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Home > Resources > Sermons > John

OUR DIVINE TEACHER

JOHN 14:25-26

December 10, 1995

 

In his book, Darkness and Light, Martyn Lloyd-Jones has written, "We now recognise that becoming a Christian does not mean that you simply change your moral suit or your outward behaviour.  Nor does it merely mean that you change your opinions, or change your mind.  But it most certainly means changing the spirit of your mind.  What a distinction!  In other words, Christianity is not something that you and I take up intellectually; it is something that takes us up, and captivates us, and governs us, and controls us"(p. 165).

 

Christianity is chiefly a supernatural religion.  Yes, we live in the natural and the mundane, but when the Spirit of God works in regenerating power in our fallen natures, suddenly the supernatural work of God begins in our lives!  We, as poor, miserable creatures, have a transforming encounter with the living God through faith in Christ.  Everything changes!

 

When we come to Christ by faith, our minds are captured by the truth of God.  But Who does this capturing?  It is our Divine Teacher, the Holy Spirit, who captures our minds by the glorious truth of the gospel!  Jesus identified the Holy Spirit as the One who will teach us.  Why is this so vital to our interests in the Christian life?

 

For one thing, there is a great misconception about Christianity in our day.  So many think that God saves us so that we can feel better about ourselves and be happier in life.  You may be happier and you may feel better about yourself knowing that the justice of God has been satisfied for you thoroughly by Jesus Christ.  But that is not the primary reason for your salvation.  You are saved that you might know the living God!  And in knowing Him, you consequently live unto Him and His glory.

 

For example, when you summarize the whole drive and bent of the Apostle Paul's life it is knowing God.  For this he could lay aside all else, ignore the sufferings he faced, walk through the constant pressure and opposition, all for the satisfying delight of knowing God.  J. I. Packer has written what has now become a classic, Knowing God.  In it he writes, 

Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is to know God, most of life's problems fall into place of their own accord....What makes life worthwhile is having a big enough objective, something which catches our imagination and lays hold of our allegiance; and this the Christian has in a way that no other person has.  For what higher, more exalted, and more compelling goal can there be than to know God? (p. 34)

But here is the perplexity of the whole issue:  man does not come to know God by simply reading a book about Him or even by merely reading His Word.  We come to know God when God Himself reveals Himself to us through Christ.  And that work, both in its initial form and its continuing development, is the work of the Divine Teacher, the Holy Spirit.  What our Lord spoke in our text lays the groundwork for us in knowing God.  We might put it like this, the mission of the Paraclete is to so work in us that we might know God.  Let's see how this develops in our text.

 

I.  Authority in the Paraclete's Mission

 

We must be careful to keep this study in its context, which was that of bringing comfort to the disciples (and so, ultimately to us) in light of Jesus' soon departure from this world.  This little band of believers had delighted in the words of Christ and their relationship to Him.  Now they were faced with the question of how this relationship could continue when separated by His ascension to heaven and their continuing on earth.  Jesus settles this issue by first introducing them to the work of the Holy Spirit as the Paraclete, the One called alongside to help (vv. 16-17).

 

The question that naturally would have come to their minds would have been whether they were now getting short-changed by the Holy Spirit being substituted for Christ.  They knew Christ and how He spoke and what He could do.  But what about the Paraclete?  Would He be able to teach them as Christ had done and comfort them as Christ had done?  Would He be adequate for the pressing demands which they faced in carrying on the work of the Gospel?

 

Jesus settles the issue by showing a contrast.  He had given them comforting words and promises "while abiding with you."  "But," our Lord shows the contrast, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things...."  Jesus had done so much for the disciples, but now the Holy Spirit would continue where Jesus left off and would even deepen what Christ had begun.  How could the Spirit do this?  Because He was sent from the Father in Christ's name.  That is the key to understanding the authority of the Paraclete's mission; He is sent in Christ's name.  What does this imply?

