John 16:13
“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.”
Thoughts from Pastor Brian
Dive Deeper
Behind the Scenes
In this chapter, Jesus has just been telling the disciples that He will be leaving them. He warns them that the time is coming, and He is fully aware that they don’t understand yet. But, He is preparing them all the same. He then promises them that He will send the Holy Spirit (The Spirit of Truth) to be with them in His absence.
Something I think many of us forget when we read about people in the Bible is that, before the events that take place in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit did not reside inside believers as He does today. Before He came, believers were limited to the Spirit falling on them for a time and then He would leave. He had not made His dwelling place inside God’s people permanently yet.
In this passage, Jesus is foretelling the coming of the Holy Spirit, not just to reside in temples made of stone, but in people’s hearts. They didn’t understand yet, but God was about to do something amazing by sending the Spirit to speak truth into their lives in a whole new and wonderful way!
Make it Real
I find a few things really interesting in this passage. First, the title that Jesus gave to the Holy Spirit was the Spirit of Truth. Just a few chapters back, Jesus says that He is the truth (John 14:6). This title that He gave for the Holy Spirit was no coincidence. He was boldly stating that He would send the third person of the Trinity- His Spirit, the Holy Spirit! He was making a direct, divine connection to the Helper that He intended to send– effectively stating the Godship of both Himself and the Holy Spirit!
It’s important as believers that we understand that there is no truth apart from Jesus or His Spirit. We cannot buy the lie that this world will whisper to us that truth is relative and subjective (which if you think about it is a self-defeating statement anyway!) We must stand on the truth revealed through God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Truth requires a standard, and Jesus is that standard!
Also, because Jesus is truth, He cannot lie. So, whatever He tells us through the Holy Spirit, we can stand on the truth of His word, knowing that He cannot lie to us. We can trust Him as 100% trustworthy and reliable. He does not shift or change. He is constant and reliable, never changing and never failing.
Secondly, Jesus makes an interesting statement before this verse. In verse 12 Jesus tells the disciples, “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.” I have always wondered about this statement, but in researching this text I realized that Jesus had so much more to teach the disciples that he neither had time for, nor did they have the ability to retain. They needed the Helper! They needed the Holy Spirit inside them to not only receive but understand the words of God.
See, the Spirit inside every believer does an amazing thing. He helps us understand God Himself! Think about that… We have the Spirit of the eternal God residing inside us! Does that blow your mind like it does mine? We have the Creator of the Universe who makes Himself known to us, not from afar, but intimately and deeply through sending His Spirit to live inside each and every believer. And through the Spirit, we have a direct connection to God. Unlike the followers of God before, we do not have to go to a temple or talk with a priest to reach God. He came to us, took up residence inside us, and interacts with us in a very real and intimate way!
I don’t know what you need to hear from God today. But I assure you, if you are a believer of Jesus and have surrendered your heart to Him as Lord and Savior, the Spirit is in you and has something to say to you today. We just need to be still, be quiet, and listen for His voice. He is always good, and His voice is always true. So, turn to Him today, trusting His truth above all else, and allowing Him to speak into and over your life.
Crystal Garnett
ACF Digital Discipleship Team Lead
End in Prayer
Hey God!
Thank You for always being my Truth! Thank You that I can trust You continually! Thank You that You are forever faithful! Help me to turn to Your truth over the so-called truth of the world and help me to see the lies of the enemies. Help me to trust Your Holy Spirit inside me and listen for Your voice. Help me to hear whatever YOU want me to hear. Help me to be still and quiet before You.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen