The Holy Guest
John 16:1-16
1 "All this I have told you so that you will not go astray.
2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.
3 They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me.
4 I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you. I did not tell you this at first because I was with you.
5 "Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, ’Where are you going?’
6 Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief.
7 But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
8 When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:
9 in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me;
10 in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer;
11 and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
12 "I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
16 "In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me."
Do you believe in ghosts? I do. The Bible tells us that there is a spirit world, composed of good and evil spirits. The good spirits are called “angels,” and the evil spirits are called “demons” or “devils.”
In the KJV of the Bible we find the Third Person of the Trinity referred to as the “Holy Ghost.” Perhaps those translators were right after all, for the word “Ghost” in the old Saxon was the same as the word for “Guest.” So it can certainly be said that the Holy Spirit is the “Guest of the Soul” or, “The Holy Guest.”
This is Pentecost Sunday—the day marking the time when the Holy Spirit came upon the early believers in Jerusalem. He has come into the world and visits every heart—seeking admittance. He may come TO the soul without being asked, but He will not come IN unless He is invited to do so. He may be unwelcome. He may be rejected. But He comes. He’s in the world like Noah’s dove, looking for an abiding place. He forces Himself upon no one. He waits for the open door and the invitation to enter.
He comes gently. He comes in love. He comes on a mission of good will, mercy, peace, and joy. He comes to exalt Jesus.
There are some things the Spirit of God is not.
He is not an “it.” He is a distinct Personality. He can be lied to and grieved.
He is not a substitute for God—He IS God!
He is not imaginary, but real and relevant. We should not think that because something is invisible, it is therefore unimportant or weak. A case in point is air:
- holds giant airplanes aloft
- can snap a tree in two
- can demolish a whole city
- under pressure it can bring a semi to a screeching halt, break up concrete, loosen or tighten lug nuts on your car’s wheels.
Air—that’s all, just air. You can’t feel it or see it or smell it—unless it’s polluted. But it keeps you alive every minute. If you go without it for 5 minutes, you’ll be brain-damaged or dead. We just can’t live without it.
The Bible calls the Holy Spirit “the breath of God.” Wind is used as a symbol for the Spirit. Just because you can’t see the Holy Spirit, don’t assume that He is not present or real.
As a matter of fact, He is here right now.
The Spirit is not passive, but active and involved. His work on earth is basically among two classifications of people: Christians and non-Christians.
Verses 13-15 of our passage describe His work among Christians. He guides us into all truth. He matures us, He sanctifies us wholly. He comforts us. He gives us hope. He glorifies Christ—not Himself.
Verses 8-11 describe what the Spirit of God does among non-Christians. It’s an almost perfect summary of His work as it relates to salvation.
The word that John uses in verse 8 to describe the work of the Spirit is variously translated—reprove, convict, convince. The Greek word is elegchein which is used for the cross-examination of a witness, or a person on trial, or an opponent in an argument.
Cross-examination can do 2 things:
(1) convict someone of the crime he has committed or the wrong he has done;
(2) convince a person of the weakness of his own case
So let’s go on to see what Jesus says the Holy Spirit will do.
1. He Convicts Men of Sin (unbelief)
We must be convinced that we are sinful by nature and under the control of Satan, else we will never see our need of a Savior.
When the Jews crucified Jesus, they did not believe that they were sinning. They believed that they were serving God! But when the story of that crucifixion was later preached by Peter in Acts 2, the Bible says that they were under terrible conviction (vs.37) –“cut to the heart” is the way the NIV puts it.
What is it that gives men a sense of sin? It is the work of the Holy Spirit!
George Whitefield’s brother heard him preach and came under deep conviction. He shared his terrible feeling of being lost at lunch with some friends. A Christian lady at the table told him how glad she was that he felt this way because the Bible says, “The Son of man is come to save that which is lost.” Right then and there, in that restaurant, he received Christ and was born again into the family of God. An hour later he was dead—but not until after he had been found.
Professional Golfer Under Conviction
A well-known professional golfer was playing in a tournament with President Gerald Ford, fellow pro Jack Nicklaus, and Billy Graham. After the round was over, one of the other pros on the tour asked, “Hey, what was it like playing with the President and Billy Graham?” The pro said with disgust, “I don’t need Billy Graham stuffing religion down my throat!” With that he headed for the practice tee. His friend followed, and after the golfer had pounded out his fury on a bucket of golf balls, he asked, “Was Billy a little rough on you out there?” The pro sighed and said with embarrassment, “No, he didn’t even mention religion.” Astonishingly, Billy Graham had said nothing about God, Jesus, or religion, yet the pro stomped away after the game accusing Billy of trying to ram religion down his throat.
