Revealing the Spirit
John 14:22-31
Have you ever been to a party that didn't go the way you expected?
The disciples are having dinner with Jesus just before Passover. But things aren't going as expected.
Jesus takes off His clothes, wraps a towel around His waist, and starts washing their feet. Okay, that's different. Then He announces one of them will betray Him. Great dinner conversation, can we talk about politics instead? Oh, and Peter? You'll deny Me three times too. And by the way, I'm leaving, and you can't come with Me. Oh, and one more thing: I'm God.
Talk about awkward…
Then Jesus says He'll show everyone He's the Messiah, except He won't show everyone. Just His disciples. Which brings us to Judas' question (not Judas Iscariot, the other Judas):
"Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?" (v. 22)
Why Not Go Public?
It's a legitimate question, isn't it? These guys have been with Jesus for a good while.
You can hear what Judas is really asking: "Jesus, if You are the Messiah, why not go public? Why not go live? Why not launch big? Why not have a massive opening day? Pull back the curtain and reveal to the entire world who You are. Do something super end-of-days — split the sky open! That would be better than fireworks. You'd get everyone's attention. Shock Rome. Make the Jews stand up and realise they got it wrong. Silence the critics. Reveal Your glory in an undeniable way."
In some ways, this makes sense if you read parts of the Old Testament. Isaiah 11 talks about the earth shaking, judgment coming, the wicked being slain with the breath of His mouth. Habakkuk 3 describes mountains crumbling, nations trembling, epic displays of power and might.
So why doesn't Jesus go big instead of saying He's just going home?
We read in Isaiah 53: "He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed" (v. 5).
Now we understand why Jesus is doing what He's doing, not going out with a bang, but going to the cross. Not the showy spectacle the disciples expected. Not what many Jews expected the Messiah to do.
In fact, the disciples still don't fully get it even after Jesus dies and rises again. Look at Acts 1:6: When Jesus appears to His disciples after His resurrection, they ask, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" Are you going to do it now? Are you going to go big now?
They still don't quite understand.
Jesus Reframes Everything
When Judas asks his question, Jesus reframes what they should expect from the Messiah: "Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them" (v. 23).
Here's the thing: The Kingdom of God, the salvation of the world, is not going to come through some big spectacle. It's going to come through the obedience of the Son to the Father.
That phrase, "make our home with them", echoes what we find in John 14:2, where Jesus talks about going to His Father's house where there are many rooms. This home prepared for us, this way to being with God forever in heaven, isn't just a far-off future thing.
It actually begins now.
Because God has made His dwelling place with us. Jesus is with us now. We'll experience the fullness of that when we stand in glory, in heaven. But we get a taste of it now. We live it now.
The Spirit being given to the disciples and to us isn't some metaphorical wishful thinking, not a lovely idea.
It's the reality of God dwelling with His people forever.
If you're here tonight and you've trusted in Jesus, from that moment on, the Spirit is dwelling in you. Jesus is with you. God is with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. He will journey with you through the ups and the downs, through the mess and through the perfect, through horrible storms and straight highways. He will be with you every step of the way.
That's what Jesus meant when He said He wouldn't leave us as orphans. The Father will be with us. And as the Spirit dwells in us, the Spirit will convict us of sin, lead us to repent, assure us we're children of God, comfort us, and take God's Word and apply it to our lives.
The Spirit Teaches All Things
This Spirit, Jesus says in verses 25-26, will be an advocate. "The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."
This promise is first to the disciples before it's to us. When Jesus says, "The Spirit will teach you all things and remind you of everything I've said," He's talking about how the Spirit will make clear everything Jesus said and did.
Throughout the Gospels, we see Jesus teach and perform miracles, but the disciples never fully understood. Then suddenly, there are moments where they did get it. John helpfully inserts little notes explaining that they understood later.
Like in John 2:22, after Jesus drives people from the temple: "After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken."
Or John 12:16, after Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey: We understood this after the resurrection of Jesus. After we received the Spirit, we understood all that had been said and done about Him.
This remains just as important for us. As the disciples received the Holy Spirit and reflected on everything Jesus said and did, what they wrote wasn't foggy religious memories. They were Spirit-guided, resurrection-illuminated testimonies of who Jesus is.
This assures us that what we have about Jesus in God's Word is true and reliable. God speaks through His Spirit to His disciples who wrote down all Jesus said and did so we have the benefit of having that before us.
