John 14:18-21

John 14:18-21 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.

The resurrection finalized and culminated all of Christ's teaching. Jesus makes an audacious promise to comfort the hearts of his disciples and followers: Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. As Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost when the Spirit fell, they may have placed Christ's dead body in a tomb, but this same Jesus, the Holy One, God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. For David says concerning Him: “I foresaw the LORD always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope. For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption." Paul shared this account of Christ showing himself to the faithful, including Paul's own calling out of season: By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. (1 Corinthians 15:2-8)

Jesus most assuredly did not leave them as orphans: they knew him as a living Savior who walked among them before returning to the right hand of the Father. Then God sent the Comforter to be with them forever, teaching them all things, reminding them of everything Jesus had said to them. (See John 14:16 &26) Through the Spirit, they realized Jesus was TRULY IN THE FATHER, and all who believed and trusted IN HIM were IN HIM and would remain in him forevermore. The resurrection transformed Christ's followers and their beliefs in the Son, the Father, and the Spirit, their understanding of eternal life. Before this momentous event, victory over sin and hope of eternal life with God tugged at their minds but eluded their spiritual comprehension. After the resurrection, THEY KNEW VICTORY WAS THEIRS AND ETERNAL LIFE WAS WITHIN THEIR GRASP THROUGH THEIR RESURRECTED LORD AND THE INDWELLING CHICINA GLORY OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD. THEY WERE ALIVE BECAUSE HE WAS ALIVE IN THEM THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT! The resurrection made eternal life a surety for all who confess Christ as Lord, as good as money in the bank with a Holy Spirit guarantee. Jesus said I will send to you the Holy Spirit: He will be the earnest payment, letting you know victory now and forever is your inheritance. All who are IN CHRIST possess this Eternal Spirit now.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:1-2) The Comforter, Sustainer, and Guide abides in us, bearing witness, advocating truth, convincing us of our inheritance, and constantly revealing Christ in us. He expresses God's plan in us as we yield, ever changing us from glory to glory, perfecting Christ's image in God's adopted sons and daughters. He faithfully reminds us we have life through the Son because

He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

(1 John 5:12) Many churches rarely speak of the third member of the godhead, yet the Bible is full of references to the Holy Spirit. He is given many names, attributes actually, revealing his nature: Spirit of Promise, Wisdom, Truth, Might, Revelation, Life, Love, Knowledge, Grace, Faith, Counsel, Adoption, and more. Yet He is gentle and humble, never forces himself upon us, and does not speak of himself, only points us to Jesus Messiah, Lamb of God. We should allow the Spirit to reveal Christ in us in a more active and living way by listening more attentively and obeying his voice. Living according to our own inclinations leads to self-absorption and a lukewarm life at best and will take us on a path to sorrow and destruction at worst. We will miss the love, peace, and joy of the resurrected life Jesus won at the cross and fail to meet our responsibilities to take up the cross, die daily, and serve others. We can become pharisaical, following God through the letter of the law while our hearts are far from him and we have no joy, no evidence of a lasting hope. But praise God, Christ arose and signed a death warrant for sin and the grave. Arise and shine, beloved of God, for the light has come! Listen and live, hear the blessed Holy Spirit, hearken to his voice. He helps you obey and you will live FOREVERMORE!