SEARCH THE SCRIPTURE by Pastor Kumuyi of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry for today is here. Digest the word of the lord and pray believing.
YOUTH STS LESSON 165_ THE PROMISE AND MINISTRY OF THE COMFORTER
TEXT: John 14:16-31; 16:1-33. MEMORY VERSE: “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26).
The Comforter is the same as the Holy Ghost. In our texts, Christ promised to send the Comforter (Holy Ghost) to believers after His ascension. Importance of the Holy Spirit in our lives cannot be over emphasis. We can only enjoy our Christian walk and service to the Lord through the help of the Holy Spirit. It is, therefore, our duty to seek the Lord for this important Christian experience. The promise of God is, “For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call” (Acts 2:39). In addition, Christ gave the disciples four other promises: post resurrection visit (John 15:16-22), answer to their prayers (John16:23-27), His return to the Father (John 16: 28-30), and victory over every adverse situation (John 16:33).
CHRIST’S PROMISE AND MINISTRY OF THE COMFORTER (John 14:16-26; 16:7-15; 15:26,27; Joel 2:28-30; Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4,8; Isaiah 11:2)
“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (John 14:16,17). The Lord Jesus loved the disciples (including us today) greatly that He promised of requesting the Father to give the Holy Spirit to comfort them. There are different names for the Comforter.
Question 1: Mention other names of the Comforter.
The Comforter is called the Holy Spirit (John 14:16), the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17), the Holy Ghost (John 14:26), the promise of the Father (Luke 24:49), the Spirit of Holiness (Romans 1:4), the Spirit of glory (1 Peter 4:14) and the Spirit of the Lord (Isaiah 11:2).
Question 2: Highlight the benefits of receiving the Holy Spirit.
“And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears” (Isaiah 11:2,3). The benefits of receiving the Holy Spirit include wisdom, understanding, counsel, might (power), knowledge and the fear of the Lord. The Holy Spirit also teaches, comforts, directs, helps in prayer, convicts, testifies of Christ, searches all things, sanctifies and empowers the believers.
Question 3: What steps should one take to receive the Holy Spirit?
“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26). Christ gave the promise to believers; therefore, to receive the power of the Spirit, one must be saved from sins, sanctified by the blood of Christ, have faith in Christ’s promise, pray fervently, strongly desire and have great expectation. The purpose of receiving the Holy Spirit is to win souls for Christ and render effective service to God.
Question 4: What is the ministry of the Holy Spirit?
The works of the Holy Ghost are itemised as follows: (i) Exposing sin (ii) Conviction of sin (iii) Regeneration (iv) Adopts into God’s family (v) Helps and gives victory in temptation (vi) Fills believers with joy (vii) Gives peace and boldness (viii) Sanctifies (ix) Intercedes for the saints (x) Illuminates (xi) Inspires and reveals (xii) Empowers (xiii) Directs the course of the gospel work (xiv) Confirms the gospel with signs and wonders, and (xv) Comforts the persecuted. Apart from the promise of the Holy Ghost, Christ charged His disciples to keep His commandments as this is the evidence of their love to Him. “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him” (John 14:21). God loves us. Jesus also loves us. We must also show our love for God and Christ. The evidence of our love for Christ is by keeping His commandments. “Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him” (John 14:23).
CHRIST’S PREDICTION OF HIS DISCIPLES’ SUFFERING AND PERSECUTION (John 14:27-31; 16:1-6,20-22,32-33; John15:18-25; Matthew 10:16-19; 1 Peter 4:12-16; 2 Timothy 3:11-13)
“And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me. But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you” (John 16:3,4). Persecution is suffering for righteousness’ sake. Yet, it is unavoidable for genuine believers. Before now, the Lord Jesus Christ had suffered various kinds of persecution from the hands of the Pharisees, Scribes, Jews and the political leaders. It was now the turn of His disciples to be persecuted. So, He foretold them of the suffering and persecution so that they will not be taken unawares. As Christian youths, it is certain we will face persecution from unconverted youths in the school and neighbourhood, from parents and teachers etc.
Question 5: From the discussion of Christ with His disciples, itemise the basic truths about persecution?
The highly placed religious leaders led the persecution. They were not comfortable with the Master’s dynamic, peculiar and miraculous ministry. Hitherto, He was the target of all their oppositions and was accused of having a devil. The following are evident from the predicted persecution: (a) The sureness (certainty) of the persecution. (b) The severity of the precise persecution. (c) The scope of the predicted persecution. (d) The sorrow of the persecuted. (e) The source of the predicted persecution. (f) Suffering with Christ in persecution. (g) Saintly behaviour in persecution. (h) The Saviour’s support in persecution. (i) Sure benefits from the predicted persecution. We therefore learn that we are to bear any maltreatment during persecution. This is because our attitude in persecution determines whether we will enjoy God’s blessings and assistance or not. “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men’s matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf” (1 Peter 4:12-16).
CHRIST’S RESPONSE TO THE DISCIPLES REACTION (John 16:16-33; Mark 14:27; Romans 8:35-39; Revelation 2:8-11)
In reaction to the news of Christ’s sufferings and imminent departure, the disciples showed expressions of sorrow, ignorance and discouragement. Jesus wanted the disciples to appreciate that they had just a little time to learn, ask questions and to settle every issue concerning their faith. Christian youths should be interested about divine matters. We should make maximum use of present opportunities by asking relevant questions that can be of help to our spiritual and academic developments. When the Lord saw their condition, He intervened with comforting responses in clearer language. For sorrow, he promised to come back to them in a short time with abundance of permanent joy while the joy of the world, like the triumph of the hypocrite, will be for a short moment.
Question 6: What do you learn from Christ’s response to the disciples’ question?
From Christ’s response, Christian youths must not sorrow “as others which have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13). That was the reason Jesus put them through on the tools of effective prayer. “And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full” (John 16:23,24). After receiving the Holy Ghost power, the fervency and effectiveness of their prayer was to change drastically. Christ commended the disciples to the love of the Father, so He would respond to all their prayers. He encourages believers to ask and receive. To confirm the success of His speech, the disciples expressed satisfaction over the clarity of His message and affirmed, “Now are we sure that thou knows all things, and need not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou came forth from God” (John 16:30). In conclusion, believers should know that receipt of the Holy Ghost cannot make them escape persecution but through His power, they will overcome.
