Welcome to Unveiled Faces, a Redeemer Presbyterian Church podcast. Please enjoy our feature presentation. For the past many weeks, many of us have been challenged with taking up our across and facing the various things that have been going on in our country. And not only here, but the church has been faced with these things worldwide. Those that are concerned with the pandemic, others that are not concerned with the pandemic. We see that across the multitude of the church, that we see things that seem to be chaotic in terms of those that are gathering together to make statements about policy and politics, the chaotic nature of those that have gone to the extreme of rebelling and by destroying even public property and personal property. And some are even been led both in the church and outside the church, the legitimacy of our own government and the actions that it's taken. These things are not unknown in the scripture. In fact, these things are attested to in the very verses that we see here before us. Oh, maybe not a pandemic, but the apostles who were surrounding Christ at the time of the upper room discourse, and on his way to the cross, they were empowered by Christ to ask the questions that they asked of him, and they were blessed, as we are, to receive the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ directly from his mouth. In the midst of political chaos, those who were surrounding him loved him and dedicated their lives to him. But at the same time, they were challenged politically from the outside, not only by the Roman government, but by the very Jewish government that was supposed to have recognized Christ, received him, loved him. In fact, there were many who thought that there were conspiracies surrounding the nature of who Christ was, and even amongst the disciples, as we see by the question of Judas, there was confusion about who Christ was, even after he had proclaimed that he was the way, the truth, and the life, that he was the one who was before Abraham. His disciples had seen these things, as had the church. They had witnessed the miracles, as had the church. The leaders had seen these things and heard these things, and they were only frustrated because, as Pastor George pointed out this morning, the sin nature within them caused them to only think, how does this impact me? Looking at and implying the Word of God provides every Christian, you beloved, and every fellow believer that we have the privilege of calling ourselves saints with that we have this singular and powerful testimony of God given to us in his revealed word that is revealed to us in the fulfillment of what Christ has accomplished for us through the power of the ministry of the Holy Spirit this promise is the promise of the comforter of love Now, I'm certain many of you are unaccustomed of hearing the idea of the Holy Spirit being the comforter of love. But as we go through the text this morning, I want you to pay attention not only to the number of times that the word love appears in our text, but I encourage you to go back and beginning at chapter 13 and through the end of chapter 17, which in truth comprises the entirety of the Upper Room Discourse, that you will find there many occasions where the word love is used. Christ being the great shepherd of the sheep and by the blood of the everlasting covenant he is teaching not only the truth but he is demonstrating, manifesting love to the disciples that they might go forth and emulate through the power of the Holy Spirit that he is promising to them those things. We see that God's word is truth. And we have this attested for us in God's word when Christ himself prayed and said, sanctify them by your truth. Thy word is truth. John 17, 17. The comfort of the call of salvation found in Christ Jesus alone by the power of that everlasting covenant that we have spoken of is those things that are being given to the disciples in these verses. We see that there is a call for the ministry to continue by the power of the Holy Spirit through the apostles. And this is important for us today because each and every one of us are those in which the Holy Spirit now dwells. But it is by the power of these words that we understand not only the nature of the Spirit and the manifestation of love and the demonstration of obedience that Christ has given, but we understand also that each one of us is equally empowered, equally required, and are to equally demonstrate the manifestation of these things. For we are called to follow in the footsteps of Christ, as were the disciples and the apostles. Even in the midst of political unrest, even in the midst of global pandemic and economic decline, we trust not in ourselves, we focus not on ourselves, but we are commanded to focus on Christ Jesus. And all of this begins with the attesting and holy and powerful word of God, commanding us to love. We look at the idea of how it is that we worship. We manifest love in the way that we worship God Almighty. Today, we come together to not only encourage one another in our worship here together, but to hear the call of what is required of us each individually. We do this in the way that we confess our sins. We do it in the way that we stand and sing and honor God's word. We do it in the way that we bow our heads and pray. And not only here corporately, but we do these things by the power of the spirit when we are alone and we go into our prayer closet. Because as we are instructed by Christ, as he spoke to the Samaritan woman in John chapter four, God is to be worshiped in