Latest / Reformed Thinking / The Covenantal Comforter: A Divine Person for a Desperate People (John 14:16)

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The Covenantal Comforter: A Divine Person for a Desperate People (John 14:16) · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to Reformed Thinking. We're glad you're here for
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another Dee dive. It's good to be here.
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Today we're digging into a really rich section of scriture
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you sent over focusing on the UER Room discourse, specifically
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John chapter 14, verse 16. A verse that is just packed with
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comfort. It really is, and our mission
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today is pretty clear. We want to look at what must
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have felt like a complete catastrophe for the disciples
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Jesus leaving, and see how he completely reframes it for them.
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Yeah, he turns it on its head. He shows that his departure
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isn't the end of fellowship, it's actually the necessary step
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toward a better, more permanent kind of divine presence.
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And you really have to put yourself in their shoes for a
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second in that upper room. Their whole world is just
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trembling. It's about to collapse.
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Right. For three years, their guide,
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their teacher, their security, it was all physically tied to
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the man sitting right there with him.
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So the idea of him being gone, that brings up the deepest human
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fear. There is abandonment.
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A void. A terrifying void.
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Exactly. And Jesus even gives it a name,
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doesn't he? He calls it orphanhood.
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He does, and the setting is just so vital.
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This isn't a dry academic lecture he's giving.
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Not at all. This is urgent pastoral care.
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It's happened right before the storm breaks.
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The betrayal, Peter's denial, the crucifixion.
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It's all just hours away, so the air in that room is thick with
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sorrow and just almost. Feel it.
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Jesus is trying to stabilize their trembling souls.
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I mean, that's why he starts the whole section by saying let not
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your hearts be troubled. He's speaking directly to that
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fear. And the promise of the helper,
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the paraclutos is his answer. It's the.
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Provision. It's placed so perfectly right
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between the command to obey out of love and the the looming
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reality of their own weakness, which is about to be put on full
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display. OK, let's unpack that crisis a
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little more. The death of their dread.
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Because I don't think we always grasped it.
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We can't really. Their whole life was organized
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not just around Jesus, but it was dependent on His physical
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nearness. If they had a question, they
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just they asked. Him right there in the moment.
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If they were afraid, they could look at his face and see his
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calm. They needed wisdom.
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They just listened. So when he says I'm leaving,
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it's not just sad, it feels like a total void of security, of
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leadership, of everything. It's the end of the world as
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they know it. Which brings us to that concept
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you mentioned, orphan hood. The Greek word he uses in verse
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18 is orphanus, and we can't just read that through a modern
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kind of sentimental lens. That's such an important
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clarification. In the Greco Roman world, an
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orphan, an orphanist was someone who lost a lot more than just
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their parents. Right, it was a legal status or
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a lack of. Exactly.
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You were stripped of legal standing.
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You had no family protection and that meant you had no
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inheritance. You were utterly, completely
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vulnerable. So the terror isn't just
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emotional. Oh, I miss my friend.
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It's theological. It's the fear of being left
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exposed with no advocate, no protection in a world that is
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hostile to to you and your message.
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Spiritually and physically both. They're afraid they'll lose
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their standing with God and their ability to function at all
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against all the opposition they know is coming.
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It's like being told you have to fight a war, and right as the
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first shots are about to be fired, your general says, all
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right, I'm leaving. Good luck.
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Here are your orders, but you're on your own for supplies, for
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backup, for everything. That seems to be the only
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conclusion they could possibly draw.
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It does, and Jesus knows that. He sees it in their faces.
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So he calls them to faith and he tries to reframe it.
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He says my departure isn't desertion, it's a mission.
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I'm going to prepare a place for you.
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But the question they have to be asking, that we would be asking
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is how do we live in the gap? Exactly how do we survive
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between your ascension and your return?
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They're about to face persecution, their own sin,
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incredible theological pressure. How in the world did they
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endure? And right before he gives the
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promise, he gives the context, John 14, verse 15, the moral
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frame. He sets the bar incredibly high.
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If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
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So love isn't measured by a feeling, an emotional high.
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It's measured by well, by tangible fidelity, by obedience.
