The Lutheran Hour
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"Jesus Gives Us the Help We Need"
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Text: John 14:23-31
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Jesus answered ….”These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
Christ is risen! Christ is risen, indeed. Alleluia!
Jewel Cave, South Dakota. This cave is the third-longest in the world at over 180 miles long, with more to be discovered. Like all caves, there are amazing things to see like stalactites and stalagmites. There are bats and insects and fish without eyes. There are massive rooms and tight passages. There are things that you just don’t see above ground.
But at one point on some of the tours, you enter a room that is so far from any natural entrance that you experience something that most of us never experience, true darkness, that’s right, the absolute absence of light! When the guide turns off the lights, there is literally no light and because of that no sight. Just darkness. And at that moment, you realize that darkness is much more than just absence of light. Darkness is palpable. Darkness is oppressive. Darkness affects everything.
When you are in true darkness, it is even hard to stay standing. It might not sound that hard, but without any reference to what is upright and what is down, darkness can be disorienting even when standing still. It is dangerous to walk. Not just because you might run into something, but because it is physically difficult to walk.
The first thing everyone does, then, is hold up their hands to their faces, because we have all heard the saying that it was so dark you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. But when the reality that you can’t see your hand at all hits, it quickly becomes terrifying.
The inability to see affects everything. So, at that moment, what do you think you would need more than anything else? If there was no light switch, no electricity, no guide there to help, well, I can tell you what would be a God send. That’s right, a flashlight. And, have you heard about that new military flashlight, right? I think that I’d really, really appreciate that at that time. With that light all would be well, or at least, I would have a chance to get out safely.
Light, darkness; the ability to walk, to stay out of trouble, to get to safety, to even enjoy the reality of whatever you are facing, that’s what is going on also in our text today!
Jesus is speaking to His disciples just before making His final journey to the cross where He would pay the price for our sin, where He would overcome absolute darkness for our sake. And about all that, Jesus didn’t want them to be in the dark, incapacitated by fear. He knew that His death would overwhelm them. He knew that their sudden feeling of helplessness, even hopelessness, would unnerve them. And He knew that only the light of the Good News that He was bringing into the world, only that Light, that Word, that Gospel would be able to hold them through it all!
All throughout the Gospel of John, the Apostle emphasizes the conflict between darkness and light, the continuing struggle between the evil one (Satan) and Jesus. “The light has come and the darkness has not overcome it” (Jn 1:5). “The world is a realm of darkness into which Jesus has brought light” (Jn 3:19; 8:12; 12:46). “True light comes only through Jesus” (Jn 1:9) and anyone, yes, anyone, who does not know the God Who lived, and died, and has risen again for all, remains in darkness, in spiritual ignorance. And Jesus is trying to remedy that with the disciples in our lesson for today!
He doesn’t want them to be in the dark about the things that really matter. He doesn’t want that for you or for me either. Have you ever thought about what it means to be in the dark about God, about His love for you, His desire for you, His will for you?
Maybe the real question is this how often do you think about God or the things of God at all? Do you realize how much of life you really miss when you fail to see it in connection to the Lord who created, redeemed, and sustains all of life, even your very life? Does God occupy a central part in your daily life? Most of us think about God on special occasions; usually on holidays when we are to give thanks or Sundays when we go to church. Perhaps God enters the picture when you need something or are worried about something. But how often does God actually intersect with your life?
It is actually quite easy for us, isn’t it, to go days without thinking about God? If you are honest, there are many times that God simply doesn’t play a very large role in your conscious thinking. Hours can pass, days can pass, and God simply doesn’t intersect with our lives from our point of view. But that leaves us impoverished. That leaves us to our own sinful devices; and that’s the place of shadows, of dimming light and darkness.
Jesus doesn’t want you to be in the dark about how much He loves you, how much God the Father loves you. In fact, in this text He promises to these disciples, and to you and me too, the very Holy Spirit of God as a gift. The Son, whom the Father sent in the power of the Spirit, now seeks to gift all disciples with that same Holy Spirit so that they might put their faith and their trust in the Son Who brings them the love and forgiveness and life of God the Father in heaven. Wow! Do you know Who this God is Who loves you? Jesus doesn’t want you to remain in the dark about His work, about God’s love for you.
