John 16 (Eight) New Life from Jesus

Good day

For as long as it takes we are going to study the gospel of John chapters fourteen to seventeen.

To pick up the topic, you may need to read the one or two postings preceding this one.

From as far as I can remember during my early childhood I had a desire after the Lord. To me it was great fun to go to church and especially when there was a time of prayer during the service. I remember being in awe when these adult men got up and prayed, and I still remember gaining the courage to get up as well, adding my holding-my-breath-stuttering -nervously prayer to theirs. This was during my primary school years, but as I became a teenager I started to wonder about the security in salvation. Although I had a thorough foundation in the Word of God though a well organised Sunday school system, I knew there had to be more.

Being of Calvinistic persuasion our church did not preach the need to be born

again, so even though I loved the Lord and went through all the church procedures, I still needed the renewal in my spirit – the moment of being born again. I remember that I repented of my sins every Sunday, but it did not bring me peace and security of salvation in my heart. This the Lord arranged for me to receive through a teacher at school who ran a Bible study that I attended. I remember as clearly as daylight my experience when she prayed with me to allow Jesus into my heart and renew my spirit – the day I became born again. Suddenly everything I have learnt through the years made sense and the Bible unfolded for me.

This is basically what had happened to the disciples in John 16:29-31. For three years they had lived with Jesus, learning from Him, seeing His miracles, practising to do these things themselves, but it was as if their focus was wrong. It seemed to have been on the activities rather than on the relationship. In John chapters fourteen to sixteen were recorded Jesus’ final instructions to the disciples to remedy this, and then eventually their eyes opened. All the knowledge they had gained suddenly became alive – they had become born again: “His disciples said, ‘Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Do you now believe?’”

How about you? Have you been born again (John 3:1-8) or have you been in church all your life, not realising you have not had this wonderful experience of a renewed spirit. “But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about Him and were taught in Him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness,” (Ephesians 4:20-24). “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come,” (2 Corinthians 15:17). Maybe you have difficulty to understand the Word of God, to hear His voice or to follow His guidance. One cannot hear from God or understand His Word if your spirit is still dead as it was at birth.

Believing in Jesus does not make the spirit alive, but a decision to allow Jesus to renew your spirit through rebirth. James 2:18, 19: “But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!” Believing in Jesus is not enough, we need to put action to our faith and trust Him to change us. ‘Lord Jesus, please come in and make me a new creation.’

When the disciples believed as recorded in John 16:29, 31 above, it was as if Jesus renewed their spirits there and then – the moment of their rebirth - and to Him it was the conclusion of their training. They were ready to take over from Him once they have received the Holy Spirit’s power. He then concluded His teaching with these words: “Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” They were ready to face the truth, the hard reality of them being on their own with only faith in the Holy Spirit to be their helper.

With us it works the other way around. The disciples were firstly trained and then eventually grasped the reality of a renewed spirit. We need to be born again firstly so we could grasp the truth about Jesus with our renewed spirit, which is able to communicate with the Holy Spirit, who replaced Jesus. The disciples did not need renewed spirits initially, since they had Jesus, but the time had come that they would have been dependent on the Holy Spirit and therefore needed to have their spirits renewed – being born again.

Lord, I need you to renew my spirit so I could receive insight into your truth.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.