John 16:7
“It is to your advantage that I go away; . . .”
Much of what Jesus said was shocking to the ears of the disciples. He spoke with a wisdom that was otherworldly. They may have become used to the fact that Jesus was going to say things that surprised them, but I do not think anything could prepare them for the statement Jesus made here. Earlier, He had been speaking about His betrayal and death, He now declares they will be better off without Him. For over three years, these men have been with Jesus. They have watched as He transformed lives, and listened as He declared truths about the Kingdom of God. Now He is speaking about leaving, and declaring they will be more effective with Him out of the way. I know Peter is the one who is known for objecting to Jesus, but I find myself objecting on His behalf. I cannot think of a single scenario where it would not be better to have Jesus around. If I were fishing, boating, preaching, visiting the sick, feeding the hungry or facing the Pharisees, I think it would always be better to have Jesus there, than to be by myself. How could Jesus say such things? What conditions could make it better to have Jesus absent, rather than present?
First off, things are better because of the way Jesus will depart. No one could take His life, He would instead, lay it down as a sacrifice to provide the cure for man’s sin problem. His death makes it possible for each of us to have eternal life, and gives us a message to declare to the world. The message that, they too, can have their sins forgiven, and receive eternal life in Christ. Beyond that, Jesus goes on to explain why things are better for us if He departs to the Father.
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”
When Jesus departed to the Father, He sent forth the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the third “Person” of the Godhead, He is described as the Helper, the Comforter, and the One who empowers the Christian. Jesus promised that when the Holy Spirit came, He would convince the world of its need for a Savior, by convicting it of sin, righteousness, and judgment.
Ministry is impossible. We are natural beings with natural abilities. We are sent forth to impact people spiritually. We can tell moving stories that effect people’s emotions, but only the Spirit of God can penetrate the heart of man, and convince Him of His need for Christ. Praise the Lord, Jesus did not leave us alone, but sent forth the Holy Spirit who will enable each of us to be involved in furthering the work of God in the World.
Father, baptize us afresh with Your Holy Spirit today!
Pastor Jim
Among many of the pagan cultures, it was a common practice to cut yourself as a sign of mourning for the loss of a loved one. This practice served to show others the deep sorrow you were experiencing, as a result of your loss. Moses makes it clear, the children of God are NOT to follow this custom. The reason behind this command was that the child of God is not to mourn like the heathen mourn. Years later, Paul wrote to a group of Christians in Greece, who were dealing with the difficulty of death. He said,
The word “account” means “by reason of”. It means, Lazarus was the reason many put their trust in Christ. His life and his experiences with Christ were having a magnetic effect; drawing others to consider Christ for themselves.
This is amazing! Jesus promises to give life. It is always tragic to watch people killing themselves, in an attempt to find life. Our country, our world, our communities, even many of our homes, are plagued with substance abuse, as people search for life. We seem to have an epidemic of extreme sports, with people risking life in order to experience life. All the while, Jesus is promising to give it away freely to any who will come to Him.
The veil of the Temple was designed by God; and it was beautiful. Moses describes it for us in Exodus 26:31
Unintentional sin is sin committed simply because we’re sinners. The term “sin” is an interesting word. It actually means “to miss the mark.” The sport of archery is a good illustration of missing the mark. A few years ago, I took a group of high School students to a summer camp where, along with Bible studies and worship, they had a number of activities that would teach spiritual lessons. I decided to join a few of the young men as they were learning how to handle a bow and arrow. I watched as they pulled back on the bow and released the arrow. With all of their might, they were trying to hit the bull’s eye, but they missed. So, I decided to try my hand at it. I aimed, pulled back the bow, and shot the arrow clear over the target and into the hillside; the students all laughed at my terrible marksmanship. I was able to teach them a lesson on sin. I missed completely, some of them missed slightly, but we all missed. None of us were perfect, and all of us came up short. This is a good illustration of unintentional sin; attempting to do the right thing, but failing. Here, God tells the people who are seeking Him, they can offer a sin offering that would cover unintentional sin.
More than a month before this event, Moses had ascended Mount Sinai, disappearing into the thick smoke. As the weeks passed, the people began to believe Moses must have died. In their fear and confusion, they approached Aaron, seeking spiritual counsel. They realized they needed a worship service. However, their time in Egypt had left them very confused about who God really is. Aaron instructed them to bring financial gifts, then he made a god they could worship. The cost of their sinful activity was great.
As the book of Genesis unwinds, we find Jacob getting very close to the end of his life. He knows, just about the only thing left is his departure. While he may not have a whole lot of life in front of him, he does have decades to look back upon. As he reflects upon his life, it is easy for him to see how the hand of God was with him all the way. As he looks back, he focuses upon two things.
Dealing with the death of a loved one is perhaps the most difficult part of life. Since God created us for life, and it was sin that brought death into the world, we were never really designed to handle death. No matter what, death seems to be unexpected, and the emotions that arise within us are more than we can bear. I recently heard Greg Laurie say, death is often more difficult for the believer because we love at a deeper level. The extreme grief associated with death is made evident in the reaction of Jacob, upon hearing of the death of his son, Joseph. He is so utterly devastated by the news, he refuses to be comforted. While death is difficult, the sorrow it brings is deep, and a season of mourning is expected, but there is something unnatural about Jacob refusing comfort. He should have been comforted by at least three truths.
As the drama of Genesis unfolds, we are introduced to two of Adam’s sons, and given a glimpse into their lives and occupations. Abel, the younger, was a shepherd, while his older brother Cain was a farmer. It was not their occupations, but their character that determined their destinies. We read, Abel brought an offering of the flocks, while Cain brought the fruit of the ground; God respected Abel’s offering and rejected Cain’s. The question we must answer is why? What was wrong with Cain’s offering?
Jim Gallagher 