Bible Story

Introduction

A very pleasant good day to you. Our study today is in the sixteenth chapter of the Gospel of John. If you’ve been studying with us, you recognize and remember that we’ve been studying verse by verse through this great and wonderful text concerning who Jesus Christ is, the Son of God. And we’ve come to the study where Jesus was with his disciples at what we call the Last Supper. It was the last time that he was with His disciples before His crucifixion. Actually, this text of John 16 begins back in the thirteenth chapter of John, at the time when Jesus took water and washed the disciples’ feet, teaching them a lesson of humility. And then in chapters 14, 15, and 16, he begins to say to them some parting words, giving them comfort and exhortation.

He knew that he was about to die. They did not fully understand this at this point in time, though Jesus had many times told them about his death. But nevertheless, Jesus had told them in chapter fourteen it’s recorded, that when did when he departed that the comforter, the Holy Spirit, would come in his stead, and would be with them. They would not be left totally alone. And in chapter fifteen he talked how that the comforter, the Holy Spirit, would guide them and would help them to bear witness concerning Jesus Christ. He had also told them how that they were going to be persecuted, even as the world had hated the Master, the Lord Jesus Christ himself, so they would likewise be hated. And as we start chapter sixteen, this is really the thought that he continues with.

1. They Will Think They Do God Service

Verses one through four, Jesus said, These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. They shall put you out of the synagogues. Yea, the time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God’s service. And these things will they do unto you because they have not known the Father, nor me. But these things have I told you that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you. Now Jesus is warning them that just as he was put to death by men who hated him, the Son of God, so it would be that even the apostles likewise would be hated of the world.

Back in chapter fifteen, in verses eighteen through twenty-one, he had said, If if the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. Yeah if you were of the world, the world would love his own, but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not greater than his Lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me. Now the last verse, Jesus said, The reason they’ve hated him is because they did not know God the Father.

And just as they did not know the Father, so they hated the Lord and put him to death, and likewise they are going to hate the disciples of the Lord. The world will hate you. But there’s a paradox in this persecution that the world would bring upon the disciples, and that is that they would think that they have done God service. These are religious people who put Jesus Christ to death. They were not the atheists of the world, they were not the people of the gutter, or the people who did not care about God. But those who crucified Jesus were religious people. And so it has continued to be that many times the servants of the Lord are persecuted by people who, in the name of religion, in the name of God, thinking they’re doing God’s service.

But they have done this because they have blinded their own hearts. It is possible for us to think we’re doing God’s service when actually we’re following what we like, what pleases our senses and what pleases our own minds and thinks of us. Jesus Christ did not fit what the Jewish leaders thought the King of Kings should be like. And therefore they crucified him. They put him to death. And the very ones who put him to death thought they were doing God’s service. Oh, what a sad thing. We need to be careful ourselves that we’re not be speaking evil against religious people, just because we do not agree with what they’re saying. We need to get a Bible open and be certain that when we speak against someone who is in the name of religion, that we do so because they have not of us say the Lord.

You know, quite often people have a closed Bible and they go judging others and saying that I believe this and I don’t agree with you about that, and really they haven’t a thus said the Lord for what they’re saying. If you’re going to speak against another, be certain that you can speak from the word of truth. Now the apostles were persecuted. Jesus said that not only do they think they do God’s service, but I’m telling you this in advance. I’m telling you this so that when it does occur to you that you will remember that I told you often, in fact in verse one, he said, so that you should not be offended, actually saying so you shall not stumble. When Jesus actually told them of things that would come to pass later, it would enable the disciples to be strengthened.

As they remembered the words of Jesus, they knew that Jesus in advance had told them of these things. Actually, earlier in the text and in Acts chapter, I mean in John chapter 13 and verse 19, he had told them that he would be betrayed. And in that verse he said, Later when it happens, you shall remember that I foretold you. And it would help you to believe. And then in chapter 14 and verse 29, he told them how he would depart, how he would be put to death. And later they would remember these words. In advance, Jesus had told of his betrayal, of his death, and now of their own persecution. And Jesus said, I tell you these things that it may strengthen your faith. It is not simply by accident, it is not simply by the will of wicked men that these things come to pass.

