John 16:12-15

John 16:12-15 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.

When Jesus declared, All that belongs to the Father is mine, he spoke truths beyond his followers' grasp. Sometimes we fail to understand that all that is in the Father is in Jesus. Jesus embodies the fulness of the triune God: For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power. (Colossians 2:9-10) When the Spirit reveals Jesus in us, He manifests the likeness of the Father to the world. The Bible says, No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us — even eternal life. (1 John 2:23-25) When we know Christ as Lord by accepting his grace and mercy, we know the Father. Consequently, we have power and influence with the FATHER, and we have eternal life now and forever because Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to abide with us. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. (Romans 8:10-11) Because of Christ's redemptive work and the Spirit within us, we can declare today without hesitation: You have an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Peter 1:4) Our finite minds think of heavenly streets of gold; yet we sometimes experience difficulty comprehending our adoption as sons and daughters of the Most High. 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! (1 John 3:1) We must walk in the this glorious freedom as a reality that we might be ambassadors of the gospel.

Jesus went on to say the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you, pointing to the final outcome of his sacrifice at Calvary, that God would literally welcome Christ's followers and all who would call upon the name of Jesus into his very family with all the rights of sons and daughters. When Paul explained this mystery, he said since we are no longer fearful slaves to sin, we are now led by the Spirit; therefore, we have received the Spirit of sonship. And by him

we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

(Romans 8:14-17) As part of God's family, we joyfully reveal Christ to the world. If our flesh dominates our lives, we frustrate the grace of God and prevent his perfect will from bringing forth the peaceable fruits of righteousness He has planned for each of us. We live beneath our privileges a members of a royal family with a heavenly mission and divine assignments. As adopted members of the family of God, we must be about our Father's business, doing as Jesus did, going about doing good, listening to that still small voice. Before his death Jesus said, But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself. He was referring to his death on the cross, but He went on to say, When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me. I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. (John 12: 32 &44-46) As sons and daughters we must flee darkness and walk in the freedom of Christ, spreading his light abroad!

The Bible is clear on discipleship and consistent service to the One who gave everything that we might walk in victory, free from sin and death. Christ's death made us able to breathe the sweet clean air of redemption and forgiveness; able to look to a city whose builder and maker is God; able to envision a better day where there will be no more sorrow, no more tears, no more dying; only inexpressible JOY for all eternity, praising our Lord forevermore! Do we hear an AMEN? Can anyone shout HALLELUJAH? Walking in the Spirit does not come natural to the fleshly nature. If it did, we would not have much of the New Testament. The Holy Spirit would not have used Paul, Peter, John, and James to write all those letter of exhortation, encouragement, teaching, and yes a great deal of correction. And they were writing mostly to believers, and often to those who had walked and talked with Jesus. We learn by practicing the presence of Jesus, by walking in the Spirit and keeping in step with the Spirit. We can't do it alone: Paul told the church in Galatia: So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. Then he described the harvest God seeks when we yield to the Spirit and trust totally in his sufficiency in us. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. (Galatians 5:16-18 &22-25) This is how we change our talk, improve our walk, love more, get angry less, let Jesus shine through more, and come out of the corner into the center of every room where we abide, sharing the good news that Jesus lives and wants to change the hearts of hurting people. All that belongs to the Father is ours! Glory to God in the highest!