Sermon Series: The Holy Spirit

This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of “The Holy Spirit” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, February 11, 1996.

Sermon transcript

Next week, I’m hoping that all of our colds and flus are gone, because you might have noted that we are scheduled to sing the 119X next week. And I think a number of you know how challenging that is. We are reading from John’s Gospel, Chapter 20 this evening. and we will start our reading from verse 19. This is John 20, verse 19. Give your attention to God’s holy inspired word.

When therefore it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, And when the doors were shut, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, Peace be with you. And when he had said this, he showed them both his hands and his side. The disciples therefore rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus therefore said to them again, Peace be with you.

As the Father has sent me, I also send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them. If you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.

But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples, therefore, were saying to him, We have seen the Lord. But he said to them, unless I shall see in his hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were inside, and Thomas with them.

Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst, and said, Peace be with you. Then he said to Thomas, Reach here your finger, and see my hands. Reach here your hand, and put it into my side. And be not unbelieving, but believing. Thomas answered and said to him, My Lord and my God.

Jesus said to him, Because you have seen me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see and yet believe. Many other signs, therefore, Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book. But these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.

Our God, our prayers are not only for those who would labor in your word today. Such prayers, we know, being pleasing to you. But our prayers would also be on behalf of those who are called to rule amongst your people, that they may rule wisely, lovingly and well. And Father, we are asking that such rule as is expressed for your church and in our midst would not be grievous to us. Rather, O God, may we receive that rule as we receive the authority of Jesus Christ himself. We pray likewise that your mercy would be multiplied to your church in granting to her many who would serve her sacrificially and in the office of the diaconate. So throughout your church, we ask that there may be those of strength, those, Lord, who are given particular insight into the nature of the office and great zeal to the performance of it. Our Father, build up your churches through the offices that you grant to them. And Father, we pray that we might be a people profited by your ministry for us. Hear us, O God, for the sake of Christ, who is the Head and King of the Church. Amen. Now, it may seem as if I’m jumping ahead this evening, and yes, I am. I’m moving out of sequence.

We were moving through those passages in the latter chapters of John’s Gospel that dealt with the Holy Spirit, particularly Jesus’ promise. of the Holy Spirit to his disciples. We have leaped ahead to chapter 20 this evening for a particular reason, and that is to present some summary treatment of John’s gospel that may be helpful to us at this point.

Now, we have been considering John’s gospel a great deal of late. For instance, we have been looking at John chapter 6. We have concluded messages on John chapter 6, using that as background for our sermons during the past two years at our communion celebrations. We have also now come to that point in our consideration of the person and work of the Holy Spirit where we find ourselves in John’s Gospel, considering how the Holy Spirit is presented to us from the distinct angle of John’s vision. So, we have been spending a great deal of time of late in John, and I thought this evening that we might spend some time trying to bring together the various strands of our reflection. Now, the points that we have made most recently with regard to John’s gospel are these.

We have set out in our messages concerning the Holy Spirit the outline for the gospel as a whole. Now, I have set this before you on a number of occasions. And I have done it as recently as last week. I will just briefly restate that outline for you so that you have it in mind this evening. The first 18 verses of the first chapter is the prologue.

We all know that portion of John’s Gospel. From the 19th verse of that first chapter through the conclusion of the 12th chapter, we have the first main section of John’s Gospel. which has been called by some the Book of the Psalms. Then from chapter 13 through the 20th chapter, we have what has been called the Book of Glory. The Gospel concludes with chapter 21.

Now we have been working with this outline in relationship to the ministry of the Holy Spirit, particularly as the Holy Spirit has been presented by Jesus in this gospel. Each of the main sections of the gospel will have its particular angle on the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit’s ministry. For instance, the first main section of the gospel, the so-called Book of Psalms, from that point in the first chapter at which it begins, verse 19, through chapter 12, you have a focus upon the Holy Spirit and his work where there is a concentration upon the missionary activity of Christ, the Church, and the Holy Spirit’s relationship to Christ and the Church in that regard. So in the Book of the Signs, it says, if you have before you the unbelieving world, And the particular focus with regard to the Holy Spirit is how the Holy Spirit is operative in bringing the word or bringing the message of grace to an unbelieving world.

