Papa, are we there yet?

The disciples, in ways they were much like the grand kids on a longer trip saying, "papa, are we there yet?"

But how much do I still sound like this, for sometimes I find myself doing and thinking the same things as the disciples did.

John 16, it seems, should be the epic heroes tale, with Jesus as the hero telling his troops (the boys) about the things of the future, a conquering victor, a life with that victor, and an end of the story that is beyond comprehension and belief, for nothing has ever turned out that good, except for one thing; this life they have lived in his presence.

Now if that is the way they thought then the idea of Jesus leaving them must have been unconscionable. If you are honest as you read chapter 16 you can see what I am talking about.

I did not lead this last Sunday, our co-leader did, but I always go ready; one never knows, besides, didn't Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tell us that we are to be ready all the time.

2 Timothy 4:2 GW  Be ready to spread the word whether or not the time is right. Point out errors, warn people, and encourage them. Be very patient when you teach.

So when my partner threw out his first question, and you could cut the silence with a knife, I jumped in (I always have something to say.) Many times I refrain from saying things because I want the guys to interact. Interaction tells me that you are either learning, or at least invested in the story. We did not cover the rest of the chapter the way I would have, but we finished.

I am not done yet. Let's pick this up at John 16:13

John 16:13 ASV Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth: for he shall not speak from himself; but what things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak: and he shall declare unto you the things that are to come.

John 16:13 MKJV However, when He, the Spirit of Truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth. For He shall not speak of Himself, but whatever He hears, He shall speak. And He will announce to you things to come.

I am not the great theologian. If I were I would dissect this section where it talks about, “when He, the Spirit of Truth, has come,...”

This seems so impersonal, so vague, and yet we should understand that Jesus interacted with this same spirit when he was in the presence of the Father.

I could be wrong in interpreting this but it seems that Jesus was speaking of himself, not the spirit, when he said this:

John 14:18 I will not leave you orphans. I will come to you. 

Loosely I could say he fulfilled this promise after he rose from the dead. He could not make this promise once he departed back to the Father, which was the trigger for the Holy Spirit to come, because none of the disciples would live on forever. Many died within months of this oration; others, like John, lived on for many years. And yet none had a physical visitation from Jesus Christ, (I think). 

Having read the book, “The Shack”, where the Holy Spirit is an ethereal, undefinable entity, that seems to move as though he is responding to the slightest breeze. It becomes difficult to think of it as a he. Why not? Jesus came from the Father, so does the Spirit; Jesus does only what the Father tells him, so does the spirit. So the Spirit and Jesus fully carry the importance, and duty of the Father.

How would you go about trying to define the Holy Spirit, that is going to replace him, to a bunch of guys that apparently are coming apart at the seams?

“when the Spirit of truth comes,”

We already understand that Jesus had laid out what would occur: his death, his resurrection, his ascent to the Father, and his word that they Comforter would come to them. This is all in the near future to them.

Spirit of – pneuma – We find this throughout scripture. This is the Holy Spirit.

Jude 1:20-21 NASB But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, (21) keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

2 Timothy 1:12-14 NASB For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. (13) Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. (14) Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.

1 John 4:13 NASB By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.

Truth – alētheia - what is true in any matter under consideration.

This concept is something I ran across while involved in the faith movement. I had no idea that the Word itself conveyed this meaning. Circumstances may say otherwise but God's word is true regardless of the circumstances around you.

Comes – to be established, find its place, become known, and shows itself.

 “he will lead you into all the truth;”

hodēgeō - to be a guide, lead on one’s way, to guide.

I suppose that all we have to do is to trust him. Having been raised to be negative and not trust, I find it difficult at times to decide whose voice I am hearing. Therefore, We are forced to live by faith and have to learn to trust.

Again, the wide view is to say that with the Holy Spirit to guide me, then I probably do not need a pastor. Somehow I feel like this is inappropriate, and yet how much less appropriate is it to argue against God's word. 

I will be honest. I go to church, and I enjoy my Pastor's messages. My concept of Pastor has had to change as I have a variety of relationships with such. This one has been my pastor for about seven years and we have shaken hands, perhaps twice. Compare this lack of contact with the pastor that I used to ride motorcycles with. I suppose that is the drawback of a large church. Selah.

