St. John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15
Divine Service
Feast of Pentecost 

Dear brothers and Sisters in Christ:

For the past few weeks we have been looking at the section in the gospel of John where Jesus spends the last hours with his disciples on Maundy Thursday; the day before Good Friday and Jesus’ crucifixion on the cross.  Jesus spends this time with his disciples in order to comfort them and to encourage them.  Our lesson today is no different.  We find that Jesus promises to send to his disciples the Holy Spirit.  For even though Jesus would leave them for a very short time when he died on the cross and 40 days later he would leave them physically, Jesus still promised to be always with them.  We are going to examine how Jesus was planning to always be with the disciples.  It was by the Holy Spirit.  We also remember when Jesus ascended into heaven the promise he gave to his disciples that “they should make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” and Jesus continues, “...and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt 28:20).  Jesus said that even though he was ascended into heaven, he would still be with His disciples.  We know Jesus is with us today.  Jesus physically leaves this earth.  Jesus goes to his Father in order to send the Holy Spirit. 

The reaction of the disciples is very different as Jesus speaks to them at the beginning of our text.  We hear his Words: "Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, `Where are you going?’” It wasn’t that long ago when Jesus said he had to go to Jerusalem to suffer and to die.  It wasn’t that long ago when Jesus told his disciples that he was going to leave.  They asked, "Where are you going," because they did not know.  When Jesus had told them he was going to die, Thomas said, “We will go with you.  We will die with you also.” Now as Jesus is getting very close to the time of his death and says, “I am going to leave; I am going to my Heavenly Father,” they don’t even ask him, “Where are you going?” By faith that God had worked in their hearts through grace, the disciples know.  They believe that Jesus is going to return to his Heavenly Father. 

But there is also another reaction: “Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief.” The disciples were very close to Jesus.  The disciples were emotionally attached to Jesus.  Yes, they understood that he had to leave them.  But, they were not anxious to see him go away.  They didn’t want to lose the One that they loved.  They would miss Jesus, so they were filled with grief at the sense of their loss. 

Again, Jesus comes back to that comfort.  Jesus reminds them it is for their good.  He says: “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away.” It was for their good that Jesus was going away to die on the cross, because their sins would be forgiven.  It was for their good that he would ascend into heaven 40 days after his resurrection, because Jesus would send the Spirit.  He says that: “Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” The word Counselor here was going to counsel them or we could say comforts them.  Different translations use different words to describe that same person of the Trinity – Helper, Counselor, Comforter, and some use Paraclete, which means the same thing (Paraclete simply pronounces the Greek).  We know him as the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost.  Jesus understands that his disciples are sad that He is leaving, but He is going to send the Holy Spirit to them.

That is what we review today on Pentecost.  We heard it our Epistle lesson from Acts.  When the Holy Spirit comes to the disciples, it is 50 days after Jesus’ resurrection; just 10 days after his ascension.  The disciples’ reaction was that they understood and, yes, they were sad.  They knew this all by grace, by God’s Spirit.  It is no different today.  The Lord reminds us that none of us comes to faith on our own.  It is the Holy Spirit who works faith in our hearts.  It is God himself who changes our hearts of stone into a heart of flesh that we might believe in him and worship him and praise him.  There are some today who still teach that we have to decide to accept Jesus.  No, the Lord has decided to accept us, and God gives us this divine knowledge of salvation through his Spirit.  Listen to Paul in Corinthians as he writes: “Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, ’Jesus be cursed,’ and no one can say, ’Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:3).  Now for most of us we received the special gift of the Holy Spirit at our baptism.  (As have Brianna and Alliyha today.)  We still receive his gift every time we study the Bible and hear God’s holy Word, as we continually grow in our faith.  The power of the word reveals more and more to us about the mystery of salvation, and by grace we are saved through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

If we had gathered together with Jesus in the Upper Room like those early disciples, we probably would have felt exactly the same way.  We would be full of grief that Jesus was leaving; and yet we also would have hope, hope because Jesus promises the Holy Spirit, hope because he promises eternal life.  That is the hope we have today.  So what has happened to the world around us? As we get out in society, we don’t hear much about hope.  Rather, we hear about hopelessness.  We hear about despair and sorrow and worries.  Too often that does affects us.  How did that big change come about? It comes about because of our society.  Our society puts its hope in things that it can see and feel and touch.  Great hope is put in the fact that to be successful, we have to have lots of money saved up.  To be successful, we have to have lots of things.  Yet, a hope like that is not a lasting hope.  Paul describes for us in Romans: "For in this hope we were saved.  But hope that is seen is no hope at all.  Who hopes for what he already has?" (Rom. 8:24).  So those things that we see don’t offer us much hope.  We must focus our attention on the fact that Jesus is at God’s right hand.

Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit to remind us that our hope is not seen.  It is something that cannot be seen.  Our hope and our joy is the fact that our sins are forgiven.  Yes, it was a despicable way in which they had to be forgiven.  Jesus had to die on the cross: not for any sin of his own, but our sins.  What hope that provides for us!  What comfort!  When it seems that everything else is coming crashing down around our ears, we are reminded to turn to the Lord.  We remember that our sins are forgiven.  Heaven is our home.  Isaiah says: "In that day you will say: ’I will praise you, O LORD.  Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me.  Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid’" (Isaiah 12:1,2a).  That is where we put our hope.  That is what it means – that Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to comfort us, his disciples.  In order to send the Holy Spirit Jesus had to return to his Holy Father.  Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to comfort the disciples and, as we see in this next section, to convince the world. 

We remember the promises Jesus made to his disciples and the fulfillment.  He says: “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.”  They are looking forward to that time when the Holy Spirit comes.  We saw the fulfillment on the Day of Pentecost.  Now the Holy Spirit was not coming just for those 12 disciples.  Jesus is also going to come to reveal himself and God’s Word and judgment and justice to the world through the Holy Spirit. 

“When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.”  First let’s look at the word "convict." The Holy Spirit is going to "convict" which is in this translation and may seem too strong.  We can see the Holy Spirit convicting the world in regard to sin or declaring it guilty.  But concerning righteousness it is harder to see the Gospel message in that word "convict." The original root of "convict" also goes back to "convince." "Convince" is almost like "convict," but not as strong.  To convince is to show or offer by proof.  The Holy Spirit is going to come and convince the world in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.  Rather than pronounce "judgment" like the word "conviction" implies the word is better understood as convince – to have them understand. 

Jesus explains by saying the Holy Spirit will convince the world of guilt “in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me.”  After Adam and Eve sinned, unbelief entered the world, didn’t it?  Cain kills his brother, because he doesn’t believe the promises of God.  Pharaoh hardens his heart.  Judas betrays the Master.  Men simply don’t believe.  Men reject God and his Word.  Men put their trust and hope in themselves, and they will die in their sin.  The Holy Spirit will show them that.

Jesus continues: When the Holy Spirit comes, he will convince the world that “in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer.”  This is the righteousness of Christ.  Remember, this is still Maundy Thursday – the disciples are going to see that very visibly the next day.  On Good Friday they see Jesus on the cross.  They see his blood shed, his life poured out and realize the sacrifice Jesus made is to cover up their unrighteousness.  The Holy Spirit will remind mankind of that – that the world is unrighteousness, but the Savior who came was righteous. 

Then finally Jesus says: When the Holy Spirit comes, he will convince the world “in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.”  So it was that as Maundy Thursday continued the devil thought he had his way when Judas betrayed the Savior.  Satan felt he won as Jesus died on the cross.  The devil thought he was the winner.  But Jesus came back to life; and when Jesus came back to life, Satan stood judged once again: this time forever.  He would never, ever win the victory, because Christ was victorious. 

The Holy Spirit, part of the Triune God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – reminds us that we are sinners.  We cannot escape that fact.  We have been born with a sinful nature.  It is going to be with us as long as we have flesh and blood and live on this earth.  It permeates our every thought and action and intention.  Isaiah says all of our righteous acts are like filthy rags and like the wind our sins sweep us away.  On the High Plains we understand the power of wind and what it can do and how relentless it can be at times.  That is our sin, and we cannot dismiss it.  We cannot excuse it.  We cannot cover it up.  In the first letter of John we are told: "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8).  Yet, how often have we heard, "People are going to get into heaven because they have done good things.  They lived a good life.  They haven’t done things that are so bad."  Yet, that is the sin of pride. 

Today as we are reminded, yes, we are sinners; but what else does the Holy Spirit also show us? He shows us that our sins are forgiven.  He works faith in our hearts that by God’s grace we understand the righteousness of God.  The righteousness of God was something that Martin Luther struggled with for a long time in his life.  God’s righteousness was almost too much for Luther to handle.  He struggled with it, because he did not understand how he, a sinner, could stand in front of the righteous God.  Martin Luther was troubled until he realized that righteousness of God covered up his unrighteousness.  This wonderful revelation was worked in him by God’s grace, the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Our sins are forgiven and we say, "Thank you, Jesus.  Thank you for your forgiveness.  1 Peter tells us: "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.  He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit" (1 Peter 3:18). 

Again, that power of the Holy Spirit makes us alive by faith.  We have been given the victory, the victory to defeat the enemies that stand against us.  Oh yes, Satan will still try to inflict us.  The devil will still try to tempt us and deceive us and lead us astray; but Christ has overcome him.  Christ gives us the power to overcome Satan.  Listen to this from Psalm 13: "My enemy will say, ’I have overcome him,’ and my foes will rejoice when I fall.  But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.  I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me" (Psalm 13:4-6).  At times it can seem that our enemies may overcome us.  They may rejoice in our shortcomings, yet we rejoice in the strength in our Savior.  We rejoice in the hope and comfort that God gives us by grace through the Holy Spirit. 

As Paul writes to Titus: "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:4,5).  Jesus has sent us His Holy Spirit to comfort us and to convince us.  Therefore we believe in Christ our Savior and God His Father and the Holy Spirit, our Counselor and Comforter, all by grace. 

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.  Amen

+ SDG +

Sermons | Sermon Archives