So you have this angle of vision that is focusing upon the missionary intention of the gospel. But then there’s this shift. As you move into the thirteenth chapter of John and you go on towards the conclusion of the gospel, And concern yourself there with what has been called the Book of Glory. Now you are focusing particularly upon the disciples of Jesus and the Holy Spirit’s particular ministry to them.

So you have in that section, for instance, the promise that Christ makes that the Spirit will come and bring to remembrance everything that he has said, everything that he has taught them. You have in that section also the promise that is given to the disciples that the Holy Spirit will come in a particular way. He will come as the comforter, the paraphernalia. He will come with comfort for God he led to Christ’s Church.

So you have this development within John’s gospel as you move from the book of the signs at the beginning of the gospel to the book of glory at its conclusion. You move from Christ’s concentration upon an unbelieving world where signs are important, it would seem, to the latter book of glory where the focus is upon the communal aspect of the people of God and the particular aspect of ministry that will be associated with the disciples and those that follow in their train. bring to light the comforts and the exhortations and the admonitions that are peculiar to the Church and to her message.

So that’s how we’ve looked at the Holy Spirit in relationship to the outline in John’s Gospel, what we have been speaking of lately. But let’s remind ourselves also of what we found in our study of John Chapter 6. Just as a reminder to you, you may recall that I suggested that the entirety of the Gospel of John is moving towards Chapter 21. We leapt from Chapter 6 to Chapter 21 and tried to establish the connection between those two chapters.

We also noted that as we look at chapter 21, the concluding word, which John had to say, that we noted particularly there an emphasis upon the ministry, the ministry that was to develop in and through the apostles and then be there for the Church as long as Christ had not as yet returned.

The ministry then, as we saw presented to us there, could not depend alone upon the resurrection of Christ, nor could it depend upon a personal audience with the risen Christ. We saw that both were inadequate in the case of Peter. What was necessary then for this ministry to take shape and to be effective was the continued presence of Christ himself, no, not in his body, but by the Word and by the Spirit. So it is. that chapter 21 presents to us the end point to which John had been pressing all along, and that is to make a statement about the continuing ministry of the Church, that it cannot depend, as I’ve already said, simply upon the resurrection of Christ, nor can it depend simply upon a personal audience with the risen Christ. Peter had that, yet it wasn’t adequate.

What was needed was the continued presence of Christ himself by the Word and by the Spirit. Chapter 6, in fact, all that John has to say through the course of his gospel is moving in that direction, to convince us of the necessity of Christ’s continual presence for ministry, that it depends upon his Word and Spirit to be effectual. Now, this works itself out, you see, both in terms of what we’ve already considered in the book of the signs and the book of glory. If you see Jesus in the first part of the gospel moving towards an unbelieving world, and in the second part of the gospel you see him particularly relating to the church itself, then you see his continued presence and the ministry that is built upon his Word and Spirit is the very foundation for the Church’s effectiveness in both of those areas. The Church can’t be effective unless the living Christ is present by Word and Spirit and is effectual in bringing about the results that we would hope to see. Nor is there life, mysteriously speaking, for the Church, nor is there effective ministry for the Church. unless Christ is alive and working in our midst by his word and spirit.

But now let’s relate these recent studies that we have made to earlier messages that we’ve preached on the Gospel of John. For example, in this regard, we need to consider the conclusion of chapter 20, verses 30 and 31. a text that is ordinarily appealed to as the purpose text in John’s Gospel.

Now, how do you approach this text? Let me ask you that question. How do you approach these two verses with which the twentieth chapter of John concludes? Many other signs, therefore, Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book, that these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life. How do you approach those verses? How do you understand them?

Do you understand them to be exclusively evangelistic? That’s how they are ordinarily interpreted, I might say. Are they merely intended for an unbelieving audience? My contention has been that they are meant both for the unbelieving world and for the confessing church.

