JOHN 16:8-11 WHAT IS THE PRIMARY WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT ?

 

Pentecost Sunday is celebrated 50 days after Christ’s resurrection and 10 days after the Ascension. It is the Sunday on which the church remembers that the Holy Spirit came upon the believers who were gathered in an upper room (Acts 1:13) waiting for what Jesus called “the promise of the Father” - the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4). Acts Chapter 2 reflects the historical account of that occasion, when the Holy Spirit came upon those disciples, transforming them from timid, fearful followers to bold and powerful servants of Christ. The Spirit of God who came to dwell in them made all the difference.  Compare for instance pre – Pentecost Peter in Luke 22:54ff with post- Pentecost Peter in Acts 2:14ff.

Now if the Holy Spirit is sent to empower us, then how does He do that?  Most people immediately think of power manifestations: tongues… miracles … casting out demons.  I want to show you with the help of our text in John 16: 5-14 that this is not the primary reason why God has sent the Holy Spirit – but first for some introductory comments:  

Jesus reminds the disciples that when He goes, the Holy Spirit must come. He promises that He will not leave them as orphans (Jn.14:18). The disciples are understandably anxious at this time (Jn.14:1-6). They are uncertain about the future without Jesus and therefore Jesus comforts them with the promise of sending them the Holy Spirit to be with them and in them (14:17). But what exactly is it that the Holy Spirit will do in them and among them? Notice that Jesus says nothing here about the Holy Spirit in terms of spiritual gifts or speaking in tongues.These phenomena is what the Pentecostal and charismatic movement have commonly associated with the person and work of the Holy Spirit, BUT these are not the principal reasons given by Jesus as to why the Holy Spirit is sent.   Jesus says that the main reason why the Holy Spirit would come was to bring glory to Himself - by making Jesus and His saving work  for fallen sinners known!  This is clearly stated in 16:14,15 and this is entirely in keeping with the central message of John’s gospel (see John 20:31). Everything else we learn about the work and the person of the Holy Spirit flows from this grand truth, and is subject to this principle.

John 16:8-11 HOW THE HOLY SPIRIT DRAWS OUR ATTENTION TO CHRIST.  

We begin by considering some of the unusual names which Jesus gives to the Holy Spirit.  Besides His proper name, “the Holy Spirit”, Jesus calls Him here the also the Paraclete -  the  Helper (ESV) Counsellor (NIV) ^[1] (16:7),  and also the Spirit of Truth^[2] (16:12).    

In terms of His activity we note that the Holy Spirit does the work of conviction:  "When He (the Helper/Counsellor) comes, He will convict^[3] the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment…" (16:8). The Holy Spirit, the Counsellor, the Spirit of Truth has a convicting ministry. Alongside his helping/counselling ministry He has a convicting ministry. A convicting Helper/Counsellor?  Is this not a contradiction?  No!  Why?  

He is both! He helps and counsels us by convicting us. In fact, the Holy Spirit in order to help and counsel, He must first convict us of that which stands against us – our sinful nature! He does the same  work as a surgeon, who in  in order to truly help us, must first cut away that which causes us trouble, in order to heal us.

This is the primary role which the Holy Spirit fulfills in the whole world. “He will convict the world...” Since He is the Spirit, He is not limited by a physical body, and therefore He can do this work globally. He can be everywhere at the same time. He is omnipresent.

THE HOLY SPIRIT CONVICTS PEOPLE IN THIS WORLD IN THREE WAYS: concerning sin, and righteousness and judgment  

 1.                  He convicts the world of sin, because the world does not believe in Jesus (16:9)

Again we are reminded that all people in this world are by nature sinners. We are by nature rebels against God and His design.

·         Genesis 3  explains the origin of sin in man.

·         The sin  manifests itself  not only in the fact that (i) all people do sin (Rom. 3:23) and  thereby incur God’s wrath, but  also  in the fact that (ii)  all people  refuse  to accept  God’s gracious offer –Jesus,  the Lamb of God - God’s  atoning sacrifice. 

