Today's scripture reading is John 14 verses 15 through 31 if you love me You will keep my commandment and I will ask the father and he will give you another helper to be with you forever Even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him You know him where he dwells with you and will be in you I will not leave you as orphans I will come to you yet a little while in the world will see me no more But you will see me because I live you also will live in that day You will know that I am in my father and you and me and I and you Whoever has my commandments and keeps them he it is who loves me and he who loves me will be loved by my father And I will love him and manifest myself to him Judas not as scary it said to him Lord How is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not to the world? Jesus answered him if anyone loves me he will keep my word and my father will love him And he will come to him and make our home with him Whoever does not love me does not keep my words and the word that you hear is not mine But the fathers who sent me These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you But the helper the Holy Spirit whom the father will send in my name He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you Peace I leave with you my peace I give to you Not as the world gives to I give to you let not your hearts be troubled neither let them be afraid You heard me say to you I am going away and I will come to you If you love me you would have rejoiced because I am going to the father for the father is greater than I And now I have told you before it takes place so that when it does take place you may believe I will no longer talk much with you for the ruler of this world is coming He has no claim on me But I do as a father has commanded me so that the world may know that I love the father Rise let us go from here May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and the hearing of his word
In 1988 I was but just a young book
We just got started pass the field
I was a young book and there's a popular song on the radio by Bobby McFarron There's a number one hit in fact and And by McFarron seeing saying these words Don't worry Be happy Here's a little song I wrote You might want to sing a note for note Don't worry Be happy A song in some regards has become a cultural icon has it not love it or hate it Those words and music are familiar to most people And most of us have heard it and there I say saying it a time or two Such songs kind of resonate with us because worry is so prevalent prevalent in our hearts is prevalent in our world and it doesn't matter whether you're young or old rich or poor black or white female or male Anxiety and worry does not discriminate
And world understands this and the world is not oblivious to this is notes That worry is an issue for people even at an early age My favorite animated movie and and the goat of our animations
Is the Lion King not even up for debate
And the most popular and well-known song in the Lion King is Acuda Matata what a wonderful phrase Acuda Matata It's no pass and craze It means No worries For the rest of your days It's our problem-free Philosophy Acuda Matata Don't worry be happy Acuda Matata these are the world answers To worry these are the world solutions to trouble And they sound catchy
And they sound good But how helpful are they really beloved? I mean I understand words can be helpful in words are helpful But in the end they are just Words They are just words And I wouldn't suggest you this morning that the same could be said for Jesus' words
That they are just words When addressing the worry and trouble of his disciples And the worry and trouble that they were facing and were going to face Jesus said in chapter 14 and verse 1 Let not your heart be troubled You believe in God believe also in me Now listen listen beloved and please follow me on this this is so important
Jesus isn't just singing a song or he's not just offering a poem
He doesn't give words Just in hope that they might help Okay, but it gives more than words Now listen if all Jesus has said Was let your let not your heart be troubled Believe in God believe also in me if that is all he said Okay He might as well have been saying Akuda Matata
He might as well have been looking at them and start singing don't worry be happy
What makes These words impactful It's not just that Jesus said them The difference is he set them And then he put a promise and a power behind them
He didn't just say them because words after at the end are just words He spoke those words And then on top of them gave a promise and a power He doesn't just say don't worry But then he promised That he would send some one To back up those words He would send some one To empower those words to his disciples He promised that he would send some one Who would empower those words to you and me Namely holy spirit
Holy spirit So beloved listen Jesus isn't here just giving some inspirational speech These words are not just good encouraging platitudes But Jesus gives more than just words The important aspect of this passage Is that Jesus declared who holy spirit is
Holy spirit is a promise He is a promise In John 14 and 16 he tells the disciples If they were not going to worry
If they were not going to have the trouble overwhelmed them
Then they would need help And Jesus promised his disciples That he would send help Holy spirit Holy spirit Help Holy spirit is not just a promise Holy spirit is a power But a Holy spirit is called in verse 6 Helper In the sense he Strengthen He builds up He guides He enables
