The Holy Spirit: Another guide
When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth (John 16:13).
He will glorify Me (John 16:14).
The promise of the Spirit in John 16 is in two parts. In verses 8-11, the Spirit’s work in the world is outlined; then in verses 12-15 the Spirit’s work amongst Christians is further explained by the Lord Jesus.
In verse 8 the Lord Jesus explained that, when the Holy Spirit came, He would “convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment”. This powerful work was first seen at Pentecost in Acts 2. The Spirit of God, through Peter’s preaching, convicted the crowd of the sin of not believing in Christ and of crucifying Him. The Spirit then presented the righteousness of God in raising Christ from the dead and exalting Him in heaven. Finally, the Spirit of God warns of judgement and the need to be saved. These themes of sin, righteousness and judgement are used by the Spirit of God to convince people of their need for Christ. Three thousand people turned to Christ at Pentecost to form the Church of God on earth. This work of the Holy Spirit continues to this day through the witness of the people of God. The Holy Spirit’s work is based entirely on Christ’s finished work on the cross, His resurrection and glorification, and His defeat of Satan: “the ruler of this world is judged” (v. 11).
In chapter 14 the Lord Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit bringing His words to their remembrance. In 16:13 Jesus mentions another aspect of the work of the Spirit: “He will tell you things to come.” We have seen how the Spirit of God’s ministry has a connection to the past: “He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” It also has a connection to the present: “He will testify of Me” and “He will guide you into all truth”. And it has a link to the future: “He will tell you things to come.”
The word of God is the great witness to the promise of the Saviour, His earthly and heavenly ministry and the revelation of “things to come”. Through the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit continuously presents Jesus Christ to our hearts as the One who “is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).
Zermatt in Switzerland is a beautiful Alpine town that lies beneath the majestic Matterhorn, one of the most distinctive mountains in the world. In the town there used to live an old guide who lived well into his nineties. He spent all his life leading visitors up to the summit of the Matterhorn. He had made the ascent more times than anyone else and never tired of the journey. This remarkable old man reminded me of the Holy Spirit, who, just like the Saviour, came down to earth to minister the glory of Christ to our hearts and to guide us into the truth of God on that upward journey into heaven. He never tires of this journey. Jesus was sent by the Father into the world as the Saviour. So the Holy Spirit is sent by the Father and Son, as our Helper, Teacher and Guide.
