May 19, 2024 Text: John 15:26-27; 4b-15
Dear Friends in Christ,
We all have things about us that we don’t want to face. For me, it is my age. My whole life I have been the young whippersnapper. Kindergarten at age 4, high school graduation at 17, the youngest in my class at seminary. Recently at our joint Ascension Worship with Christ Lutheran one of their members came up to me and asked, “How long have you been here?” I answered, “25 years.” She replied, “I still remember when you came, we all thought you were 15.” I feel great, can still compete athletically, and God pulls the strings of life and laughs, “Lueck, you are going to be a grandpa.” What?! All of us have things we don’t want to admit. It can be hard to handle the truth.
Today we celebrate the coming of the Spirit of truth – the Holy Spirit promised by our Lord. Are you happy about the Spirit’s appearing?
‘HOW DO YOU HANDLE THE TRUTH?”
Our fear of the truth has pretty much put its meaning up for grabs. According to apologist Greg Koukl, truth in our age is so nebulous that we are living with our “feet firmly planted in midair,” with nothing absolute in which to ground ourselves. Truth suffers everywhere. In our politics, in our education, in our business dealings, in our sports, in our institutions, even in our churches. It is easy to see in others. Do we see it in ourselves?
A biblical great had a hard facing the truth. He was a King. Went by the name David. Had an affair with a bathtub beauty named Bathsheba. Got her pregnant. Had her husband killed. Takes this war-widow as one of his wives. David hopes no one knows – but God does. Sends in a man on a mission. Went by the name Nathan. He tells David a little story and David gets enraged. David wants justice.
David goes so far as to say, “The man who has done this deserves to die.” What follows is one of the great dramatic moments in the Bible. Nathan looks the king in the ye and says, “You are the man!” (2 Sam. 12:5, 7) Ouch. The ugly truth has to be faced. David would repent and write in Psalm 51:3, “I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.”
The Spirit of truth is not sent purely for us to see the truth in our lives. The Spirit testifies and points to the Word, revealing that God is truth, Jesus is truth, the Spirit is truth. God is true to his Word. The Spirit of truth comes convicting the “world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.” (v. 8-9)
We know the long, dark shadow of David’s sin, covers us in darkness. We like to keep our sins hidden. We can spin some pretty good yarns to ward off suspicion and keep our reputation. Whether forced to or confronted, the Spirit pierces our hearts and opens us up to reality. He comes and says, “You are the man! You are the woman!” Not someone from the news channel or the internet or the great evil that is out there. You. You have been convicted. How are you handling that truth?
There is another truth. We can praise God for this truth. Jesus promises, “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.” (v. 26) God’s Word convicts of sin and judgment, but this same Spirit will also convict us of righteousness.
The Spirit delivers this righteousness that our Savior has won for us by shedding His blood on the cross. The Gospel delivers the beautiful truth that, despite our sin, God is for us. God is true to His Word. This Jesus died for us, rose for us, reigns for us, prays for us. “God is faithful and just and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 Jn. 1:9)
I have a hard time facing my age. The gray hair in the mirror gives it away. I could try to cover it up with some chemicals, but the gray is always going to be there. Much like sin. We can try to hide it, but it is always there. It isn’t going away until Jesus welcomes us into heaven. I am probably always going to compete against my age. It is who God made me to be. I ask for his help in handling the truth.
What about you? Where do you need to do some soul searching? What truth do you have a hard time facing? Remember this, in God’s household, there is life. It is the life of Jesus Christ for the death of this world. When you make the wrong choice, recognize it and repent. The Spirit gives each of us this beautiful truth: righteousness in exchange for guilt, forgiveness in exchange for shame, and life in exchange for death.
The Spirit of the Truth, the Helper has come. The Father takes what is His and declares it to you. You can handle it right – Life and Truth?
Amen.