He has the ability There is no help without ability There is no help without the power to help My son when he was young Frequently wanted to help me cut the grass But he didn't have the strength to push the law more
And so as much as he wanted to help His words were just words
He had an ability behind it No power Holy spirit is a promise The Holy Spirit is a power To help You have power What it says this is what Jesus said in Acts chapter 1 and verse 8 He says But you will receive what power Power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you Holy spirit is a promise Holy spirit is a power The Holy Spirit is a person
Holy spirit is a person
Again in chapter John in verse 4 and chapter John 14 Verse 6 Jesus says that he is going to sin another helper Jesus had been with them as Encourager Jesus had been with them as teacher Jesus had been with them as helper But Jesus promised that when he left He was going to sin another Another one He was sending someone just like him To do the thing that he did To walk with them and to talk with them And to remind them That they belonged to Jesus
Holy spirit The Holy Spirit is a person Listened to the Holy Spirit Without Jesus Without Jesus The disciples would disintegrate That's why they were headed
They were headed toward disintegration Their unity would fall apart Their commitment would fail Their commitment would fail And Jesus knowing this Promise them a power and a person who would not let that happen
As long as he was with them He was holding them together
Knowing that he would go away
He made a promise To send a power In a person Who would do what he had been doing Holding them together Just as he did And when Jesus said Let not your heart be troubled Beloved this was not the bible version of a cuda matata No, no, no These are not just words These words are backed up by holy spirit And holy spirit is real
He was promised by Jesus He came in the power of Jesus He is a person just like Jesus
And so Jesus is here This passage Teaching and instructing his disciples So in the necessity of understanding The realization of holy spirit And how holy spirit would be to them What he had been And as real as Jesus had been to them Holy spirit now would be And Jesus said Do not let your heart be troubled He understood That those words would not be enough Because we love it I say it again If all he did was say do not let your heart be troubled Those are good words but they're just words
And giving them a song To sing What not be enough But he gave them a promise The promise of a person with power
gave them the spirit Holy spirit And everything beloved Everything Jesus calls for for us We achieve and we receive In by and through the Holy spirit Everything And this is what he is teaching His disciples That everything that's coming your way When I leave
Will be the blessed work And the grace of God In holy spirit And Jesus not only promised to send him Jesus described him So there can be no mistake in when he comes
You're going to want to describe him to you So you won't be mistaken When Holy spirit comes
You got to recognize him this morning
Now let's know who Holy spirit is this morning Now let's recognize him Who is the Holy spirit How will we know him When he comes
There's five Characteristics of the Holy Spirit I want to share with you this morning I think coming from this text there's probably more But I got mental limitations And so you only get five from this mind this morning
First of all, he is a spirit of obedience Jesus reminded his disciples That those who follow him Are those who obey him No it's verse 15 If you love me You will keep my commandments In verse 21 of chapter 14 says again Whoever has my commandments keeps them He it is who loves me In verse 23 If anyone loves me He will keep my word Here's my question this morning Where does this obedience come from How does this obedience come to pass Jesus said if you love me you're going to obey me Those who obey me love me Those who follow me will keep my commandments Where does this obedience come from Because beloved the reality is That we are by nature disobedience Jesus is telling naturally disobedient people
That you're going to obey my commandments Where does that obedience come from In Ephesians chapter 2 In verse 2 We are called sons and daughters of disobedience We are those who follow the spirit of disobedience in the world That's who we are by nature Why? Because we are by nature sons and daughters of Adam and Eve And when Adam and Eve send in the garden what does they do? They disobey God Why? Because that's what sin is That's the essence of what sin is Sin is disobedience to the law of God And this is what sinners do With every breath we take With every move we make Children Don't learn disobedience They have to be taught This obedience comes naturally No one naturally Was in obedience to God So from which comes disobedience Our beloved obedience Is those who walk the Bible says According to the spirit This is the work of Holy Spirit In our lives This would be the work of Holy Spirit In the disciples' life It would be a spirit of obedience So a Paul said in Galatians chapter 5 In verse 16 So I say walk in the spirit So and you will not gratify the diodes of the flesh Why? Because the spirit of the spirit of obedience And when you walk in the spirit You walk in obedience Galatians chapter 5 in verse 25 Since we are living by the spirit Let us follow the spirit leading In every part of our lives Meaning walking in obedience If you love me You will obey from which comes this obedience Because I have made a promise That I'm going to send a person And he's going to be the power That enables you to obey That's the work of Holy Spirit Recognizing when he comes He was