·         The truth about us is that we are so hardened, so self-righteous, that without help we will never see the truth about ourselves. We are dead in our sins  and transgressions (Eph.2:1) 

·         Jesus says that we need the convicting work of the Holy Spirit to pierce our spiritual deadness and our spiritual hardness.  This He does by awakening in us, the people of this world a consciousness of true guilt, leading us to true repentance, trusting in Jesus alone for our righteousness and salvation, restoring us to fellowship with our heavenly Father.

We have a wonderful example in the book of Acts 2.  The Holy Spirit came in response to God’s promise at Pentecost - the Hebrew Shavuot – The Feast of Weeks, (a feast of thanksgiving for the ingathering of the wheat harvest), which we have seen is 50 days after the Passover (Easter). On this day the Holy Spirit starts a remarkable work of ingathering from many nations that have come to Jerusalem for this feast.  He uses Peter to preach a sermon in which 3000 people from among the nations are convicted of sin. They cry out, "What must we do?" (Acts 2:38). The answer is given: "repent and be baptised, every one of you…”.  Now, why do they cry out, ”What must we do“?  This is not simply Peter’s sermon that does it!  The primary power at work here is the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, acting upon the preaching of His Word. The 3000 have been helped by the Holy Spirit to see their sin! Their hearts  are exposed by the preaching of the Word.   They now beg for a remedy!  What does the preacher used here by the Holy Spirit do?   He helps them to  repent,   and  in doing so  to look to Jesus  –  “repent and be baptised, every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins…”.

Understand then that the preacher cannot preach effectively, he cannot bring about true heartfelt repentance or conviction, unless the Holy Spirit convicts the hearers of guilt. So, let us remember then  in the first place  that  the Holy  Spirit is given  to convict the world  of its sin, so that  those who see, hear and believe  may  be helped and counselled to  'stop being the world'.

So then, thank God for sending the Holy Spirit to help us to understand the nature of sin and to convict us of our sin. Brothers and sisters,  pray that the Spirit of conviction will rest upon us!

 

2.                  The Holy Spirit convicts the world of   righteousness because Jesus is going to the Father.  (16:10)

We have seen then that the Holy Spirit convicts the world in regard to sin because the world does not believe in Jesus. But, what about this one, “He will convict the world about righteousness because I go to the Father”? 

Here is the answer: The religious leaders in particular, and the nation of Israel in general did not regard themselves as sinful, but as righteous -  one might  say, self - righteous, and all  this because they possessed the Law of Moses and they thought that they had Abraham as their father.  And on those grounds they felt righteous.

The same is true for the world we live in. When you speak to a person about their sinfulness and their need for a Saviour,  people are quick to respond, "But  I am basically a good person” i.e. “I am righteous…. I am self-righteous.”   

Now you will remember  that Jesus  frequently challenged this superficial view of righteousness e.g. the story of the rich young ruler ^[4].  The truth is that all of us by nature  are self- righteous, and all of us need to be helped by the Holy Spirit  to see this that our self- righteousness will not stand before God. 

Now, the reason why the Holy Spirit convicts the world of its ‘righteousness’ is because Jesus is going to the Father where they will see Him no longer (16:10).  So, we see that the Holy Spirit  continues the  convicting work of Jesus - but now on a global level!  How does He do that?  The Holy Spirit, through the Word of God Jesus, as it is  proclaimed by preachers of the Word^[5]  in the whole  world (even to you today) , being the omnipresent Spirit, convicts the entire world of its self- righteousness.  God’s word – God’s righteous standard, when preached to   self –righteous people, and  with the  conviction  of the Holy Spirit  helps people  to see that they fall short of the righteous life that God requires.  The result is that they call out,  “What must we do to be saved?”   The  preacher,  by the Holy Spirit  then  points them to Christ, whom they must embrace by faith. When anybody  comes to Jesus  in that manner , He will   truly justify them on account of His finished work on the cross,  and  declare then  to be truly righteous.   Thank God the Holy Spirit  for helping us  to embrace a true godly righteousness  that reconciles us to our  heavenly Father!  Thank God for the global work of the Holy Spirit!

 

3.                  The Holy Spirit convicts the world concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world  is judged. (16:11)

How do we understand this?  The world, because of its sinfulness, has distorted standards of judgment. At one point in John 7:24 Jesus needed to reprimand the Jews (i.e. the world of His day) to “stop judging by mere appearances, and to make a right judgment.”