I was speaking in our chapel service the other day at Lutheran Hour Ministries and I was reminding all of our staff of this very thing. I mentioned to them this author, G. K. Chesterton, who wrote about the creative enthusiasm of the God Who loves us and desires that we be reconciled to Him. He said this. He said: “A child kicks his legs rhythmically through excess, not absence, of life. Because children have abounding vitality, because they are in spirit fierce and free, therefore they want things repeated and unchanged.”
“They always say, ‘Do it again,’ and the grown-up person does it again, and again, and again, until he is nearly dead. For grown-up people,” he said, “are not strong enough to exult in monotony.”
“But perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony. Is it possible that God says every morning, ‘Do it again’ to the sun; and every evening, ‘Do it again’ to the moon? It may not be an automatic necessity that makes all daisies alike; it may be that God makes every daisy separately, but has never become tired of making them. It may be that He has the eternal appetite of infancy; for we have sinned and grown old, and our Father is younger than we. The repetition in nature may not be a mere recurrence; it may be a theatrical encore.” That encore will be at the renewal of all things where God says, “I am making everything new!” (Revelation 21:5). And what do we say? “Come Lord Jesus. Do it again!”
That’s the God Who loves you, Who calls you to Himself, Who is willing to live and die in your place that you might live with Him forever. A God Who can’t wait to see what you’ll become by His grace, in His love each and every day.
Jesus answered ….”These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”
I hope you are getting the picture about Who Jesus is. He doesn’t want you to be in the dark about what really matters in your life. So, I’ve got even more good news for you today. Our inability to see God or to value the things of God doesn’t affect His ability to see and to love and to care for us.
On this night when Jesus is speaking to His disciples, their powerlessness, their inabilities, their blindness is clearly on display. Jesus had been telling them that He must suffer and He must die to bring life and salvation to the world. But all they could think about was that He was leaving them. And, truth be told, they didn’t really understand at all. They had no idea what was coming, the fear, the enduring sense of helplessness, the pain of loss. But Jesus knew. He not only knew He was going to die, but He knew they would be lost without Him. They had followed Him for years and all of a sudden He was going to leave them.
They needed what we need today; to live the life that God has in store for us, each and every day, we need Jesus. And Jesus knows that even believing in Him is an impossibility without the power of God at work in our heart; so He sends His Spirit to bring to our hearts and minds His Words, which are the very power of God for salvation to all who believe.
In the face of their loneliness and fear Jesus says, “Fear not.” In the place of their ignorance and darkness, He gifts them with the Holy Spirit as a Comforter, One Who will bring God’s saving Word to their fearful hearts and a real peace that the world itself can never take away!
So, I ask again; are you in the dark about the God Who loves you in the person and work of Jesus Christ? Don’t be!
I want you to know that today you have in your hands the very fulfillment of what Jesus promised to those disciples that day. In the times that would come soon, when they would struggle seeing Jesus hanging on a cross or even later when they would be overwhelmed seeing Him, the Risen One, depart from them and ascend into heaven. The very words of Jesus would be brought back to their minds by the power of the Holy Spirit, words that would not only comfort them, but sustain them and give them hope. You hold that word in your hand today. It’s called the Bible, especially the New Testament. It’s a powerful light in the middle of darkness; it’s the power of the Holy Spirit in the palm of your hand!
And Jesus promises to you what He promised to them; the gift of the Holy Spirit, the power of His Word for your life and a peace that lasts, a peace that only He can give.So He told them some things to remember when they can no longer see Him. He promised them three things. Jesus promised that even though He would suffer and die, He would send the Spirit as the paraclete, one that would give the disciples peace.
The Greek word that Jesus uses to describe the Holy Spirit in this text is paraclete. A good way to translate that would be a paraclete is a helper. Other translations use counselor or comforter. In all the translations the gist of the word refers to someone who aids another person. In particular, a paraclete is a go-between in the middle of two parties where one person possesses the help that the other person absolutely needs. The paraclete delivers the goods of the one who has the capacity to help to the one who has the utter need.