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And that's a command for a group of people who are about to have
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to live without his body there to guide every single step.
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But that instruction is almost cruel when you think about
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what's about to happen in the next few hours.
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It's incredibly severe. Peter's about to deny him not
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once, but three times, loudly. Yeah, and all the rest are going
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to scatter. They're going to run in fear.
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They are not, in that moment, spiritually mature or ready to
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keep His commandments on their own.
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So isn't that command just too much?
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If they can't meet that demand, does that mean they don't love
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him? Have they failed?
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If Jesus just says obey me and then walks away, that lands us
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right in the middle of legalism. And that's precisely why the
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sequence here, verses 15 and 16, is the heart of a gospel in this
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passage. OK, Jesus knew their failure was
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imminent. He knew they couldn't do it in
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their own strength. So what does he do?
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He immediately binds the moral command of verse 15 to the
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promise of divine aid in verse 16.
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So they're connected. They can't be separated.
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They cannot be separated. The logic is it's simple.
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Love expresses itself in obedience, and God supplies the
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supernatural power that makes that obedience even possible in
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the first place. So the helper isn't a reward for
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getting it right. Not at all.
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He's not a prize for successful command keeping.
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He is the necessary divine resource given so that true
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grateful Spirit enabled obedience can actually happen.
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So if you try to live out verse 15 without verse 16.
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You're trying to be a Christian in the energy of the flesh, and
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that is by definition, legalism. The promise, then, is the
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immediate answer to the impossibility of the command.
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It's the assurance that their faithfulness, even though
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they're about to stumble badly, is secured by a divine person, a
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permanent resource. The promise completely answers
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that fear that his leaving will unravel everything.
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His physical departure is actually what starts a new, more
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secure mode of divine presence. A presence that sustains them in
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their weakness. Not one that just rewards them
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in their strength. That changes everything.
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OK, let's get into the anatomy of verse 16 itself.
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Because the way the sentence is built is just pure certainty.
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The source material is really clear on this.
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The sequence of events is non negotiable.
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Jesus uses these strong forward moving future verbs.
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He's not suggesting something. It's not conditional.
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Like if you're good enough, maybe none of that.
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He states what will happen? I will ask and he will give.
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It's not a possibility. It's the fixed, settled
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architecture of God's plan. And that structure, just the
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grammar itself, is a comfort. It's a sermon to a troubled
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soul. It's saying, yeah, you won't be
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left to your own devices because the entire godhead is moving on
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your behalf. And it starts with Christ's own
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initiative. And I will ask the Father, the
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Greek is Caju Eruchuston Patera. That emphatic eye is so
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important. It is their future help rests
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entirely on Christ's action, not on their desperate prayers.
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But we need to pause on that verb He chose.
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OK, that's one of those technical points we need to
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really unpack. Why is that specific Greek verb
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so significant? I mean, aren't there other words
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for asking God for something? There are.
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The more common verb is 8 chech, and that usually means a request
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made from a subordinate to a superior.
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It's a petition. It's almost like begging.
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OK, but the Christ here uses Urichesh, and that verb implies
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something totally different. It implies a request that's
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based on intimacy, on equality, on mutual understanding.
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So it's not a subordinate asking a boss for a favor.
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No. When Jesus uses Urhuchesh, he is
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acting with the authority of the beloved Son.
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He's invoking the settled terms of the Covenant of Redemption,
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the Pactum Salutis. The eternal covenant.
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Yes, he isn't begging a reluctant judge for a handout.
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He is claiming a right based on who he is and on the redemptive
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work that's already been planned.
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It points directly to his high priestly office.
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He's securing the church's future help before the cross has
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even happened. So just to summarize that for
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anyone listening, the promise of the Spirit isn't hanging in the
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balance. It's not dependent on whether
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the Father feels generous that day.
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It is guaranteed because Christ, as our mediator has the right
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to, in a sense, demand it based on the contract He made with the
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Father before the world began. It is settled business.
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Precisely. It just demolishes any kind of
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moralism. God's help comes down not
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because we try really hard, but because Christ stands up as our
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advocate. Then we get the father's
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response. Yeah.
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And he will give you Kai du say hymen.
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This shows the father's character, doesn't it?