The grossest misjudgement that our world is guilty of is that it has judged Jesus to be a criminal and sent Him to the cross for that. What a gross, faulty judgment! This shows us how the world's judgment can be so profoundly wrong and so morally perverse.

And now the Holy Spirit has come to convict the world of its false judgments, which essentially are inspired by Satan and his demons. Satan is the originator of all false judgment, for he is the father of all lies. He is the father of those who echo His values (Jn.8:44).   But now because of   Christ's triumph on the cross, the ruler of this world   who governs the faulty thoughts of this world is defeated!  He is judged!

The Holy Spirit has come to convict the world for following false  judgment, following bad and unreliable  guides- all inspired  by  Satan, who is  now condemned and defeated.

The Holy Spirit teaches us that the only true judgment and infallible authority comes from the Word of God – from Jesus the living Word. Thank God that the Holy Spirit who is in us and with us, helps us to discern the lies of Satan when we turn to  the truth of God’s Word.

 SUMMARY 

 Our world is sinful and self-righteous, and profoundly wrong in its judgments.

Can you now see why we need to be thankful for Pentecost? And why we have a duty to remember this event in our church calendar?

Can you now see why we ought to be thankful for the intervening and convicting work of the Holy Spirit?

Despite all this persistent hardness found in our world the merciful voice of God empowered by the Holy Spirit goes out into the entire world and entire generations. God's patience and God's grace are truly marvellous. None of us would listen, if we had not been divinely prompted and enabled to listen. The Spirit of God issues the effective call, which the sheep (the elect) ultimately will hear (See John 10:3). Eternal praise be to His Name! 

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[1] Gr. parakletos. The Greek word translated as "counsellor” is a compound word i.e. consisting of two words, “para" - 'beside' and 'kaleo' - "to call”; the counsellor is one who "calls beside" – hence also, “The Comforter”.

[2] Gr.   pneuma teis aleitheias

[3] Gr. elencho [lit. shaming a convicted person] 

[4] Mark 10:17ff

[5] Not  just professional preachers – but all who  preach Christ  to  the world 

John 20:1-18 "THE KING IS RESURRECTED FROM THE DEAD"

 

In the 20^th chapter of John’s gospel we find the account of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.   When Jesus said from the cross, “It is finished”, He did not mean that everything was done then. No, no! On the cross His suffering, His substitutionary atonement for His sheep was finished, but His work was not yet finished. The Christian faith is hinged on two facts: 

(i) that Christ died for our sins, and 

(ii) that He rose again for our justification (Romans 4:25). 

Jesus could not remain in the grave.  Jesus needed to rise from the dead.  The resurrection would finish His work. It would finally vindicate Jesus who said that He was going to rise again after he had been killed.

When the apostle Paul writes to the Corinthians[1], that confused church, which had forgotten the basics of the gospel, he reminds them,   “3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared….”.  

This is what is happening here, and so in chapter 20, we move from tears to joy.

 Division of  Chapter 20

1.    The fact of the Resurrection [20:1-18]

a.     The tomb is empty- witnessed by Mary Magdalene, Peter, John (20:1-9)

b.     Jesus  appears to Mary Magdalene (20: 10-18)

2.     Further Proof of the Resurrection  [20:19-29]

a.     Jesus appears to 10 disciples (20:19-23)

b.      Jesus  appears to Thomas  (20:24-29)

3.     The Purpose of John’s Gospel  [20:30,31]

Today we shall deal with the first 18 verses. We will do well to dwell on these significant moments, as Jesus appears to many as a proof of His resurrection.

1.            THE FACT OF THE RESURRECTION [20:1-18]

a.        The tomb is empty, as witnessed by Mary Magdalene, Peter and John (20:1-9)

"Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb."

All four gospels make mention of the first day of the week – being what we now call Sunday. The resurrection was the beginning of something new, and the Christian church would adopt this day as their day of worship.  Remember, that Christ is always greater than the law. He completes the law, because He is the end of the law[2].  He is the Gospel. He is the New Testament. In Him we are complete. And each Sunday that we meet to worship we remind ourselves of His completed work. We rest our anxious souls in Him. We have our souls restored by our Good Shepherd. We are reminded that this day is the promise of our eternal and heavenly rest (Hebrews 4:9-11).  

