The Spirit as Teacher of the Church (16:12–15)

The Spirit as Teacher of the Church (16:12–15)

Our Lord was always careful to give His disciples the right measure of truth at the best time. Such wisdom is always the sign of a great teacher. Today, the Holy Spirit is our Teacher, and He follows the same principle: He teaches us the truths we need to know, when we need to know them, and when we are ready to receive them.

You can see in John 14:26 and 16:13 the wonderful way God arranged for the writing of the New Testament Scriptures. The Spirit would bring to mind what Jesus had taught them, and the result is the four Gospels. The Spirit would also “guide” them into all truth, which resulted in the New Testament Epistles. “He will show you things to come” is a reference to the prophetic scriptures, especially the book of Revelation.

It is important to see that the work of the Spirit of God is never divorced from Jesus Christ or the Word of God. “He shall bear witness of me” (John 15:26); “He shall glorify me” (John 16:14). Those who claim the Spirit of God led them to act contrary to Christ's example or the Word's teaching are wrong and deceived by Satan. Jesus is truth (John 14:6), and the Word is truth (John 17:17), and the Holy Spirit is “the Spirit of truth.” Where the Holy Spirit is working, there must be truth.

The phrase “He [the Spirit] shall not speak of Him­self” (John 16:13) does not mean that the Spirit never speaks of Himself, for when He wrote the Bible, the Spirit often spoke of Himself. It means He speaks with the Father and the Son; He does not “manufacture” a different message. You have the whole Godhead spoken of in John 16:13. The Spirit of God does not pass over either Father or Son. They work in perfect harmony.

The Spirit taught the apostles nothing different from what the Spirit taught through Jesus Christ. Some theologians like to set the “Christianity of Christ” against the “Christianity of Paul.” They say that Paul “ruined” Christianity by making it so theological and complicating the “simple message” of Jesus Christ. What a miserable way to look at it. What Jesus said in John 14:26 and 16:13 completely refutes this false teaching. The same Holy Spirit who communicated the truths found in the four gospels, the Epistles, and the book of Revelation also wrote the history and doctrine found in Acts.

The ministry of the Spirit is to fill us with the treasures of God’s truth. He speaks the truth of God and bestows God's treasures. The Word of God is a rich mine of gold, silver, and precious stones (Prov. 3:13-15; 8:10-21). How wonderful to have the Spirit illuminate His Word.

We do not study the Word of God to “argue religion” with people or to flaunt our grasp of spiritual things. We study the Word to see Jesus Christ, to know God more, and to glorify Him in our lives. We are to share Jesus Christ with the lost as the Spirit uses the Word He has taught us. It’s our job to witness. It’s the Spirit’s job to convict.

Maybe some people need to stop playing the role of prosecuting attorneys—or judges—so that the Spirit can use us as faithful witnesses.