As we come to John 16, I am reminded a weird phenomenon that is seen in the Christian Church, in which we read different parts of the Bible in different ways. For instance, if I asked you to read a chapter out of the book of James, Acts or Romans, you would likely read it as if the author was giving advice directly to you. However, if I were to ask you to read a chapter out of the Old Testament, you would likely read it as a past story, one that has exciting twists and turns, and maybe (if you read between the lines) you would find a principle that you could apply to your own life. This is often the same way that we read the gospel stories. We read about the life of Jesus to find out more about His character and learn from the mistakes of those around Him, but we often forget that the lives that the Disciples lived are strikingly similar to ours today.

That may seem like an odd statement to you, because after all, we live in a VERY different time than they did, right? I would argue, however, that we are in a very similar position as the Disciples were when Jesus spoke these words to them. Consider the world in which they lived. They had grown up listening to the teaching of religious leaders who told them to expect and be ready for the coming of a Messiah. Their religion was largely based on the relationship that they had with God and would one day result in deliverance from the evil that enslaved them. Their world was turned upside down when that Savior arrived to deliver them but did not fit the image that had been woven for Him, nor did He overthrow the political enemy that they expected. Furthermore, the Disciples by faith followed Jesus, learning things that would change the way that they, and future Christians, would live. They wanted to obey Jesus and wanted to live for Him, but they lived in a world full of noise and false teachings. The religious leaders that they grew up with weaponized their own faith against them and used “God language” to attack them. Even those who did not believe in their God (the Romans), sought to keep them from truly serving Jesus, and living the way that they knew they should.

Tumultuous times! Sounds familiar doesn’t it. We can relate to almost every part of that narrative. We as modern Christians live in one of the loudest and most confusing times to follow Christ. No, we don’t have to face physical persecution in the country (yet), but we do live in a place where the Word of God is weaponized against us. The faith that we grew up with is being turned and twisted to justify attacks on our faith. Not only that, we also face groups of non-believers that wish to silence us and keep us from living in a Christ-like manner. That is why the chapters of John that we have been studying are so important. “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away.” (John 16:1). Jesus left His Disciples (and us) with direct instructions on how to live for Him and how to engage those who try to persecute us (John 16:2-4). So how do we live our faith in such a volatile world (just as the Disciples did)? We do it by following the instructions that God laid out for us. He is speaking directly to us, just as He was speaking directly to them.

Consider also, that we are inclined to react in the same way that the Disciples did. They were distracted by the battle that they were about to face and the prospect of doing it alone that they nearly forgot to listen to Jesus and see the full picture. In verse 7, we see that Jesus must leave so that He can empowered His people with His Spirit so they can continue His work and ministry here on earth. We have the same work to do, and we are empowered by the Spirit as the Disciples were.

So, what do we take away from Jesus’s purposeful exit? We now know that we have a purpose, one that will be met with much opposition. This means that it is our responsibility to know and understand the instructions that Jesus left for us. This is a big responsibility, one that requires intentionality and time in the Word with Jesus. However, we can also rest knowing that our strength comes from the Lord in the form of His “Advocate,” someone who we will learn more about tomorrow.