spirit and in truth. As we look at verses 15 through 24 of John 14, we see the assurance of the promises that we have been given. And these are reflected for us in the church creeds. For when we look to the nature of the Holy Spirit, theologically, and when we teach our ministers and our elders and our deacons, and as they teach the congregation, we see the nature of the Holy Spirit manifest in these passages before us. But one of the things that we see is specifically Christ teaching, plainly, directly, and to the point, the very things that we confess in our creeds. I'm thinking now especially of the Westminster Confession of Faith, Larger Catechism, questions 9 and 10. They summarize the things that are found for us in these verses. But one of the things that we see is that it speaks of blessings and benefits, it speaks of the nature of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, but they also reflect the manifestation of love. We also see this in Hatterberg Catechism question number 53, which reads as follows, what do you believe concerning the Holy Spirit? The answer, first, that he is co-eternal God with the Father and the Son. Second, that he is given unto me by true faith, makes me a partaker of Christ and all his benefits, comforts me, and shall abide with me forever. The very words here are reflected in Christ's words in the verses that we are looking at this morning. In the Westminster Confession, Larger Catechism, question number nine, it says, how many persons are in the Godhead? And of course the answer is, there be three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one true eternal God, the same in substance, and equal in power and glory, although distinguished by their personal properties. Question 10, On the heels of that says, what are, excuse me, what are the personal properties of the three persons of the Godhead? It is proper to the Father to beget the Son, and to the Son to be begotten of the Father, and to the Holy Ghost to proceed from the Father and the Son from all eternity. These words, beloved, are attested to in the text that is before you this morning. And not only here, but these doctrinal statements in the 10 verses that we're looking at, 15 through 24 of 14, are echoed and repeated in 15 and 16. And if you play close attention, they are also found in the High Priestly Prayer of Christ in John 17. We see particularly in these verses and these chapters a repetition of love, hope, mercy, assurance, justice, sacrifice, and service, which Christ himself manifests for us. Think for a moment what is happening here. In John 13, Christ begins by demonstrating his servanthood to those who are following him. Those who properly owe him worship, he bows before them and washes their feet. And by that beginning, teaches the demonstration and practice of love that the Holy Spirit is to not only encompass in our lives, but help us to deal with our neighbors and even our enemies. Note that when Christ washed the feet of the disciples, among them was Judas Iscariot, the one who would ultimately betray him. So as we turn to this section of scripture now, I want you to reflect in three points what we'll be going through, and I'll mention these points as we're going. The first point is the Spirit is another comforter, and of course When I say comforter, it is a comforter of love. The second point is Christ Jesus is our comforter. And again, of course, he is our comforter in love. And thirdly, our comforter in love is the Father. We see in these points the testimony that the Spirit is God, one in substance, equal with the Father and the Son. We begin with the first point, the Spirit is another comforter, verses 15 through 17. Verse 15 reads like this, and I'm reading my own translation. It's pretty close to the New King James, so I hope you won't be too led astray. It says, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. You see here, the Lord Jesus has already dealt with a couple of questions from the apostles, and he goes back to that demonstration of love which is so essential to the nature of the outpouring of the Spirit. Because it is the covenant nature of us as the people of God to whom God is demonstrating his eternal love through the only begotten Son. through the manifestation and the power of the Holy Spirit, which is poured out upon each and every one of us today, those who truly love Christ Jesus. You see, Jesus declared this great commandment, and he began with this great commandment in John 13. This is why I say it's so important to go back in the broader context, even as we focus on the narrow context in the message this morning. John 13, 34 through 35, Christ said he gave them a new commandment. That commandment was to be the evidence of their true faith and also a demonstration to the world that they were true followers of him. What was this commandment? It was the commandment to love and to be known by the love that they demonstrated. You see, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit live within the faithful children who are the adopted and joint heirs with Christ Jesus. The promise of the Holy Spirit to abide with them forever, which is forthcoming in the text, is something that Christ is looking forward to. This is the commandment that those who love him, that they will keep his commandment, that they will be the ones that are demonstrating the outward and the inward signs of the spirit and the manifestation of love you see the holy spirit is another comforter of love which actively guides us as christians in the