2. Sorrow Hath Filled Your Heart

But rather, even as God knew in advance, so he had prepared his disciples so that they might be strong when it when the event did occur. Now in verses five and six of John 16, Jesus said, But now I go my way to him that sent me. And none of you asketh me, whither goest thou. But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart. Now he said, I’m going my way. And in fact, I’m going to die. I’m going to be raised. I’m going to be ascended unto the Father. I’m going my way. But none of you have asked me, whither goest thou. Now, if you’ve been reading with us in the Gospel of John, you may remember that Peter, back in chapter 13 and verse 36, did ask Jesus where he was going.

And then in chapter 14 and verse 5, Thomas had likewise asked Jesus, uh, whither goest thou, and how can we know the way? So you might think that there’s a contradiction here when Jesus in this passage says that sorrow hath filled your heart, or grief had filled your heart because you you haven’t asked where I’m going. But when you get the two contexts in mind, actually, when Peter asked and when Thomas asked, they were asking simply from a point of view, as though Jesus is journeying from Jerusalem where he was then to another place or to another city on earth. And they did not have in mind full comprehension. They were simply thinking that Jesus is saying, I’m going to some other place, and you can’t follow me there.

And they’re saying, Well, Lord, where are you going? And why can’t we follow you? What’s the way there? But now that Jesus has begun to tell them that really he is going to the Father, He’s going out of this world. It’s not just to another place in this world, but out of this world. And now that He’s told them that the Comforter, the Holy Spirit is going to come in His stead and be with them, they hadn’t really asked the question, where are you going? They didn’t really comprehend where where He was going, and their only thought was, Oh, how it is going to affect them personally. Their hearts are filled with grief because of their nearsightedness, because of their short-sightedness. They didn’t really comprehend that the departure of Jesus to return to the Father was going to be to their advantage and for their good.

They were thinking only in terms of their own loneliness. Sometimes I see people who have lost a loved one in death. And sometimes I see them grieving and sorrowing, and the grief and sorrow is for their own loss. When in effect, if they would get a broader point of view, a broader scope, they wouldn’t sorrow as people who have no hope. For even as the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and verses 13 through 17, he spoke how that we ought not to sorrow as others. In fact, he said, I write these things that that ye sorrow not. Because if ye believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord that we which are alive and remain under the coming of the Lord shall not prevent or precede them which are asleep.

For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, with the trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. Just as the disciples were then grieving over a matter unnecessary to them, if they had just inquired, there would have been no cause for their grief. Rather there would have been joy instead of grief. So it is today, maybe we grieve unnecessarily. But when a loved one departs, if that loved one is in Christ Jesus, there should be rejoicing that they will come together with the Lord Jesus, that they are going to meet him, and they shall be with him.

3. It Is Expedient for You That I Go Away

Indeed, that’s cause for rejoicing. We shouldn’t sorrow as those who have no hope. But now in verse 7 of chapter 16, Jesus said, Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is expedient for you that I go away. For if I go not away, the comforter will not come unto you. But if I depart, I will send him unto you. Jesus said, It is it’s really expedient. It is for your advantage. It’s for your good that I go away. Even though you haven’t asked me, I’m going to tell you that the reason I am going is to your advantage. It is expedient for you. In fact, he said the comforter would not come except I go away. The Holy Spirit would not come. Indeed, had Christ not gone away, had he not been crucified, there would have been no salvation.

It was necessary for Christ to die in order that, number one, there may be redemption. As Ephesians chapter 1 and verse seven says, In whom is redemption through his precious blood, even the forgiveness of our sins, according to the riches of his grace. Without his death, we would have had no sacrifice for sins, and without sacrifice for sins, we would be certainly in sin and worthy of eternal death. And so the going away of Jesus Christ is for our good as well. But secondly, he said, If I did not go away, the comforter would not come. The Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2, verses 1 through 5. And he empowered the apostles to preach salvation, to preach about Jesus Christ.

You read Acts chapter 2, you know that they preached about his life, his death, his burial, and his resurrection. In verses 23 and 24 of Acts 2, Peter preached how that by the determinant counsel of God, by the foreknowledge of God, Jesus had been taken and been crucified. But Jesus was not left in the grave. He arose the third day. And as you drop on down to Acts 2 and verse 33, how that God hath made him both Lord and Christ. He has risen from the grave, and now is Lord and Christ. And on that day of Pentecost, as these apostles were empowered by the Spirit, when they asked, what shall we do? In Acts 2 and verse 38, Peter preached salvation. Or he said, Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

But Jesus now, when he’s with his disciples, really just a matter of a few days before Pentecost, he’s saying it is expedient, it is necessary for me to go away. If I don’t go away, the Holy Spirit wouldn’t come. Power to preach salvation would not be with you. You see, it should not have caused them grief that Jesus was going. If they’d really had the full understanding, there was cause for joy and for comfort in their hearts. We hope you’ll study with us further as we continue to see really what was the work of the Holy Spirit as he came upon these apostles. What is the primary work or mission of the Holy Spirit? It is surprising how many people today do not really understand the answer to that question.

