Day 36
What is to come
To Start
“My heart was defeated by the din of my mind.” (Saint Augustine)
Let God quiet your mind so that your heart might speak.
Pray
Holy Spirit, reveal Yourself to us. Show us how to recognize You. Show us how to rely on You. Show us how to thank You.
Guide us into all the truth, and declare to us what is to come.
Read
Read John 16:12-13 and then summarize it in your own words.
As you read consider…
Why can’t Jesus tell the apostles everything all at once? Will the Spirit tell everything all at once?
What does it mean that the Spirit will guide you into all the truth? What does that look like practically?
Think of some kind of modern “guide”—a teacher, a nature guide, a tour guide, etc. How is the Holy Spirit like a guide?
What does “all the truth” mean?
Jesus says, “He will also declare to you what is to come.” Does this mean predicting the future? What do you think?
John 16:12-13 (CSB)
12 “I still have many things to tell you, but you can’t 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, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come.”
From JL
Most Christians I meet are more confused than confident about the activity of the Holy Spirit. Sitting in passages like this one (all three of these chapters, really) can be a great help in determining what He’s up to.
According to Jesus, the Spirit is…
A Spirit of truth who guides Jesus’ people into “all the truth”
The Holy Spirit is a Sacagawea. She knows the terrain so she can guide Lewis and Clark deeper and deeper into it—her confidence becomes their confidence. Having a guide isn’t the same as teleporting to the destination (a sherpa doesn’t carry you to the top of the mountain). A guide doesn’t remove the fun of the adventure or the pain of exertion. A guide is simply a master of the path—someone to follow on the path, someone to learn from on the path, someone on whom to depend.
The phrase “all the truth” here is so exciting to me. There are no limits to what the Spirit might reveal just as there are no bounds to truth—truth is deep and wide. The idea of setting out into the frontier with the Spirit, the possibilities of revelation vast…You guys. This is my dream. I can’t believe it’s real life.
A faithful messenger
The Holy Spirit is a go-between, bringing God’s words to His people and to the world. He’s not a source himself; He’s a conduit.
The word “prophet” essentially means messenger; so it’s no surprise prophets were filled with the Spirit of God.
By the way, the Spirit of God serving in this way isn’t only a New Testament thing. In the Old Testament we find Him filling people and showing them the truth as delivered from the Father. Before Jesus comes to earth (and then leaves), that indwelling appears to be (mostly) temporary. For us it’s an all-the-time thing.
Here’s a list of OT people filled with the Spirit:
One who declares “what is to come”
While, as we said, “prophet” just means messenger, we usually think of a prophet as one who can see “what is to come”—which sounds very woo-woo. But the truth is, it’s pretty straightforward and ordinary (even as it’s extraordinary). The Holy Spirit tells us what we need to know. Sometimes we’ll need to know what’s coming. In that way, the Holy Spirit is like a teacher at the start of the day. She doesn’t tell the class all of what’s coming, but she prepares them by equipping them. It’s exactly what Jesus is doing in this moment as he prepares the apostles for His departure.
If you’re interested in a deep dive on the Holy Spirit, I highly recommend Tyler Staton’s The Familiar Stranger: (Re)Introducing the Holy Spirit to Those in Search of an Experiential Spirituality as a first stop. Here’s an excerpt that fits with what we’ve been reading in John 14-16:
“Are you eager for manifestations of the Spirit? Are you longing for signs and wonders? For supernatural physical healing and deep inner healing? For the ground-shaking word of prophecy and the still small whisper to the soul? For the fiery power of intercession and the society-altering justice that follows? Then channel all your energy into loving those in your local church who you find are the hardest to love.”
In the Comments
What are you wondering or learning about the Holy Spirit lately? Let’s chat!
I'd love to hear how others experience the Holy Spirit in their lives... whether thoughts or feelings or voices or something else entirely. Outside of a handful of "that was NOT normal" experiences with the Spirit, mostly for me it is having a passage or phrase come to mind that seems especially fitting, a chill down my spine (I like to think of it like the "breath"/"Spirit" of God), or similar. A few years ago, I would have doubted these things to be from God, but I had a prayer experience a few months back where the phrase "trust your experiences" came to mind. I know that it is easy for me to inject my own thoughts in, but I think this might be part of what Jesus meant when He said the sheep recognize His voice.
Another thought I had while reading this morning is that I've tended towards a "just tell me what I need to know" approach to the Bible... as if my life and bodily experiences don't matter towards my understanding. But of course they do... having children is so much different than just reading the book before having them! I think this is why Jesus says that they "can't bear" this knowledge yet. As an example, He has told them multiple times that He had to die and then rise again, but they haven't gone through the 3 days yet and they haven't seen the resurrection yet. They just DON'T GET IT yet. I think it speaks towards the gentleness of God that He recognizes how slowly we learn versus trying to give us the "weekend seminar" approach... He doesn't spend a few hours with us, He spends a lifetime with us, to slowly mold and transform us into who we need to be, and He doesn't even let death stop the transformation, but raises us as a new creation.
I love the question about guides that come to mind when thinking about the Spirit - I’m such a fan of Rick Steves! He is so delighted by the path and places he’s showing his audience. He’s patient and wise, never condescending but gently challenging assumptions with his own example. He also doesn’t completely overwhelm the viewer with facts and history, he offers small, digestible amounts in-between connection points with real humans, just enjoying being with them and listening to them. I think the Holy Spirit is like that!