The Spirit as Comforter Encourages the Church (15:18—16:4)

First, we must understand what Jesus means by “the world,” as it is used in at least three different ways in Scripture. It can refer to the created world (“the world was made by him”—John 1:10), the world of humanity (“For God so loved the world”—John 3:16), or to society apart from God and against God. Sometimes we add the phrase “the world system” to convey this special meaning.

For instance, if you are listening to the radio news, you may hear the announcer say, "And now the news from the world of sports!" Of course, “the world of sports” is not a special country or planet where everybody who is somehow connected with sports lives.

The sports world is the set of all organizations, people, plans, activities, philosophies, etc. that are part of sports. Some of these things are visible and some are invisible, but they are all organized around one thing: sports.

The “world” from a Christian perspective includes all the people, systems, organizations, activities, philosophies, values, etc. that are of society apart from God. Some of these things may be very cultural or corrupt, but all have their roots in the heart and mind of sinful man and promote what he wants to enjoy and accomplish. Christians should not love the world (1 John 2:15-17) or be conformed to it (Rom. 12:1-2).

Jesus does not hide the serious and even dangerous situation that awaits His disciples in the world. Observe the advance of the world's opposition: hatred (John 15:18-19), persecution (John 15:20), excommunication, and finally death (John 16:2). You can trace these stages of resistance all the way through the book of Acts.

Why does the world system, and the “religious world” in particular, hate the Christian, the one who believes on Jesus Christ and desires to follow Him? Jesus had several reasons.

SPIRIT AT WORK IN THE WORLD?
John 15:18—16:16 

This extended section is connected by two major themes: the world’s opposition to the church and the ministry of the Spirit to and through the church. Our Lord had been speaking of love (John 15:9–13, 17), but now He speaks of hate, and He uses the word seven times. It is difficult to believe that anyone could hate Jesus Christ and His people, but such is the case today, and some of this hatred comes from religious people. Within a few hours the religious leaders of Israel will be clamoring for the blood of their Messiah.

Our Lord had plainly taught His disciples that one day persecution would come. He spoke of it in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5:10-12, 44) and in His "commissioning sermon" when He sent the disciples out to minister (Matt. 10:16-23). In His sermon exposing the Pharisees, Jesus had warned, explicitly, that they would persecute and kill God’s servants (Matt. 23:34-35), and He had issued a similar warning in His prophetic word on the Mount of Olives (Mark 13:9-13).

In the gospel of John, we see that the religious establishment not only opposed Jesus but even wanted to kill Him (John 5:16; 7:19, 25; 8:37, 59; 9:22; see also 11:8). As Jesus extended His ministry there, a tide of resentment, hatred, and open opposition rose against Him. Thus, the disciples should not have been surprised when Jesus broached the subject of persecution, for they had heard Him warn them, and they had seen Him confront the hatred of men during His ministry.

We must continue living in this hostile world and face continued opposition until the Lord returns or until we die. How can we do that? What is the secret of success? It is the presence and power of the Holy Spirit of God in our lives. This is the most important part of the Upper Room message about the Holy Spirit and His ministry.

Before we study this passage and see the Spirit's threefold ministry to the church in the world, we must remind ourselves who the Holy Spirit is. God’s Holy Spirit is a person; Jesus referred to the Spirit as "He," not “it.” The Holy Spirit has a mind (Rom. 8:27), a will (1 Cor. 12:11), and feelings (Gal. 5:22–23).

In John 15:26 all three Persons of the Godhead are mentioned: Jesus the Son will send the Spirit from the Father. The Holy Spirit is a person and is God, so this truth means that the Christian has God dwelling in his body! If we did not have the Holy Spirit within, we would not be able to serve the Lord in this present evil world. We walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16), worship in the Spirit (Phil. 3:3), and witness in the Spirit (Acts 1:8).

By reason of the special ministries of the Holy Spirit, Christians are able to stand and withstand the hatred of the world.