4. He Will Reprove the World of Sin

There has been so much emphasis placed by Pentecostal friends and those who believe in the gifts or charismatic movement that they’ve emphasize that the Holy Spirit is to work miracles, to heal the sick, and to cause people to speak in tongues. And many people, if you were to ask what is the primary work of the Holy Spirit, that’s really the answer they would probably be giving you. But it is interesting to note that in the John chapters 14, 15, and 16, where Jesus described the comforter coming to the apostles and the work that he would do. That Jesus did not bear really talk about speaking in tongues, not once. And he did not talk about the Holy Spirit enabling them to work miracles, really not once.

The emphasis that Jesus placed to the function of the Holy Spirit was to reveal the truth, to guide them into all truth, to bear witness of Jesus Christ, as one who would be a comforter and who would stand at their side and give assistance unto them. You really want to know what is the work of the Holy Spirit, I suggest unto you that you study John chapters 14, 15 and 16. In fact, let’s continue in our study in chapter 16. In verses 8 through 11, where Jesus described the major function or work of the Holy Spirit, when he said in verse 8, when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment. Of sin because they believe not on me.

Of righteousness because I go to my Father and ye see me no more. Of judgment, because the Prince of this world is judged. Jesus said, When the Spirit is come, what he is going to do is to reprove the world. Another translation says that he’s going to convict the world or convince the world. The work of the Holy Spirit is that of revealing the truth and of confirming the truth. Certainly the Bible reveals many miracles that were worked by the power of the Holy Spirit. He did empower the New Testament disciples to heal the sick and to speak in tongues, and they caused other miracles to be worked, even such as raising the dead. And these works are miracles were in order to confirm that these apostles, inspired with the word, were indeed of God.

That the word they spake was truth. It was not from them. But notice that the real major work or function of the Holy Spirit was not just to make these men superdoctors, but rather to empower them with that ability to convince the world. The Holy Spirit would reprove the world or convict the world. And then he says three different things. The conviction to the world would be of sin. He said, Because they believe not on me. As the word inspired by the Holy Spirit is preached by the apostles, so it would raise the consciousness of sin in the hearts of unbelievers. You see, as you preach the word today, the way to cause men to turn into Christ is to convince them of the word inspired.

Romans 10 and verse 17, the apostle says, So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. You’re going to convince someone to believe in Christ, you’ll have to preach the revealed word. The Holy Spirit’s not going to come down in some miraculous fashion and just overwhelm you or overwhelm some friend of yours. But rather through the preaching of the word, men are convicted. Back in John chapter 3 and in verse 18, in fact, Jesus said that if you believe on him, then indeed there will be salvation. But he that believeth on him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he have not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. Men are condemned to have not believed in the name of the Son of God, but how are you going to teach them?

5. Convince the World of Righteousness

Through the preaching of the Word. So the Holy Spirit would convince men of sin. Cause them to believe, in fact. In John chapter 12, verses for verse 48, Jesus said, He that receiveth not me and reject he that rejecteth me and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him. The word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. But not only would the Holy Spirit convince or convict the world or reprove the world of sin, but also in verse 10, Jesus said, He would convince the world of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more. Now, to say that I go to my Father and ye see me no more certainly implies the death burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.

He was about to leave the world. But the power to preach the righteousness of God depended really upon the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And so he says, when the Spirit comes, he is going to convince the world of righteousness. That is, by the preaching of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Men might be convinced that salvation is by faith. God’s righteousness revealed is that men can be saved not by their own works, not by their own righteousness, but rather by faith. Romans chapter 1, verses sixteen and seventeen says, The gospel is God’s power unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith.

