the war going on in Afghanistan have killed many parents and left many children as orphans. These children are sad and lonely. They are on their own. They miss their parents. 

David, writing in Psalm 27 expressed his confidence in God; “Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.” (v 10) And Jesus comforted his disciples, and us, with the promise; “I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you.” (v 18) He assured us of this in his final words before his ascension; “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt 28:20)

When someone we love and respect leaves our lives or our family or our church then we are often sad and sometimes anxious and worried. 
But if you believe in Jesus you can be assured that he is always with you and in you, through his Spirit. This Spirit is the Spirit of Truth and he is our Counsellor, our Comforter, our Advocate, our Helper. 

Earlier we sang:

Dwell in me, O blessed Spirit!
How I need thy help divine!
In the way of life eternal,
Keep, O keep, this heart of mine.

Let me feel thy sacred presence;
Then my faith will ne’er decline.
Comfort thou and help me onward;
Fill with love this heart of mine. (PH 397)

This is our prayer.

Amen