 

1.  On the ground of Christ's finished work

 

The Holy Spirit could come in indwelling power only because Christ had opened the door through His atoning work.  Since man is at enmity with God, it is only when that enmity is broken down or eliminated, that man can be made right with God.  Consequently, it is only when the enmity is torn down that God, who is altogether holy, can come to indwell man.  If the offense of our sin still reigns in our lives, then God's only relationship to us is one of wrath and judgment, not an indwelling relationship (Eph. 2:13-22).

 

We have seen throughout John's Gospel where Christ has referred to going to the Father or going away.  This, in John's theology, carries the whole redemptive work of Christ in figurative language.  He was going away in that He was going to the cross to satisfy God's righteousness, ...He was going to the tomb as One who has died for sinners,...He was going to be raised from the dead conquering every foe that holds us in bondage,...and ultimately, He was going to ascend back to the Father.  This is what Jesus meant when in John 16:7, He said, "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I go not away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you."  Do you see the relationship Jesus is establishing between His "going away" and "sending the Helper"?

 

The condition of the Paraclete coming was Jesus "going away."  It is strange that some in our day speak of having a relationship to the Holy Spirit but never mention the redemptive work of Christ!  That is foreign to the New Testament.  It is only when Jesus Christ is glorified in our lives by the application of His redemptive work at the cross and resurrection that the Holy Spirit can come in power to indwell and sanctify us.

 

2.  In answer to Christ's intercessory prayer

 

Jesus has already stated that He would ask the Father and the Father would send the Paraclete (14:16).  We can therefore say that the Holy Spirit is the gift of our Savior to His redeemed.  This shows the power of Christ's intercessory work.  And it displays the greatness of His love for us as He considers our helpless estate and our need for the work of the Spirit.

 

But the question we must ask is whether the answer to Jesus' prayer is as adequate as Christ Himself?  We must realize that Jesus would never ask for that which is inadequate for His people.  He never did anything that was 'not quite good enough'.  Nor did Jesus ever pray for anything that 'would not quite do the job'.  This would be against His nature.

 

We pray for many things in life.  We pray about our health, our need for jobs, maybe grades on a test, or success with a project.  We even pray about our ministries in the body and our witness to the lost.  Do we expect that God's answer will be less than adequate for His will?  That would be impossible!  Now, His answers may not be according to our desires, but they certainly fulfill His desires for us.  

 

Compare this to the prayers of Jesus Christ.  Would the Father give His Son, Who knew His will, Who was God Incarnate, anything less than that which is adequate?  You say, 'Of course He wouldn't!'  Then I propose to you that what we really need to live out the demands of the Christian life is nothing less than God Himself indwelling our earthly bodies, enabling us with His might, strengthening us in every work we face.  I don't just need God near me, I need Him in me!  It is precisely this which our Lord prayed to the Father.  And in response to the Savior's prayer, the Father sent the Holy Spirit in His name.

 

3.  With Christ's authority and power

 

Our text tells us that the Father will send the Spirit in the name of Jesus Christ.  The idea of sending someone in another's name carries with it full representation, full authority, power to act according to the wisdom and ways of another, the total approval of the one represented.

 

When one of our ambassadors to a foreign nation enters into negotiations with a particular country, what kind of authority does he have?  He represents the United States.  He acts on behalf of the United States.  He speaks the mind and will of the United States.  He makes decisions on behalf of the United States.  He carries with him all of the authority which the Constitution vests in an ambassador.

 

Now I suppose that the Father could have sent an angel as His representative to man.  But that angel would have been handicapped in dealing with redeemed humanity.  He might could have acted upon one person or one group of people at a time, but he could not act upon all of the redeemed across the globe simultaneously due to the limitations he has as a created being.  He could speak what the Father told Him to say, but the angel could not act like God to a believer, because that angel is not God.  So, God Himself has come!  First, He came in Christ becoming Incarnate, a truth which we celebrate especially during this time of the year.  Then He came as Spirit, the Holy Spirit, to accomplish all of the work which He purposed to do in the redemption and glorification of the elect of God.  The Holy Spirit has not come as second-fiddle, but as God Himself, for He is indeed the living God come to indwell the redeemed.  Apart from His work, we cannot know God.  When this God indwells you, then you can come to know Him.