And this is in keeping with what we have seen with regard to the gospel thus far, the book of the signs as the ministry of Christ is directed towards an unbelieving world, the book of glory as it is directed towards the church. So everything seemingly is coming together here in these latter verses of chapter 20. So my contention has been, as we approach these verses, these very strategic verses, these very important verses, that they are meant both for the unbelieving world and the confessing church. In other words, as a purpose statement for the gospel, the gospel is meant both for the unbelieving world, yes, it can be used evangelistically, but it is also meant to be a minister inward to the church, the confessing church. But you might step back and, as you look at these words, ask yourself, how can you apply these words to the confessing Church? Hasn’t the confessing Church already believed? In what sense can you apply these words to the Church?

Well, it’s at this point that we are pulled very deliberately into the ambiguity and the subtleties of John’s Gospel. We must understand For instance, John’s use of double language throughout his gospel. And that use of double language will be effective not just as the Church presents its evangelistic message, but as it also endeavors to serve the believing Church. There are examples of this double language in John’s gospel, as you know.

For instance, in John chapter 3, you have the double use of life. There is life which we get from our parents. There is life which God gives. There is life, and then there is life. In John chapter 4, Jesus is speaking to the woman at the well. They’re having a discussion about water. She wants to talk about water that comes out of the well. He wants to talk about living water, or eternal water. There is water, and then there is water.

In John chapter 6, you have discussion about bread. There is the bread that the Jews seek to feed their stomachs, and Jesus wants to present to them the bread that comes down out of heaven. Bread, if they eat of it, they will never hunger again. So you have this double use of language throughout.

Here in chapter 20, verses 30 and 31, you have a double use of faith. There’s faith, or at least a reflection upon that W’s. There is faith, and then there is faith. Yes, it will have its application to an unbelieving world that actually thinks that it’s believing, but it will also have its application to the Church. Church filled with people who are sitting comfortably week after week thinking things are just fine. Believe? Yes, I believe. Have faith?

Certainly, I have faith. But John’s gospel, as it has its intention to push people to ultimate realizations, as it has within its view the world, the unbelieving world, as well as the so-called confessing church or believing church, is going to set these things before the audience that receives it in the interest of bringing about resolution.

You have to move from life to life. Just having biological life isn’t enough. You have to move from water to water. Just having a supply out of your spigot isn’t enough. You have to move from bread to bread. You know, just going down to the store and picking up a loaf of bread is not adequate. You must keep on the living bread.

And it is the same with regard to faith. There is faith, and then there is faith. This is what I plead for you. But you understand this, I know, that it may be difficult for some of you. I realize that for some of you, you may not really think that religion is your interest, or penchant, or primary concern in life. It’s okay for preachers. It might even be okay for elders. But you see, Jesus’ interest here is not just for preachers and elders. It’s for his children, those who are part of the confessing church. And the language here in John is intended to push you to the wall, to drive you up against the wall, so that you might think, consider, whether or not true life true water, true bread, true faith, belongs to you.

Now, there are many instances in John’s Gospel where we find a double-use setting. For instance, right before that interview and exchange with Nicodemus in John chapter 3, You have in John 2 verses 23 through 25 a statement that many people that were coming out to see Jesus believed. The statement is made by John that they believed, but then John goes on to tell us that Jesus will not entrust himself to them.

Now if they believed, why wouldn’t he try to entrust himself to them? Because there’s faith, and then there’s faith. What was the particular difficulty of the people at the end of John two. It was they had seen the sign. And therefore they believe the faith that they have with condition upon the point that they could be held. And John is saying a faith that is based upon.

It doesn’t make it. So that’s John chapter 2, but if you move ahead to John chapter 12, verses 42 and 43, you find there that John makes another very interesting statement. He there tells us that the Pharisees believed. But how can he say that the Pharisees believed? He says that they have a faith that they believed. But again, there’s disqualifying. They would not confess Jesus, John goes on to tell us, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities. They were afraid of being kicked out of the synagogue. They feared men more than they feared God.

