Title: Truth by the Spirit leads to Christ!
Text: John 16:12-15
12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
In the early 1900s George Riddell acquired the sensational London newspaper The News of the World. Meeting British journalist Frederick Greenwood one day, Riddell mentioned that he owned a newspaper, told Greenwood its name, and offered to send him a copy. The next time they met, Riddell asked Greenwood what he thought of The News.
"I looked at it and then I put it in the wastepaper basket," said Greenwood, "and then I thought, 'If I leave it there the cook may read it,' so I burned it."
Today in the Word, November 3, 1993.
Error brings very little value to our lives but we can be comforted that:
Truth by the Spirit leads to Christ!
12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
There is so much that our Lord wishes to tell the disciples but they cannot, at this time, bear them. We can understand some of this from our human perspective as we dealt with the grief of the bombings in Boston and here as Jesus speaks to His disciples of his leaving them, how much more could they understand as they wrestled with the grief of knowing that Jesus would be leaving them?
But, the guiding for them and for us would be coming. Like the disciples, you too will have the benefit of the Spirit’s work as He guides you. Not speaking of his own authority, the work of the Spirit will be speaking by the authority of the eternal Godhead of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Spirit’s work will take what He hears in unity with the Father and the Son and declare it to you.
We continue in verse. 14-15:
14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
This wonderful Trinitarian language speaks not only of the persons in the Godhead but also of their work. Jesus Christ the eternal Son of God came to redeem those who are lost in sin, condemned to death and under the power of the devil in their lives and through the work of the Spirit, know, understand and our brought to faith by the Spirit’s work in the life of the believer.
Truth by the Spirit leads to Christ!
ill.
While an estimated 74 percent of Americans strongly agree that "there is only one true God, who is holy and perfect, and who created the world and rules it today," an estimated 65 percent either strongly agree or somewhat agree with the assertion that "there is no such thing as absolute truth."
Christianity Today, September 16, 1991, p. 48, from George Barna, The Barna Report: What Americans Believe, 1991.
So how can this be? The truth is … and I’m not sure that I can be absolutely certain about this or not … but many, who would identify themselves as Christian are in name only. Now, I don’t pretend to read into the minds of people who profess to be Christians and I’m certainly not judging them without first removing the log from my own eye. But, God’s word says:
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. (John 15:4-6)
The truth is, that apart from God and His word by the work of the Spirit, it is impossible for those who strongly believe “that there is only one true God” to also say “that they strongly agree that there is no such thing as absolute truth.”
By the abiding work of the Spirit, through both the word proclaimed and also the work in and with Baptism, God creates faith. But faith unfed or undeveloped, will be weak and could even die if remaining unfed. Baptism cannot be undone – but the new life given in Baptism can be killed.1
1. The Baptism of your child CPH Pg 31
Martin Luther says this in admonition:
“Remember, therefore, that it is no joke to take sides against the devil and not only to drive him away from the little child, but to burden the child with such a mighty and lifelong enemy. Remember, too, that it is very necessary to aid the poor child with all your heart and strong faith earnestly to intercede for him that God, in accordance with this prayer, would not only free him from the power of the devil, but also strengthen him, so that he may nobly resist the devil in life and in death. And I suspect that people turn out so badly after baptism because our concern for them has been so cold and careless; we at their baptism, interceded for them without zeal.”
Luther’s Works, vol. 53, p. 102 copyright 1965 Augsburg Fortress
Though it is the parents responsibility to feed the child both physically and spiritually we who comprise the church have a role to play as well as those who call, encourage and admonish and pray for those who fail to live up to this parental duty.
Truth by the Spirit leads to Christ!
“What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?”18 So they were saying, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’?
The disciples were going to see Christ crucified and in a few days raised from the dead, but also his disciples were going to see Him crucified and raised and then ascended which makes a bit more sense in relation to going to the Father. The joy of the resurrection was only for a “little while” as they would soon see Christ no more. But the sorrow of the loss of seeing the savior would also bring and turn to joy?
As Jesus tells them in verse 20:
20 Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.
The world will rejoice in falsehood and joy when absolute truth that is made a lie by the world.
ill.
Take for example Sunday mornings at Houston Oasis:
It may have the look and feel of a church, but there’s no cross, Bible, hymnal or stained glass depictions of Jesus. There’s also nary a trace of doctrine, dogma or theology.
But the 80 or so attendees at this new weekly gathering for nonbelievers come for many of the same reasons that others pack churches in this heavily Christian corner of the Bible Belt — a sense of community and an uplifting message that will help them tackle the challenges of the coming week, and, maybe, the rest of their lives.
“Just because you don’t believe in God does not mean you do not need to get together in community and draw strength from that,” said Mike Aus, a onetime Lutheran pastor who is now an atheist and founder of Houston Oasis.
“We are open to any message about life as long as no dogmatic claims are made.”
A banner taped to a window declared what might be called Houston Oasis’ creed. It pointedly says “we think,” not “we believe”:
“People are more important than beliefs.
Only human hands can solve human problems.
Reality is known through reason, not revelation.
Meaning comes from making a difference.
Labels are unimportant.
Everyone should be accepted wherever they are as long as they are accepting in turn.”
http://www.religionnews.com/2013/04/16/atheists-find-a-sunday-morning-connection-with-other-nonbelievers/
While it may be interesting to look like a church, or even to act like a church, or that we love one another and do nice things that help others … apart from the work of the Spirit … whose job is to point us to Christ and bring us to the incarnate word, who is the way the truth and the life, Jesus Christ our Lord ... and hard as it may seem for us at times to understand, because our sinful human nature and worldly ears, good works, not done in Christ and as a fruit of faith, is the work of the devil.
St. Paul reminds us in 2 Cor. 11:14:
14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
Truth by the Spirit points and leads to Christ!
You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. 21 When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.
Our sorrow has been turned to joy in Christ. As we have been born from above by the Spirit of truth who points and leads us to the absolute truth that “Jesus is the Christ” the Anointed One, the one called Messiah and that in Him you who were once dead in trespass and sin have been made alive in Christ by the Holy Spirit’s work in you.
St Peter, in our first reading for today says it quite nicely when he says:
16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?” 18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
Truth by the Spirit leads to Christ!
Just as the newspaper in London many years ago needed to be burned because of the error it contained. Falsehood will also be burned by God’s all consuming fire that is the absolute truth of His word. You have received the gift of faith and believe because of the Holy Spirit’s work in you. Praise God for all his bountiful blessings to you.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
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