Leading Us Into Truth: John 16:5-15

Focus Passage: John 16:5-15 (NCV)

Now I am going back to the One who sent me. But none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ Your hearts are filled with sadness because I have told you these things. But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go away. When I go away, I will send the Helper to you. If I do not go away, the Helper will not come. When the Helper comes, he will prove to the people of the world the truth about sin, about being right with God, and about judgment. He will prove to them that sin is not believing in me. 10 He will prove to them that being right with God comes from my going to the Father and not being seen anymore. 11 And the Helper will prove to them that judgment happened when the ruler of this world was judged.

12 “I have many more things to say to you, but they are too much for you now. 13 But when the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you into all truth. He will not speak his own words, but he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is to come. 14 The Spirit of truth will bring glory to me, because he will take what I have to say and tell it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will take what I have to say and tell it to you.

Read John 16:5-15 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

If you ever thought Jesus wanted to say more to the disciples, John tells us that on the night He was betrayed, during a conversation Jesus has with His remaining followers a few hours before He would be arrested, Jesus says this exact thing. But instead of leaving His followers hanging, Jesus offers them hope about being able to learn this truth in the future. The time for them to know was not before the events, because the disciples were not ready for the truth.

In this conversation, immediately following His description of what the Holy Spirit’s role, Jesus tells them, “I have many more things to say to you, but they are too much for you now.” (v. 12)

It seems as though Jesus wants to open up completely with the disciples and share with them all of what He knows, but Jesus also knows that most of what He wants to share would not be understood by the disciples. The information would be too much for them on the front end of the weekend. But Jesus doesn’t leave them hanging without a promise or hope for learning the truth. Instead, He describes a way for them to learn the truth He wanted to tell them in person but couldn’t, and this way is through the Helper – one of the names given to the Holy Spirit.

In the next few verses, Jesus describes what the Holy Spirit would do for them. Jesus has already described the overall mission of the Holy Spirit, and now He narrows the focus and shares what the Holy Spirit will do for each of His followers. Jesus tells them, “But when the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you into all truth. He will not speak his own words, but he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is to come. The Spirit of truth will bring glory to me, because he will take what I have to say and tell it to you. All that the Father has is mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will take what I have to say and tell it to you.” (v. 13-15)

In this set of verses, Jesus describes how the Holy Spirit will pick up where He left off and continue teaching the disciples. Just like Jesus walked through life with the Holy Spirit leading Him, Jesus describes that His followers should walk through life with this mindset as well.

Not only do we see the truth about God sending the Holy Spirit to help His followers in these verses, but we also can see a beautiful picture of how each member of the Godhead submits to the others. The Holy Spirit submits to God the Father and Jesus by only speaking what He hears. God the Father submits by giving everything He has to the Son. And Jesus has submitted through simply being present in this place as a human. Each member of the Godhead fulfills their role through submitting to the other members.

When the Holy Spirit comes into our lives, He will lead us into all truth. This truth will affect our knowledge, our character, and our actions. The truth the Holy Spirit will reveal to us is life transforming. This truth will bring glory to Jesus and God the Father, and this truth is only possible because of what Jesus accomplished for us on the cross!

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

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Keeping Our Foundation Strong: John 12:37-50

Focus Passage: John 12:37-50 (GNT)

37 Even though he had performed all these miracles in their presence, they did not believe in him, 38 so that what the prophet Isaiah had said might come true:

“Lord, who believed the message we told?
    To whom did the Lord reveal his power?”

39 And so they were not able to believe, because Isaiah also said,

40 “God has blinded their eyes
    and closed their minds,
so that their eyes would not see,
    and their minds would not understand,
    and they would not turn to me, says God,
    for me to heal them.”

41 Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.

42 Even then, many Jewish authorities believed in Jesus; but because of the Pharisees they did not talk about it openly, so as not to be expelled from the synagogue. 43 They loved human approval rather than the approval of God.

44 Jesus said in a loud voice, “Whoever believes in me believes not only in me but also in him who sent me. 45 Whoever sees me sees also him who sent me. 46 I have come into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness. 47 If people hear my message and do not obey it, I will not judge them. I came, not to judge the world, but to save it. 48 Those who reject me and do not accept my message have one who will judge them. The words I have spoken will be their judge on the last day! 49 This is true, because I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has commanded me what I must say and speak. 50 And I know that his command brings eternal life. What I say, then, is what the Father has told me to say.”

Read John 12:37-50 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Have you ever wanted to do something, but were scared of the consequences or reaction of others?

If so, you have something in common with a group of people in this post’s passage. In verse 42 and 43 we read: “Even then, many Jewish authorities believed in Jesus; but because of the Pharisees they did not talk about it openly, so as not to be expelled from the synagogue. They loved human approval rather than the approval of God.”

What this says about human nature is important. At every moment, we all are prioritizing people and ideas in our minds. At each point of our day, we are choosing to focus on something/someone/some idea and not on others. These Jewish authorities believed in Jesus, but their belief was second to receiving human praise. Their focus on praise was more important than their focus on Jesus.