Sometimes though, like when I have been up since sunrise, and now, hours later, I am sitting in a comfortable chair, I fall asleep, far too often. 

If I were to choose my greatest reason for being at church I would have to say that it is the people, for so many of these people have become family to me. 

Yes, I deeply value worship. It is the time that opens me up spiritually, and I always find myself pouring my heart out in prayer during worship. But having “family” that understands and makes themselves available when I am struggling, and they with me is the most important. Honestly, if each one of us has the Holy Spirit in them, capable of teaching them, and guiding them, then our greatest draw should be the interaction with others.
If you have no idea what I am talking about, then I suggest you come to know this Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit will come into you and fill you with the power and presence of the living God. You will be a member of the family and Jesus will come to restore us to the Father once again.

Time is short. Practice loving on people and enjoy this life we have in Christ.

If you do not know this Jesus, nor have a hope of salvation from the onslaught that is coming, I suggest that you give him your life and take his in return. Jesus said he would come into you and abide in you, that is the Holy Spirit of God he is talking about. Along with this relationship comes an assurance that he will come again and take you to be with him and the Father in  a lasting, eternal relationship. A life that is beyond anything  that you can imagine (I, and others, have come up  with some wild scenarios like plants that light up when you touch them or make music as they emit colors).

Enough weirdness. Just know that God  loves you and longs to have you rejoin the family.

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This is that! 1of 2

The girlfriend asked me, "so what do you want to study?" 

My answer was, I am usually motivated to dive into whatever has challenged me or I whatever has made me feel the need to understand something more completely. Such was the case with men's bible study over the last two weeks. 

You cannot possibly do the scriptures justice in five words or less. Mind you there are good reasons for giving overviews of an entire book of the bible in one hour, but trust me, all the listener will get, if they do not dig themselves, is an overview that they will most likely forget. The entire gospel of John, is that way to me. I need to absorb it.

John 16 is filled with emotion, both as Jesus wrestles through to his purpose, and the disciples struggle with, what did he just say! We are losing him? But they are not losing him; try telling them that. That is exactly what Jesus was trying to do.

John 16:7-8 BBE  But what I am saying is true: my going is for your good: 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 he, when he comes, will make the world conscious of sin, and of righteousness, and of being judged:

He told them, I am going away, but it is for your good. 

Now let me get this straight. We have walked around with you for three years. Judas has taken money out of the bag on a continual basis and it never had an impact on us financially. Our families have never been without or sick the entire time, and you say your leaving will be better. Have you lost your mind?

That might have been the way it played out in their minds. I think it is a mistake to assign them some holy status that they did not have, and therefore would have been far above human reasoning and pain. Please, spare me. They were men, and they did not get it.

"...if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you...."  

We should all know the way this went. 

He was beaten by the religious leadership and then handed over to the Romans who gave him a beating that most would not have survived. Jewish leaders demanded his death and got it. 

The disciples were devastated. 

Peter quit and went back to fishing. When Jesus found him there, there were several other disciples there with him.

Almost like rallying the troops, Jesus has re-appeared to many (over 400) and told them to wait for the Paraclete to come. I cannot begin to understand what that word meant to them. Translated some have called it a friend, and yet can almost carry a legalistic tone as a mediator. 

The idea that the Holy Spirit is a helper is easier to swallow, but Jesus, when explaining it moments later said, "I". The Holy Spirit is no less God than He was, and instead of being outside talking to us, demonstrating how to act and walk, He is now inside. I do not think we grasp that; I know I don't. Jesus was God in the flesh. The Holy Spirit is God inside of us.

What have we got so far? Jesus died, rose again from the dead, and, on the day of Pentecost, the Spirit came, just as he said it would.

Now here is what I really to want to talk about.

John 16:8 NASB  "And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;

Hang around any religious circles and you will hear the term conviction come up. It usually applies to you and what you are doing wrong. But pay attention to what Jesus said:

"when He comes..." Who? The Holy Spirit, and He did already. 

Peter, after hearing the mockery and insults coming from the religious crowd outside, responded under the power this new Spirit inside of him with, 

"but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:  (17)  'AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,' God says, 'THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND; AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS, AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS; ......." (Acts 2:16-17 NASB). 