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He's a generous giver. A good father.
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The Spirit comes as a gift, a pure, unearned gift, not a wage.
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And that detail is such a profound comfort for a troubled
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conscience. How so?
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Well, a troubled conscience by its nature suspects that God's
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help is temporary. It worries that I'll be
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withdrawn at the first mistake, the first stumble.
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But if I mess up, God will pull back.
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Exactly. But Jesus speaks with absolute
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certainty because of the unity of the Godhead.
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The Son's request and the Father's giving are one
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harmonious, redemptive act. The Father will not leave you
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empty handed. He's a gracious giver,
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completely aligned with the Son's mission to save.
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And then we come to the identity of the gift itself.
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Another helper, Alon Pericleton. Those two words are doing some
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heavy theological lifting. Phenomenal work.
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We really need to slow down here.
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OK, let's start with the adjective alos.
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In Greek, you have two main words.
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For another, there's heteros, which means another of a
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different kind. Like I had an apple, but now I
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want another kind of fruit, maybe a banana.
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Exactly a different category. But then there's aloes, and
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aloes means another of the exact same kind.
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So I finished my coffee. I want another coffee.
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The same thing. Precisely so.
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By choosing aloes, Jesus is making a massive claim about the
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Holy Spirit's nature. He is saying the Spirit is
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distinct from the Sun in person, but he is identical in divine
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essence. He's not a downgrade.
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Not a downgrade, not a lesser substitute, not a consolation
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prize. He is the perfect successor,
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carrying the same divine nature and authority as the Sun who was
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standing right in front of them. That one little word aloes just
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refutes centuries of theological error.
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It does any attempt to reduce the Spirit to some impersonal
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force or an energy field or some created being that's less than
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the Father and Son. That word shuts it down.
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The Spirit is divine, period. OK, now for the title itself,
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Paracleidos, we often translate it as comforter or maybe
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advocate counselor, but the root idea is 1 called alongside.
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Para plus Kalish. And it had a very specific legal
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meaning in that day, right? It could mean your defense
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attorney, the advocate who stands beside you when you're
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accused and argues your case. Yes, or in a military sense, it
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was the officer who would come alongside the troops right
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before a battle to exhort them, to strengthen them for the
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fight. That context is so important
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because it keeps the spirits work from becoming this vague,
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mystical, just, you know, purely emotional, right?
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The Spirit provides concrete, covenantal help.
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He advocates for us. He counsels us with truth.
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He applies Christ's finished work to our own hearts, right
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where we live. He's not operating independently
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of Christ. He is mediating the presence of
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Christ to us, a divine person who comes alongside.
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And finally, the duration. This for me is the most
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stabilizing part of the whole verse.
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To be with you forever is Tonayuna.
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This little phrase signals a complete shift in how God
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relates to His people, a historical shift.
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It's the shift from the Old covenant to the New covenant.
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If you look at the Old Testament, the Spirit's presence
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was often sporadic. It was temporary.
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It was task oriented. Like with Samson or King Saul?
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Exactly. The Spirit would come upon them
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for a specific mission to win a battle to prophecy and then
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could be withdrawn. That's why David prays in Psalm
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51 after his great sin. Take not your Holy Spirit for
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me. He knew it was possible.
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The presence was conditional. But the new covenant promise is
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for a permanent Indwelling that word forever just demolishes the
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suspicion that God's presence depends on our daily performance
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review. It's not a seasonal gift, it's
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not temporary employment, it is non revocable.
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And that permanence is what secure the doctrine of the
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perseverance of the Saints. It has to be if the helper is
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given forever, then God's faithfulness will always outlast
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our inconsistency. The Spirit isn't a visitor on a
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probationary period, you know, waiting for us to mess up so he
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can pack his bags and leave. He's an abiding resident.
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An abiding resident, the Greek structure that Heino O purpose
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clause confirms it. He is given in order that he may
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continually be with them. The security of their future and
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ours rests on this settled Trinitarian promise, not our
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fragile grip on. So the foundation is fixed.
