5/4/25 “Help Is On The Way”
“Help Is On The Way”
John 14:15-26
If you do an internet search for the greatest rescue missions of all time….
You will notice a few of them that stand out amongst the rest because of their danger…or their complexity…or the extensive media coverage they received.
Some of you may remember back in 1987, an 18-month old toddler named Jessica fell into a well while playing at her Aunt’s place in Midland Texas…remember that?
Over the next 56 hours, rescuers feverishly worked to free ‘baby Jessica’ from the 8” well that encased her about 22 feet below the surface.
To rescue the girl, a team of local officials decided to drill a parallel shaft through solid rock to where Jessica was lodged….then drill a horizontal tunnel over to where Jessica was trapped.
The plan worked…and 56 hours later…baby Jessica was lifted back to the surface to a thunderous applause and tears of joy.
An interesting fact is that while rescuers were drilling the adjacent well, they could hear baby Jessica singing the entire time…
…apparently, her favorite song was ‘Winnie the Pooh’.
Another rescue mission that grabbed the world’s attention was the ‘Chilean Mining accident’ back in August of 2010.
33 miners were trapped 2,300 feet below the surface for an astounding 69 days before eventually being pulled to safety…miraculously, all 33 men survived the cold, damp, blackness of their subterranean ordeal.
Lastly, in June of 2018, there was the 12-member youth soccer team from Thailand who became trapped 6 miles from the entrance to a cave that had flooded over and collapsed due to the heavy monsoon rains.
The 12 boys (ages 11-16) along with their 25-year-old coach, were trapped on a piece of elevated rock within the flooded cave for 15 days before finally being rescued by specially trained divers…
One by one, the boys were eventually brought out of what would otherwise have been an underground watery grave.
In all of these scenarios, those who were in need of rescuing were encouraged by the knowledge that…. despite their desperate condition…help was on the way.
The surfacing divers…the sound of drilling…the vibration of movement above…all would lead to a sense of hope for those trapped below the surface.
In our passage for today, a group of isolated men are Discouraged. Disheartened. Demoralized.
Their leader has just announced to the group that he would be going away very soon…within hours, actually.
…leaving them….it would seem – all alone….trapped in a sinful world of darkness and despair….a black, cavernous place of uncertainty and hopelessness.
But – praise God – that would not be the case.
You see, their leader – Jesus – would indeed be leaving them…
But he made a promise to his distraught pupils…
He promised that someone would come to minister to them in his place…
He promised that someone would come to instruct them further as to the ways of righteousness
He promised that someone would come to embolden them with faith-filled fearlessness…
He promised that someone would come to comfort them in times of sorrow…
He promised them a helper.
He promised them the person of the Holy Spirit.
Even though Jesus would be leaving….help…was - indeed - on the way!
…and the Holy Spirit continues to help those individuals today who place their faith & trust in Jesus Christ.
So – first of all – who is the Holy Spirit?
If we look at verse 16 (John 14:16-17) of today’s passage, Jesus says “…I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.”
Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as a counselor.
Other translations use the word “Helper” or “Comforter”
The Greek word for ‘Counselor’ is “Parakletos”
…It literally means ‘One called alongside to help’
Theologians sometimes refer to the Holy Spirit as ‘The Paraklete’…you may have heard that term before.
He is the helper. The exhorter. The intercessor. The encourager. The advocate.
Jesus also tells the disciples that the Holy Spirit will be another Counselor.
The way in which Jesus uses the term ‘another’ here (Gr. Allos) it refers specifically to ‘another of the same kind’…
There was a different Greek word at the time (Heteros) that meant another thing of a completely different nature.
Recently, my daughter sent me a clip of someone in a fancy Japanese restaurant eating an undercooked fish…actually…it was so undercooked, that it was still partially alive!
The body had been fileted…but the mouth…the mouth was still moving!
Now…If a waiter brought me a fish that was still moving, I would say “take it back and bring me ‘another’….meaning a fish that was different than the first one….A fish that was dead!
On the other hand, if you’re like my wife who will eat literally anything placed in front of her…
…after she downs the first moving fish, she may say to the waiter “That was delicious…bring me ‘another’.
…she would obviously be wanting another fish exactly like the first…
This is the sense in which Jesus describes the work of the Holy Spirit by calling him ‘another’ counselor.
He will continue to minister in a like-manner to that which Jesus had ministered
He would continue to teach, comfort, exhort, gift, convict, heal, encourage, and advocate for God’s children.
