John 14:26 - Gift of the Holy Spirit in a Nutshell.
John 14:26 (NKJV) But the Helper, the Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He
will teach you all things, and bring to your
remembrance all things that I said to you.
John 14:26 (NLT) But when the Father sends
the Advocate as my representative - that is, the
Holy Spirit - he will teach you everything and
will remind you of everything I have told you.
John 14:26 (AMP) But the Comforter
(Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener,
Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send
in My name [in My place, to represent Me and
act on My behalf], He will teach you all things.
And He will cause you to recall (will remind you
of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have
told you.
INTRODUCTION
Jesus promised the disciples that the Holy
Spirit would help them remember what he had been
teaching them. This promise ensures the validity of
the New Testament. The disciples were
eyewitnesses of Jesus' life and teachings, and the Holy
Spirit helped them remember without taking away
their individual perspectives. We can be confident
that the Gospels are accurate records of what
Jesus taught and did (see 1 Corinthians 2:10-14).
The Holy Spirit can help us in the same way. As
we study the Bible, we can trust him to plant
truth in our mind, convince us of God's will, and
remind us when we stray from it. [Life Application
SB]
COMMENTARY PEARL
The nature of the Holy Spirit is a
mystery. Men cannot explain it, because the Lord has
not revealed it to them. Men having fanciful
views may bring together passages of Scripture and
put a human construction on them, but the
acceptance of these views will not strengthen the
church. Regarding such mysteries, which are too deep
for human understanding, silence is golden.
The office of the Holy Spirit is
distinctly specified in the words of Christ: When He
is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and
of righteousness, and of judgment. John
16:8. It is the Holy Spirit that convicts of sin.
If the sinner responds to the quickening
influence of the Spirit, he will be brought to
repentance and aroused to the importance of obeying the
divine requirements.
To the repentant sinner, hungering and
thirsting for righteousness, the Holy Spirit reveals
the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the
world. He shall receive of Mine, and shall show
it unto you, Christ said. He shall teach
you all things, and bring all things to your
remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. John
16:14; 14:26.
The Spirit is given as a regenerating
agency, to make effectual the salvation wrought by
the death of our Redeemer. The Spirit is
constantly seeking to draw the attention of men to the
great offering that was made on the cross of
Calvary, to unfold to the world the love of God, and
to open to the convicted soul the precious
things of the Scriptures.
Having brought conviction of sin, and
presented before the mind the standard of
righteousness, the Holy Spirit withdraws the affections
from the things of this earth and fills the soul
with a desire for holiness. He will guide you
into all truth (John 16:13), the Saviour
declared. If men are willing to be molded, there will
be brought about a sanctification of the whole
being. The Spirit will take the things of God and
stamp them on the soul. By His power the way of
life will be made so plain that none need err
therein. AA 52-53
COMMENTARY
The Holy Spirit Brings Gods Truth to Mind
God speaks through the Holy Spirit. He
gives you thoughts. He gives you suggestions. He
puts impressions or notions in your mind. When
the Devil talks to you, he tempts you. But when
God talks to you in your mind, he inspires you.
Jesus says in John 14:26, The Helper,
the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my
name, will teach you everything and make you
remember all that I have told you (GNT).
If you are a Christian, then the Holy
Spirit is your teacher and counselor. Some people
spend thousands of dollars on a life coach.
Youve already got one!
Notice that John 14:26 says the Holy
Spirit will make you remember. The Holy
Spirit speaks directly to your mind. He doesnt
speak in an audible voice. Why would he need to?
He doesnt need to go through your ears. He
goes directly to your mind. His Spirit joins
with our spirit to affirm that we are Gods
children (Romans 8:16 NLT).
The Holy Spirit brings Gods truth to
mind, but he relies on you to put Gods Word in
your mind. Thats why you need to get into the
Bible. When you read, study, and fill your mind
with Gods Word, you are storing up truth
inside of you - truth the Holy Spirit will bring to
mind at just the right time. [Daily Devotional by
Rick Warren: https://pastorrick.com/devotional/]
From the Page to Our Hearts
Have you ever been reading the Bible and
a passage seemed to jump off the page because
it was so relevant to your situation? Or maybe
someone sent you a Scripture verse that was very
appropriate for what you were facing. Perhaps you were
in church listening to a message, and it felt
as though the speaker wrote it just for you.
That is what the Holy Spirit does. He
teaches us. Jesus said, But the Helper, the Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He
will teach you all things, and bring to your
remembrance all things that I said to you (John 14:26
NKJV).
Jesus also said, And I will pray the
Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He
may abide with you forever (verse 16 NKJV).
The Holy Spirit can open Scripture
passages to us in an incredible way, and that comes
as we study and read the Bible. The Holy Spirit
takes the Word of God and brings it home to our
hearts. Thats part of the work He does in the
life of the believer.
It isnt some great preacher; its a
great God whose Holy Spirit illuminates His Word.
He sheds more light on the original light. The
apostle Paul wrote, But as it is written: Eye
has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered
into the heart of man the things which God has
prepared for those who love Him (1 Corinthians
2:9 NKJV).