#2 Friends

#4 The fruit. The word "results" is often heard in the conversations of Christian workers, but this is not really a Bible concept. A machine can produce results and so can a robot, but it takes a living organism to produce fruit. It takes time and cultivation to produce fruit; a good crop does not come overnight.

We must remember that only people eat the fruit, not the branches. We are not making fruit to please ourselves but to please others. We should be the kind of people that feed others with our words, “The lips of the righteous feed many” (Prov. 10:21).

The Bible names several different kinds of spiritual fruit. When we win others to Christ, we bear fruit (Rom. 1:13). We are part of the harvest (John 4:35–38). As we become more holy and obedient, we are bearing fruit (Rom. 6:22). Paul saw giving as the fruit of a life dedicated to God (Rom. 15:28). “The fruit of the Spirit” (Gal. 5:22–23) is the kind of Christian character that glorifies God and makes Christ real to others. Even our good works, our service, are born of our abiding life (Col. 1:10). The praise that issues from our hearts and lips is actually fruit to the glory of God (Heb. 13:15).

Much of this could be faked by the flesh but would be found out in time. True spiritual fruit carries the seeds of more fruit within it. Man-made results are dead and cannot reproduce themselves, but spirit-produced fruit will go on reproducing from one life to another. There shall be fruit—more fruit—fruit in abundance.

A true branch, attached to the vine, will always bear fruit. Not every branch has a bumper crop, as not every field has a bumper harvest (Matt. 13:8, 23), but there is always fruit where there is life. If there is no fruit, the branch is worthless and is thrown away and burned. I do not think our Lord is teaching here that true believers can lose their salvation, for this contradicts what He taught in John 6:37 and 10:27-30. It is not wise to build a theological doctrine on a parable or an allegory. Jesus was teaching one main truth, and we should not press the details too much: the fruitful life of the believer. Just as an unfruitful branch is useless, so is an unfruitful believer, and both need to be dealt with. It is a sad thing when a believer who was once fruitful backslides and loses the privilege of fellowship and of service. But John 15:6 is about divine discipline, not everlasting destiny. [For believers] "There is a sin unto death" (1 John 5:16).

Our Lord had spoken of peace (John 14:27); now He speaks of love and joy (John 15:9–11). The first three “fruit of the Spirit” listed in Galatians 5:22-23 are love, joy, and peace. Our abiding in Christ should produce His love, joy, and peace in our hearts. We love Him, so we keep His commandments. We keep His commandments, so we abide in His love and know it more deeply.

In John’s gospel, you will discover Jesus speaking several times about the love of the Father for Him. We so emphasize God's love for the world and the church that we forget that the Father loves the Son. "For the Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand" (John 3:35). And shewed Him all things that He Himself doeth (John 5:20). The Father loved the Son before the foundation of the world (John 17:24); He loved the Son at the death of the Son on the cross (John 10:17). The wonderful thing is that today’s believers can experience that same love for themselves! Jesus prayed, “that the love wherewith thou hast loved Me may be in them [the disciples and believers today]." (John 17:26).

We are privileged to be branches in the Vine, and therefore we have the responsibility of bearing fruit. Now we move to the second picture, that of friends.

​#3 The Vinedresser. The vinedresser’s responsibility is to tend the vines, and Jesus said that this is His Father’s business. It is He who “prunes” or purges the branches so they will bear more fruit. Note the progression here: no fruit (John 15:2), fruit, more fruit, and much fruit (John 15:5, 8). Most Christians pray for God to make them more fruitful, but they dislike the pruning that comes with it!

The vinedresser prunes the branches in two ways: he cuts away dead wood that can breed disease and insects, and he cuts away living tissue so that the life of the vine will not be so dissipated as to compromise the quality of the crop. In fact, the vinedresser will cut off whole bunches of grapes so that the rest of the crop will be of better quality. God cares about quantity and quality.

