The teaching ministry of God the Holy Spirit, John 14:23-26



Class Outline:

Title: The teaching ministry of God the Holy Spirit, John 14:23-26.

 

John 14:23Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him.

 

John 14:24"He who does not love Me [still in reference to the believer] does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father's who sent Me.

 

/The word of God was decreed in eternity past by the Father and it is the way in which Christ is revealed to us and not the world. This is the answer to Thaddeus’ question.\

 

John 14:25 "These things I have spoken to you, while abiding with you.

 

/ “abide” - menw[meno] = stay without leaving, to tarry - meaning that Christ is going to stick it out with them until the end. The sheep scatter, but not the Shepherd.\

 

And as we have noted, when it is time for Him to leave, 10 days before the beginning of the CA, another will be sent to stand by them in time of need, to mentor, and to teach - God the Holy Spirit.

 

John 14:26"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 said to you.

 

The Spirit has had a ministry to Israel, limited as it was, and will have a ministry to the Millennium, dramatic as it will be. The Spirit for all time has always had and will have a ministry to unbelievers as the revealer of the Gospel. But what is mentioned here, which is again mentioned by the Lord with some added emphasis on the Spirit’s teaching ministry, in a unique ministry to the Church.

 

I quote L.S. Chafer:

The Christian, who is perfected forever, being in Christ, has, nevertheless, a life of imperfection to live so long as he is in this world. The new problem which he confronts, as several times before stated, is not one of how he should live that he might be accepted and perfected before God, but rather of how he, an accepted and perfected person, should live after these stupendous realities are accomplished by the grace and power of God. Until this vital distinction is comprehended and received, there will be no progress made in the extensive field of truth which directs the Christian’s life and service. Until positional truth is recognized and received to the extent that the saved one acknowledges that he is saved and perfected in the sight of God on no other ground than that, on his part, he has believed on Christ to the saving of his soul, and, on God’s part, he is justified, being both forgiven and constituted righteous through the immeasurable twofold substitution of Christ—bearing condemnation because of the believer’s demerit and offering Himself as the source of merit—there can be only confusion and misunderstanding about the true motivating principle in the Christian’s daily life.

 

/The believer does not have to memorize doctrines or scripture since the Spirit will present them from his memory center, however, repetition is needed for understanding.\

 

The HS will teach and lead in His capacity as Mentor, but it is the believer’s responsibility to be filled with the Spirit through the use of the rebound technique. The F/HS cannot just be casual or only sparingly considered, rather it must be a constant examination of the believer over the condition of his soul. Is he spiritual or is he carnal? There is no middle ground.

 

One of the applications of, “bring to your remembrance,” is the function of the filling of the Spirit in repetition in doctrine class. When you hear a doctrine again, the Spirit will bring to your remembrance whatever you retained in prior teachings on that doctrine. However, no doctrine is retained 100% after the first hearing. And even after many repetitions if it is retained it must be affectively applied. Often there is failure in application as well. So repeat, repeat, repeat, and attempt to apply and recycle the process. When filled with the Spirit He recalls whatever remains in your memory center, even the failed application, so that more insight may be gained.

 

/Inculcation is not a system of memorization by repetition, but a supernatural embedding of the mind of Christ by repetition. You cannot apply what you do not know, nor can you apply what you partially know.\

 

2 Peter 1:12 Therefore, I shall always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you.

 

2 Peter 1:13And I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder,

 

2 Peter 3:1 This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you in which I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder,

 

2 Peter 3:2 that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles.

 

/Phil 3:1

Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.\

 

The present age, because of the extensive activities of the Holy Spirit, has rightfully been styled the dispensation of the Spirit.

 

A proportionate treatment of the Person and work of the Holy Spirit as His Person and work are exhibited in the Bible will disclose the fact that at least ninety percent of the material which enters into Pneumatology is found in those portions of the Scripture which relate to the age of grace; the dispensation of the church.

 

/In this age, God the HS has a ministry to the world as a whole and also to the individual believer, which is unique and personal. \

 

What is mentioned here by the Lord is the teaching ministry of the HS to each believer.

 

/The ministries of G/HS to the world are the restraining ministry where He restrains evil, and the convicting ministry to the unsaved where He presents the gospel in common grace.\

 

We will look briefly at these two ministries. First we have the restraining ministry.

 

2 Thess 2:3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction,

 

2 Thess 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.

 

2 Thess 2:5Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?

 

2 Thess 2:6And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he may be revealed.

 

2 Thess 2:7For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.

 

2 Thess 2:8And then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;

 

The hour in which the present restraint is removed from the earth will demonstrate the truthfulness of the Word of God respecting the corruption of the human heart.

 

/Nothing needs to be imposed upon fallen humanity to set up the great tribulation in the earth: that tribulation will automatically result when the Spirit’s restraint is removed. \

 

The removal of the Holy Spirit is the reversing of Pentecost. He is omnipresent and so He is not completely removed from the earth since He forever has a ministry of common grace to the unsaved, but His restraining is removed and the evil of men and fallen angel has no boundary giving birth to the tribulation, the worst time in all history that God will have to cut short if anyone is to survive.

 

Since the church is identified by the working of the Holy Spirit, when His restraining ministry is removed the church will be removed through the Rapture.

 

The conviction ministry of the HS.

 

John 16:7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.

 

John 16:8"And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment;

 

John 16:9concerning sin [singular], because they do not believe in Me;

 

John 16:10and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me [He is the only righteous One and no other will be found];

 

John 16:11and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged [as will anyone else who follows in his way].

 

Because of failure to understand that salvation is the supernatural work of God the Holy Spirit men invent methods which prescribe human action [asking Jesus into their heart, water baptism, raising a hand, walking an aisle, saying some prayer or making some promises] as the terms upon which a soul may be saved, not recognizing the truth that the lost are to be saved, not when they do some prescribed action, but only when they believe on Christ as Savior.

 

The evangelist’s problem is not one of coaxing individuals to make some public demonstration; it is rather that of creating a clear conception of the saving grace of God.

 

/No individual is capable in himself of believing on Christ to the saving of his soul, apart from the enlightening work of the Holy Spirit by which he receives the gospel of Christ as Savior and is inclined to receive Him by faith.\

 

The commission of the ambassador of Christ is to present the gospel clearly and when he does, God the HS is there to make it understandable.

 

/At the moment of personal faith in Christ there are 7 salvation ministries of the HS to the believer.\

 

Every person is born into this world spiritually dead and separate from God. This is the doctrine of total depravity.

 

When a person believes in Christ he is still spiritually dead and the faith of the dead is meaningless. But God the HS comes to the rescue in His first ministry.