Bethlehem Baptist Church
Sunday Evening 02/01/26

      • Genesis 1:1ESV

  • Holy Holy Holy
  • In Christ Alone
  • You've Already Won
  • Build My Life
  • Introduction:
    Goodbyes can be either the most tragic or wonderful thing in the world. It all depends on whether you like the person who is saying goodbye and want them to stay or not.
    If you love someone, you may find yourself hating goodbyes. If you can’t stand the person or are bothered by them, then you might be rejoicing in their leaving.
    The Disciples were struggling as Jesus told them He was going to the Father. In what followed, Jesus told them the Great Advantage that His leaving would bring.
    John 16:4–15 ESV
    4 But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. “I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. 5 But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. 7 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 go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. 12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
    Pray
    Background:
    Jesus’s last night with the Disciples after the Lord’s Supper
    Jesus is preparing them for His departure
    This will shatter their world and challenge everything they have believed up to this point
    Jesus is preparing them for the future
    Jesus was a wise instructor and taught the Disciples as they could take it in
    Have you ever been to a conference before where you got so much information that you felt like you were drinking from a fire hydrant? You generally cannot take it all in and will lose a lot of the information.
    Think about the Bible this way. God did not sit Adam and Eve down and explain all of the nuances of the gospel in complete detail. They would not have been able to absorb it all.
    God unfolds different elements of His plan for His people, just like Jesus only taught the Disciples a little at a time
    As He gets ready to depart, there is still much to teach.
    Jesus is encouraging the Disciples that it is really in their best interest for Him to go to the Father
    As hard as this might have been for the Disciples to understand, have you ever felt like you just wished that Jesus was here in the flesh and that it might be better if we could just talk to Him like we would another person?
    I want to give a you a few reasons tonight that it is to our great advantage that Jesus went back to the Father.

    1. He Will Convict (vv. 8-11)

    John 16:8–11 ESV
    8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
    The first thing that Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will do is to convict.
    We need conviction or we cannot receive grace
    We need the Holy Spirit to convict because Jesus is not here in the flesh
    Ex. Ray Comfort witnessing to people and the conviction that even unbelievers will have on their face when their conscience is pricked
    Sin - what is wrong
    Righteousness - what is right
    Judgement - the world is to be judged

    2. He Will Remind (vv.12-13)

    John 16:12–13 ESV
    12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
    The Disciples were often slow to remember. Take for example the two times that Jesus had fed the multitudes and when He cautioned the Disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, they were still thinking about bread.
    They did not remember that God doesn’t have a problem providing for His own.
    Jesus knew that we would need a constant reminder, so the Holy Spirit has come to help us remember.
    Have you ever considered how many themes in the Bible are repeated over and over again? Repetition helps us remember because we seldom get things the first time.
    The Holy Spirit is there to remind us of the Word and bring it back into our memory.

    3. He Will Reveal (vv.13)

    John 16:13 ESV
    13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
    There was also new revelation that the Disciples would be given to instruct the church.
    Ephesians 2:19-20 says,
    Ephesians 2:19–20 ESV
    19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,
    So the Church is built on the teaching of the Apostles as they explained how Christ fulfilled the Old Testament.
    There were also new teachings that the Holy Spirit would give to the church that they would need the guidance of the Holy Spirit to give.
    An example of this is found in 1 Thess. 4:13-15
    1 Thessalonians 4:13–15 ESV
    13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
    The Church needed to be taught about the state of those who had died in Christ.
    Have you ever considered that the entire concept of the Church was hidden from those in the Old Testament? The Jewish people in the Old Testament new about the Kingdom of God, but not the Church.
    God gave new revelation to the Church and confirmed it by signs and wonders that the Apostles were able to perform.
    Caution: The cannon is closed. God is not giving new revelation. He has given us His Word. When we seek revelation outside of the Word, we are saying that His Word is not enough.
    We are a Word-based people. The Holy Spirit takes the Word and explains it to us so that we understand.
    You see, even though we may not be getting new revelation, we are getting the tried and true Word of God and we need to listen to it.
    In Acts 17:11 we are given the description of the Bereans:
    Acts 17:11 ESV
    11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
    In Hebrews we are warned to pay attention.
    Hebrews 1:1–2 ESV
    1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
    Hebrews 2:1 ESV
    1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.
    In James we are told to receive the Word with meekness and then to pay attention to be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger.
    God is not wasting words telling us to listen to the Bible but then pursue dreams and visions and all the things the world seeks after. God’s Word is enough!

    4. He Will Glorify (v.14-15)

    John 16:14–15 ESV
    14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
    The final thing that the Holy Spirit does according to our passage tonight is to glorify God
    He glorifies God by revealing the Word, convicting, and instructing.
    But one of the most amazing things that the Holy Spirit does is reveal Jesus to us. In doing that He glorifies Jesus and the Father.
    Conclusion
    The Holy Spirit is a gift to the Church.
    However, He is only for those who have been sealed by Him as the down payment of their future inheritance.
    This comes by faith alone through God’s grace alone.
    In fact, if you hear the voice of Jesus calling, you can rest assured that the Holy Spirit is already working in your heart.
    You have a responsibility to come to Him and believe and He will help you all along the way.
  • I Surrender All
Bethlehem Baptist Church
info@bbced.org
478-272-7827
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