application and practice of the commandment to love and as we look at the world around us, it's difficult at times to love some of the things that we see. In fact, we are directed by the same word to reject many of the things that we see, even at the same time to love the very people that may be doing those things which we are commanded to reject. We are never to hate our neighbor or to reject them out of hand. And that doesn't matter if they are right-wing, left-wing, homosexual, bisexual, cross-dressers, we are commanded to love them. And they will not know the love unless, as Christ says here, the power of the Spirit which is given to us will cause us to act in accordance with that love. You see, we see this picture given to us by Paul in the book of Galatians. And when you think in chapter 5 of the book of Galatians, you see there what the manifestation of the Holy Spirit is. Why is it that we will demonstrate and keep the commandments of God? It is because of love, which is the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians chapter 5 verse 22 says, but the fruit of the Spirit is love and joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. And then it closes by saying in verse 24, against such there is no law. I want you to imagine for a moment that you're speeding down the highway at a much higher rate of speed than the speed limit allows for and a CHP officer pulls you over. And this gentleman is very gruff with you. He's not very smiley. Maybe he's having a bad day. And he demands of you your driver's license. He tells you that you're going way out of the speed limit and you're likely to cause somebody to die. As a Christian, you have one of two choices in the way that you could respond. You could respond simply in silence and you could do nothing but comply with his directives. Or you could choose to smile and confess and say, thank you, officer. I was speeding. And thank you for your service and holding me accountable for doing what Christ, my savior, requires of me, complying with the law. Trust me, if you respond the second way, the CHP officer is going to look at you in a whole different way than he does most of the people he pulls over in any given day for speeding. You see the fruit of the Spirit is first listed as beginning with love. That is why we see when we look at John 13 1, the beginning of the passage in the broader context of our section of scripture this morning, it speaks about Christ understanding that his hour was coming when he was going to die. And that he knew the hour in which his death was to occur and that he was to depart out of the world and it says to us in that first verse that he having loved his own which were in the world he loved them until the end this is the context in which we come to the passages that are before us that the promise of the comforter is recorded as both an act of love and is surrounded by examples of love through christ as he considered the end of his earthly ministry. And it is for us believers today a complete and total fulfillment of the requirements of the law so that you and I are blessed with grace to come into the presence of God Almighty even as we are commanded. From chapter 13 through the end of Christ's high priestly prayer, as I have already mentioned, love is used 25 times. That's a lot if you think about it. 25 times the word love is used. How is it that Christ is using the commandment here that we will, we will do what he has commanded because we love him? It is because through the indwelling of the Spirit, we can comply when we are commanded to love in John 13, 34 through 35, or chapter 15, verse 12. We can and will comply with the commandments that we are to love and are loved by Christ. As we see in the passage I just referred to, John 13, 1, 1421, and also 1512, and also the manifestation of the love of the Father. You see, even in the manifestation of love, we have the picture of the Holy Spirit and the Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit manifested for us. And if you go through and carefully look at the verses, not only that we are in today as we will continue to reflect, but also the broader context that I have encouraged you to read. You will see a message of love here that is touching every part of scripture. The reason for creation, the manifestation of the blessing that comes in the cursing and the casting down of the serpent in the garden. when the promise of one who will come who will overcome the sin and the corruption is given there in chapter three of genesis when christ says if you love me you will keep my commandments it is a promise and we can look at the text as though it's an if then proposition christ is saying if you love me well then you'll keep my commandments But that's not what it says, beloved. What it says is, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. Because if you love Christ, beloved, then the promises that follow, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the power that comes with being obedient, seeking forgiveness of sins, yielding ourselves to God, then the proposition is this. that Christ is providing a promise that will be demonstrated by evidence in the expression of godly love and how we live from day to day. This very same demonstrable evidence that Christ showed every day that he walked the earth and especially during that period of time leading up to his going to the cross where he was obedient unto death. we can continue to look at the verses that are before us where he says you will keep my commandments and