John 15:18-27
Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.
“Notice what you notice.” Today we have a third “Holy Spirit” section from John 14-16. We learn three more information items about the Holy Spirit, all in John 15:26:
- The Helper proceeds from the Father
- He is the Spirit of truth
- He will testify about Jesus
Jesus says earlier in that verse that He will send the Holy Spirit “…from the Father…”, then later repeats that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father. So they are both involved in sending the Holy Spirit.
The second item is fairly clear, the Holy Spirit is truth! The third item is less clear – in what sense does the Holy Spirit testify about Jesus? I went online asking about this and found an item where the author first cites Acts 5:32 (We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him), then adds the following text (worth reading all the way through):
It is clear from these words of Jesus Christ and the Apostles that it is the work of the Holy Spirit to bear witness concerning Jesus Christ. We find the Holy Spirit’s testimony to Jesus Christ in the Scriptures, but beside this the Holy Spirit bears witness directly to the individual heart concerning Jesus Christ. He takes His own Scriptures and interprets them to us and makes them clear to us. All truth is from the Spirit, for He is “the Spirit of truth,” but it is especially His work to bear witness to Him who is the truth, that is Jesus Christ (John 14:6). It is only through the testimony of the Holy Spirit directly to our hearts that we ever come to a true, living knowledge of Jesus Christ (cf.1 Cor. 12:3). No amount of mere reading the written Word (in the Bible) and no amount of listening to man’s testimony will ever bring us to a living knowledge of Christ. It is only when the Holy Spirit Himself takes the written Word, or takes the testimony of our fellow man, and interprets it directly to our hearts that we really come to see and know Jesus as He is.
https://biblehub.com/library/torrey/the_person_and_work_of_the_holy_spirit/chapter_viii_the_holy_spirit.htm
What a powerful statement! This item would have been enough of a post for one day, but I do need to comment on two other verses that leapt off the page for me: If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. (v. 22) Jesus repeats the essence of this charge two verses later: If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both Me and My Father. (v. 24) My Study Bible notes that the “they” in these verses refers to the Jewish leaders in Jesus’ time, but I find that the “they” probably also refers to us today and anyone we know. This claim about Jesus’ words applying today is supported by Paul in Romans 1:20, For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. We need to continually pray for our family members and friends who are “without excuse”. Sad…!
Slava Bohu!