Our text for today is from verse 14 of our Holy Gospel where, Jesus says, “[The Holy Spirit] will take what is Mine and declare it to you” (John 16:14). We will look at this verse a little later.
But to begin with, Jesus is with His disciples in the Upper Room. It is the night in which He was betrayed. He says to them, “Now I am going to Him who sent Me… It is to your advantage that I go away” (vv 5, 7). Is it really to the disciples’ advantage that Jesus go away? How could it possibly be better for them? They would no longer see Him, no longer walk with Him, or no longer hear His voice? How could His departure be anything but a loss?
And yet, it is good that Jesus goes away, even for you. For if He does not go away, the Helper—the Holy Spirit—will not come to you. And if the Holy Spirit does not come, then everything Jesus came to accomplish would not be delivered to you.
When Jesus speaks of “going away,” what is He talking about? He does not mean withdrawing for a time to pray or to rest. He is speaking of His suffering, His death, His resurrection, and His ascension to the right hand of the Father.
He is going to the cross and there on the cross, He takes upon Himself your sin. Not part of it, but all of it. Every hidden thought, every careless word, every act of rebellion, every failure to love God and neighbor. He bears it, suffers for it, and dies for it.
Then, He rises from the dead. Forty days later, He goes, or ascends, to the right hand of the Father. Ten days after the Ascension, He sends the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Why?
Jesus gives us the answer. He says, “[The Holy Spirit] will take what is Mine and declare it to you” (v 14). The Holy Spirit takes what belongs to Jesus and gives it to you. The Holy Spirit delivers the benefits of Christ’s death and resurrection. He gives you the forgiveness of sins won by the shedding of His blood. He gives you Christ’s victory over death. Everything the Son accomplished through the cross and open tomb, the Holy Spirit now delivers to you.
So, if Jesus had not accomplished salvation by means of the cross and open tomb, then the Holy Spirit would have nothing to give. But since Jesus has earned salvation for you by means of the cross and open tomb, then the Holy Spirit now gives it to you freely.
And what does He give? Forgiveness, life, and salvation.
How does He give it? Through means of water and word in Holy Baptism; by means of the Word read and preached; and by means of bread and wine in which Christ gives you His body and blood. Jesus goes away in order to come to you by means of water, word, bread and wine.
Therefore, it is to your advantage that Jesus goes to the cross and rises from the dead. And it is to your advantage that the Holy Spirit delivers the Gospel to you from the font, the pulpit, and the altar.
At this point, let us look more closely at the work of the Holy Spirit. Let’s look at what He declares to you. Jesus describes the Spirit’s work in three ways: He will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment. Let us take each in turn.
First, Jesus says, “[The Holy Spirit] will convict the world concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me.”
The Holy Spirit uses the law to show us our sin. And when He does, He speaks the truth. I cannot look inside your heart. If you have pride in your hearts, hateful thoughts, lust in your eyes, words said in secret, slanderous judgments you make against others, I don’t know them. I know my own sin, and you know your own sin. Jesus knows them because He bore them on the cross. He suffered for them. He paid for them. Isaiah 53:6 says, “The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”
Notice what Jesus says. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin “because they do not believe in Me.” We often think of sin as outward actions, murder, theft, and lies. And these are indeed sins. But they are symptoms of a disease. What is the disease? Jesus said, “they do not believe in Me.” The root of all sin is unbelief. Unbelief refuses to believe in Jesus.
We tend to think of sin in terms of outward actions: what we do wrong. And certainly, those things matter. But Jesus goes deeper. The problem is not just what we do wrong. It is also our sinful condition. It causes us to turn inward. It causes us to rely on ourselves; to justify ourselves; and to hide from God and from one another. Even as baptized believers in Christ, we still have a sinful nature—the Old Adam. We are at the same time sinner and saint.
The Holy Spirit exposes this truth. He shows that our heart is curved in on itself. He leaves us without excuse. He uses the law to show us our sin, and it is painful. It hurts. But it is a good and necessary pain.. If we claim to be without sin we deceive ourselves because deep down there is sin. It’s hard for me to preach this and it is hard for you to hear it.
