So I have been very busy these past few weeks preparing a piece on John chapter 13 for class, and have spent some wonderful time in the farewell discourse following this (Chs. 14-17).
After spending sometime in John 16 (with wise direction of Dr. Andrew Sach), I have come to focus on the joy in being a Christian at this particular stage in Salvation History.
Jesus Christ has indeed died, and rose again, and further he has ascended to the Father to prepare a place for us. However, the awesomeness in doing this is, he has now sent his Spirit.
Jesus tells his disciples time after time throughout the farewell discourse, particularly in chapters 14 and 16, that is for the disciple inevitable -good- that Jesus leaves them. For if he does not leave, he cannot send his Spirit.
We see throughout the latter half of John (as it has also been expounded in the first half), that the Father gives ALL THINGS to Jesus, the Son (13:3), and the Son has revealed ALL THINGS to the Spirit (16:14), and the Spirit teaches ALL THINGS to the disciples (16:12-15).
What is the task of the disciples? Well, the Spirits Job is the convict the world (16:1-11), and this is through the disciples. And as Jesus prays for His disciples in Ch. 17, so he prays for all who believe (17:20ff.). The disciples, through their preached and written ministry and institution of the sacraments, and instruction in prayer and spiritual gifts reveal ALL THINGS to us now as followers.
We are now in a great place! Better even than the days when Jesus walked the earth. For now he is with us -by His Spirit- and teaches us the ways of all truth. When Jesus was on earth, the disciples only knew so much, and misunderstood so much more, but at the coming of the Spirit, they had been led into all truth. And so we learn the true ways of the Father through their teaching and example.
We now know the truth, the glory of the centrality of Jesus and his work, through the revelation of the spirit. If Jesus did not ascend to the Father, and did not then send the spirit, then where would we be? Praise God, that we are convicted and led into all truth by the Spirit through the Truth of the Word.
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