christ says also or and i will pray the father and he will give you another advocate notice this is a positive statement he's not saying i'm asking that god might i'm hoping that god will he says i will pray the father in addition to your being in compliance, you're being obedient, you're doing what I have commanded you, the Father will give to you another advocate. Now, perhaps you're wondering why I choose to use the word advocate. Isn't that a word that's normally reserved for Christ? Indeed. But if we turn to 1 John 2, we see there Christ described as the comforter or the one who is the advocate he is indeed the one who is being spoken of here for there is in these words a promise of the father the son and the holy spirit verse 17 says the spirit of truth whom the world is not able to receive because it does not see him or know him you know him because he resides with you and will be in you so there is a promise that he is not only they're with them currently, which seems odd because the Pentecost hasn't occurred. In fact, we're going to talk about that in a couple of moments in some of the other verses. But he's promising them that he himself, who had been their advocate, who had been their comforter, that he through the Spirit, which is his properly, he will come by the Father and himself to them and that they will be able to do the things that he has said that they will do, that they will be obedient to his commandments. You see, Christ not only intercedes to the Father for the coming of the Comforter, but he is also pointing to himself as being the one who will stay with them, not physically, but through the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. You see, Christ declares the Holy Spirit Not only here in John 14, but also in 1526 and 1613. He sees him as the comforter, which is spoken of in 1416 again and 26. Outside, a little beyond where we're going this morning. And also in 15 and 16. And this is more than an abstract concept. It's not like the spirit was unknown to the children of Israel. They knew the story of Samson. They knew that the Spirit of God came upon him and gave him power. They knew that the Spirit of God came upon David and poured out through him the Psalms. That the Spirit of God had come upon Solomon and poured out through him books of wisdom and the Proverbs and also in Ecclesiastes. The role of the comforter then was to teach and to lead believers as it had done from the very beginning. And while these examples were used of the Old Testament to encourage and to inform the hearts and the minds of those to whom Christ was preaching, it was something that every Jew should have known and understood as well. Of course, amongst the teachings that are taught here, love is not absent, but it is central in all that we see concerning the testimony of God's great word. In fact, Paul spends the entirety of 1 Corinthians 13 in giving to us a demonstration of what love is. And if you go and look at that, you will find that the things that Christ is doing here in these chapters 13 through 17, and these verses in chapter 14, that he is manifesting the nature of love and hope and grace and mercy. The co-eternal nature of the Spirit is confessed to us in that Christ is pronouncing that the Spirit is another Comforter, like unto himself, not dissimilar, but similar. And more than similar, they come to understand eventually one with Christ Jesus. The force of the statement implies the function of the Spirit is equal to Christ. There's no other way to really read these verses. When you read them in their proper context, you see that this is the truth that is being spoken of. The Spirit is another comforter because Christ distinctly defines the oneness and unity of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit in the context of love throughout his ministry, and specifically in the narrower context that we are looking at this morning. The spirit of truth which is known to us is given to us by the Father. This is something that Christ attested to throughout his ministry. In fact, he alludes to it again and again throughout these chapters that we're looking at and that reflect the broader context before us. Christ says that he came to do his Father's will. He did nothing apart from his Father's will. Indeed, in the preceding context of the verses that we're looking in, when they said, show us the Father, he said, have I been with you so long? You have seen me, then you have seen the Father. They were still grasping, however, because they didn't have the fullness of the Spirit indwelling them. Pentecost had not yet come. Christ teaches his equality with the Comforter, and then we'll also teach that equality with the Father and the Spirit together. But that's our second point, that Jesus Christ is our Comforter. You see, verse 18, he says, I will not leave you as orphans. I am coming to you. Yet a little time and the world will see me no longer, but you will see me because I live you will also live. Here in this declaration, which is the second part of the message this morning, Christ identifies himself as the one who is the comforter, which helps us to understand when he says that the spirit is another comforter, when he himself assures them that he will not leave them as orphans. It's very interesting because in declaring this to them he also is declaring to them that he is leaving them and that's very plain because he tells them a little while he will not be there and then in a little while he will be there. And of course this is referring to him going