The pruning process is the most important part of the whole enterprise, and those who do it must be carefully trained, or they can destroy an entire crop. Some vineyards spend two or three years training the “primers” so they know where to cut, how much to cut, and even at what angle to make a cut.

The worst judgment God could send upon a believer was to let him alone, to let him have his own way. God loves us, so He “prunes” us and encourages us to bear more fruit for His glory. If the branches could talk, they would say pruning hurts, but they would also be glad they will be able to produce more and better fruit.

When God is pruning you, your heavenly Father is never closer to you. Sometimes He cuts away the dead wood that might cause trouble, but often He cuts off the living tissue that is robbing you of spiritual vigor. Pruning is not only spiritual surgery that removes what is detrimental. It can also mean cutting away the good and the better so that we can enjoy the best. Yes, pruning hurts. But it helps. We may not like it, but we need it.

How does the Father trim us? Occasionally He just convicts and cleanses us through the Word. (The same Greek word translated “purge” in John 15:2 is translated “clean” in John 13:10. (See Eph. 5:26-27.) Occasionally He must chasten us. (Heb. 12:1-11). It hurt at that time. He takes something precious from us, but as the “spiritual crop” is produced, we see that the Father knew what He was doing.

The more we abide in Christ, the more fruit we bear; and the more fruit we bear, the more the Father has to prune us so that the quality keeps up with the quantity. The branch may be left to itself, and it may produce many clusters, but they will be of inferior quality. A bigger crop as well as a better crop glorifies God.

#2 The branches. One branch is weak and useless by itself. Good for bearing or burning, but not for building (read Ezek. 15). The branch cannot generate its own life; it must draw that life from the vine. Our fellowship with Christ by the Spirit is what makes bearing fruit possible.

Many images of Christ and the believer are used in Scripture to underscore this important idea of union and communion: the body and its members (1 Cor. 12), the bride and the Bridegroom (Eph. 5:25–33), and the sheep and the Shepherd (John 10). A member of the body that is cut off from the body would die. The marriage forms the union, but it takes daily love and devotion to maintain the communion. The shepherd leads the sheep into the fold, but they must follow him for protection and provision.

The sooner we, as believers, come to know that we are but branches, the better we will relate to the Lord, for we will know our own weakness and confess our need of His strength.

The key word is "abide," used eleven times in John 15:1-11 (“continue” in John 15:9 and “remain” in John 15:11). What is meant by “abide”? It means to abide in fellowship with Christ so that His life might flow in and through us to produce fruit. But this process is certainly connected with the Word of God and confession of sin so that we are not hindered in our fellowship with Him (John 15:3). It also means obeying Him because we love Him (John 15:9-10).

How do we know that we are “abiding in Christ”? Is there a special feeling? No, but there are special pieces of evidence that appear, and they are unmistakably clear. For one thing, when you abide in Christ, you bear fruit (John 15:2). We shall talk later about what that "fruit" is. You also experience the Father’s “pruning” so that you bear more fruit (John 15:2). The believer who remains in Christ has his prayers answered (John 15:7) and has an increasing love for Christ and for other believers (John 15:9, 12-13). He also has joy (John 15:11).

The branch and the vine have a natural, abiding relationship. It must be cultivated in the Christian life. It is not automatic.  To abide in Christ means worship, meditation on God’s Word, prayer, sacrifice, and service—but what a joyous experience it is! When you have begun to grow in this more intimate fellowship with Christ, you will never desire to return to the shallow life of the indifferent Christian.

Branches—We Must Stay (15:1-11)

The cultivation of vineyards was an important part of the life and economy of Israel. There was a vine of gold on Herod’s temple. When our Lord used this image, He was not introducing anything new; it was familiar to every Jew. There are four things in this allegory that we need to understand if we are to profit from His teaching.