The Holy Spirit would carry on in the same manner as Jesus had…and…as we saw last week….
…to an even greater geographical and numerical ministerial scope.
This is not surprising, given the nature of who the Holy Spirit is…
First of all, let’s remember that the Holy Spirit is indeed a person…
He’s not an “it”…or an impersonal “force” of some kind.
He’s not some eastern, mystic, source of life-energy…
When Yoda says to Luke Skywalker “May the force be with you”…He’s not talking about the Holy Spirit!
The Holy Spirit is a person….and He is described as such in scripture.
In Romans 8:26-27 we read: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.”
Just in these 2 verses, we see Paul describe the Holy Spirit with these words: “Himself”, “Mind”, “Groans”, and “Intercedes.”
These are all terms that describe personhood…not an impersonal power or energy source of some kind.
An impersonal force cannot be “Lied to” as we see in Acts 5:3 “The Peter said, ‘Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit….’”
An impersonal force cannot experience sadness as we see in Ephesians 4:30,”And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
Hebrews 10:29 describes those who deliberately and defiantly engage in sinful behavior as “Insulting” the Spirit of God….
…impersonal forces cannot be insulted.
And all of this makes complete sense when we accurately view the Holy Spirit for who He is…a full-fledged member of the Triune Godhead.
Simply put, the Holy Spirit is God…just as the Father is God…and Jesus Christ (The Son) is God…
We serve only one God, but He is manifested in three distinct persons.
God the Father. God the Son. God the Holy Spirit. (Or as they say down south, the ‘Holy Ghost’)
One of the clearest passages of scripture describing the deity of the Holy Spirit comes from the lips of Jesus himself in Matthew 28:19 , when He says,” Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
Similarly, when Jesus is baptized in the Jordan River, we see all three members of the Trinity present: The voice of the father, the incarnation of the son, and the holy spirit in the form of a dove.
The Holy Spirit is – indeed – a member of the triune Godhead.
The Trinity is difficult for us to understand…
In attempting to grasp the nature of the trinity to some degree, I like to think of water in its 3 different states.
Water can be a solid, a liquid, or a gas….but in each state…it is still completely H2O
(Show picture of Niagara Falls)
Take a look at this picture…anyone know where this was taken?
I live this picture because it shows all three states of water at the same time…solid, liquid, and gas.
I always think of the Trinity when I see a picture like this showing the 3 states of water.
Or…think of corn. You’ve got the stalk, the ear, and the tassel.
Three separate components of one single plant.
These visual representations of the trinity do help us to understand God’s triune nature to some degree…
…but they are all incomplete models, since the innerworkings of the Godhead are – and always will be - far beyond our comprehension.
Sometimes, we can be tempted to believe that the Holy Spirit only had a significant impact in the New Testament….
…especially after his awe-inspiring introduction in Acts chapter 2 when he descends like tongues of fire upon those waiting His arrival at Pentecost.
But the Holy Spirit was active in the Old Testament as well…just not in the same manner as he is today.
Before the time of Christ, the Holy Spirit still drew people to himself… empowered individuals for service in God’s kingdom…
…and would temporarily come upon certain individuals in order for them to carry out a mission for God.
Examples of this would be all of the OT prophets and writers of scripture. People such as Moses, David, Isaiah, Daniel, Solomon, Jeremiah….
The Holy Spirit was definitely active before Jesus walked the earth.
In fact, we see the Holy Spirit in the 2nd verse of the entire Bible.
Genesis 1:2 says “Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”
Yes, the Holy Spirit has always been an active participant in the created order.
Getting back to today’s passage, Jesus describes the Holy Spirit in verse 17 (John 14:17) as the ‘Spirit of truth’.
This is important for us to grasp.
Because the Holy Spirit is God…he will always guide you into God’s truth…
…if we are paying attention.
I like how Tony Evans describes this dynamic (and some of you who went through our study of the Holy Spirit in Sunday School may remember this illustration)
Remember the old TV sets with the twin antennas coming off the back of them?...Maybe some of you still use TV’s with antennas….if so, great!
I remember as a kid having to adjust the antennas from time to time in order for the TV to pick up the signal for the TV station that I wanted to watch.
Once the antennas were at the proper angle…my station came in nice and clear.
So it is with the signal of the Holy Spirit.
As believers, we all have spiritual ‘antennas’, so to speak.
…and it’s up to us to make certain they’re in the right position for the signal of the Holy Spirit to come through clear to the receiver - that is our mind.
