John 14-16: When Your World Explodes
Jesus knew, the night before his death, that the disciples' world was about to be blown to pieces. He would be arrested, tried, and crucified. They'd committed themselves to Jesus and he would be gone. In this powerful message, Jesus prepared the disciples to live in peace and spiritual power when the world around them was falling apart.We will take the next three weeks delving into this passage.
Today's Reading: John 16:8-11
8 When he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment: 9 About sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; 11 and about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.
Through the Bible Readings: Ecclesiastes 5-6, Romans 8:18–39, Psalm 96:7–13, Proverbs 20:21–23
If you wish to read through the Bible in a year, follow these readings.
Devotional: Turning the Tables
It appeared to be an imminent victory of the enemy over the
Creator. Since that nascent moment before the dawn of time when pride was born
in him and he rebelled against God, Satan had what appeared to be his best
opportunity to win. Rome’s political forces and Israel’s religious leaders
conspired to arrest and try Jesus. Men stood in judgment over the Son of God
and declared him guilty. They judged him as worthy of death and carried out the
sentence. The rebellion reached its zenith as the Son of God was brutally crucified
and then God’s sovereign grasp over this world appeared to be in doubt.
Appearances can deceive and God’s rule was never in doubt.
The night before he died, before he was arrested, tried, judged by human
beings, convicted, and crucified, Jesus reminded his disciples of the truth, in
a great cosmic irony. John 16:8-11 says:
When he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment: 9 About sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; 11 and about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.
As Jesus awaited arrest, and knowing he would be tried,
convicted, and killed, he reminded his disciples in the quiet of the Upper
Room that the judgment of the world on him was temporal, temporary, and
apparent. A greater judgment was coming from the Counselor, the Holy Spirit.
When Jesus left the world and sent the Holy Spirit, at Pentecost, the Spirit
would be the one who would convict the world of sin, righteousness, and
judgment. Once, Jesus overturned the tables in the Temple. Here, he overturns
the tables on the devil. The world was about to judge him but it would be the
Spirit who would judge the world. Satan was at work to destroy Jesus by
bringing about his death, but Jesus reminded his disciples that the ruler of
this world has already been judged.
Our world judges Christians and in God’s grace he sent Jesus
to seek and to save the lost. This can give us the mistaken impression that the
judgment of the world on the church and on Christians is of ultimate importance. It
is not. Jesus is the judge, the one before whom every man and woman will stand
and to whom every knee will bow. He allowed himself to be judged but only so
that the greater purposes of God could be accomplished and his grace displayed.
While today, people decide whether they believe in Jesus or not there will come
a time when every knee will bow, believer or atheist, lover of God or skeptic,
and every tongue will confess Jesus as Lord. Jesus is not on trial, he is the
judge. God turned the world’s verdict of guilty on its head.
This passage is a powerful statement of God’s supremacy even
over a world that was about to judge and crucify his son.
No comments:
Post a Comment