The Spirit still teaches us today what God has written, what Jesus said and commanded, and how we're to live. When the Spirit descends into us when we become Christians, He doesn't invent new theology or teaching. He completes our understanding of who Jesus is—His miracles, teaching, the cross, resurrection, ascension, the whole lot.
For us, the Spirit drives home God's Word. He drives home what Jesus has already done for us. And as He does that, He teaches us how to apply these things to our lives so we might live in ways that honour and glorify God.
The Peace That Blows Your Mind
One of the things the Spirit does is help us live in the peace Jesus promises:
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" (v. 27).
This sounds like farewell language, "See you later, peace be with you, hope life goes well, bon voyage." The word often used in the Old Testament is shalom. Sometimes people think it means inner peace, like George Costanza's dad in Seinfeld yelling, "Serenity now!" thinking if he yells it louder he'll get more peace.
It's not that. The peace Jesus is talking about is wholeness, restorative peace, the peace of God's reign where He makes things right again.
The shocking thing in Jesus' time? Romans thought they had peace, peace secured by the sword. Many Israelites thought the Messiah would secure peace by coming with a bigger sword than Rome and defeating them. They thought peace came through military might. But…
Jesus secures peace by absorbing the sword.
By going to the cross. By taking the malice of the world, the sin of humanity, the judgment of God on Himself, and extinguishing it once and for all.
That's why Paul can confidently say in Philippians 4:7: "The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
This is peace that blows our minds. We don't quite understand how this can work. It's almost too good to be true. But it's a peace that guards our hearts and minds.
It's a peace this world is powerless to give.
There are so many conversations about world peace. Peace treaties, peace meetings, peace talks. And every time, it's quickly broken. The reason? Our world is powerless because there's so much hatred, selfishness, bitterness, malice, anxiety, and fear.
Every time we attempt peace any other way, it falls flat. The only way we can truly have peace is through Jesus. Because He gives peace that transcends all understanding.
Peace with God. Peace of God. From God.
That's why He can say: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Do not be afraid."
Peace in Your Chaos
This peace is a garrison of the heart. It steadies us when we walk into hospital rooms to visit friends and family close to death. It holds us in an embrace during grief. It anchors us when we feel fragile and broken. It quietens our anxiety at 2.00 am in the morning.
It's peace only Jesus can give. Peace of God.
And here's what's critical to understand: This peace doesn't change your circumstances. It doesn't change the chaos. It doesn't change the mess we live in.
It's Jesus who comes to us in that circumstance, in that chaos, in that mess, and is with us through every step of the way. Jesus walks every step through whatever you're going through.
You are not alone.
No matter how abandoned you feel, how lonely you feel, know this: In Christ, He is with you every step of the way. He is your peace. He is your comfort through it all.
That's the promise Jesus gives His disciples. Because they're about to experience great grief, suffering, and sadness. But it's also the peace given to us. Life rarely goes the way we want. Yet we find peace every step of the way because Jesus, who gives this peace, is with us always.
Something Far Better
At this weird dinner party, the disciples wanted some sort of public spectacle to demonstrate Jesus is the Messiah. They wanted Jesus to show Himself the way they thought was best.
But Jesus gave them something far better. They just didn't realise it yet.
The same is true for us, isn't it? We want life to be the way we want it. We want things to go our way. We want control. We want comfort. We want joy, peace, rainbows and sunshine without the rain.
Here's the beautiful thing Jesus gives us: Something far better than what we can ever imagine.
He promises He is with you. Whatever goes wrong or right in life, He is with you. His Spirit dwells in you. As you read His words, He speaks to you about how you can love Him, obey His teaching, know the love of the Father, know the joy of salvation in Jesus, and know the peace that comes through the Spirit.
This peace transcends all understanding and blows our minds, we don't even quite understand. But a peace that comes to us in our mess and chaos and walks with us every step of the way.
The Question
What things have you tried in your life to bring peace? How have they failed?
There is a peace on offer that will blow your mind. Not a peace that lasts today, tomorrow, or a few weeks.
A peace that lasts all eternity. Because it's the peace of having the One who created this world dwelling in you. And one day you'll spend eternity with Him forever if you trust in Him.
Soul Revival Church gathers across the Sutherland Shire [Kirrawee, Yarrawarrah, Miranda, Cronulla] and Ryde.