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It's a transaction between the Father and the Son, secured by
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Christ's priestly right and delivered in the person of a
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permanent helper, the disciples. Fear of being unprotected is
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rendered impossible. It is, and to really appreciate
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this forever promise, we have to see it as part of the whole
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Bible story, the grand narrative of God with us.
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OK, the story starts in Eden, right?
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Where open relational communion with God was just the normal
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state of things. The fall wasn't just about
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guilt. It was a relational rupture.
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It was exile from God's immediate life giving presence.
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That flaming sword outside the garden.
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A very clear message access is cut off.
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You're on your own. And from that point on, every
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covenant is God's step by step plan to restore that lost
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presence. Exactly.
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You see it in the Tabernacle and later the temple.
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God chooses to localize his presence.
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The glory cloud fills the space. It declares the Lord is near
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again. But it was a restricted
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nearness. Very restricted.
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It was regulated by sacrifice, by the priesthood, by the veil
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in the temple. All of those things were signs
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that sin still made full access dangerous, impossible.
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The presence was external and it was partial.
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And the exile, the destruction of the temple, was the ultimate
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picture of that partiality being revoked.
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Israel is driven away from the place of God's presence,
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reinforcing that sense of spiritual orphanhood.
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But the prophets, they looked forward.
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They promised a new covenant that would be radically
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different. Not just God among them in a
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building, but God's Spirit within them, transforming their
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hearts. Who did no longer be a temporary
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external arrangement? Right.
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And the climax of all of this, of course, is the incarnation.
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Jesus is the Word made flesh. He is The Walking, talking
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temple, the ultimate meeting place between God and humanity.
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So you can see why the disciples would panic when he says I'm
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leaving. To them.
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It sounds like the whole God with Us story is about to fall
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apart again. It sounds like another exile.
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So John 14.1 sin is this great pivot point.
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It clarifies that his departure isn't the end of the story, it's
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actually its greatest expansion, yes.
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We move from an Incarnate presence which was external,
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visible, and, you know, limited by geography.
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He. Could only be in one place at
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one time. Exactly.
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We move from that to an indwelling presence which is
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internal by the Spirit and universally available to every
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believer everywhere, all at once.
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It's like if the Old Covenant was having God's office in one
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central, heavily guarded building in one city.
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OK, I like this. The new Covenant is like giving
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every citizen permanent, secure cloud access to the central
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server from anywhere in the world.
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That's a great analogy. It moves God's presence from
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being external and localized to internal and pervasive.
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The spirits indwelling is the down payment, the pledge that
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the final restoration is certain to come.
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He secures the future by inhabiting the present.
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Now in verse 17 we get the Helpers most crucial title.
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He is the Spirit of truth. Alethea.
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That title defines his nature and his ministry.
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And this is so vital because it keeps his work from being
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reduced to just vague emotionalism or some kind of
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chaotic, unguided expression. He is the spirit of truth.
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He is the divine author of Scripture.
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Therefore his work is fundamentally shaped by Christ
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and based in truth. His main job is not to compete
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with the Word or bypass Christ's authority, or to give new
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independent revelations. He teaches, He brings to
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remembrance what Christ has already said.
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He glorifies Christ. And this is where we need to be
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very clear, as the source material requires, and position
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the Reformed viewer the view of the Westminster Confession
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against some common errors. Let's do that.
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The first error is mysticism. Because the Spirit is the Spirit
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of Truth, He doesn't authorize new revelations or private
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feelings that stand on par with or even above the closed Canon
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of Scripture. This was a huge battle during
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the Reformation. It was they fought against what
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they called enthusiasm, this idea of the Spirit speaking
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completely independent of the written word.
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So his work today is illuminative, not revelatory.
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He opens our eyes to understand the truth that's already been
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revealed in the Bible. He makes the ordinary means of
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grace preaching, reading the Word actually effective.
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Right when you divorce, the spirits work from objective
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truth. You leave Christians wide open
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to deception and manipulation. It becomes all about subjective,
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uncheckable feelings. The second error which is
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related is experientialism. We have to reaffirm that the
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heart of the promise in John 14 is the permanent indwelling
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truth bearing ministry of the Spirit.
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We have to distinguish that from the foundational revelatory sign
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gifts like prophecy or tongues that served a unique purpose in
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the Apostolic age to authenticate the new revelation.