thinking that they obeyed God in their own spirit No you don't! That's the work of Holy Spirit That's what the spirit does in your life Every time you find yourself walking in obedience to God Don't take credit for that That is the Holy Spirit Promise that Jesus made to his disciples That's what Holy Spirit does Recognize him when he comes It's not you That's the spirit of God That's Holy Spirit He's the spirit of obedience Not only the spirit of obedience He's also the spirit of love What does spirit and power us to obey The commands of Christ And what are the commands of Christ That we love God And that we love each other Matthew chapter 22 In verse 36 Teacher Which is the greatest commandment in the law? And Jesus replied Love the Lord your God with all your heart And with all your soul And with all your mind This is the greatest and the first commandment And the second is like it Love your neighbor As your self Jesus said just earlier in the previous chapter John chapter 13 Beginning in the verse 34 A new command I give to you That you love one another Just as I have Loved you The ability to obey The command of love From where does this come? What is the fruit of the spirit? The Bible says clearly it's love How do we get God's love? And how does it come to us? The Bible says in Romans chapter 5 and verse 5 It comes to us through the spirit For we know how dearly God loves us Because he had given us the Holy Spirit To fill our hearts with his love Listen beloved If you love God It is because of the work and power of the Holy Spirit If we love one another It is because of the work and the power of Holy Spirit 1 John chapter 4 verse 13 By this we know That we abide in him And he and us Because he has given us his spirit This is how we know That we abide in the Lord And the Lord abides in us Because his spirit is in us And now look At first John chapter 4 and verse 16 So we have come to know and to believe The love that God has for us God is love And whoever abides in love Abides in God And God abides in him The command to love Is simply a command to walk in the spirit This is what happens beloved We don't breathe the spirit You walk in love This is what happens When we are filled with the spirit We walk in love People who are filled with the spirit Our people who are filled with love for the brothers and the sisters Listen to me Listen to me Regardless of what people like to sensationalize And regardless of what people like to experience in church this morning You don't measure the spirit's presence and its power by speaking in tongues You don't measure its presence and its power by interpreting tongues And you don't measure its presence and its power by prophesying You measure it by how loving you are And not just me talking That's what the Bible says 1 Corinthians chapter 13 Get in verse 1 If I speak in the tongues of men and angels but do not have love I am only a resounding gong and a clanging symbol If I have the gift of prophecy and confedem all mysteries and all knowledge And if I have faith that I can move mountains But do not have love I am nothing If you don't have love And you don't have the spirit I see the spirit of love I don't care what else you think you have And whatever spirit you think is working in you If you don't have love You don't have holy spirit I don't know what kind of spirit you have But in a holy spirit Holy spirit is a spirit of love Love for God And love for the brothers and the sisters Love for his beloved People are trying to ask me from time to time pastor How do I know I am saying You can read a whole bunch of books And you can go and listen to a whole bunch of lectures You can go and get yourself all twisted up in the theological knots And the implications of this And the consequences of that Let me tell you, beloved If you are saved You have holy spirit And if you have holy spirit And if you have holy spirit You love Jesus And you love the brethren How do you know you say Do you love the Lord And do you love His people Do you love Jesus And you love His people And the Holy Spirit is in working you That is the promise of Christ That He would be In you The Spirit of love And that's the truth That's the truth, beloved And you know how I know that's the truth It's because the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth He's the Spirit of obedience He's the Spirit of love And He's the Spirit of truth The Holy Spirit is called The Spirit of truth in verse 17 The Spirit of truth is how Jesus describes Holy Spirit The world cannot accept Him Because it needs to see Him Nor it knows Him But you know Him, recognizing when He comes The world won't know Recognize Him Why because they are by nature disobedient Because they have not love for Christ Because they know not the truth But you know Him For He lives with you And will be in you Listen, beloved This is what God does God leads people to the truth This is what Holy Spirit does Holy Spirit leads people to the truth You know what the Bible is clear about? The Bible is clear That this present world in which we live Is under the influence of the devil Make no mistake about it That's what Jesus says In John chapter 14, just some verses later In verse 30 He is called the ruler of this world He called the devil The ruler of this world In Saint Quentin chapter 4 and verse 4 He is called the God of this age He is the ruler of this world He is the God of this age And in John chapter 8 and verse 44 He is called the father of life So the father of life Is the ruler of this world The father of life Is the God of this age How did this happen Because this fallen world is based on a lie That the devil told Adam and Eve And