 

II.  Aim of the Paraclete's Mission

 

Jesus describes the Spirit's mission in terms of 'teaching you all things'.  For this reason we call Him the Divine Teacher, for that is the office which He exercises on our behalf, along with other divine offices.  Why do we need to be taught by the Holy Spirit?

 

1.  To relieve the dullness of our minds

 

I am amazed at the intellectual giants of our world!  Any glance at history will show you that there have been some brilliant people in every realm of life.  In political life there have been few who can compare to the brilliance and abilities of Lincoln, Churchill, Lloyd-George, Henry Clay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison.  Their grasp of law, national situations, and people proved them to be geniuses of the first rank.  

 

Then look at medicine and all of the brilliance found among men like Christian Barnard who pioneered heart transplants, Jonas Salk who produced the first polio vaccine among other discoveries, and even our own Dr. Shea who is know around the world for his work on ears and hearing.

 

But with all of the brilliance of men and women through the ages, there is one area of life in which mankind is naturally dull.  That is the realm of the spiritual.  A story in the life of William Wilberforce demonstrates this.  Wilberforce was a man who had been genuinely converted and was thoroughly evangelical in all his practices.  He worked tirelessly as a member of Parliament to end the evils of slave trading.  A close friend of his was William Pitt the Younger who was a brilliant intellectual and a great statesman, serving as one of Britain's greatest Prime Ministers.  Wilberforce had been inviting William Pitt to join him at church to hear the Church of England preacher, Richard Cecil, preach.  Pitt was a nominal churchman who made excuses often to keep from going along with Wilberforce.  Finally, he agreed to attend and Richard Cecil preached the Word of God with great passion and anointing of the Spirit.  Wilberforce was lifted up by Cecil's preaching.  He felt himself feasting upon God's Word and glorying in the truth spoken.  All the while he wondered how his friend would respond, so he prayed earnestly for him.  When it was all over, this brilliant man, William Pitt looked at Wilberforce and said, "You know, Wilberforce, I have not the slightest idea what that man has been talking about."

 

Pitt may have been exceptionally bright, probably more so than Wilberforce.  But the Spirit of God had opened Wilberforce's understanding, while Pitt's remained dull (Light and Darkness, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, pp. 49-50).

 

The Scripture puts it quite simply:  "But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised" (I Cor. 2:14).  Notice that Paul did not say they were understood because of degrees behind a person's name.  One's educational attainment cannot bring a person one inch closer to knowing the living God apart from the work of the Spirit.  The Fall of man has dulled our minds so that they are full of deadness when it comes to the light of God through His Word.  This is not to say that a person cannot through the means of theological study acquire a vast knowledge of facts and truths related to the Person of God.  I cannot help but think of Paul Tillich, the noted theologian, who was considered one of the great theological minds of this century, but who gave no evidence of  being a regenerated man.

 

Until the Holy Spirit opens the eyes of our understanding we cannot understand the truth of God in such a way that we know God.  Yes, we can know about God without knowing Him.  That is precisely where many people find themselves, perhaps some even listening to this sermon.  But has the Spirit of God opened your mind to the truth of God so that now it has set ablaze your whole being with the knowledge of the living God?

 

2.  To sanctify us in the truth

 

The Holy Spirit works to sanctify us as believers.  Jesus prayed to the Father for those who would believe in Him, "Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth" (John 17:17).  We discussed the doctrine of sanctification last Wednesday night and one of the primary points made was that you are sanctified in relationship to the truth of God's Word.  It is when that truth is heard, read, meditated upon, studied, embraced, applied that the gracious sanctifying work takes place.  In this, the Holy Spirit makes us righteous in actuality.  Justification has declared us righteous through the active and passive obedience of Christ.  But we do not simply desire to have a right standing with God, we desire to have a right practice before God.  This is sanctification.