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And those ceased when the New Testament Canon was complete.
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Exactly. The Church today doesn't need
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perpetual spectacle to prove God is with us.
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We need the promised Helper who sustains us in ordinary daily
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faithfulness, strengthening our repentance, helping our prayers,
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producing obedience. To constantly seek new
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experiences or fresh words is to subtly deny that Scripture is
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sufficient. The Spirits Ministry is fixed on
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applying the final word, not adding to it.
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And the final error to address is pragmatism.
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The temptation of the modern. Church.
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Yes, this promise tells us that the church's real advantage is
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the abiding person, the helper. It's not our strategic
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management or clever marketing or techniques we borrowed from
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the business world. Confidence in our own systems,
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our plans, our human ingenuity. That becomes an idol when you
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compare it to the absolute necessity of the Spirit's work.
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If the whole New Covenant community is held together by
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the supernatural agency of the Spirit.
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And trying to build the church through just measurable human
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cleverness is to replace dependence on God with reliance
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on technique. This text exposes how
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insufficient our systems are. We need the sovereign
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supernatural work of the Happer. That's a sobering thought.
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If we're just trying to manage church growth with human
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ingenuity, we're basically saying the promised helper isn't
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enough. We're acting like functional
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orphans. OK, let's bring this down to the
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ground, to the daily life of a believer.
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The Spirit is tied directly to our sanctification.
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The Westminster Confession says we're sanctified by Christ,
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death and resurrection by his Word and Spirit dwelling in
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them. The Spirit is given to empower
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the very obedience that God's law demands, but that our fallen
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nature can't produce on its own. Which means our obedience isn't
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just self generated moral improvement.
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It's not just trying harder. No, it's spirit enabled
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conformity to Christ and it flows from gratitude and love.
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We have to keep the 2 verses linked, verse 15 the imperative,
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keep my commandments and verse 16 the indicative.
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I will give you a helper. That linkage is the difference
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between slavery and freedom. This is what we call the third
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use of the law in Reformed theology.
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We don't obey in order to earn the Spirit's presence.
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We'd never get there. We'd never get there.
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We obey because we already have the Spirit who guides our
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grateful hearts and enables us to walk in Christ's ways.
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His provision doesn't get rid of our effort.
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It's what makes holy effort possible.
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If we reverse that, if we try to clean ourselves up first so we
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can feel worthy of the spirits help, that's legalism all over
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again. It is the helper is the
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immediate possession of every single believer.
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He is essential for any action that can truly be called
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obedience. And this really gets to what we
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could call the idol of self-reliance.
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So many of us, even with good theology, we live like
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functional atheists on a Tuesday morning.
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We affirm the Trinity in church on Sunday.
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But then we face it, the temptation, gossip, lust, anger,
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and we just grit our teeth and try to obey with our own
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willpower. And that striving, that attempt
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to live the Christian life without consciously relying on
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the resident helper, that is the essence of a slave spirit, not
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the spirit of an adopted son. The law's demands will crush us
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unless they're held up by the Spirit's presence.
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We have to actively ask ourselves, where am I relying on
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my own stamina? Whether it's managing your
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calendar, battling a sin, trying to be patient with your kids.
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We need to confess that we've been ignoring the helper Christ
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secured for us. He isn't just for big crises.
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He's the necessary strength for the ordinary grind of daily
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life. And this text is also just a
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powerful balm for a wounded heart.
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It speaks directly to that orphan spirit.
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We talked about this. So many sincere believers feel
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isolated. They're afraid God's help is
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temporary. They lick their own fluctuating
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emotions, their inconsistent walk with God, and they conclude
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God must have pulled away from me.
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I must have driven him off. And John 14.16 is the call to
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trust clear, objective revelation over our subjective,
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unreliable emotions. The helper is given forever.
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That is an absolute. It banishes the anxiety of
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abandonment, and it anchors our assurance in God's fixed
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promise, not our feelings. So our assurance doesn't rest on
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how close we feel to God today. No, it rests on the steadiness
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of Christ's intercession for us and the Father's generous, non
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revocable gift to us. The feeling of loneliness might
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be real, but it's not the ultimate reality.