And then, please note that John mentions the name of Mary of Magdala alone, whilst the synoptic gospels mention a plurality of women. They had come to apply the burial spices to Jesus’ body. Remember that Jesus was put into this tomb in haste because the Sabbath was beginning.  How do we account for the discrepancies between the synoptic gospels and John’s gospel? Remember that these are eye witness accounts. As such they are selective. It is often actually quite simple to harmonize these accounts. In re-reading the text we note that Mary Magdalene went ahead to the tomb when it was still dark, while the others probably joined her when the sun had risen (Mark 16:2). Whatever the case may be, it is very clear that Mary Magdalene was very attached to the Lord Jesus. She had been forgiven much, therefore she loved much (Lk 7:47)[3].

Mary Magdalene saw that the stone of the tomb had been rolled away  and that the body was gone. 2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”  3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.

Peter and John ran to the tomb. John, being the younger, outran Peter, but Peter was the first to see inside the tomb.  It is clear. Jesus’ body is not there. The linen was there. A specific point is made that the face cloth on Jesus head was folded up in a place by itself. They are clearly confused. They still don’t get that what Jesus said over and over again was true. 8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

Remember how often He had told them, that He was going to be betrayed, crucified, buried and that He would be raised on the third day.  But they did not get it! This is one of these tough truths about us.  Selective hearing! We hear what we want to hear. We are inclined to pick and choose what suits us from the Bible.  The disciples, being true Jews, wanted a Messiah, a Deliverer, a king and a kingdom in the conventional sense (see Acts 1:6). Their understanding and desires could not accommodate a dead king.  And so they heard Him speak about the resurrection, but they did not really hear Him. They did not know what to do with the resurrection. And that is true for us. But the more we let the Bible speak to us, the more we understand God’s character and His plan. It is hard to get to terms with God’s truth, because it does not fit in with our perceptions.  It takes time and careful reading and meditation upon the Scriptures to see these things. In John 12:16 (cf. Zechariah 9:9), in the context of the triumphal entry, we have an example of something that the disciples did not understand then.   

And thank God for the ministry of the Holy Spirit. In John 14:26,  Jesus  said, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”  Thank God for the help that we receive from the Holy Spirit. If He does not open our eyes, we will not see the truth as it is in Jesus.

The empty grave and the grave clothes had an effect upon Peter and John: “He saw and believed.” It wasn’t entirely clear yet, but something began to dawn, and it was going to become clearer later…

10 Then the disciples went back to their homes.

b.        Jesus  appears to Mary Magdalene (20: 10-18)

Peter and John and the other women and disciples left the grave. This was all very perplexing. Matthew records that the tomb was guarded precisely so that the body would not be removed (Matt. 27:62-66). However, on Sunday God sent an earthquake and an angel, and we read that the guards became like dead men. And Jesus was raised from the dead. But poor Mary had no knowledge of this, for she had arrived after the fact, and she remained there weeping alone. As she wept, she looked once more into the tomb.  Now she saw two angels, in white, in the tomb.  They asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping’? She said to them, ‘Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him’.  Then she looked around and saw Jesus standing there, but clearly she did not recognise that it was Jesus. Clearly, He appeared in a form that she did not recognize.  Like the angels, Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking’?” She thought that he was perhaps the gardener. “She said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away’. She did not recognise Him. The same happens to the 2 disciples on the Emmaus road in Luke 24.  The nature of the resurrection body of Jesus is a mystery to us. He is capable of adapting, just as angels are capable of appearing as men.

But when Jesus calls her by name, “Mary”, she recognises him instantly. She responds and calls Him in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni’, which means teacher.  And then Jesus said something which has perplexed many interpreters, ‘Stop clinging to me for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending  to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God’.