 

Unlike justification, we are involved in this work of sanctification, but we are not alone.  The Holy Spirit is the One who chiefly sanctifies us.  But He does not work in opposition to nor to the neglect of the truth of God's Word.  This is why we put such a strong emphasis on reading, studying, and meditating on God's Word.  

 

May I venture at a poor illustration of this, but one which I hope will help you see this truth of the Paraclete's aim?  Compare yourself to the engine of a car.  As an engine you have many parts, many which can move and propel the car forward.  But you must have fuel for your engine to operate.  But suppose you had fuel in the engine, will it operate like that?  Not until someone fires the engine and accelerates it.  The fuel in the engine of our lives is the Word of God.  Our spiritual engines cannot run without the Word, but they also cannot run with only the Word.  The Holy Spirit fires and accelerates the fuel and engine propelling your life forward.  "For it is God who is at work in you both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Phil. 2:13).  

 

As we read, study, and meditate on God's Word, praying over it, thinking about it, the Holy Spirit fires it in our hearts by way of application.  That Word becomes real to us.  We find strength in it.  We are refreshed in our devotions to the Lord.  Our worship takes on a new dimension.  Our desire to obey increases.  Our passion for the Lord burns red-hot.  What has happened?  The Holy Spirit has been sanctifying us in the truth!

 

3.  To comfort us in all our afflictions

 

It is interesting that the very next verse after our text refers to "peace."  "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful."  Now compare this to verse 1:  "Let not your heart be troubled...."  Here we see the continuing struggle of every believer.  We face fears in this life.  We struggle with the fear of opposition, fear of failure, fear of persecution, fear of loss, fear that in some way we might displease the Lord, fear brought on by all of the ills of this world.  How can we be comforted?

 

"He will teach you all things," Jesus had said of the Holy Spirit.  The "all things" referred to those truths which He had already given them to bring comfort to their minds and hearts.  He will teach you the security of dwelling in the Father's house....He will teach you the truth that one day Christ will return for all of those who have trusted Him....He will teach you the security of Christ's mediatorial work on our behalf....He will teach you to rest secure in knowing that Jesus Christ is God Himself Who has come to redeem us on behalf of the Father....He will give you confidence to know that you will have an ever increasing ministry of magnificent proportions because of what Christ has promised....He will teach you that the Father answers prayer offered in the name of Christ....He teaches you that true love for Christ is confirmed by faithful obedience to Christ's commands....He will teach you of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit so that you are not left as an orphan....He will teach you of how the Son will reveal Himself to you who truly love Him.  

 

My friend, if there is no comfort to you in that then you do not believe the promises of God's Word!  There is a marvelous picture of this comfort in the book of Acts.  Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9) had been persecuting the church relentlessly!  He was a terror in the ears of every Christian.  He was the least likely candidate to be a new believer and disciple of Jesus Christ!  Yet, the Spirit of God brought Saul of Tarsus to his knees in glorious repentance and faith.  This broke the back of the Jewish persecution of Christians for some time.  Luke adds this statement, "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase" (9:31).

 

How does He comfort?  In whatever ways it pleases the Lord to comfort us, the Holy Spirit brings comfort to our hearts!  That is His mission as the Divine Teacher.

 

III.  Activity of the Paraclete's Mission

 

Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would come to "teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you."  This implies two simple truths.

 

1.  To instruct by revelation

 

First, He instructs us by revelation.  The word for 'teach' is the common word we see throughout the New Testament.  We would use it to describe exactly what we have done in the Sunday School hour of teaching the Word of God.  The question is how did the Spirit teach the apostles and how does He teach us?