If you want to know the righteousness of God, you must come to that inspired word revealed by the Holy Spirit. The gospel is God’s power to salvation. You see, that ties in with the first point, that men will be convinced of their sin through the preaching of the word. Now men will be convinced of the way for forgiveness of sin, God’s righteousness through the preaching of the word, the preaching of Jesus Christ. In Romans chapter three, beginning in verse 21, the apostle speaks about the righteousness of God, when he says, But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets. It’s without the law of Moses. The righteousness of God, salvation today, is through another scheme than the law of Moses.

In fact, he says in verse 22, even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all them that believe, for there is no difference. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God. To declare, I say at this time his righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. You see, the Holy Spirit has revealed unto us how that as men were in sin, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.

The Holy Spirit has revealed that now by faith in Christ Jesus, that by grace through faith can we be saved. Grace on God’s part involved the crucifixion of our Lord, the gift of his Son. Faith on our part, though, is obeying that Son. We come to the cross of Jesus Christ, not as people who are worthy to be saved, but as people who simply and humbly, with broken spirit and contrite heart, are willing to say, Lord, thy will be done. And so the righteousness of God teaches us that we must believe in the Christ. The Holy Spirit has taught us concerning that. Over in Romans chapter 6, and in verses 17 and 18, or really beginning in verse 16, the apostle there says, Know ye not, or don’t you know, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness.

But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. Again, we have this work. As the Holy Spirit will convince the world of righteousness, it teaches men how to be righteous. So it is in Romans chapter 6, he says, We become the servants of righteousness when we obey the Lord from the heart. You see, the Holy Spirit has revealed unto us the way of salvation. It’s not some miraculous work that’s just going to infuse us and just empower us to speak in other tongues or empower us to heal the sick. That’s one of the fruits of the Spirit in the first century in confirming that the word really was of God.

But the mission and the major work of the Holy Spirit, if you’re trying to describe what that is, it had to do with salvation. It had to do to reveal God’s plan whereby men might be saved. And so convincing men of sin, secondly, is to convince men of how to be saved from sin. The righteousness of God by faith in Christ Jesus. But also it teaches us to obey, to obey from the heart. Even that form of doctrine delivered us. In Romans chapter 6, verses 3 and 4, and sort of tying together this whole scheme of salvation, the apostle says, Don’t you know that so many of us as we’re baptized into Jesus Christ, we’re baptized into his death. Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death.

6. Convince the World of Judgment

The like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. In God’s scheme of redemption, in his plan of righteousness, faith in Christ Jesus means that we must obey him, become the servants of righteousness, and even being buried into his death by baptism. But then, furthermore, back in John chapter 16 and in verse 11, he says that the Holy Spirit would convince the world of judgment, because the Prince of this world is judged. Now, also judgment is told us. We’re convinced. We’re convicted.

Will you be prepared? There are those who ignore the pleading of God revealed in the Word of Truth. And when judgment day comes, it’ll be a sad time for them. They may be waiting for some kind of special or miraculous movement to grab them or just to persuade them, and they can’t help themselves, but that’s not the way the Spirit works. The Spirit has revealed the Word. And if you want to know about the coming judgment, you can turn in your Bibles to it. Passages like 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 10. It says we must all be made manifest before the judgment seat of Christ to receive the things done in the body according to that which we’ve done. The Holy Spirit has revealed unto us that final judgment.

And in fact, it says, Because the Prince of this world is judged. Now Jesus said back in chapter 12 of John and verse 31, that the Prince of this world is already judged. That is the devil. Satan’s destiny is already sealed. But Satan continues to deceive many people of the world. And the final day of judgment will come, and there’s going to be a separation of the righteous from the wicked. Revelation chapter 20, verses 11 through 15 describe how the devil himself shall be cast into a lake of fire. And he says that’ll be the place where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever. But he goes on in Revelation 20, verses 11 through 15, and talks about how that others will likewise be cast into that lake of fire.

Conclusion

Even those who are not found written in the book of life are going to suffer the same punishment as the devil. In Revelation chapter 14, verses 9 through 11, he describes those who have the mark of the beast and how they shall be tormented day and night, forever and ever. In Matthew 25 and verse 41, he says that those who are wicked shall go into the place prepared for the devil and his angels. Are you ready for the final judgment? Let the Holy Spirit come into your life. Be convinced of your sin and the need to obey God’s righteousness and be prepared for the great judgment day. We hope you’ll be with us again as we study later. May the grace and peace of our Lord be with you.