To Our Advantage

Good Morning. I am glad we can be here together. Easter is just around the corner. The time is growing close as we look to the cross and the gift that Jesus gave us this on the cross.

We have been walking this journey toward the cross and the final messages that Jesus was sharing to the disciples. It is in this reading that I noticed something that we struggle with a lot as humans.

We don’t like things that are invisible

The Invisible Things

Really think about this for a moment. One of the primary things that we use in our lives as human is our sense of sight.

Now of course we have other senses and we use them to help us but it could be argued that Sight is one of the most important senses we use each and every day. Think about how much of our world is changed when we can’t see.

Driving, I sure hope not.

Even walking around can be difficult. We use visual signs to guide the majority of the world to know where to go.

Even our phones are transitioning to being more sight based than hearing. Text messages.

When things are invisible many people struggle with the idea of something existing.

I haven’t seen it so it can’t be real.

Yet, there are lots of things we can’t see that we trust exists.

Gravity—We all see the affects of gravity so we can kinda see it but we can’t see the actual force that is pulling down on the ball as it falls to the ground.

Wind—We can’t see the wind. We can see the affects of the wind but we can’t see the wind itself.

There are others that we can go through. We want to understand things that are not visible to us. In fact, if you look at much of the scientific community there are a lot of efforts to understand the unseen.

Not that long ago as humans we didn’t understand that their were organisms and things so small that we didn’t realize they were a part of us. That they lived on surfaces and affect us.

We manipulate and change the world around us to be able to see things that we couldn’t see before.

Light is one of my favorites. We see light all the time but we couldn’t fully understand it. Then we created ways to examine a ray of light and find out there are different colors of visible light.

Then there are things like infrared, and ultraviolet light and other elements that we have no idea exist without further explanation.

We can even go further and take this to a more philosophical approach.

We can’t see the future, yet we sure try.

WE want to know what is going to happen to all of us each and every day. Our faith is no different. In fact, the disciples had the same kind of thoughts when it came to our future.

What is next? What is Jesus going to do next? How is he going to lead us forward? How long till we get to see the Kingdom come?

Jesus is speaking to them and they are missing what is happening right in front of them. Let’s read together this morning so more of the mesage of Jesus

John 16:1–6 NIV

1 “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.

Where are you Going?

Jesus is sharing this message with them to encourage them and to help them understand that everything that he has been teaching them up to this point we preparation for his death, Resurrection and departure.

The disciples in hearing these words were so focused on the idea that Jesus was leaving that they were missing the hope that Jesus was sharing with them.

That something good was coming.

Let me ask you a question. If you have ever thought this or something similar to it.

My faith would be so much stronger if I could just talk with Jesus? Or maybe. If I was there when the disciples had Jesus I know I would believe?

Like I said this can come in many forms but how many of us think that life would be better with Jesus?

Raise those hands.

Better with Jesus

The Grief of the disciples is such that they can’t begin to imagine life without him either. That is what Jesus is saying in

John 16:5–6 NIV

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.

Better with Jesus

We share a similar sentiment in that we are so focused on Jesus-for good reason- that we can’t hear or see what is going to come. We are blinded by our grief or longing for Him.

What if I told you it is better for us that Jesus isn’t here. That we are actually in a time that WE have access to a deeper relationship with God than even the disciples did at this moment of the story.

The problem for us lies in the fact that we look to the physical to inform our faith. We want to be able to see and touch Jesus because that would be enough. Instead of relying on the truth that remains in the unseen.

The truth that we have something even better.

John 16:7–15 NIV

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.”

Read that last little bit again.

John 16:12–15 NIV

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.”

Life in the Spirit

Jesus knew that the disciples were not ready for all the truth that he needed to share with them. There was more that they needed to hear. There was more that they needed to understand. Yet, they couldn’t fully understand it till Jesus went to the cross.

Yet, as Christians we get so focused on Jesus that we ignore the fact that we have his presence here with us. The Spirit of truth the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit is here with us guiding us in all truth. He speaks what he hears and he will tell us what is yet to come if we are willing to listen.

He glorifies Jesus name and all that he did for us and that he was going to make known to us through the cross. He reveals to us what we need to be lead to a life of righteousness. He connects us to Jesus and all that the Father has for us.

We are not wrong for wanting to know Jesus more. Yet, we can’t escape the fact that many of us are guilty of remaining so focused on Christ that we lose sight of the Gift he has given us.

We have access to Jesus

We must remember we don’t have to be looking to what might happen in the future because we have access to the source of all things.

When we trust in the Spirit we have access to Jesus.

This should be a moment where we are all filled with Hope.

It is through the Spirit that we draw closer to Christ, and to the Father.

It is through the Spirit that we are able to be guided in this world and deal with the unseen knowledge and truth of God.

We have have this knowledge through the guidance and leading of the Spirit.

The Spirit Speaks

We struggle with the Holy Spirit at times because we don’t always fully understand it. Yet, we have the physical evidence of the Holy Spirit each and everyday.

Need some proof of the evidence of the Holy Spirit. In front of all of you or in your pocket you have access to the Bible.

This right here is evidence of the Spirit. Written in the Word of God. Instructing us and guiding us. The Spirit lead through prayer and guidance into the world around us and the testimony of those who have come before us. The Spirit leads and guides us when we seek him and look for his leading.

It is when we learn to trust in the unseen the fact that the Spirit of God is in our lives that he will convict us and led us in ways that we can’t imagine.

How is the Holy Spirit convicting you this morning? What is he calling you to in truth.

For some of us he might becalling us from a sin we have been struggling with. For others he might be guiding you to step out in faith and give youself whole heartedly to a ministry.

Some of us he might be calling to walk across the street and talk to our neighbor and share the Gospel to them.

He might be guiding you to asking to invite someone to church next week.

He might even be calling some of you to this alter right now to confess that you need to know Christ and receive forgivness for your sins.

Are you ready to trust in the Spirit of God? To let the advocate guide you to Christ and all the truth that he has for us?