 

The Holy Spirit taught the Apostles by direct revelation.  This is something which was special and unique to this small band of believers who had been commissioned by the Lord to carry the Gospel and establish the work of God's Kingdom.  The only Bibles they had were copies of the various parts of the Old Testament.  You might notice in your translation of the New Testament that quite often in the Gospels, the Acts, the Epistles, and the Revelation, you find quotations, usually identified by being written in all capital letters.  These are quotations from the Old Testament.  Some of those texts the Apostles never understood until the Spirit opened their eyes to see their application to Christ.  We see this in Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost as he quotes from Joel, the Psalms, and II Samuel.  Until divine revelation opened his eyes, Peter did not understand these Scriptures in their reference to Christ and to the Spirit.

 

But these Apostles also had direct revelation by the Spirit.  They were given the very Word of God.  Paul put it like this in I Thessalonians 2:13, "And for this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received from us the word of God's message, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe."  He gave them the Word of God which had been given to him by the revelation of the Spirit.  This is why he told the Ephesians that this mystery of Christ "which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit" (3:4-5) and why they were built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets (2:20).  They had the Word of God revealed to them so that they could pass it along to the church.  Did all of the believers have this same revelation?  No, only those particular apostles and prophets whom God set apart for this purpose in the early days of the church to receive God's Word for His Church.

 

Does the Holy Spirit still reveal the Word of God to people in our day?  Yes, but in a much different way.  The revelation which the Spirit gives is through the Word He gave to the apostles and prophets and those Old Testament writers before them in the Scriptures.  God has given us the revelation of His Word that we might know Him.  This Scripture is God-breathed, the very Word of God for us.  So why can't any person just pick up the Bible, read it, and suddenly know God?  Because revelation is now needed to understand the Word of God.  Again, we could study that passage in I Corinthians 2 that tells us that spiritual things can be understood only by spiritual means.  And that means by which we understand is the revelation of the Holy Spirit.

 

Do you really want to know the living God?  Then plead for the Spirit to reveal Him through the Word of God!

 

2.  To instill by way of remembrance

 

Jesus also said that the Spirit would "bring to your remembrance all that I said to you."  This is an important truth for us to see, for Jesus had already taught the disciples more in the 3 years they had walked with Him than they could fully grasp in a hundred lifetimes!  They suffered from the same problem we have:  forgetfulness.  But now they have a wonderful promise, the Holy Spirit would take those precious truths which Christ had given them in their long walks together, in the places where they sat and talked, while sailing in a little boat, etc., He would now bring these truths back to their minds for understanding and application.

 

Have you ever been in a situation of need, perhaps due to a conversation with another person or perhaps due to a crisis, when suddenly, some truth of God's Word zaps you?  It may be something which you've not read in years or thought of in years.  Or it may even be something which you have read or heard but not really understood before.  Suddenly, at just the right time of need, that truth wings its way to the forefront of your thoughts or to the tip of your tongue so that it finds a wonderful welcome.  That is the work of the Spirit in bringing truth to remembrance.  (See Luke 12:11-12 as an illustration of this).

 

My brethren, we cannot survive without the revelation and work of remembrance by the Holy Spirit!  If we must depend upon the capability of our minds alone, apart from the Spirit, we cannot stand up to the demands of life.  But when the Spirit comes in revealing, illuminating power upon our thoughts and imaginations, we suddenly find ourselves encountering the living God through His truth. And consequently, we find ourselves knowing God afresh and anew.

 

Conclusion

 

Are you open to this authority, aim, and activity of the Holy Spirit in your life?  Are there some attitudes or actions going on within you that are stifling His work or grieving Him or quenching Him in some way?  Do you ask Him to do His work in you, to reveal the living God to you?  

 

We must look to the Holy Spirit with panting hearts desiring His fullness, desiring His truth, desiring His revealing power to our dulled minds.  O Spirit of God, O Heavenly Dove, Breathe on us anew!  Reveal Your holy ways and holy life to us.  Let us know You and be consoled by You.

3175 Germantowrn Rd. S. | Memphis, Tennessee | 38119 | (901)758-1213