Why does Jesus forbid Mary to cling to Him? It is clear that she is absolutely delighted.  He clearly is not forbidding touch as such. In 20:27 Jesus permits Thomas to touch him.   What is the difference here? He is saying is that He is no longer in that state in which He was before.  He is in His resurrected state and soon He must ascend to the Father. And as such, the nature of their friendship can no longer the same.  She cannot cling to Him. He is now resuming the glory He had before (John 17:5). He is ascending to His Father. He will always be with them, but no longer in the same localized presence.  This is what makes us look forward to heaven, when we shall see our beloved Saviour face to face, when we shall be with Him forever.  Brothers and sisters, one day we shall be changed. We shall receive our resurrection bodies and we shall dwell with the Lord forevermore.  (1 Corinthians 15:50-53)

With this Mary is called by Jesus to announce the good news of the resurrection to the disciples. We shall consider this, God willing, next week as further proofs of the reality of the resurrection.

Today we have seen that the tomb is empty as witnessed by Mary Magdalene, Peter, John (20:1-9). 

We have witnessed a dialogue between a very special disciple, Mary Magdalene and the resurrected Jesus (20: 10-18). 

May the resurrection of Jesus fill you with hope and open your heart and longings  to the greater things that God has in store for you. Amen.

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[1] 1 Corinthians 15:1-8

[2] Matthew 5:17; Romans 10:4

[3] Mark 16:9  and Luke 8:2  record that Jesus had cast 7 demons out of her

John 19: 28-42 "THE KING’S DEATH AND BURIAL"

 

Last week (01/08/2021) we considered the crucifixion and today we remember the death and burial of our Lord Jesus in the context of this Communion Service. It is appropriate that in God’s providence we should have this text, as we remember the broken body and shed blood of our beloved King, the Lord Jesus Christ.

OUTLINE

(i)                 19: 28-30 The King’s work is now finished in His death

(ii)               19: 31-37 The King’s death fulfills Scripture

(iii)              19: 38-42   The King receives a royal burial

(i)        19: 28-30 The King’s Work is now Finished in His Death

…”After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished (tetelestai) ,…” Again, John sees the King in complete command. Jesus knew what He was doing and where He was going. He had been saying this all along the way.  He knew that the time had come to do that for which He was born.  Death was now before Him. He, the sinless Lamb of God was now going to lay down His life  in substitution for  the life of sinners in this world.

John records two of Jesus’ last words, “I thirst”- and John adds: ”to fulfil the Scriptures – a reference to  Psalm 69:21. This Psalm has been quoted twice before in John’s Gospel (2:17; 15:25). Like Psalm 22:18 (cf. Jn.19:24), which was quoted earlier, this Psalm has Messianic overtones. Always remember that Jesus is David’s greater son. Remember that David’s great earthly kingdom always points forward to a far greater and eternal kingdom.  John wants us to know that every part of Jesus’ suffering was connected to the OT scriptures and therefore everything that was happening here was not a random occurrence. Everything happened as it was written. Everything happened according to the Father’s will and because of the Son’s obedience to it. 

At this point Jesus is severely dehydrated. He is offered cheap wine vinegar (Gr. oxos). It won’t do much for Him. He is suffering immensely. He is dying painfully. The next word from the cross is, “It is finished.” (Gr. tetelestai).  This is a mighty word, and by it we now know that the   work that His Father gave Him to do (cf. 17:4) is now completed. What exactly is the nature  of the work that He has finished? Jesus has offered Himself as the substitute of His sinful people, both in dealing with  the problem of our sin by removing it  completely, and by dealing with the problem of the holy God who is offended by  all sin. 

Kristyn Getty in her  hymn, “ The Power of the Cross” deals with the expiatory nature  (dealing with  the problem of our sin) of Christ's substitutionary atonement:

“This, the power of the cross, Christ became sin for us, took the blame, bore the wrath, we stand forgiven at the cross.”

And Stuart Townend’s hymn,  “In Christ alone”, deals with the propitiatory nature  (dealing with the appeasing of God's wrath) of Christ's substitutionary atonement: 

“Till on that cross, as Jesus died, the wrath of God was satisfied- for every sin on Him was laid ; Here in the death of Christ I live. “

In His death Christ’s work finished. The price is paid. His people are redeemed and God’s holy wrath is satisfied.  

Therefore He bowed his head  gave up His spirit (19:30).  No one took His life from Him.  He had the authority to lay it down (10:17,18).

(ii)       19: 31-37 The Manner of the King’s Death fulfills Scripture

As far as His death goes, it appears that Jesus has died fairly quickly. Be assured that not just the physical sufferings, but the bearing of our sins on the cross contributed to  His death!

