11-04-2018 – The Holy Spirit Convicts & Comforts
This is the bulletin insert. The complete sermon notes are also available below.
11-04-2018 - The Holy Spirit Convicts & Comforts
John 16:1-15
Read John 16:1-4... “These things” refer to what Jesus said in John 15:18-25.
•The world hated Jesus, it hates His followers.
•The world persecuted Jesus, it persecutes His followers. •The world is guilty of the sin of rejecting Jesus Christ.
2Timothy 3:12-13, “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”
Paul previously hated Christians (see Acts 26:9-11). Read John 16:5-6... Jesus previously told them He will
be rejected, arrested and crucified. But the worse will be the Father turning away from Him (Matthew 27:46), “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
The disciples think only about their own sorrow, they totally overlook the pain and suffering of Jesus.
Read John 16:7-11... Jesus speaks of the supernatural Comforter who’ll come after Christ ascends back to the Father (see John 14:16-17; 25-26; 15:26-27).
The Holy Spirit seeks to convict unbelievers in their heart of their need for Christ, but the devil blinds them (see 2Corinthians 4).
Rejecting Jesus as the Son of God is the unpardonable sin, condemning a person to hell (see John 3:14-16, 36; 6:28-29; 8:24-25; 10:30; 14:6).
In John 12:31-32 Jesus says, “Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” In John 14:30 He says, “the ruler of the world is coming,” and now (John 16:11) He says, “the ruler of this world has been judged.”
Satan is defeated and judged by Jesus Christ, Who is the truth, Satan is the Father of lies (John 8:44), “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
Read John 16:12-15... The disciples, so consumed with their own sorrow, miss the divine message of the cross.
Only after Jesus’ death and resurrection will they be able to understand what He has been telling them; for the Helper [Holy Spirit] will enable them to understand and accomplish God’s will.
Jesus is speaking of divine truth, that will equip and enable them to proclaim the message of forgiveness and eternal life through Christ (see John 14:26; 15:26-27) 2Peter 1:20-21, “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. 21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (NIV 1984)
2Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (NIV 1984)
The Holy Spirit convicts, so you will believe in Jesus, at which time you’ll experience the comfort and confirmation that you have been granted eternal life.
Do you have that assurance? If you aren’t sure, ask the Lord right now, He turns no one away.
Admit you’re a sinner, we all are (Romans 3:10, 23)...
Believe that Jesus can save you; He is the only means of salvation (Romans 6:23): the only Way to God, the only Truth of God, the only Life with God...
Confess your sinfulness to Him and He will forgive all your sins: past, present, future (Romans 5:8; 8:1)...
Demonstrate the new life you have received in Christ (2Corinthians 5:17; Hebrews 10:24-25)...
Read the Bible daily, obey what you understand... Pray to God throughout your day...
Participate in a local God-honoring church...
1John 5:11-13, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”