The Helper

In the fourteenth chapter of John, a new character appears, the Helper. To most He is known as the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit. While this is the first time Jesus mentions him in the Book of John, we can see that He has been working since the Beginning of time. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Genesis 1:1-2)

Now, in the Farewell Discourse, we can see how the Spirit will work in believers. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. (John 14:15-17) Again in verse twenty-six Jesus says, “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 that I have said to you.” In this, we see that although God is not with us physically, his Spirit is with us. Better than that, he will teach us all things, He will help us understand the Word of God, that He himself inspired and helped mortal man write.

The Spirit will also glorify the Father and the Son. “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.” (John 15:26-27) Not only do we bear witness about the Son, but so does the Spirit. This work is tied in with the final work of the Spirit we will discuss.

“And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” (John 16:8-15) The glorification of the Father and Son by the Spirit ties into the work of conviction by the Spirit, including his effectual calling of the believer leading to regeneration and faith in the believer. Ultimately, the Spirit teaches us, and begins the work of our salvation in Christ Jesus.