Peter did not stop there, but you will have your eyes opened if you will read it, in its entirety, from Joel chapter 2. He is talking, under the power of the Holy Spirit, about the end of time, the years which we call the great tribulation. Does anyone see anything positive when they envision the tribulation years? No! And yet God has told us that during this time HE will pour out his SPIRIT on all mankind. Why do you think that when John sees the martyred before the throne, the second time, that there is an uncountable multitude? Because of His spirit being poured out.

Luke 9:26 "For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 

Luke 12:37 "Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them. 

2Thessalonians 1:10 when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed--for our testimony to you was believed. 

John 16:9 NASB concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;

So what is sin in this case? Sin – hamartia – also means offense or failure.

Think in terms of offenses to God. While we pursue money and think this is ok, apparently God has a different idea.

Revelation 18:4 NASB I heard another voice from heaven, saying, "Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins (OFFENSES) and receive of her plagues (the beatings that “she” is about to receive because of her blatant actions); [Italics - mine.]

The word plagues, used above, is the Greek word plēgē and means blows, stripes, a wound, public calamity, or heavy affliction.

The answer to the question above actually comes from the previous verse:

Revelation 18:3 NASB "For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality."

Her/she is the lust for money and power. 

Revelation 18:2 NASB And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird.

Nations are wrapped up in her. The Kings of the earth are possessed by her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by her. 

There is a commonality here, money and greed. 

Look around you, all these players have come together under the cloak of NWO, Illuminati, World Health Organization, Common Wealth of Nations, Agenda 21, and have killed and poisoned the population in order to thin the herds, so to speak. It is a mass, concerted effort.

We are knowingly being poisoned on a daily basis, by aerial spraying, aspartame, and fluoride (known poisons in just about everything that is deemed convenience food), just to name a few. We call these conspiracy theories because the concept of a small handful of people attempting to control the world is so outlandish and unbelievable, but getting to you live in a state of unbelief is exactly what they are hoping for; that is until they have such a grip that you cannot do a thing about it. 

Perhaps this will help to open your eyes.

"We are grateful to the Washington Post, the New York Times, Time Magazine and other great publications whose directors have attended our meetings and respected their promises of discretion for almost forty years."

He went on to explain:

"It would have been impossible for us to develop our plan for the world if we had been subjected to the lights of publicity during those years. But, the world is more sophisticated and prepared to march towards a world government. The supranational sovereignty of an intellectual elite and world bankers is surely preferable to the national auto-determination practiced in past centuries."

-- David Rockefeller, Speaking at the June, 1991 Bilderberger meeting in Baden, Germany (a meeting also attended by then-Governor Bill Clinton and by Dan Quayle

Where is the tie in with scripture? Revelation 18:5 Haven't you ever read the Revelation and wondered why it comes crashing down on what is left of the horrors of humanity with such a vengeance?

Revelation 18:5-20 NASB (5) for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. (6) "Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her. (7) "To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, 'I SIT as A QUEEN AND I AM NOT A WIDOW, and will never see mourning.' (8) "For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong. (9) "And the kings of the earth, who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning, (10) standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.' (11) "And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes any more-- (12) cargoes of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and every kind of citron wood and every article of ivory and every article made from very costly wood and bronze and iron and marble, (13) and cinnamon and spice and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and cargoes of horses and chariots and slaves and human lives. (14) "The fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and men will no longer find them. (15) "The merchants of these things, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning, (16) saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, she who was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls; (17) for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!' And every ship master and every passenger and sailor, and as many as make their living by the sea, stood at a distance, (18) and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, 'What city is like the great city?' (19) "And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth, for in one hour she has been laid waste!' (20) "Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her."

It is as though the scripture speaks in code. Most will not understand this, even if explained to them.

Ask yourself, who are the players in this scenario?

What is their attitude? 

What is their goal? 

And who takes the brunt of their desires? 

I would say the world but that is really to broad. It is the poor, the broken, the destitute, and those that may live their lives just getting by. Those that take the attitude, I am rich and have need of nothing, not even a savior, they are ones that he is speaking about.

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