Road Trippin With Rachael

As we have been continuing through the Gospel of John, we once again see Jesus teaching on what it means to follow him. While in Chapter 15 Jesus taught how people were going to recognize Christians, in Chapter 16 he really begins to teach on what the cost is.

The Outcome of Following Jesus

As I previously stated in the last John blog, following Jesus will inevitably lead to there being persecution – not against us, specifically, but against what we represent: Jesus Christ. A part of that which we didn’t drill into last time was on sacrifice.

Sacrifice looks different to the modern American than it did to the Hebrew believer during Jesus’ time, and for a modern believer outside of the US. Whereas, sacrificing for us may mean that we lose friends and have family members disagree with our decisions, and will likely make less money in the event that you are called to vocational ministry. Sacrifice for the vast majority of the world means: losing their job, losing their housing, businesses being ruined/destroyed/blacklisted, family members shunning them or turning them over to the authorities, family members being kidnapped or killed, imprisonment, or the loss of their own lives.

When Jesus’ is speaking in John 16, he is addressing the sacrifices of the Hebrew believers. and he specifically addresses being banned from the synagogues (16:2). We’ve touched on this before, but it bears repeating. The Synagogues are a New Testament entity. They did not exist throughout the majority of the Old Testament, because worship was based around the home and temple in Jerusalem. When the Israeli people were going through captivity in Babylon, the appearance of the synagogue was their answer for being able to collectively educate the people in communities where they were no longer able to travel to a temple at various times through the year and when they were surrounded by gentile peoples. It was their answer to being able to maintain their “Jewishness” in the face of cultures that were surrounding them. The concept worked so well that they kept it even when they returned to Israel, and it became what we would consider to be a community center, and the heart of a community’s society. For someone who was Jewish to be banned from the synagogue, it would be like cutting them off from the community. If they were not in good standing with the synagogue, then that means that their neighbors wouldn’t be interacting with them, they would have no assistance from the community, no support from the community, and denied fellowship with fellow Jewish believers. For a people who was very community based, this was a heavy, heavy blow to someone who was a Jewish follower of Christ.

But for the banning that would take place with the synagogue, there was something even greater that believers would receive – the Holy Spirit indwelling them. The Holy Spirit will also be working through Christians to do three things: convicting the world of sin, declaring believers righteous, and testifying judgement accepted.

Sin

The world is going to be convicted of sin. We have all heard that there is the “unforgiveable sin” – me, myself, and I think that this is the sin of unbelief. Humanity has had God declared to them all throughout time. He presents himself to us through creation, through our conscious, through scripture, and through the gift of the Holy Spirit. There is not a valid reason to not believe.

Rigteousness

When Christ died on the cross and rose again on the third day, he served as a substitutionary atonement. That’s a big phrase meaning that he took out place, and received punishment for sin. For those who believe, this means that we have been declared forgiven before God, and the sins of our past, present, and future are not going to be counted against us. This does NOT mean that we are to intentionally go about sinning so that there can be more grace; scripture is clear that is not the point (Romans 6:1-2).

Judgement

Jesus’ death was the ultimate sacrifice, and the giving of a life was the sacrifice needed to atone for the sins that we have committed all the way back in Genesis 3. A blood sacrifice was needed to atone for sins and be able to be reconciled back to God, so that we could be in his presence. Where sin had separated us from God, Jesus’ sacrifice allows us to once again be in his presence – not yet perfectly, as we still suffer the physical consequences of sin, but we have an access we didn’t previously have while we were fully under that burden.

Joy from Sorrow

Persecution isn’t the only thing that Jesus speaks to the disciples about. He also speaks to them about the joy that is coming. Yes, there is going to be sorrow – he is going to be leaving them. At this point they do not yet understand that his leaving will be due to his death on the cross and later his ascension to heaven. However, as Jesus ascends, he tells them that he will be with them always (Matthew 28:20, Luke 24: 51-52). Although they will miss having him there with them in the flesh, they are also able to rejoice with the presence of the Holy Spirit and the knowledge that they are not alone.

John 16:21 has Jesus giving an example of a woman in labor. She strains, and she experiences unimaginable pain, but at the end of the ordeal, when she is holding her baby in her arms, “she doesn’t remember he suffering because of the joy that a person has been born into the world” (John 16:21b CSB). Even beyond Jesus leaving them, when we encounter the persecution and the pain that results from the decision to follow Christ, there is still joy for us to look forward to. Joy at being with our Savior, and joy at being in the presence of the on true God.

Victory

As I’m sure you have noticed as you have been going through the Gospel of John with me, Jesus has a habit of speaking in figures of speech, imagery, and real world examples. We saw it in the last blog where he gave the example of being a vine and believers being the branches (John 15:1). As we are moving closer and closer to the cross, John gives us this conversation where Jesus openly tells the disciples that he has spoken to them in figures of speech, but he is going to be speaking to them in much more plain language (John 16:25). The beauty of figures of speech is that it will require some critical thinking skills, and that means that we are learning how to break down what is being said and see the different layers to a statement. This is a basic skill that students begin to learn while they are in elementary schools. Unfortunately, for the disciples critical thinking went out the door. To not be able to think critically is to not be able to think at all, to never learn how to think for yourself, to accept answers as they are presented, and this opens the door for others to use scripture incorrectly (sometimes intentionally, sometimes not) and that can lead to bigger problems. The last one is a harsh truth – but also a reality. Being able to go and look for the answers, also helps you to think deeper about the word of God – which is what Jesus was pushing the disciples to do. He didn’t always give them the answer because he wanted them to think about what the answer could be and come to some of their own conclusions. This is why when he asked Peter who he believed Jesus to be, Peter could confidently proclaim, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16 CSB).

The disciples, like students in high school who have been given the answer to a question, are excited to not have to think anymore. For them, doing this was additional proof that he is from God, However, he tells them that there will be a scattering. When Jesus is later taken before the Sanhedrin, the disciples aren’t there trying to break down the door to get to him. There are two who are near by – Peter and John – and Peter will ultimately deny any association with Jesus (Luke 22:54-62). They don’t try to get to him. But Jesus is not alone – as the second person of the Trinity, he is never alone. As believers, we too, are never alone – even when that is what it feels like.

At the end of the day, we come back to what John is leading us to, and that Jesus is going to be victorious.

Final Thoughts

We live in a sinful world and suffering is going to be a part of it, until Christ’s return. We are not exempt from suffering, or persecution. But we have the hope that can be found in Jesus. Even in the midst of our sorrows, we have faith that it is going to end, because we have been reconciled to God, and can go to him unfettered by the weight of sin. Jesus has paid it all, and we can approach the thrown as a son or daughter. There will be victory in Jesus for all who believe and we should continue to develop our critical thinking skills, so that we know the scriptures and can learn about and love God with our whole person.

Discussion Questions

1. Where do you see yourself having joy in the middle of sorrow?
2. The disciples were excited to know that Jesus wasn’t going to be speaking to them in figures of speech. How often do we quit thinking critically about God’s word?