Next Steps

Do you think the disciples heard the Holy Spirit speak to them?

Jesus said to his disciples, ”When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning. “I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned. “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. - John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15

When I read John's account of Jesus telling his disciples he has to leave them, I get the feeling he really wishes he didn't have to go.

He is saying you have come to know me and to love me and I love and know you, but I need to leave and when I do, you will have an advocate who will be with you always.

But we want you!

That is what they could be saying to him, and he sounds like he wants them as well.

Then he tries to justify it.  If I don't go, the advocate won't come and you need him to come.  He will testify to the truth.  I wouldn't want to navigate this treacherous world without the truth to guide you.

It's not that Jesus doesn't still have work to do.  He even says he has more to show them and tell them, but he is being called away and the Advocate will take his place.

It is as though Jesus did part of the work, condemning the ruler of this world, but many do not believe him, so it is time for a different approach.

He is not totally out of the picture, but he is taking a back seat, or maybe a supporting role.  Jesus is telling us not to glorify him.  It is not about him.  That's a hard thing to say and a hard thing for the disciples to hear.

Let the Spirit guide you.

This is great advice for us today because we tend to focus on Jesus and not on the mission.  Who could blame us?  Jesus is a great teacher and we worship him as part of the triune God that many do not understand.

But if we listen to what Jesus said all along.  Go, your faith has set you free.  Don't tell anyone it was my doing.  Tell them it was your faith.

Do we listen to that?

No.  And the problem we can run into is this.  If we fail to listen for the Advocate to guide us and lead us to the truth, we will start to believe that we already know the truth.

Remember, Jesus said there was more to come.  He didn't share everything, and more is coming.

So, the message for me in this is to be open to God's help through the Holy Spirit who will guide me to the truth.  That doesn't mean I stop believing in Jesus.  It just means I listen to what he instructed me to do in his absence.

More to come...