#1 The vine. There are really three different vines in Scripture. First, the former vine was the nation of Israel (see Ps. 80:8–19; Isa. 5:1–7; Jer. 2:21; Ezek. 19:10–14; Hosea 10:1). God “transplanted” Israel into Canaan in a marvelous act of grace and gave the nation every possible benefit. What more could I have done to my vineyard? God asked' (Isa. 5:4). If any country ever had all the ingredients for success, it was Israel.

But the vine brought forth wild grapes! It practiced oppression instead of justice; it brought forth unrighteousness instead of righteousness and the cries of the victims. God had to deal with the nation Israel and chastise it, but even that did not have lasting results. God sent His own Son into the vineyard, but they threw Him out and killed Him (Matt. 21:33–46).

Second, there is also a future vine, “the vine of the earth,” described in Revelation 14:14-20. This vine is the Gentile world system ripening for God’s judgment. The saved are “branches of the vine of heaven,” while the unsaved are “branches of the vine of the earth.” The unsaved look to this world for their sustenance and satisfaction, but believers look to Jesus Christ. When Jesus Christ returns, the “vine of the earth” will be cut down and destroyed.

Third, there is the present Vine, who is the Lord Jesus Christ, and, of course, the vine includes the branches. He is the "true Vine," that is, "the original of which all other vines are a copy." As Christians, we do not live on substitutes! The symbolism of the Vine and branches is similar to that of the Head and the body: we have a living relationship to Christ and are members of Him.

We are united with Christ: a living union so that we may bear fruit; a loving union so that we may enjoy Him; and a lasting union so that we need not be afraid.

RELATIONSHIPS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

This is the seventh and last of the “I am” sayings of Christ recorded in the gospel of John. But Jesus did not stop with this picture; He went on to use the picture of "the friend." These two pictures of the believer, branches, and friends show both our privileges and our responsibilities. As branches, we have the privilege of sharing His life and the responsibility of abiding. As friends, we have the privilege of knowing His will and the duty of obedience.

Our Bible study in John 15:1-11 begins tomorrow and is divided into four parts:
#1 The Vine
#2 The Branches
#3 The Vinedresser
#4 The Fruit

You have His Gift of Peace (14:25-31)

"Shalom"—peace—is a precious word to the Jewish people. It signifies far more than the mere absence of war or pain. "Shalom" is wholeness, completeness, health, security, and even prosperity in the best sense. When you’re in God’s peace, there’s joy and contentment. However, God’s peace is not the “peace” the world provides

Resources are the foundation for the world’s peace. Relationships are the foundation for God’s peace. To be right with God means to enjoy the peace of God. The world depends upon personal ability; the Christian depends upon spiritual adequacy in Christ. Peace is what you hope for or work for in the world, but to the Christian, it is God's wonderful gift received by faith. Unsaved people rejoice in peace when there is no trouble. Christians rejoice in peace even in trials because of the presence of power, the Holy Spirit.

The people of the world walk by sight and depend on the externals, but the Christians walk by faith and depend on the eternals. The Spirit of God teaches us the Word and leads us (not drags us!) into the truth. He also reminds us of what He has taught us so that we can trust the Word of God in the difficult times of life. The Spirit communicates His peace to us through the Word (John 14:27), His love (John 15:9-10), and His joy (John 15:11). If this message fails to comfort a troubled heart, nothing else will!

Jesus again assured them they would see Him again (John 14:28). Why celebrate His return to the Father? Because our great High Priest is now in heaven and His intercessory ministry is on our behalf (Heb. 2:17-18; 4:14-16). We have the Spirit within us, the Savior above us, and the Word before us! What enormous resources for peace!

John 14:30–31 names two of our formidable spiritual enemies: the world and the devil. Jesus has overcome the world and the devil (John 12:31), and the devil has no hold on Him. There is no part of Jesus Christ where the devil can crawl in. Because we are “in Christ," Satan has no foothold in the believer's life unless we give him one. If we yield to the “peace of God” (through the Holy Spirit), neither Satan nor the world can trouble our hearts.