And now follows a fascinating insight. Having been crucified, and having died on Friday, the Jews asked that His (and the other) bodies should not be left on the cross. The normal Roman practise was to leave the crucified on the cross until they died. If there were reasons to hasten their death, they would smash the legs with an iron mallet. This prevented the victim from pushing with his legs to keep his chest cavity open- and thus asphyxia followed.[1]

The crucified actually could take a long time to die. But the law of Moses insisted that a Jew should not hang there overnight (Deut. 21:22). That is why the legs would be broken, to hasten the death. But what is even more significant was that the next day was the Sabbath – and a very important Sabbath at that – it was the Passover weekend! Do you see the plan of God?  And we read that according to the Scriptures, His   bones were not broken. That was the rule concerning the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:46). It had to be eaten whole – no bones broken.

Now remember that Jesus is God’s Passover Lamb![2]  The timing is awe inspiring. And the symbolism is absolutely wonderful. The lamb was killed on the eve of Israel’s departure from Egypt, the land of slavery. The blood of the Lamb was applied to the door lintels of every Hebrew home. That night the angel of death would pass over Egypt and take the life of every firstborn son, except those homes that were indicated by the blood of the lamb. The angel would pass over these homes. Can you see this? The blood of Jesus, our Passover lamb averts the righteous wrath of God the Father towards all those who by faith embrace His person and work for them. Jesus’ bones providentially did not need to be broken, because He was dead. 

And, remember (!) that in the symbolic participation of the Lord’s supper, the Passover Lamb, we must feed on the whole Lord Jesus. We must embrace His whole person and work.

A spear thrust to into Jesus’ side confirm his death: water and blood flows.  

33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water.  

Much ink has been spilled over the water and the blood. Jesus was truly dead. He did not swoon and revive later, His body having been stolen by the disciples, as some have claimed. John’s greater concern was that the Word of God was fulfilled,  and  that he was a witness to the truth of God’s Word  

35 He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. 36 For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” (Exodus 12:46) 37 And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.” (Zechariah 12:10)

(iii)       19: 38-42 The King receives a Royal Burial

Two men ask Pontius Pilate’s permission to bury the body of Jesus:  Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus (whom we have met in John 3).  John draws our attention to the amount of spices that Nicodemus brings for the burial - 75 pounds! Fit for a King, and He was laid in a new, rock hewn tomb. 

This was far more than was required for any ordinary burial – particularly the burial of a man who was sentenced to die on a Roman cross as the worst of criminals. 

But we know that there’s a King here that needs to be buried. And we know that this elaborate funeral – the spices, the very expensive grave site will be very temporary, because the resurrection is coming. 

The King is greater than death.

Conclusion and  Application

As we remember our King in His work on the cross  in this communion service – the Lord’s supper  (which was instituted  on the  eve of  feast of  the Passover season – cf. Jn. 13:1)-  we remember that  this work has  huge implications for  us who believe.

1.  We may be assured that Jesus is who he says He is.  John has been at pains to point this out, by constantly linking everything to the OT scriptures….” It is written…” and therefore He is trustworthy. The Gospel is trustworthy. And therefore, all that John has said to us by way of a faithful witness  is significant. The fact that He was born  is significant;  The fact that he lays down His life for this world and  that He  dies  for the sin of the world is significant; the fact that He is raised  from death is significant. The fact that he ascends to heaven - where He prepares a place for us – (John 14:1-3) is significant.

2.    But the most fundamental and significant truth revealed in Christ's death for us is the substitutionary atonement. In His death Christ’s righteous life is substituted for my unrighteous one. When Jesus said, “It is finished”, that is what He meant.  He has finished the work the Father has given Him to do (17:4). He has laid down His life for the sheep (10:15). 

3. Sinners are effectively redeemed: No one will pluck them out of His hand (John10: 28-30).“No power of hell, no scheme of man, can ever pluck me from His hand: Till He returns or calls me home, Here in the power of Christ I stand.” (Stuart Townend: In Christ alone)

 

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[1]   D. Carson,  The Gospel according to John, p.622

[2] John the Baptist saw this clearly: John 1:29,36 “Look the Lamb of God!”