to the cross, his death, his burial and then his resurrection in which he was there with them again. Calvin notes that Christ addresses his disciples here by showing their weakness in being comfortless as an orphan might if it didn't have parents. They are defenseless. In fact, the state takes up the cause of orphans when the church fails to do that. And when the church is successful in taking up the cause of orphans, those children are raised up and nurtured in the admonition and the love of Jesus Christ. And that's why we as a body ought to be very mindful of the orphans and the widows that are amongst us. But Calvin goes on to say, having already promised a remedy, that is the promise of the Holy Spirit, he gives them good encouragement, for he declares that he will never leave them. After informing them that he will, he tells them that he will never leave them. When he says, I will come to you, he shows in what manner he dwells in his people and in what manner he fills all things. It is by the power of the spirit and hence it is evident that the grace of the spirit is a striking proof of his divinity. Here we see Calvin also understanding the true divine nature of the spirit and the oneness between the spirit and christ which is promised to each and every one of you beloved through the power and the ministry of the apostles and through the words of christ jesus which are recorded for us here and through the illumination with the spirit gives each and every one of us to know day you will know that I'm you are in me and here there can be no doubt of the unity of the father the son and the spirit as our catechisms teach us and as the entirety of scripture attests to we have the love and the relationship not only with jesus christ you'll often hear we must have a personal relationship with jesus christ and this is true enough But our personal relationship is with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In fact, we can't have relationship with the Father and the Son if the Spirit doesn't dwell in us. That's why Christ said, the world cannot receive it because it does not know it. Only those who are born again, as he told Nicodemus in John chapter three, those who are brought through Christ to the Father enter into the interpersonal and covenantal relationship by the eternal blood of the covenant of Christ Jesus with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In this way, Christ is our comforter. In this way, we see that the Holy Spirit is another comforter. Continuing in verse 21, it says, the one who has my commandments and keeps them, that one is the one who loves me. Again, this is not a conditional statement. This is a promise of the effectiveness of the power of the Spirit dwelling in those who are his. Now, Peter and Judas and Simon and the others who were with them didn't understand this. They thought that they loved Christ. Peter said he would go to the cross and yet Christ tells him, I tell you the cross, you will deny me three times before the cock crows. But here we have the manifestation and the power of God's words telling them that they need not fear. that He will empower them to not only keep His commandments, but that that will be the demonstration of the love that they have for Him. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him, and I will manifest Myself to him." Now, beloved, these words might be taken where it begins in verse 20 to say, at that day, the day of Pentecost. But if that were true, and it was limited to the day of Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as it happened on that day and is recorded for us in Acts, then what benefit would we have today? We would have nothing to look forward to. But the promise only began at Pentecost, but continues as the evidence of who we are as Christians today. The confessions that we make in faith happen as a result of the indwelling of the Spirit of God. We understand the sickness of sin that lives in us because of the indwelling of the Spirit of God. And it is the manifestation of Christ revealing himself to us through the Spirit and revealing the Father to us through the Spirit that embraces us and envelops us in love. and in truth and in hope so that we have the hope of a future and the promise of those things that Christ has said properly belong to those that are his forgiveness of sins life eternal with the father and a promise of a new heavens and a new earth You see, we are commanded to love, but we are also loved by Christ and the Father and the Holy Spirit. When we look at other places in Scripture, in john chapter 17 that high priestly prayer i want to make very clear where christ is demonstrating when he says i will pray to the father for the holy spirit for you he does this almost immediately after he tells them that he's going to do it if you want to read along turn to john chapter 17 to verse 20 He says, and I do not ask on behalf of these only, Christ praying to the Father in the midst of the apostles that were there with him. I do not pray on behalf of the apostles only, but also on behalf of those who believe in me through their word. Beloved, those is each and every one of you today who believe through the testimony of the Gospels of Jesus Christ as they are recorded, John included, and the epistles that are written for us as Holy Scripture. He continues in verse 21 and says, that they all may be one just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you, that they also may be in us. Here we see what may seem to some people like a very coded thing. In