But we don’t like to think that we are in utter need, do we? Well, that’s just another way we are in the dark about who we are and who God is for us.
In fact, one of the biggest obstacles we all face when it comes to seeing and receiving the awesome love of God is ourselves. We don’t like seeing ourselves as insufficient, in utter need. We believe that we can work hard enough, put forth enough effort to overcome any shortcoming, if we believe we even have any. We like being masters of our own destiny. We view our lives as our lives. We are not only self-centered, we are self-sufficient right to the bitter end, right to that moment when the darkness overwhelms us and leaves us grappling in fear.
I’m amazed today, I really am, at people’s bravado. Sometimes it’s as if they can’t see what is plainly right in front of their face; for example, this blind faith that our science and technology will somehow save us. I recently read where some folks, I believe it was Google, they were teaching the AI, you know the thing called “Artificial intelligence,” and they had programmed it to troll Twitter and learn to become human. Well, it learned alright. It learned about hatred, bigotry, callousness, deceit. The programmers thought; “well, we need to teach it to forget all those things.” But if they would just look again, that experiment just showed again what fallen human beings are really like, that sinful human beings need salvation, mercy, love, and grace because they are truly in utter need.
Jesus goes even further. He talks about death itself as the final enemy. You want to talk about being helpless, death renders us all impotent and in need. But that is what Jesus is getting ready to face. He’s facing death not as a helpless, sinful human being. He’s facing death as God in the Flesh who is willing to take our place before the very judgment throne of the Father. He’s willing to take our sin upon Himself, face our eternal death, to face an utter darkness He never wants you to experience, so that you might have His eternal life as a gift.
That’s almost too incredible to believe. Yes, that’s why Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to these disciples and that’s why He sends the Holy Spirit-filled Words of the Bible to you!
At the moment of their greatest need Jesus would still provide a way for them to be blessed, anchored in His Word. He will provide a way for them to remain in the faith. He will provide a way for them to remain in God. He will provide for them a helper, a paraclete, One Who would deliver the goods when they needed it, bring the very light of Christ to their life when they really needed it most.
Jesus didn’t want them to remain in the dark about the things that matter. He doesn’t want you to remain in the dark about His love for you either.
Today, today by the power of the Holy Spirit I pray that you see that because of Jesus’ death and resurrection your sins are really forgiven and that death is no longer the master of your life.
Today, by the power of the Holy Spirit I pray that you see that Jesus’ death and resurrection means that you are no longer under the judgment of God and that His wrath is no longer poured out against your sins and that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you really know that in Christ you can begin to live life by grace, in love, in Him for others.
And, even more today, I hope that you can see and receive the peace that only Jesus Himself can give.
I know the craziness of this world. I know its darkness. You can feel it, you can see it. Into the very midst of that chaos, Jesus promises a peace that only He can give. It’s a peace that knows that because of Him, all is right between you and God; because of Jesus, nothing in this world can separate you from His love and grace; and because of Jesus, your life isn’t merely today and tomorrow; it’s a forever thing with Him.
I pray that you see and believe today that you need Jesus’ death and resurrection. You need the Holy Spirit. You need God’s peace, just like me, just like all of us do.
But today, I want you to cut through the darkness and by the power of the Holy Spirit, see that in Jesus Christ you have a salvation that lasts, a forgiveness that holds, and a Holy Spirit Helper and Comforter, who through the very Words of the Bible, is going to keep you anchored in Christ by faith forever! Help when it is needed most. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for May 15, 2016
Topic: Is the Holy Spirit Fully God?ANNOUNCER: And we are back once again with Pastor Gregory Seltz responding to questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer. In your sermon today you talked about the Holy Spirit. Many times listeners have asked if the Holy Spirit is fully God. Is the Holy Spirit equal to the Father and the Son?
SELTZ: Mark, that is a great question. Of course we confess in the Creeds of the church to believe in the Holy Spirit, but as many people know, there isn’t much talk about the Holy Spirit sometimes in the church.