Jesus’ statement “My Father is greater than I” (John 14:28) was not a denial of His own deity or His equality with God, for then He would have been contradicting Himself (John 10:30). When Jesus was on earth, He was voluntarily limited by having a human body. He willingly laid aside the independent exercise of His divine attributes and surrendered Himself to the Father. In that sense the Father was greater than the Son. Of course all the Son had laid aside was restored to Him again when He returned to heaven (John 17:1, 5).

Jesus demonstrated His love for the Father (and for the world) by going to the cross willingly. He didn't hide or run away. He willingly gave up His life. It is possible that He and the disciples left the Upper Room at this point (John 14:31), and thus what Jesus said from then on was spoken on the way to the garden. Or, maybe, they had gotten up from the table and lingered a little as He taught them. As they walked that night through the vineyards, they easily visualized the allegory of the vine.

His own perfect peace assures us that He alone can indeed give us peace. Jesus is Master of the situation, and He helps us to take control of our lives as we surrender to Him and receive His legacy of peace.

We Embrace the Father’s Love (14:19–24)

“The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost [Spirit] which is given unto us.” (Rom. 5:5). Orphans may feel unwanted and unloved, but our Father bestows His love upon us. Jesus spoke of a threefold manifestation of the love of God.

There was a previous revelation to the disciples (vv. 19–20). John 14:19 focuses on His resurrection and post-resurrection appearances to His disciples and other believers. The world saw Jesus last when Joseph and Nicodemus took Him down off the cross and laid Him in a tomb. He will come in power and magnificent glory to judge lost sinners when He comes the next time.

John 14:20 particularly emphasizes the coming Spirit at Pentecost and the unity of the believers with their Lord. Jesus ascended to heaven as the exalted Head of the church (Eph. 1:19–23). Then He sent forth His Spirit so that the members of the body might be united to their Head in a living union. Of course believers today did not see Jesus after His resurrection or His ascension, but we are joined to Him by the indwelling Holy Spirit.

There is a present revelation of Himself to believers (vv. 21, 23–24). Count the number of times love is repeated. If we love and obey His Word, the Father and Son will share their love and make their home in us. The word translated “abode” in John 14:23 means “make our home” and is related to “mansions” in John 14:2.

The moment the sinner trusts Christ, he is born again, and the Spirit at once enters his body and bears witness that he is a child of God.  The Spirit is here and will not go away. But the deeper the believer gives himself to the Father, loves the Word, prays, and obeys, the deeper is the relationship with the Father, Son, and Spirit. Salvation means we are going to heaven, but submission means heaven comes to us!

This truth is illustrated in the experiences of Abraham and Lot, recorded in Genesis 18 and 19. Jesus and the two angels came to Abraham’s tent and felt right at home. They even shared a meal, and Jesus had a private conversation with Abraham. But our Lord did not go to Sodom to see Lot because He did not feel at home there. However, He sent the two angels instead.

Our experience of God should deepen and deepen, and it will as we surrender to the Spirit of truth and let Him teach and lead us. If we love God and obey Him, day by day He will reveal His love to us in a more profound way.

There is a future revelation at the return of Jesus Christ (v. 19). Judas (not Iscariot) recalled that Jesus had said He would not reveal Himself to the world (John 14:22). But this appeared to contradict other things He had said, such as is recorded in Matthew 24:30. The question he asked was, 'What has happened that you are not going to show yourself to the world anymore?' Has the plan of God been changed?'

He could not show Himself to His own people, for they had rejected Him. Actually, it was mercy that He did not reveal Himself to the world, for that would have been judgment. He has revealed Himself to His church and left the church in the world as a witness of God’s love. He is waiting patiently. He is still granting lost sinners an opportunity to repent and be saved (2 Peter 3:1-10). And He shall return one day (Rev. 1:7), and the world shall see Him.

