God- Holy Spirit

Notes out- get it while it's hot.

Read John 14:15-27 and John 15:18-16:15.

1. Who does Jesus say will send the Holy Spirit? And when will this happen?
   
   

Jesus is the sender of the Holy Spirit, who is described in v26 as the ‘Advocate’ and the ‘Spirit of Truth’. Jesus told the disciples that the Holy Spirit would come when He left (v7).

But that’s the Sunday School answer- let’s pick it up.

The first thing which I want to point out is the consistency to which God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are described as being the same person/entity. In v,26 ‘When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father’… we catch a glimpse of the relationship between these 3 aspects;

i. God as Father; We have Jesus referring to God as Father. In remembering Jesus redefining the concept as God function in a father in the sense of a firm disciplinarian, but as a ‘Dad’ who wants nothing more than to have an intimate relationship with His children, we remember that it Jesus’ usage also illustrates his particular connection to God, as the Son of God.

ii. God as the ‘source’ of the HS; Even as Jesus describes His own actions in sending out the HS, his statement also makes the point that the HS is directly dispatched by God. The overlapping actions between Jesus and the Father both sending forth the HS heavily emphasizes the idea of sameness between the 3 aspects.

At the same time, v26 also reminds us that it is God who has taken the initiative in pursuing a personal relationship with us. It is a powerful refutation of the criticism that God cold and impersonal- it doesn’t get much more personal than the HS dwelling within you.

iii. Jesus sending out the HS; Jesus goes onto say that ‘Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you…’ (v7). The consequence of Jesus’ statement sounds depressing- but what is it really saying? It is helpful to think back to our earlier discussion regarding Jesus being made ‘perfect’ after His death and Resurrection. It is only after Jesus conquers death that He is crowned with the glory of definitely defeating sin and is able to give effect to his teachings as the source of all life. If we take the HS’s character to be one as the ‘Spirit of Truth’ and to glorify Jesus, it would have been impossible for Him to come before Jesus personally defines his importance for humanity.

We’re not done quite yet- so how should we look at our responsibility to spread the Good News in word and deed? (and this is only the first question…)

2. To whom will the Holy Spirit be sent?

While in one sense Jesus is reassuring the apostles specifically that the HS will be sent to them after He returns to the Father( v27), the HS is sent to anyone who loves Jesus Christ and God the Father (v21).

3. What does Jesus say that the Holy Spirit will do? (Concentrate on v8-11.)

If we take a look at v8-11, we see that the HS is supposed to correct the ‘world’s’ understanding of sin, righteousness and judgement.

Sin; We understand sin to be rebellion against God. If one begins with the assumption (substantiated through Scripture) that Jesus is God and through him is the only way to enjoy a relationship with God and eternal life, then it falls to a matter of logic that rejection of Jesus is arguably the most fundamental sin of all- not only is there a rejection of God as Jesus, we abandon our only means to secure that relationship.

Are we then placing our sins in a hierarchy then? Well, if all sin is (not all it is, but you get what I’m saying) is a rejection/rebellion of Jesus, its definition virtually encompasses any of our actions which disobey His commandments. Rejection of Jesus however, is to say ‘No’ to God in the forceful and direct manner.

Righteousness; in v10 Jesus explains the HS as correcting the world in righteousness ‘because I am going to the Father’. Would God as pure goodness allow Jesus to come into His presence were He not perfect?- the answer you should have arrived to is ‘No’. Not only does this emphasize Jesus’ righteousness, but also the souls of those who confess to put their faith in Jesus Christ, and follow in His ways.

Judgement; As the HS convicts us that there is no other way but Jesus to restore our relationship with God, we are also forced to admit that all other methods peddled by the ‘world’ are broken and flawed. At the same time the HS proclaims the exclusivity of Jesus’ solution o the problem of sin, He condemns the ‘prince of this world’ (v11) (the devil) and all who follow in his footsteps in their folly as they stand apart from Jesus and God.

4. Jesus talks a lot about the people who love Him and obey His commands. What does this have to do with the Spirit?

The HS is simultaneously the source of our faith in Jesus Christ and also they key in having an immediate relationship with God. The HS is the source of our faith in Jesus Christ because he will ‘teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you’ (v26). At the same time, those who love Jesus and keep his commands will also be gifted with the Spirit of Truth (v15).

This concept is importance, because we can’t abdicate our responsibility in showing love and keeping Jesus’ commandment even when we feel like we have been abandoned. However, neither can we claim that even our acceptance of Jesus as our own, because it is only by the HS’ guidance that we are able to keep His commandments.

5. Some people believe that there are two kinds of Christians: ordinary and ‘Spirit-filled’. What does the Bible have to say about this belief? (See Galatians 3:1-14, Romans 8:9, Romans 8:14-17, 1 Corinthians 12:13) (If running short on time, just go through one passage)

Romans 8:9 that no one can belong to Jesus without having the HS. The reason why this simple truth is misunderstood is because people mistake the appearance of particular gifts as being more ‘spiritual’, and that the possession of these gifts implies a greater portion of the HS. In Galatians 5:22, the fruit (note; singular) of the HS is described in various forms. What we take away from this however is that no matter the particular manifestation of the HS in our lives, it is all ultimately referrable back to the same source, which is apportioned out equally to all.