Sin in the form of distractions, uncontrolled emotions, addictions, selfishness, pride….
…these all have the potential to keep our antennas in a position where we are unable to bring in the signal of the Holy Spirit into our lives…
…and – just like that old TV set – when the antennas are in the wrong position…we bring in the wrong channel.
Let’s face it…The Spirit of truth isn’t the only spiritual signal being transmitted across the airwaves of this world…
Satan and his legion of demons send out signals of their own…
…and when we aren’t tuned into the Holy Spirit through the disciplines of the faith….reading His Word, prayer, and fellowship with others…
…we leave ourselves wide open to the demonic stations of self-glorification and unbelief.
The Holy Spirit conveys truth…and only truth….just make sure you’re bringing in His station!
If you look with me at the end of verse 17 (John 14:17) we see another nugget of truth from the lips of the savior.
Jesus says “…for He (The Holy Spirit) lives with you and will be in you.”
Ever since the observance of Pentecost recorded in Acts chapter two, the Holy Spirit has manifested himself in a way that is unique in the history of mankind…
Rather than simply abiding amongst men & women as he did in the Old Testament…especially in the temple or tabernacle…
…the Holy Spirit now indwells those individuals who place their faith & trust in Jesus Christ for their salvation.
The apostle Paul says in Romans 8:9 “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.”
He goes on to say in 1 Corinthians 3:16 “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?”
Because the Spirit now lives within the believer, he or she has the ability to be directly taught by the Spirit…to be counseled by the Spirit…to be given discernment by the Spirit…to be sanctified by the Spirit…to be sealed by the Spirit…and to be given power through the Spirit.
…and one of the most important powers that the Spirit gives to the believer is the ability to live in consistent obedience to the moral commandments of God.
Look how many times Jesus mentions obedience in our passage for today.
Verse 1, verse 21, verse 23, and verse 24 all deal with obedience.
Yes, obedience to God is a big deal in the life of a believer.
We’ll get into this to a much greater degree in a few weeks when we cover John chapter 15 (The Vine & and Branches chapter)
We live to obey God….but not in the same sense as obeying civic laws here on earth made by man.
For instance, if you get caught for speeding and you get a ticket….
…that generally doesn’t change your attitude about driving in excess of the speed limit in the future…
…most people I know who’ve received a speeding ticket have gotten more than just one.
….you’re mindset is still to want to drive significantly faster than the posted speed limit.
You still have a need for speed!
…and the only reason you hit the brakes when you see a cop is because you don’t want to deal with the negative consequences of breaking the law.
However, those who consistently drive within the general range of the posted speed limit….
those people who never ‘push their luck’ so to speak, on the old speedometer have a different mindset when it comes to obeying that particular law.
…these are people who actually desire to drive within the general confines of the posted speed limit because they see the value to themselves – and to others – by doing so.
This is similar to how the Holy-Spirit indwelt believer approaches obedience, compared to someone who is not indwelt with the Holy Spirit.
When you give your life to Christ and your heart has been regenerated by the Holy Spirit, you receive a new mindset regarding the law…
…you actually desire to live in obedience to God because you love Him…the giver of the law
You desire to live in such a way as to please the one who sacrificed everything for you…
You no longer begrudgingly obey the moral commands of God because you simply fear the consequences of disobedience….
You desire to submissively live in obedience to God – because he loves you so much that He willingly hung on a cross and died…for you.
That is why Jesus says that “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”
…and love is a much more powerful motivator than fear.
Our daughters sometimes tell us that one reason why they never really rebelled during their teenage years was not because they feared the consequences of such actions….
…but because they didn’t want to let down the parents and grandparents who loved them so dearly.
Don’t get me wrong…they weren’t perfect kids…
…but they did understand the value of desiring to live in obedience as a reflection of the love coming from their parents and grandparents.
Folks, God loves you to an even greater degree than any of us could possibly ever love our own children…
…how much more should we desire to love Him in return!
In conclusion this morning….
The Holy Spirit is amazing….
He is amazing….because He is God.
Let’s never downplay the significance of the Holy Spirit and His powerful influence over our lives….and let us be thankful.
Like those young soccer players who were each escorted by their own personal navy SEAL diver out of the cave that would have been their grave….
The Holy Spirit personally guides us out of the sinful tomb of this world…into the glorious light of God’s immeasurable love and grace.
Won’t you let Him guide you today?
Let’s Pray.