ANNOUNCER: It does seem like we talk a lot about God, about Jesus; but not so much about the Holy Spirit.
SELTZ: I hear that a lot and it’s interesting how you just said that too. You said that we talk about God and Jesus a lot, but not the Spirit. When you say that, you are assuming that God refers to God the Father too.
ANNOUNCER: I guess you’re right, but that’s correct, isn’t it?
SELTZ: As usual, the answer is yes and no. Most people, including a lot of references in the Bible, mean God the Father when they say God. But the reality of our teaching about the Trinity is that God (in that terminology) is three Persons. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God.
ANNOUNCER: So when we say God, we might usually mean God the Father, but we could also mean Jesus, God’s Son, and the Holy Spirit?
SELTZ: That’s correct. God is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One God, three Persons. We don’t divide the substance nor confuse the Persons.
ANNOUNCER: That could be confusing.
SELTZ: It is because God is always beyond our full comprehension, that’s important to realize here. But the language that the Church uses here is merely meant to reflect what the Bible teaches and the Bible teaches that God the Father sent His Son by the power of the Spirit to save us!
ANNOUNCER: Throughout the Bible there is only one God, but He exists in three Persons. I suppose that’s why we call it a mystery. You’ve got 1+1+1 = 1. One God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It makes our head spin.
SELTZ: It does. And when we talk about this, who would ever make up something like this? That’s a real key question. Remember, something can be simple and true in one sense, but deeper than we can ever imagine in another. Even something as simple as love can be like that. So, when we talk about God, all we are reflecting is what the Bible teaches about Him; things that are true, but beyond our full comprehension as finite people. That is why we have to use language that does the best to communicate what is in many ways beyond our full comprehension.
ANNOUNCER: We’ve talked here a lot about the Trinity. But the question today is really about the Holy Spirit specifically.
SELTZ: Right. It’s important to talk about the Trinity when we talk about any of the Persons. The Holy Spirit is God because God is one substance. Yet He is not the Father or the Son. He is uniquely the third Person of the One true God.
ANNOUNCER: And the Bible tells us the Holy Spirit has a unique role to fulfill.
SELTZ: Yes, and that’s what’s most exciting to talk about if you think about it. The Spirit has a unique work to do with us. In John 14, for instance, it says that the Spirit takes what is of Jesus Christ and makes it known to us. The Bible says that “only by the Spirit” can we believe in Jesus as our Savior. The Church has always confessed the Holy Spirit as the “Lord and Giver” of Life; the Life that the Father created for us, the Life that the Son redeemed for us.
ANNOUNCER: So, if the Holy Spirit gives faith through the Word and through the sacraments so that we can receive that forgiveness that Jesus won for us, why don’t we talk about the Holy Spirit more?
SELTZ: Again, back to John 14; if the Spirit is doing His work, and this is cool, you’ll be talking about Jesus. How about this? If you believe in Jesus, that’s the Spirit!
ANNOUNCER: That’s why Pentecost, the day we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit, is often referred to as the birthday of the Church?
SELTZ: Exactly. The Holy Spirit works through the Word and sacrament to give life to the Church by bringing people to faith in Jesus, by sustaining them in faith. He is fully God, equal to the Father and the Son, as the Church has always confessed.
ANNOUNCER: So, the Holy Spirit is fully God and He gives us faith so that we might believe in Jesus as our Savior. He gives us life, even eternal life. We see evidence of His work in the Church today.
SELTZ: Absolutely and I think we should keep talking about that, Mark!
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Seltz. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Action in Ministry for May 15, 2016
Guest: Pastor Stephen HowerANNOUNCER: You’re listening to The Lutheran Hour and up next our Action in Ministry segment. Once again here’s Pastor Gregory Seltz.
SELTZ: Who would attempt to operate a complicated piece of machinery without first studying the owner’s manual? Well, sadly, many people approach life that way and Pastor Stephen Hower has written a little booklet called, When in Doubt, Read the Book! (the Scripture). Pastor Hower, thanks for joining us.