he let them into the lie And ever since then Line is the primary weapon Used by the devil Against God's people He lies He lies He lies He lies and tries to convince people that there is no God He lies He lies and tries to convince people that God doesn't care So lie So lie He lies and tells people that the Bible is not the word of God He lies He is the father of life He is the ruler of this world He is the God of this age And that is why the lies just multiply But when the spirit comes When the spirit comes He leads God's people into truth And that truth Beloved is spiritually discerned Because it is Holy Spirit guided Holy Spirit guided Note the Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 In verse 14 The person without the spirit Does not accept the things that come from the spirit of God But considers them foolishness And cannot understand them Because they are not Because they are discern only through the spirit This is what Jesus said to his disciples Holy Spirit is going to come The world is not going to recognize them Why? Because he will be spiritually discerned You know Because he is in you He is with you And therefore so will be the truth Beloved listen The truth is in you Because the spirit of God is in you You and I know right from wrong Because of the spirit You and I know that there is a God Because of the spirit You and I know that God cares Because of the spirit You and I know that the Bible is the word of God Because of the spirit If you are saved this morning If you know who Jesus is And have come to trust Jesus on to eternal life It is not because you are so smart It is not because you are so beautiful Because left to yourself The devil will have kept you blind The devil will have kept you deaf The devil will have kept you deaf The devil will have kept you dead In a sea of lies Spirit of God this morning That has made you alive It is the spirit of God that has opened your eyes So that you might see Jesus It is the spirit of God that has opened your ears So that you can hear Jesus If you know Jesus this morning If you love Jesus this morning If you are by any means walking in the truth Of the light of God's grace And mercy It is because of the power And the presence of Holy Spirit this morning No other way No other way You and I don't know truth Apart from the work of Holy Spirit In our lives Recognize it when it comes Recognize it when it comes You don't know Jesus because you are so smart You don't know Jesus because you are so nice You don't know Jesus because you are so beautiful You know Jesus because Jesus said I am sending another I am sending the spirit of truth And He will lead you into The truth And He is the spirit of truth He is the spirit of truth And He is the spirit of truth And He is the spirit of peace And He is the spirit of peace The Holy Spirit is called The Comforter The Comforter He is the one Who brings the peace of God Jesus said in verse 27 Chapter 14 Peace I leave with you My peace I give to you You are at promise that He is leaving Holy Spirit He is always promised that He is sending Holy Spirit And then He says Peace I live with you My peace I give to you Not as the world gives Do I give it to you Let not your hearts be troubled Neither let them be afraid I can't believe it Apart from Holy Spirit those words Will fall on deaf ears The only reason those words Mean something to you this morning Is because Holy Spirit has opened those ears He has opened our hearts Peace in the Bible Peace in the Bible is not just the end of hostility That's not biblical peace Biblical peace is not just that we have been separated And that we are no longer in reach of each other That we have gone through our separate corners Peace in the Bible is not simply the end of hostility But it is also establishing and supporting prosperity Prosperity in soul and body Prosperity in heart and mind It is Shalom Shalom It is harmony It is honed It is the state of prosperity where the world outside And the world inside Are ordered as God had designed them to be And so this is not just any piece When Jesus says My Shalom I leave with you My Shalom I give to you This is not worldly peace This is not the peace that is brought about by the legal nations Or the United Nations This is not the justice league This is not shield This is not peace in our time This is peace in our hearts This is a peace that comes from knowing You belong to Christ Christ is at the wheel This is a peace Beloved When you understand Christ is at the wheel I took a little road trip this week With some dear brothers I won't call out any names Some dear, blessed brothers They were all afraid They were going to be in a sermon illustration I took a road trip this week With some dear brothers We had a wonderful time We had a wonderful time But you know, they made me sit in the back seat This is the time Can you believe that? I'm the oldest one there And they made me sit in the back And we riding along And every time I try to do those all The vehicle was worth And I'm like, oh no And I doze off looking There it goes There was no peace In the back seat In the back seat Because I loved the brothers But there was another brother at the wheel Peace comes, beloved When you know Jesus is at the wheel Jesus is at the wheel And you can rest in him This is what Jesus is saying My peace I give to you Holy Spirit comes And that peace comes From knowing You belong the Christ And that Christ is at the wheel And he's driving Your life This is the gift of God To those in the kingdom of God In Romans chapter 14, verse 17 What is the kingdom of God Righteousness Peace Enjoy and the Holy Ghost Righteousness, peace And joy and the