16 And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, that He may be with you forever; 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him. You know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
John 14: 16-17 LSB
John 14: 16-17
V.16 And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate - This follows Jesus telling His disciples that if they had seen Him then they had seen the Father. It also follows Him telling them that He is going to leave them to be with the Father. Now He is sending an advocate to be with them forever. This is the Holy Spirit.
…33Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34Who is there to condemn us? For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God— and He is interceding for us. 35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?… Romans 8: 33-35
…24But because Jesus lives forever, He has a permanent priesthood. 25Therefore He is able to save completely those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them. 26Such a high priest truly befits us—One who is holy, innocent, undefiled, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.… Hebrews 7: 24-26
1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate before the Father— Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.… 1 John 2: 1-2
…14For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you did not receive a spirit of slavery that returns you to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.… Romans 8: 14-16
Another (243) allos expresses a numerical difference and denotes "another of the same sort. Allos usually means “another of the same kind” while heteros denotes “another of a different kind or nature.” To say it another way allos is another numerically but of the same kind in contrast to heteros which means another but qualitatively, other, different one. Usually allos refers to “another” of the same kind, but on occasion it can refer to “another kind, different” (Liddell-Scott). Paul says "I see a different law," heteros, a law different from that of the spirit of life (not allos, "a law of the same sort"), Ro 7:23. After Joseph's death "another king arose," heteros, one of quite a different character, Acts 7:18. Paul speaks of "a different gospel (heteros), which is not another" (allos, another like the one he preached), Gal. 1:6-7.
It is interesting that the Greek word allos is the root of our word parallel, describing two lines extending in the same direction, equidistant at all points, and never converging or diverging. Is not this a picture of the Spirit as another Helper of the same kind as Jesus who was the Helper of the 11 disciples? It also follows that we ought to treat the Holy Spirit the way we would treat Jesus, never grieving or quenching Him.
Helper (Advocate, Comforter) (3875) parakletos from para = side of, alongside, beside + kaleo = to call) is the noun cognate of the verb parakaleo (see study) (cf also paraklesis) and literally means one called alongside. Parakletos describes one who stands by to help or render aid (especially in a court of law) or one who is summoned to the side of another to help, comfort, encourage, counsel, or intercede for, depending on the need. Interesting article from Wikipedia on Paraclete International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Paraclete - Precept Austin
(2.) The giver of this blessing: The Father shall give him, my Father and your Father; it includes both. The same that gave the Son to be our Saviour will give his Spirit to be our comforter, pursuant to the same design. The Son is said to send the Comforter (ch. 15 26), but the Father is the prime agent.
(3.) How this blessing is procured—by the intercession of the Lord Jesus: I will pray the Father. He said (v. 14) I will do it; here he saith, I will pray for it, to show not only that he is both God and man, but that he is both king and priest. As priest he is ordained for men to make intercession, as king he is authorized by the Father to execute judgment. When Christ saith, I will pray the Father, it does not suppose that the Father is unwilling, or must be importuned to it, but only that the gift of the Spirit is a fruit of Christ's mediation, purchased by his merit, and taken out by his intercession. - Matthew Henry
V. 17 The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive - The unbelieving world is in a state of being spiritually stillborn, yet physically, and mentally animated, it does not see itself as dead in it's trespasses and sins. We talked in our small group about places people look for truth, or the answers to universal problems, and some will look to politicians, some inside themselves, some to man made religion, some to hobbies or other interests, but Jesus makes the very exclusive claim that He is the way, the truth, and the life, the ultimate reality. So too, we se this of the Holy Spirit. The answer is outside of us, and we need Him to take up residence inside us.
Truth (225) aletheia from a = indicates following word has the opposite meaning ~ without + lanthano = to be hidden or concealed, to escape notice, cp our English "latent" from Latin = to lie hidden) has the literal sense of that which contains nothing hidden. Aletheia is that which is not concealed. Aletheia is that which that is seen or expressed as it really is (this idea is discussed more below).
The basic understanding of aletheia is that it is the manifestation of a hidden reality (eg, click discussion of Jesus as "the Truth"). For example, when you are a witness in a trial, the court attendant says "Raise your right hand. Do you swear that you will tell the truth and nothing but the truth so help you God?" And you say, "I do" and you sit down. The question the court attendant is asking is "Are you willing to come into this courtroom and manifest something that is hidden to us that only you know so that you will bear evidence to that?" Therefore when you speak the truth, you are manifesting a "hidden reality". Does that make sense? An parallel example in Scripture is the case of the woman in the crowd who had touched Jesus (Read context = Mk 5:24-25, 26-27, 28-29, 30, 31-32), but when she became "aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him, and told Him the whole truth " (Mk 5:33) and nothing but the truth. She did not lie. She spoke no falsehoods.