The Spirit does not convict us in order to destroy us. He convicts us in order to save us. He shows us our sin so that we repent; so that we stop trusting in ourselves; and so that we look to Christ alone for forgiveness.
Second, Jesus says, “[The Holy Spirit] will convict the world … concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer.”
The devil would have you believe that righteousness is something you possess by nature; that you were born with it. He would have you believe that you are by nature good; that you have even done enough good to win favor with God. This is a lie. Don’t believe it. Every false religion has bought into this lie and teaches salvation by your own righteousness: Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, Jehovah’ Witnesses, Mormons. They all bought into the devil’s lie.
But the Holy Spirit does the opposite. He points you to Jesus’ righteousness. Jesus’ life was perfect. His words were perfect. His thoughts were perfect. His desires were perfect. His actions were perfect. His death was perfect. And the Holy Spirit takes the righteousness of Christ and gives it to you. He declares it to you. He delivers it to you.
Here is the great exchange. You gave Jesus your sin and He gives you His righteousness. You gave Him your death, and He gives you His life. His perfect obedience, His is love, His purity, His faithfulness are now counted as yours. His life becomes your life. His obedience becomes your obedience. His righteousness becomes your righteousness.
And the Spirit takes what belongs to Jesus and gives it to you. The Holy Spirit was active in your baptism. Romans chapter 6 says that in your baptism, you are now connected to Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Spirit is active now as you hear the Word and Gospel preached to you and for you. The Spirit is active in giving you the body and blood of Christ. These gifts of Gospel and Sacrament strengthen your faith in Christ. Again, the Spirit takes what belongs to Jesus and gives it to you on your head in baptism, into your ears in preaching, and into your mouth from this altar.
So, when God looks at you, He does not see your sin. He sees His Son. You are righteous—not because of what you have done, but because of what Christ has done for you.
Finally, Jesus says, “[The Holy Spirit] will convict the world concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.” This is pure comfort. This is pure Gospel.
The devil is the accuser. He points to your sin and says, “Look—God will condemn you because of your sin.” And apart from Christ, he would be right.
But the Spirit declares something greater: the ruler of this world is judged. The devil is judged. At the cross, Jesus crushed the serpent’s head. At the resurrection, Jesus declared victory over death and the devil. The enemy is defeated. This victory is your victory.
The devil has no claim on you. He cannot accuse you. Your sins have been paid for by Christ. Your punishment has already been carried by Christ. Your condemnation has already been removed through Christ. So when the devil accuses, you answer not with your own righteousness, but with Jesus. And that is enough.
Returning to verse 14 of our text for today … Jesus said, “[The Holy Spirit] will glorify Me, for He will take what is Mine and declare it to you.” The Holy Spirit does not draw attention to Himself. He does not come to impress you with speaking in tongues, gifts of prophecy, or so-called special healings. Rather, the Holy Spirit comes to give you Jesus. And where does He do this? It’s very simple. He does this in Baptism, in the Word, and in the Lord’s Supper. There, the Spirit is at work placing into your ears and into your mouth the gifts of Jesus: forgiveness, life, and salvation.
So, we return to the question: Why is it better that Jesus goes away—goes the cross and open tomb and ascend to the Father? Because if He had remained visibly here on earth for the past 2,000 years, you might see Him with your physical eye, but without the cross, the resurrection, and the Spirit’s work, that physical sight of Jesus would do you no good. He would not save you.
But now, though you do not see Him with your physical eyes, you receive Him. You see Him with the eyes of faith. The disciples walked with Jesus, but you are now united to Him. And that is better.
What does this mean for your life? It means you live in a constant rhythm: The Spirit convicts you of sin and you repent. The Spirit gives you Christ’s righteousness, and you believe. The Spirit assures you of victory, and you benefit from it. Again, and again. Sunday after Sunday.
It also means that as a baptized believer in Christ, you now live with faith toward God and in His many promises for you. And you live with love for your family, your friends, and for one another. You faithfully live according to your calling in life, as a spouse, parent, son/daughter, worker, or student. You are in the world, but you are not of the world. Your identity is in Christ.
It also means that you return again and again to the Gospel and Sacrament where the Holy Spirit delivers to you God’s grace and mercy in Christ. This is to your advantage. This is for your good. Amen.