fact, some people have taken this doctrine and they have twisted it completely to say that this is a oneness doctrine. We're only supposed to be one with Christ and the Father and the Spirit don't matter. Well, they're wrong. Christ, in the context here, clearly is praying about the indwelling of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As He has been one in all eternity with His Father and the Spirit, now He's asking that we might intimately participate with them through the promises that He has given them. If you skip down to verse 23, it says, I in them and you in me, in order that they may be completed in one. so that the world may know that you have sent me and you have loved them just as you loved me." Christ said, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. Beloved, you keep the commandments of God when you are faithful and demonstrating your faith in whatever circumstances. You know, there's gonna be a lot of opportunities to get into arguments in the coming weeks and months ahead. There's going to be some people who are going to be offended because of the vaccine that comes forth eventually. Others are offended because of masks. Some people are offended because they think that the things that we're being asked to do, coming outside and worshiping and not being allowed to go inside, that that's really so horrible. And yet God is in control. And our response coming together as we are here this morning is a demonstration of that love. It's a demonstration of the promise that Christ has given us that we indeed comply and do and are obedient even as Christ was unto death although we have not yet resisted as unto blood. Christ as our comforter demonstrates and communicates all of the benefits which are his and are imparted to us, to each and every one of those of us that confess Christ as our living Lord and Savior, so that we are full partakers in the power and the spirit of Christ which dwells in us. You, beloved, are partakers of all those benefits and blessings if you declare that Christ is your God and you seek your comfort from him. the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. You see, beloved, we have as our comforter and our last point the Father as well as the Son and the Spirit. And this is reflected to us in the question that Judas Iscariot asked, that confusion that I've alluded to that the apostles seem to have. You may remember that even after these events, after his death, even after his resurrection, when they were supposed to go and be waiting for the outpouring of the Spirit in Jerusalem, they decided to go fishing again. And Christ came and confronted them. revealed himself to them yet again, demonstrating his love, his care, and his mercy. But he did this as he did all things, in accordance with the will of the Father. And so when Judas asked the question, he says, Lord, why is it that you are going to manifest yourself to us and not the world? Most commentators think that it's because the question is coming from that political confusion we alluded to earlier. the jews believed that the messiah was going to come and he was going to manifest himself in the nation and he was going to overthrow the romans and not only the romans he was going to overthrow the world but they had an idea that wasn't biblical he came to overthrow the romans and the world but through the power and the administration of the holy spirit by the effectiveness of his death and resurrection, conquering death and sin, and through the obedience that he demonstrates and that we today demonstrate, beloved, in following the will of the Father. And that's why Jesus answered him this way in verse 23. If anyone loves me, he will keep, excuse me, if anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him. and we we will come to him and will make residence with him the one who does not love me does not keep my words and the word that you hear is not mine but the father's who sent me you see here christ continues to glorify the father as you and i beloved are commanded to do He demonstrates to them what they are to do once He dies, is resurrected, and ascends to heaven. He clears up the record for them. And even though He clears up the record, they still don't understand. Because the indwelling of the Spirit that will lead them into all truth, that blessed gift and benefit that we have today, you have, beloved, in Christ Jesus, they didn't have it at that moment. They had Christ physically there. They had the remembrance of the miracles. They had the benefit of all the things that he had spoken. They had the benefit of having been sent out to perform miracles, to cast out demons, and to heal the sick. They had all of this, and yet they were still confused. And so, beloved, if present circumstances seem to be confusing, chaotic, disjointed. They set you out of sorts. They make you uncomfortable. That's only to be understood in the sense that we are sinners, one and all. But when you respond in peace and joy and love, kindness and goodness and faithfulness, it is the power of the Spirit in you, through you, demonstrating to the world around you, not only to those of your own house and the household of faith, but especially to those outside of the household of faith, the love, the mercy, and the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is promised to each and every one of us through the power of the Holy Spirit and in Christ Jesus and the Father as one. I want to read something from William Hendrickson concerning the indwelling here