HOWER: Thanks for having me here. I am a fan of what you are about and what you do.
SELTZ: Let’s just get right to it. What is the purpose of this book?
HOWER: I think a lot of people look at faith or look at what they call religion as a guide to eternal life without realizing that God cares about this life and we are already in our eternity; that when we come to Christ, He cares about the here-and-now. In fact, Jesus said, “I have come that you might have life and have it to the fullest?” There are a lot of issues that we have to deal with in life. God has resource for us.
SELTZ: Yeah, you say there is a lot of things coming at people today. In the booklet you talk about that; even in the area of religion, for instance. There’s all kinds of debate about that today; what’s right, what’s wrong. Does it even really matter what’s the true religion? Obviously, it does.
HOWER: It does matter and there is good reason to believe what we believe. There is also good counsel and advice. I don’t care whether you’re dealing with marriage, I don’t care if you’re dealing with the issue of how to raise children, if you’re talking about work ethic, if you’re talking about financial issues, who doesn’t struggle with practical matters? God’s Word has a lot to say about that and the Lord deeply cares about those things, even as He showed us in the life of Jesus, our Savior.
SELTZ: But, it’s not ultimately concerned about telling us about what we should do or shouldn’t do; that is important. It’s finally pointing us to this Christ Who is the center of all these things.
HOWER: He truly is. If you examine all religious points of view, all faiths in the world, you will find there are only two. There are those who tell you what you must do to please God and there is the Christian faith that tells you what God has done to make you pleasing through Jesus Christ; apart from our righteousness which comes freely by grace through faith and trust in His redemption of our lives. We see all kinds of practical advice that reveals the nature and the heart of God for us in this life, not just for eternal life.
SELTZ: That’s right. Faith in Christ and His promises, it means all the difference in the world like we’ve been talking about. But it does have to do with the issues of heaven and hell as well. What does the owner’s manual tell us about that?
HOWER: It does teach that God has an eternal plan for us and He desires that we get on that narrow road that leads to eternal life. He says “that road is wide that leads to eternal death and many are those who follow it.” As a Christian person, it helps us to stay close to Him. It guides us back to Him; constantly back to the source of our salvation. While we are living that life we are also witness to the world around us. I say “to consult the Book” means that we will be blessed by that but others will be blessed by our witness and God will be honored. Three things happen: we are blessed; others witness why we are different, are curious about why we are different, come to know Jesus as well; and all of that honors God and ultimately ends in the salvation of us and others.
SELTZ: Like you’ve been saying, for eternity as well as for the here and now, He has come to give us life and give us life to the full. He is the essence of our life but then He is also a model for us to follow as we serve and care for others. Is there a difference with all of this stuff? Reflect on that how we are actually are living this life in Christ for others.
HOWER: Yes, we are different. We follow a different beat, a different drum, a different vibe. Our whole motive is different. Our motive is not to get ahead, is not to succeed, it’s not to bottom line; it’s to serve Christ. Now that also brings blessing into our life, but that’s irrespective of the reason that we do it. We do it because we know that we are loved by God. It’s the difference between a child cleaning his room because he thinks his parents are going to whack him or set him in time out versus a child who loves his mom and dad and says, “I know this will please them,” and so they go about doing that. Which child would you rather have?
SELTZ: Yeah, what a great room I get to live in in my parent’s house.
HOWER: And they’ve been so gracious to provide it so let me do something for them.
SELTZ: Well, listen. If this booklet encourages someone to delve further into the Book, the Scripture, it will have served its purpose. Pastor Hower, thank you for joining us today.
HOWER: Good to be here. Blessings.
SELTZ: And that’s our Action in Ministry segment today; to bless, to empower, and to strengthen your life in Christ for others.
ANNOUNCER: The title of this resource is When in Doubt, Read the Book. For your free copy, call 1-855-john 316. That’s 1-855-564-6316. Or go to lutheranhour.org and click on Action in Ministry. Our email address is info@lhm.org.
Music Selections for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.
“Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
“Holy Spirit, Ever Dwelling” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)