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The ultimate reality is that you are a carrier of divine person.
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The spirits indwelling is a covenant reality.
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So let's break this down into a really practical application.
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Head, heart and hands. This promise was meant to steady
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them right before they fell apart.
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For the head, there are some non negotiable beliefs we have to
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settle. First, believe that the help is
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trinitarian, the Son asked the Father give the Spirit abides.
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Second, believe the Spirit is a divine person, another helper
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just like Jesus, not just a vague internal boost.
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And 3rd believe the duration he is with Christ's disciples
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forever. That conviction has to displace
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the suspicion that God's presence is conditional.
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Then for the heart application means specific repentance.
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We have to repent of those despairing thoughts that accuse
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God of abandoning us. That's the orphan spirit
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talking. And we also have to repent of
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the pride that prefers self-reliance over simple.
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Dependence. Yes, Jesus dignified dependence
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by promising a helper to be spirit dependent isn't a sign of
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spiritual weakness, It's the normal condition of a new
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covenant believer. OK.
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And then for the hands, the doing for the.
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Hands. It means living out our
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obedience in moment by moment dependence.
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When you face a temptation, don't just try to muscle through
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it. Pray like a child in need.
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Father, you gave me the helper. I am weak.
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Strengthen me right now for this specific task.
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It turns every command into an opportunity for prayer.
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It does, and it requires practical repentance, seeking
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the helper's strength to make real, tangible changes in how we
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behave. And it also means faithfully
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using the means of grace that Christ gave us.
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The Spirit works through truth. So we have to open the
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Scriptures not as a chore, but as the primary place where the
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Helper applies Christ's work to our lives.
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And we have to seek out community.
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We have to be committed to the gathered church where the Word
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is preached and prayer is offered.
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Christ did not design solitary, self reliant Christianity.
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The Helper works powerfully among the Saints.
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And we can't forget the sober warning in verse 17.
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So important. Jesus makes it very clear that
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the world cannot receive the Spirit because it doesn't see
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him or know Him. This amazing promise is wrapped
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in a clear warning. The spirit is only received
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through union with the Sun. The world that hates Christ
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cannot receive his helper. If you are outside of Christ,
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you are truly an orphan in the universe, without an advocate,
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without a comforter. So the text is also a powerful
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call to flee the world that cannot receive him and run to
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Christ in faith. Let's wrap up by just looking
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one more time at the sheer superiority of the Spirit's
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presence. It seems impossible that
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anything could be better than Jesus physically walking beside
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you. You'd think that would be the
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peak experience, right? But Jesus himself insists that
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his leaving is to our advantage. That's in John 16.
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He does, and the reason is simple, but it's massive.
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If the sun had stayed in his physical body, his presence
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would have been limited by geography.
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He could only be in Galilee or Judea at one time, a localized
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resource. But by ascending and sending the
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Spirit. He has universalized his
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presence. The Holy Spirit brings the very
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life and ministry of the sun not just to us, but into US.
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Which makes every single believer, no matter where they
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are in the world, a walking Tabernacle of the living God.
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The Spirit is the better presence because He replaces
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external location with internal pervasive residence.
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So the final synthesis is this. The promise of the Alice
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Paraclotin ensures that the Church isn't just holding on to
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a beautiful memory of a Savior who left.
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No, we possess the active living power of the third person, the
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Trinity applying the finished work of the second person, all
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according to the perfect will of the 1st.
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And that truth just annihilates the fear of being an orphan.
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We are never left without God. We are perpetually provided.
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For so as you go about your week, let this be the
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provocative thought you sit with.
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You listening right now are more intimately connected to God by
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the abiding Spirit than the disciples were when they were
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walking beside Jesus in Galilee. Think about that.
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If that is a fact, what tangible evidence of this divine helpers
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presence, His guidance toward truth, His strength for
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obedience in a specific situation?
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What evidence should you be able to see in your life this week?
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Go forward with the courage of someone who knows that while the
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sun is interceding for you in heaven, the Spirit is dwelling
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in you on earth, securing you forever in the family of God.
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Thank you for joining us for this deep dive.
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Until we speak again.