Immediately following John’s description of this group of authorities, Jesus addresses a category of people in his next paragraph – however, this category at first sounds different. Jesus speaks a challenge towards those who hear His words, but choose to not obey them.

Is a private, personal belief in Jesus important? Yes!

Is a private, personal belief in Jesus the goal – the end place where God wants to take you and I? Nope.

Jesus knows that belief and faith are best lived out from a strong, private + personal foundation, but in a way that is visible to others. Obedience becomes meaningless when it is subjective to the popular opinion of the culture/crowd or when it is so hidden that our lives look identical to those without it.

Human nature pulls us towards conforming to a crowd. It might be a crowd of people who believe they are mainstream, or a crowd of people who think they are being different and challenging the system. It could be a crowd in a church, or a crowd of a large denomination, or a crowd that make up a major worldview. The crowd could be 10 people or 10 million.

But human nature is deceitful in this conformity. Even if we are caught up in a crowd that is leading us along a positive path – a path of making great decisions and growing closer to Jesus – the temptation is to ignore the personal foundation which the crowd cannot help us with. The personal foundation is where we remain personally connected to Jesus, and while it is the part of our relationship that matters the most, it is still just one part.

The Jewish authorities who believed reflect those of us who may at times feel that we better keep our beliefs hidden, for fear of what others may think. It is belief that is looking for the safe road forward, and for the greatest number of people to like us, but in the end, this safe road erodes our personal foundation as we lose ourselves in the crowd we have chosen.

At every moment, we are prioritizing people and ideas in our minds. The tendency is to model the people/ideas we prioritize and give our focus to. It is then up to us to prioritize Jesus – and visible obedience to Him – that keeps the foundation of our lives strong and secure.

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

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Being Like Jesus: Matthew 10:16-42

Focus Passage: Matthew 10:16-42 (GNT)

16 “Listen! I am sending you out just like sheep to a pack of wolves. You must be as cautious as snakes and as gentle as doves. 17 Watch out, for there will be those who will arrest you and take you to court, and they will whip you in the synagogues. 18 For my sake you will be brought to trial before rulers and kings, to tell the Good News to them and to the Gentiles. 19 When they bring you to trial, do not worry about what you are going to say or how you will say it; when the time comes, you will be given what you will say. 20 For the words you will speak will not be yours; they will come from the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

21 “People will hand over their own brothers to be put to death, and fathers will do the same to their children; children will turn against their parents and have them put to death. 22 Everyone will hate you because of me. But whoever holds out to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute you in one town, run away to another one. I assure you that you will not finish your work in all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

24 “No pupil is greater than his teacher; no slave is greater than his master. 25 So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher, and a slave like his master. If the head of the family is called Beelzebul, the members of the family will be called even worse names!

26 “So do not be afraid of people. Whatever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known. 27 What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight, and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops. 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid of God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell. 29 For only a penny you can buy two sparrows, yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father’s consent. 30 As for you, even the hairs of your head have all been counted. 31 So do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows!

32 “Those who declare publicly that they belong to me, I will do the same for them before my Father in heaven. 33 But those who reject me publicly, I will reject before my Father in heaven.

34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the world. No, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 I came to set sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law; 36 your worst enemies will be the members of your own family.

37 “Those who love their father or mother more than me are not fit to be my disciples; those who love their son or daughter more than me are not fit to be my disciples. 38 Those who do not take up their cross and follow in my steps are not fit to be my disciples. 39 Those who try to gain their own life will lose it; but those who lose their life for my sake will gain it.

40 “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Whoever welcomes God’s messenger because he is God’s messenger, will share in his reward. And whoever welcomes a good man because he is good, will share in his reward. 42 You can be sure that whoever gives even a drink of cold water to one of the least of these my followers because he is my follower, will certainly receive a reward.”

Read Matthew 10:16-42 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

During Jesus’ first big message directed at His closest twelve followers, Jesus shares some interesting ideas. As Jesus’ followers many centuries and generations later, focusing on what Jesus told His first followers has incredible relevance if we want to be as dedicated to Christ as they were after His resurrection.

Matthew, who was present for this big message as one of the twelve, wrote down this message, and included is a really significant statement: “No pupil is greater than his teacher; no slave is greater than his master.” (v. 24)

In every area of life, this principle holds true. Teachers are responsible for their students, employers are responsible for their employees, masters are responsible for their servants/slaves, and parents are responsible for their children. The word “greater” in this context doesn’t necessarily mean that they are just responsible for someone else, but that the nature of each role places one person in a more significant position than another.

This principle sounds obvious, but when we place Jesus in the role of teacher and master, things seem to get tricky. While we are quick to point out the obvious truth that no one can be more important or significant than Jesus, when He tells us things that we don’t agree with, too often we discount or ignore Him as though He doesn’t know what He is talking about. We love the places that Jesus makes us feel good about His acceptance, but we shy away from the places He challenges us to obey and live differently.