6. How would you describe being ‘filled with the Spirit’ (Ephesians 5:15-20)

(I’m actually going to use the example the leaders notes (by Yvonne?) has, because I think it’s quite good).

I’m kinda getting this mental imagery of two people being contrasted: one guy is drunk and the other is filled with the Spirit (v.18) – one is controlled by the alcohol and the lowered inhibitions and everything else; the other is controlled and has his inhibitions lowered/changed by the Spirit. You think differently when you have the Spirit of God living in you.

(Edit; you can tell I didn’t write this, can’t you?)

7. How can we be filled with the Spirit (Acts 5:32; Luke 11:13; 1 John 5:13-15)?

Discovering God- Jesus as Son

Read Hebrews 4:14-5:10.

1. How does this passage describe Jesus?

2. Why does the author of Hebrews mention Aaron (5:5)? Who was he? (See Exo 28:1-3).

Aaron was the first high priest for the Israelites (Ezekiel 7:1-10).

3. What is the role of a high priest? (See Hebrews 5:1-2)

The role of the high priest was to make sacrifices on the behalf of the Israel nation, in response to their sin. Every year the High priest would enter into the ‘Holy of Holies’ and offer up a sacrifice to God.

At this point, I think it is important to draw out the limitations of the ‘high priests’ that came before Jesus. Not only had the position become tarnished since the divine regulation of passing down the high priest position from father to son was lost, inherent to the high priest’s function/solution was an element of imperfection. A high priest had to continually offer up sacrifices for the sins of Israel, and the very fact the high priest had to offer sacrifices for his own ‘weakness’ (v3), meant his capacity for mediation was imperfect.

Contrast that with Jesus, who is described as ‘him who had no sin’ (2 Cor 5:21), and that ‘christ suffer once for sins’ (1 Peter 3:18). We see in Jesus a high priest who is free from the imperfections which had plagued the position up until His coming.

4. How many times is the term ‗high priest‘ is used in these 13 verses?

5. Why does the author of Hebrews emphasise the fact that Christians have Jesus as our

High Priest? Tehillah – Year One

By this time, the position of High Priest had been discredited through the abandonment of the divinely ordained practice handing down the position from father to son. Also, as the David line of kings in Israel also petered out, the high priests would often assume the functions of a monarch. These individuals were characterised with great cruelty, often abusing their power in right of kings and by increasing the amount which had to be paid over to the temple. These high priests were disconnected from the common people and ignorant of their needs.

By the time of the Roman occupation, the position of High priest had been degraded to the point where it was practically sold off to the highest bidder (officially, the Romans were in charge of conferring the position). The High Priest of Jesus’ time were often seen as collaborators of the occupying force.

Jesus corrects both these deficiencies which had come to characterise the high priest position- he is a high priest which people can relate to, by way of suffering in the same way we have. And while Jesus may not be a descendant of Aaron, Paul’s reference back to Melchizedek positions Jesus in an order of high priests before the Aaronic line, one which is defined through.

The question is, what is taking the position of high priest today? (see below…)

6. The high priest was very important in Jewish culture. The Old Testament books of

law show that the high priest performed tasks that could not be completed by anyone

else. If the writer of Hebrews had been writing in our culture, what people might he

have used to illustrate his point?

If we substitute ‘individual’ for high priest, and ‘our’ for Jewish, we establish a notion that I think many people today build their perspectives on. Our society is built around edifying the ‘I’- If ‘I’ work hard enough I’ll get what I deserve, the overwhelming importance placed on self-esteem. Many people today believe that the solution to the sum total of their problems exists within them, if they only have the power to grasp it. However, when it is clear on so many occasions that the problems we face are impossible to answer by our own strength, or that we are the very perpetrators of the problems which plague us, how are we to continue believing in this me-centred doctrine?

7. An unchanging quality of God (Father, Son and Spirit) is that He is perfect. Yet,

Hebrews 5:9 seems to imply that Jesus was less than perfect until His resurrection.

Considering the immediate context of this passage, what might this verse mean?

While Jesus was (and is) perfect in his status as God, His resurrection completes God’s importance for the human race. It is through Jesus’ sacrifice that we are redeemed in God’s eyes. It is His perfection however, which brings us back into a rightful relationship with God for all eternity.

8. If Jesus is perfect and sinless, then can He really sympathize with us?

We never want to forget Jesus’ divinity, his status as the ‘source of eternal salvation’ (which coincidentally, is the answer to the next question…). But at the same time, we need to be aware of the fact that Jesus came down to Earth to conduct His redeeming ministry as a man. It is arguable that Jesus faced temptation and suffering beyond what most of us will ever come to experience. Jesus was tempted by the devil himself (Mt 4:1-12), where He was offered the entire world. Similarly too, in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-45) expresses a very human aversion to His impending death.

Jesus’ ‘weakness’ (v2) allows Him to empathise and understand us even when we are under the most stressful of times. At the same time, Jesus is superior to all High Priests who have come before Him, as His weaknesses do not subject Him to the curse of sin.

9. According to this passage, where do we find eternal salvation?