R.C. Sproul, The Holiness of God
2. He Convinces Men of Righteousness
What does this mean? Jesus was referring to His own righteousness.
It simply means that we come to the conviction that Jesus was exactly who He claimed to be and more—the Holy One, God Almighty—without sin, and love in all it’s perfection.
When we become convinced of Christ’s righteousness, we then see ourselves as unrighteous in comparison. Our mouths are stopped, our eyes are opened. We can only cry, as did the leper, “Unclean, I am unclean; oh, make me clean! If You will, You can make me clean.”
The Holy Spirit is trying to get us to stop comparing ourselves to others. When we do this we will always look good to ourselves. He’s trying to draw our attention away from ourselves and get us to focus on Christ.
What convinces men that this is all true? It is the work of the Holy Spirit!
3. He Convinces Men of Judgment
Why do we feel that we are someday have to give an account for the way we have lived? Why this fear of death? How is it that we know deep down inside that we must answer for our sins someday? It is the work of the Holy Spirit!
Heb 9:27: “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment…”
II Cor.5:10: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive good or evil, according to what he has done.”
Eccl.12:14: “God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.”
Romans 14:12: “So each of us shall give account of himself to God.”
Illus.: “No Hell, No Job”
On an American battleship during the war, sailors crowded around their chaplain, asking, “Do you believe in judgment and hell?” He answered, “I do not.” Then they said, “In that case, will you please resign, for if there is no hell, we do not need you; and if there is a hell we do not wish to be led astray.”
Illus.: “Is There a Hell?”
An evangelist was once in a general store in a small town in Wisconsin. An old gentleman sat by a pot-bellied stove, surrounded by quite a crowd. He was making a speech about hell and about preachers. The evangelist had just come into the store when he heard him say, "D“ you know what these are trying to do? They’re trying to scare us. And if they can scare us into thinking there is a judgment and a hell, then they will get us to give more money and work to the church. I’ll tell you one thing: nobody is ever going to prove to me that there is a hell. The preachers get up and talk about it so that we will keep coming to church.”
Well, when he had finished his speech, it was the evangelist turn. He pushed into the crowd and said, “Sir, you say there is no hell, but Jesus said that there is. Now I think you men ought to take Jesus’ word instead of his. You say that God made hell for people and therefore He wasn’t a God of love. Actually, God did not make hell for people at all. According to the Bible, hell was prepared for the devil and his demons (Matt.25:41). The only way we can escape it is by believing in Jesus. Preachers don’t like to preach on hell. They are just trying to bring you to a saving knowledge of Christ.”
When the evangelist finished, the old gentleman said to him, “What are you, some kind of salesman?” “No, I’m a preacher and I’m beginning a crusade at First Church tomorrow.” The old gentleman put out his hand and said, “Well, put ‘er there. I’m a deacon in that church.”
The evangelist replied, “Well, if you’re a deacon in that church, I know what I’m going to preach about in the morning.”
It was the first time he ever began a series of meetings by preaching on hell and the day of judgment---and a certain deacon was at the altar when the invitation was given.
Can’t we also say that this is the work of the Holy Spirit today? He convicts the world of sin and points people toward the Lamb of God. He convicts people of the righteousness of Christ and reminds them that they must have that righteousness to be saved. He convicts men today of judgment, reminding them that one day they must face God.
God’s purpose in convicting us is so that we might be converted! Why? So that we shall not be condemned!
Why should God even care about us? We break His laws. We break His heart. We ignore His Son. We go our own way. We spurn His love, turn away from the cross, and refuse His offer of salvation.
And all the time God the Holy Spirit keeps on trying to win our affection.
Illus.: “The Convicting Word”
A salesman had been stealing from his company. He knew it was wrong, but he kept trying to block out what his conscience was saying. He would seek pleasure nightly, going to bars and drinking and gambling and being with several women. One night, in a motel room, he was sharpening an old-fashioned razor blade. He couldn’t find a piece of paper to wipe the edge off, so he tore a page out of a Gideon Bible. His eye caught these words on that piece of scripture: “For the wages of sin is death…” Conviction struck his heart and after reading the Bible for two hours, he knelt down by the bed and received Christ. He made a full confession, but was not prosecuted. Arrangements were made for him to repay the money he had stolen monthly.
You see, this is the work of the Holy Guest. He convicts, He woos, He draws us to the Savior. And its all prompted by the amazing love of God.
Has God been speaking to you today? Has He been calling you to Himself? Why not answer His call. He loves you and wants to redeem you.
