S -
“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is
to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not
come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will
convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning
sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go
to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the
ruler of this world is judged.” John 16:7-11 ESV
O -
The advantage of the followers of Jesus will not be the Scriptures, the
Apostles or the historic connection with Abraham, Moses and the Prophets. The Helper, the one who will awesomely
advantage all who love Jesus, will more than make up for his physical absence in a way prescribed by heaven. A major component of this advantage will be
the work this Helper will do. His work
will encompass the entire world and will engage in an activity reserved exclusively
for him. His work? To convict (ἐλέγχω - convict, convince, tell a fault, rebuke, reprove.) and
to do so with a very specific focus. The
advantage heaven sends to the followers will engage the world in regard to sin,
righteousness and judgment. The problem
comes here … when religious thinking and human reasoning try to help heaven
with this endeavor. Only one sin is listed; the failure to believe in the
person of Jesus. The righteousness he
will convict of is not about the actions of others on earth but of
Jesus' relationship with the Father.
Judgment is not focused on any humans but singularly on the
fallen Lucifer. This is where the advantage begins each day. Conclusion?
Heaven's activity and work list on earth is very different from earth's (secular and religious) activity and work list.
A -
Heaven doesn't want my help. It wants my
cooperation. It wants me to admit,
accept and trust the Helper sent to engage the world. Jesus wants me to follow him and to rely on
the work he, his Father and the Helper are doing … whether I currently see it
or not. The Spirit, like the Father and
Jesus, does not want my assistance in bringing conviction to others or in
building lists of concerns and sins. They do want me to welcome this work, this
conviction, in my own life and to live it out loud day by day. Along the way I'll get invited into places,
people and situations where they'll let me be a part of what they are
doing. Currently, heaven is engaging in
7.2 (on the way to 7.3) billion projects on planet earth and I am grateful to
be one of them.
P -
Lord God of heaven and earth,
Thank you for the advantage, the work, the
focus and the ongoing presence of your person in us and with us … unto
everything you already have in mind to do. I want to cooperate and not
help. I welcome and embrace the Helper
you send and refuse to alter his list of to dos. I'll follow, be your worksite
and agree to whatever you'd like me to do and not to do. Beautiful!
Glad to be living and thinking in Jesus and
in his name,
Steve
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