Jesus follows this principle up with another statement that helps explain this idea further. Jesus continues by saying, “So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher, and a slave like his master.” (v. 25a)

This statement is the key for this entire concept. If someone called the master a horrible name, those under that master will also get horrible names thrown at them. This simple example emphasizes the point that as “students” and “slaves” of Jesus, there is no way we should think we could be greater than He is. Instead, we should focus on simply becoming like Him.

The role of a disciple was to become like the teacher. By following and living with the teacher, the disciple would learn all the details and nuances of how the teacher lived and incorporate those things into his/her life. Simply modeling Jesus should be enough to satisfy us. While Jesus hinted at His disciples doing even greater works than He did, this shouldn’t be our focus for joining the Christian movement.

Instead, the Christian movement should be filled with students who are simply trying to become more like Jesus, who is our Teacher and our Master – not with people who have a point to prove or a statement to make against someone else. Non-Christ-like actions have no place among those who call themselves Christians, Christ-followers, or disciples. If Jesus loved those who society, religion, and culture have rejected, then we are called to love them as well – regardless of whether they return love towards us. At its core, this is what it means to be like Jesus.

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

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Incriminating Yourself: Luke 11:37-54

Focus Passage: Luke 11:37-54 (NIrV)

37 Jesus finished speaking. Then a Pharisee invited him to eat with him. So Jesus went in and took his place at the table. 38 But the Pharisee was surprised. He noticed that Jesus did not wash before the meal.

39 Then the Lord spoke to him. “You Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish,” he said. “But inside you are full of greed and evil. 40 You foolish people! Didn’t the one who made the outside make the inside also? 41 Give freely to poor people to show what is inside you. Then everything will be clean for you.

42 “How terrible it will be for you Pharisees! You give God a tenth of your garden plants, such as mint and rue. But you have forgotten to be fair and to love God. You should have practiced the last things without failing to do the first.

43 “How terrible for you Pharisees! You love the most important seats in the synagogues. You love having people greet you with respect in the market.

44 “How terrible for you! You are like graves that are not marked. People walk over them without knowing it.”

45 An authority on the law spoke to Jesus. He said, “Teacher, when you say things like that, you say bad things about us too.”

46 Jesus replied, “How terrible for you authorities on the law! You put such heavy loads on people that they can hardly carry them. But you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.

47 “How terrible for you! You build tombs for the prophets. It was your people of long ago who killed them. 48 So you show that you agree with what your people did long ago. They killed the prophets, and now you build the prophets’ tombs. 49 So God in his wisdom said, ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them. They will kill some. And they will try to hurt others.’ 50 So the people of today will be punished. They will pay for all the prophets’ blood spilled since the world began. 51 I mean from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah. He was killed between the altar and the temple. Yes, I tell you, the people of today will be punished for all these things.

52 “How terrible for you authorities on the law! You have taken away the key to the door of knowledge. You yourselves have not entered. And you have stood in the way of those who were entering.”

53 When Jesus went outside, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law strongly opposed him. They threw a lot of questions at him. 54 They set traps for him. They wanted to catch him in something he might say.

Read Luke 11:37-54 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

During one of the meals Jesus was invited to with some Pharisees, Luke tells us that the host is surprised (and maybe even a little offended) when Jesus doesn’t ceremonially wash before the meal. In response Jesus challenges several issues that God had with how the Pharisees were living their lives and acting towards others.

However, at this meal were more than just Pharisees. Luke describes another group who were offended with Jesus’ words. “An authority on the law spoke to Jesus. He said, ‘Teacher, when you say things like that, you say bad things about us too.’” (v. 45)

Whether the authority on the law (i.e. a lawyer) expected Jesus to shift His attention onto his group or not, it seems as though this statement extends the invitation to challenge this other group of people present at this meal.

However, while Jesus has a challenge for this group, it is interesting in my mind that simply by speaking up, we see a subtle thing happening in what Jesus was doing. In Jesus’ challenges to the Pharisees, He was convicting those present of the sin in their lives, and He was challenging them all to live to a much higher standard than they were living at that time.

While the challenging statements Jesus made may have sounded mean, they are meant to redirect those present towards God’s ideal rather than simply being insults that have no redeemable characteristics.

In Jesus’ challenge, He opened the door for the Holy Spirit to convict those present of the sin in their lives, and when the lawyer speaks up about how Jesus’ remarks also sound relevant to him, this shows that the Holy Spirit was convicting him of sins that he was holding onto in his heart.

After this meal, Luke tells us that the Pharisees and lawyers set out to trick, trap, and oppose Jesus. Maybe Jesus came on too strong with His words, or maybe the Holy Spirit’s conviction hardened the hearts of these leaders and closed their minds off to the truth about who Jesus came to be.

Reading this event helps remind me that when the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, we can either choose to reject what the Holy Spirit is showing us (which is what these religious leaders did), or we can choose to reject the sin by repenting and move closer to Jesus. Jesus had intended to help these leaders grow towards God’s ideal, but they instead decided to keep their sin and reject God’s Messiah.

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

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