Holy Ghost That's the kingdom of God Don't you want to be a part of the kingdom Don't you want to be a part of the kingdom Righteousness Peace Joy and the Holy Ghost This is the peace That the Bible promises in Philippians chapter 4 Verse 9 Is a peace that passes all understanding Jesus already said it Is a peace that passes all understanding It is a peace that comes In the midst of storms It is a peace that passes all understanding It is a peace that comes In the midst of storms It is a peace that says And allows you to sing Though the billows may roll And the breakers may dash I shall not sway Because he hold me fast So dark the night Clouds in the sky Because Jesus is nine This is the Holy Spirit Listen, listen, remember I was young I used to go fishing Early, early in the morning I used to go fishing And I had this little boat This little boat That I'd roll out on the lake And I remember one day That I went out on the boat And as I got to the spot where I wanted to fish I looked around And there was no anchor And started to fish The boat was just drift And drift away From where I needed to be Because I don't care how big or small the boat It has to be anchored Or you're gonna drift When you say My soul is anchored The Holy Spirit Is the anchor He anchors your soul in Christ He keeps you from being taught To and fro by the ways of this world He keeps you from drifting Out into the darkness Against the rock and the shore He anchors your soul in Jesus If you are not drifting this morning It's not because you are so strong If you are not drifting this morning It is not because you are so smart It is not because you know all the theological doctrines and arguments If you are not drifting this morning It's because my soul has been anchored In Jesus And that's the work of the Holy Spirit Yes Recognizing when he comes He's the one Who has anchored you in Jesus He's the one Who keeps your Keeps you fast And doesn't allow you to sway He's the Spirit of peace He's the Spirit of love The Spirit of truth The Spirit of obedience But ultimately, ultimately, ultimately He is the Spirit of Christ That's who he is He is the Spirit of Christ When Jesus promised to give another helper He was promising to send someone just like himself One with himself And the Holy Spirit comes In the name of Jesus He does not come for himself But he comes For himself But he comes pointing people to Jesus Notice what he says in verse 26 When the helper The Holy Spirit, so you don't miss it The helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name He will teach you all things And bring to your remembrance All that I have said to you The Holy Spirit is promised To teach us Again About Jesus To bring to your remembrance What Jesus said Holy Spirit doesn't come So you will remember what Holy Spirit said Holy Spirit is going to come So that you will remember What Jesus said So you don't forget What Jesus has done The Spirit led preaching To Jesus This is Spirit led singing Think about Jesus This is Spirit led worship It makes much of Jesus And John chapter 16 What you're going to get to Probably sometime in the next two years John 16 verse 13 and 14 Speaking of the Holy Spirit Jesus says he will not speak of his own He will speak only what he hears And he will tell you what is yet to come He will glorify me Because it is from me That he will receive What he will make known to you People People these days Like to make much of the Holy Spirit Well, Holy Spirit Like to make much of Jesus Someone recently asked me best to feel How often do you preach on the Holy Spirit Well brother Every time we preach on Jesus We are preaching in the power of the Holy Spirit We are preaching on the Holy Spirit Because in Romans chapter 8 and verse 9 The Holy Spirit is called The Spirit of Christ He is the Spirit of Christ And so the sun is one with the Father And the Spirit is one with the Father and the Son To have Jesus is to have the Spirit And to have the Spirit is to have Jesus He is the Spirit of Christ He is the Spirit of Christ How do you know The Spirit when He comes How do you know The Spirit when He is active How do you know the Spirit is leading you Into the truth How do you know He is leading you into obedience How do you know He is leading you into peace Because He is leading you to Jesus He is leading you to Jesus He doesn't leave you to Jesus, and I don't know what spirit it is. But it's not Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit will lead us to Jesus. Listen, beloved, whether we realize it or not, whether you acknowledge it or not, Holy Spirit is the necessary reality of the Christian life. There is no Christian life without Holy Spirit. There is none. There is none. You are not a Christian without Holy Spirit. You do not stay a Christian without Holy Spirit. You do not grow as a Christian without Holy Spirit. We are who we are because Christ made a promise that He was in a person who would give us power. And there is no power in the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. There is no victory in the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. There is no joy in the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. There is no comfort this morning or peace without Holy Spirit. You don't know Jesus without the person and the work of Holy Spirit. Thank God this morning. Thank God the Father. Thank the Lord Jesus Christ for sending Holy Spirit this morning. It doesn't make much of Holy Spirit. It will allow Holy Spirit through you to make much of Jesus. He is our Lord. He is our Savior. He has given us the promise and the power in the person of God, the Holy Spirit, this morning. Let's pray.