Sunday 8 February, 2015

16 “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. 2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. 3 They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. 4 I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you, 5 but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 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. 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.”

Check out verse 2. That’s a dire warning from Jesus to his disciples. It has relevance for us too given what is happening in Iraq, Syria and Nigeria where Christians are being persecuted and killed; the perpetrators thinking they are “doing a service” to ‘God’.

But there is hope. Massive hope.

Jesus said in verse 7 that it’s best if He goes away. What could possible be better than being with Jesus? The answer is having the Holy Spirit! Jesus has given us an Advocate and no words can describe how awesome He is!

He convicts us of sin (oh how I under-value this blessing), He guides, He tells us what He has heard from Jesus, He speaks to us, He tells us about what’s coming up, He glorifies Jesus in my life.

Come what may, world. I have the Advocate!

More, more about Jesus. More of His words in my life Holy Spirit. May the ears of my heart be tuned and the priorities of my day adjusted to hear the words You’ve heard from Jesus for me.   Amen

Written by Boudy van Noppen