Truth then is the correspondence between a reality and a declaration which professes to set forth or describe the reality. To say it another way, words spoken or written are true when they correspond with objective reality. Persons and things are true when they correspond with their profession (which we describe with words like integrity, sincerity, non-hypocritical, etc). In other words, "what you see is what you get". Hence a truth is a declaration which has corresponding reality, or a reality which is correctly set forth. Since God is Himself the great reality, that which correctly sets forth His nature is pre-eminently the Truth of Creation (Natural Revelation) and the Truth of Scripture (Special Revelation). Thus it is not surprising that rebellious, sinful men actively hold down or suppress the Truth of Creation (and the glorious Creator) (Ro 1:18+) and even exchange the truth, the clearly manifested (and objective) reality (Creation) for the lie (Ro 1:25+). - Precept Austin
…20“The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the LORD. 21“As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD. “My Spirit will not depart from you, and My words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth or from the mouths of your children and grandchildren, from now on and forevermore,” says the LORD. Isaiah 59: 20-21
…26I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances. 28Then you will live in the land that I gave your forefathers; you will be My people, and I will be your God.… Ezekiel 36: 26-28
V. 17b Because it does not see Him or know Him - He doesn't say, "it', but rather, 'Him", the Holy Spirit is a person. Jesus was also called The Truth, and so few recognized Him. We are made alive through the Spirit, Who points us to Christ, Who is our life, our atonement, and in Him we are adopted by the Father. It is a Trinitarian work, not of our flesh, and it is relational, as God is One Being but three persons, and we are brought into this, reconciled by the life and death of Christ applied by the Spirit to those called elect by the Father. The world does not recognize this, the need of Christ life or death, for it sees itself as either deserving in it's own works or indifferent. We have to be born of the Spirit.
…13And this is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. 14 The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment.… 1 Corinthians 2: 13-15
iii. “Between Christ on earth and his disciples what a distance there was! In his condescension he came very near to them; but yet you always perceive a gulf between the wise Master and the foolish disciples. Now the Holy Ghost annihilates that distance by dwelling in us.” (Spurgeon)
(2.) "He is the Spirit of truth." He will be true to you, and to his undertaking for you, which he will perform to the utmost. He will teach you the truth, will enlighten your minds with the knowledge of it, will strengthen and confirm your belief of it, and will increase your love to it. The Gentiles by their idolatries, and the Jews by their traditions, were led into gross errors and mistakes; but the Spirit of truth shall not only lead you into all truth, but others by your ministry. Christ is the truth, and he is the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit that he was anointed with.
(3.) He is one whom the world cannot receive; but you know him. Therefore he abideth with you. [1.] The disciples of Christ are here distinguished from the world, for they are chosen and called out of the world that lies in wickedness; they are the children and heirs of another world, not of this. [2.] It is the misery of those that are invincibly devoted to the world that they cannot receive the Spirit of truth. The spirit of the world and of God are spoken of as directly contrary the one to the other (1 Cor 2 12); for where the spirit of the world has the ascendant, the Spirit of God is excluded. Even the princes of this world, though, as princes, they had advantages of knowledge, yet, as princes of this world, they laboured under invincible prejudices, so that they knew not the things of the Spirit of God, 1 Cor 2 8. [3.] Therefore men cannot receive the Spirit of truth because they see him not, neither know him. The comforts of the Spirit are foolishness to them, as much as ever the cross of Christ was, and the great things of the gospel, like those of the law, are counted as a strange thing. These are judgments far above out of their sight. Speak to the children of this world of the operations of the Spirit, and you are as a barbarian to them. [4.] The best knowledge of the Spirit of truth is that which is got by experience: You know him, for he dwelleth with you. Christ had dwelt with them, and by their acquaintance with him they could not but know the Spirit of truth. They had themselves been endued with the Spirit in some measure. What enabled them to leave all to follow Christ, and to continue with him in his temptations? What enabled them to preach the gospel, and work miracles, but the Spirit dwelling in them? The experiences of the saints are the explications of the promises; paradoxes to others are axioms to them. [5.] Those that have an experimental acquaintance with the Spirit have a comfortable assurance of his continuance: He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you, for the blessed Spirit doth not use to shift his lodging. Those that know him know how to value him, invite him and bid him welcome; and therefore he shall be in them, as the light in the air, as the sap in the tree, as the soul in the body. Their communion with him shall be intimate, and their union with him inseparable. [6.] The gift of the Holy Ghost is a peculiar gift, bestowed upon the disciples of Christ in a distinguishing way—them, and not the world; it is to them hidden manna, and the white stone. No comforts comparable to those which make no show, make no noise. This is the favour God bears to his chosen; it is the heritage of those that fear his name. - Matthew Henry
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