of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Because remember, in this passage, Christ said, we will come and make our abode with you. We, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. I don't know if there's a clearer testimony anywhere in Scripture, and we can look at the baptism of Christ where we have the appearance of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. But here, Christ himself is saying, we will come and make our abode with you. And this word abode is the same word at the beginning of chapter 14, which is mansions. In my father's house are many mansions. We're going to dwell in the luxury and the benefit and the beatific love of the consummate relationship that is promised to each and every one of us through the blood of the everlasting covenant of Christ Jesus. And Hendrickson talks about it this way. He says, the presence is very real. Its operation can be felt. The spirit will convict of sin, lead to daily repentance, impart assurance of salvation, bestows a peace of God that passes all understanding. It will admonish and comfort. All of this in connection with the word. It is in that way that Christ has promised to manifest himself to the disciples, but not to the world. So what do we do by way of application? Well, I hope I've given you application as I've been proclaiming God's Word. But I began by talking about the cross that we all have been chosen to bear. here in 2020. I saw a Facebook post that essentially listed something like 50 items of things that are happening right now in our timeline that we may want to remember. Where masks are publicly being worn, where church services are being forbidden along with concerts and movie theaters and these kinds of things. There's mass hysteria it seems on all sides. except the side where Christ's spirit dwells. When you see the response of those who may disagree with you about one particular or another, or perhaps they seem to be right on the edge of wanting to say that we ought to overthrow the government, which I don't recommend, by the way, It is because of the peace and love that we have of Christ in us. You see, the power of the Spirit isn't about speaking in gibberish. It's not about speaking a word of power to get that Cadillac or that house or a million dollars. In fact, it's about proclaiming the wealth of the goodness of the relationship that we have and benefit in each and every day. And so as we look at the world around us, as we look at those things that are happening around us, you have right now the opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ in an unprecedented way. And if you, beloved, will take that challenge each and every day, Seek Christ as the way, the truth, and the life in your response to those that are around you. Whether you agree with what they're saying about masks or vaccines or whatever, if you will demonstrate and manifest love and peace and truth and act in accordance with the fact that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit abide in you, then beloved, You will have fulfilled the love of the commandments spoken of in the verses before us today. And you will be embracing and extending the love of Jesus Christ to everyone, both those of the household of faith, those who are our neighbors, and even those who are our enemies. Remember, Paul said to us in Romans chapter five, that God commended his love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. This is the challenge each and every one of us are to take forth from the message this morning. We are the children of God. Let us go forth. And with the words of Christ, close the message this morning. Again from chapter 14 of John, he said these things. These things have I spoken to you while being present with you, but the Helper of the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give it to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. And all God's people said, Amen. Let us pray. Father, as we come before you this morning and we have reflected upon your word, we ask that you will illuminate our hearts. And Father, where the fallibility of the speaker has been present, may you overcome it by the power of your spirit. Where your spirit is leading us, Father, as especially those of us that have paid close attention or taking notes and are going to go and to open the word as good Bereans, to challenge what we have heard and to make sure that it's according to your word. Father, we pray that you will embrace us by your spirit and help us to be faithful stewards of your word. Be with us now as we continue in our time of worship and celebration. As you come and bless us to come to your table, that you may be glorified in all that we do, Father, we pray and we ask not only that you will help us to be good neighbors to those whom we live near or we encounter from day to day, but also that we would be good neighbors to those that we might otherwise consider to be our enemies. For Father, we all are created in your image. And that image, Father, gives us the basis upon which to proclaim the truth of the gospel to each and every one. Be with us now, we do pray in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen. This has been a presentation of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. For more resources and information, please stop by our website at visitredeemer.org. All material herewithin, unless otherwise noted. Copyright Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Elk Grove, California. Music furnished by Nathan Clark George. Available at nathanclarkgeorge.com.