If you want the Holy Spirit to illuminate
Scripture, then you must read it or listen to it. You
cant simply hold the Bible up to your head and
pray that you absorb it somehow. You need to read
it and process it, and then the Holy Spirit
will bring it to life for you. [Greg Laurie from
Harvest Ministries; https://www.harvestdaily.com]
How the Holy Spirit Helps Us
I can think of times when I was giving a
message or talking with someone one on one and a
Scripture passage came to mind. I didnt remember
memorizing that passage, but there it was. That is
because the Holy Spirit teaches us.
Jesus said, But when the Father sends
the Advocate as my representative - that is, the
Holy Spirit - he will teach you everything and
will remind you of everything I have told you
(John 14:26 NLT).
The Holy Spirit not only teaches us but
also assures us that we are children of God. Once
the Holy Spirit has brought us to Jesus and
sealed us, He reassures us that we belong to God.
Romans 8:16 tells us, The Spirit Himself bears
witness with our spirit that we are children of
God (NKJV).
I know that Im a child of God not
because I deserve to be, but because Jesus Christ
has forgiven me, and the Holy Spirit assures me
of this. In fact, the Bible says, These
things I have written to you who believe in the
name of the son of God, that you may know that
you have eternal life (1 John 5:13 NKJV).
The Holy Spirit also helps us pray. (And
we need help in our prayers, dont we?)
Romans 8:26 says, And the Holy Spirit helps us
in our weakness. For example, we dont know
what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy
Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be
expressed in words (NLT). The Holy Spirit knows
what we need to pray for, and He will bring it to
the Father.
Finally, the Holy Spirit leads us in life
(see Romans 8:14), and sometimes, were not
even aware that He is leading us. That is why
every day, we should ask the Holy Spirit to fill
us. [Greg Laurie from Harvest Ministries;
https://www.harvestdaily.com]
A Holy List
I used to know a fellow who supervised an
apartment complex. When I asked him to describe his
job, he said, "I keep the place running." The
Holy Spirit does the same and more for the
church. Want to see his to-do list?
Comfort the believers (Acts 9:31).
Reveal the things that are still
to come (John 16:13).
Offer prayers of intercession
(Romans 8:26).
Attest to the presence of God with
signs and miracles (Hebrews 2:4; 1
Corinthians 2:4; Romans 15:18-19).
Create a godlike atmosphere of
truth (John 14:16-17), wisdom
(Deuteronomy 34:9; Isaiah 11:2), and
freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17).
The list of the Spirit's activities is
varied, wonderful, and incomplete without this word:
holy. [You Can Count On God by Max Lucado]
INSIGHTS
Everywhere among Conservatives we find
persons who are Bible-taught but not Spirit-taught.
They conceive truth to be something which they
can grasp with the mind. If a man holds to the
fundamentals of the Christian faith he is thought to
possess divine truth. But it does not follow. There
is no truth apart from the Spirit." A. W. Tozer
[Chapter by Chapter Bible Commentary by Warren
Wiersbe re Psa. 119:97-104]
True worship lies in faith. And one of the
foundation stones of our faith is that God is Three in
One, the Trinity. Even though the word doesn't
appear in the Bible, it is nevertheless absolutely
true that God exists as Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. And when we approach Him in worship, if we
think of Him as anything less, we worship not
Almighty God, but some sad construct of our own
imagination. There is deep mystery here. Our minds demand
to understand completely. But mystery does not
excuse our responsibility to accept God's Word. God
has given us what we need. He is known,
ultimately and most intimately, in worship. And true
worship comes through faith. If there was no
mystery, there would be no need of faith. Are you
coming to the Father, and the Son and the Holy
Spirit when you worship? Ask the Counselor's help,
whom the Father sent in Jesus' name, and He will
strengthen your faith. [In His Time; Walk With Wisdom]
ILLUSTRATION
One morning when I was feeling
particularly overwhelmed by financial obligations, I
turned to Psalm 23, which has always given me great
peace and encouragement. But this day, I was moved
to do something I hadn't done before. I read
the familiar psalm in different versions of the
Bible.
I often turn to various Bible
translations when I don't quite understand a passage in
hopes that one of them will give me clarity. I
pulled out the big, heavy parallel Bible that a
friend had given me years ago. It had four versions
side by side. I focused on the first verse of
Psalm 23:
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not
want. (King James Version)
The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
(New International Version)
Because the Lord is my Shepherd, I have
everything I need! (The Living Bible)
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not
want. (Revised Standard Version)
I stared at the different words,
punctuation, and capitalization and read them out loud.
They each spoke to my spirit. Jesus, through the
Holy Spirit, was telling me that everything would
be all right and that I didn't need to worry
about my financial obligations. He was my
shepherd, my guide, my provider, my Lord; no matter
what the translation, He would take care of it.
Barbranda Lumpkins Walls
Faith Step: What are some of your
favorite Scriptures and Bible stories? Read them in
different Bible translations or versions and see what
new revelations you receive from Jesus.
[Mornings With Jesus 2023 Devotional by Guideposts and
Zondervan]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
Romans 8:6 - HOLY SPIRIT LIVING!!!
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230331-0855.html
John 14:15, 16 - The Holy Ghost in Love and
Obedience.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2015/20150526-1519.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/