One of the best ways to soothe a troubled heart is to bathe it in the love of God. When you feel like an 'orphan,' let the Spirit of God show you God’s love in a more profound way. “Little faith will take your soul to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to your soul,” said Charles Spurgeon. Then your heart can become a “heaven on earth” as you have fellowship with and worship the Lord.

"Comfort": We Have the Spirit (John 14:16–18)

In His Upper Room message, Jesus had a great deal to say about the Holy Spirit. Without the Spirit of God, we cannot live the Christian life as God intends. We must know who the Holy Spirit is, what He does, and how He does it.

Our Lord gave two special names to the Holy Spirit: “another Comforter" and “the Spirit of truth.” The Greek word translated “Comforter” is "parakletos," and it is used only by John (14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7; 1 John 2:1). It means “summoned to help.” The Holy Spirit does not work for us or against us, but in us and through us.

The word "comfort" in English comes from two Latin words meaning “with strength.” We tend to think of “comfort” as soothing someone, comforting him or her, and this interpretation is, to some extent, correct. But real comfort provides us the strength to face life with courage and to keep going. It does not relieve us of responsibility or make it easy for us to surrender. Think of the Holy Spirit as "the Encourager," and that is a good choice. In 1 John 2:1, the word "parakletos" is translated as "advocate." An advocate is someone who supports you in court and argues your case.

The Holy Spirit is the “Spirit of Truth" and is associated with Jesus, the Truth, and the Word of God, which is the truth (John 14:6; 17:17). The Spirit inspired the Word and enlightens it so that we may understand it. Later in this message, Jesus will describe the ministry of the Holy Spirit to teach. Because He is the “Spirit of truth,” the Holy Spirit cannot lie or be associated with falsehood. He never leads us to do anything against the Word of God, for again, God’s Word is truth.

If we desire the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, we must seek to glorify Christ, and we must make much of the Word of God. If you compare Ephesians 5:18—6:9 with Colossians 3:16—4:1, you will see that both passages describe the same kind of Christian life—joyful, thankful, and submissive. Being Filled with the Spirit is the same as being controlled by the Word. The Spirit of truth leads us into the will and work of God through the Word of truth.

The Holy Spirit lives in the believer. He is a gift from the Father in response to the Son’s prayer. Jesus had led, protected, and taught His disciples during His earthly ministry, but now He was going away. Then the Spirit of God would come to them, live in them, and take the place of their Master. Jesus called the Spirit “another Comforter.” The Greek word translated “another” means “another of the same kind.” The Spirit of God is not different from the Son of God, for both are God. The Spirit of God had been with the disciples in the person of Jesus Christ. Now He would live in them.

Of course the Spirit of God had been on the earth before. He empowered Old Testament men and women to do the work of God. But in the Old Testament Age, the Spirit of God would come upon people and then leave them. God’s Spirit departed from King Saul (1 Sam. 16:14; 18:12), and David, confessing his sin, asked that the Spirit would not be taken from him (Ps. 51:11). When the Holy Spirit was given at Pentecost, He was given to God’s people to be with them always. We may indeed grieve the Spirit, but He will not leave us.

We treat the Holy Spirit as we treat the Lord Jesus Christ. The believer’s body is the temple of the Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19–20), and what he or she does with that body affects the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Spirit wrote the Word of God, and the way we treat the Bible is the way we treat the Spirit of God and the Son of God.

The world cannot receive the Spirit because the world walks by “sight” and not by faith. Moreover, the world knoweth not Jesus Christ, and you know not the Spirit except through the Son. The world rejected Jesus Christ, and the Spirit’s presence in this world is an indictment of it.
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The word translated as "comfortless" in John 14:18 means "orphans." We are not alone, abandoned, helpless, or hopeless! Why should we feel like orphans when the Spirit is with us wherever we go? No need for a troubled heart when you have the very Spirit of God living in you!