One of the other passages that speaks about this matter comes from John 20. Not the section that we read from, but earlier in this chapter, one of the more enigmatic statements we find in John’s Gospel, verse 8, you have the account there after the resurrection of Peter and the beloved disciple rushing to the tomb. And we’re told that Peter goes in first, but afterwards then the other disciple. who had come first to the tune the text tells us verse eight, and he saw and he believed. We are told that he believes, but if you keep reading that section, you come down to verse 10, where it tells you that both Peter and the beloved disciple went home as if nothing had happened. There’s faith. And then there’s faith. True faith will come to expression, particularly in the story that follows with Mary Magdalene.

Remember how she is there at the tomb, weeping? A figure appears. She doesn’t know who it is. She states it for the gardener. She addresses him. Where have you taken the body? The figure responds, Mary. She recognizes that this is the risen Christ. And at that point, she tries to hold on to it. And Jesus says to her, stop clinging to it, stop holding on to it, for I must ascend. Her faith is crippled because she thinks that the object of that faith is to have something here in the world. Jesus tells her that he ascends, that faith is going to be informed by that ascension into glory, it is going to be focused upon that ascension into glory and the world into which Christ has gone.

So, here you have the double use of language. Remember what we said? There’s life and then there’s life? Well, there’s earthly life and then there is eternal life. There is life that belongs to this world and then there is heavenly life. There is water, water that belongs to this creation, and there is water that is eternal or heavenly. There is bread of this creation. There is heavenly bread. There is faith that seemingly is adequate for this world, but it doesn’t have anything to do with the realities of heaven.

There’s the contrast then consistently throughout John’s gospel between the earthly and the heavenly, between the flesh and the spirit, the spirit being indicative of the heavenly world. So here are our most recent messages on John’s Gospel and our earlier messages on John’s Gospel. How will we relate the two? How will we relate what we have said about John Chapter 21 and what he was intending to tell us about the ministry of the Church through the risen Christ who continues with us in his word and his spirit, how will we relate that to what we have been talking about concerning the Holy Spirit himself? Well, you see, the way in which all of this comes together is that the ministry which Christ is continually performing now in his church is precisely that which makes the distinction that I’ve just been making.

That’s the only ministry Christ has. There is no other ministry. In fact, he doesn’t even care about anything else. Believe me. The only point he is prosecuting is the distinction between the bread of this world and true bread. He wants you to understand and realize the distinction. That is the focus of his ministry at present. It’s not taking over the world. It’s not organizing a political party. It’s not mobilizing somehow for world dominion. It’s not becoming experts in sociology, philosophy, and any other ology. The objective of Christ is to make sure that his people understand the distinction between bread of this creation and eternal bread. Life biological and life eternal. That’s it. And that is what this pulpit has endeavored to proclaim to you.

Now, if you want something else, you’re going to have to leave. I mean, you’re not going to get it here. I’m sorry. If you want to know how to raise your kids, If you want to know how to have a better sex life, if you want to know how to make money, if you want to know how to improve your golf score, if you want twelve easy steps to a better prayer life, you’re not going to get it here. This is not what this church is about. This church is about the difference between bread of creation and eternal bread. We have no other ministry. We can have no other ministry because Christ has no other ministry. Well, I assume because you’re still with me after 20 years that you are here because you have seen and appreciated these things and you want real bread, real faith, and real life. And I trust that is set. Father, what a marvelous, wonderful gospel John’s gospel is.

We could spend our days reflecting on it and not begin to comprehend all of its riches and depth. Yet, Lord, the simple truths that it declares are there for us. We pray by the continued ministry of our Our Savior, by the word and spirit that we, O God, would be encouraged to grab hold of these treasures for our benefit, and for the good of your people generally, and yes, for your glory. Help us, O Father, as if we would understand the ministry of our Savior better and better, his intention, namely to bring us to that higher world in which we shall behold your face forever. May the communion that has been promised to us there be already at work in us so that we are aware of the fact that the life that we long for is something that has already been granted to us by grace. We are already enjoying it presently. We pray, Father, for the light in these things and also a determination to see that they are always foremost in our lives. We pray it in Jesus’ name. Amen.

The sermon text provided above is derived from the sermon audio recording making use of generative tools. It has not been manually edited. While transcription tools have a high degree of accuracy, the output may include generative textual, punctuation, and/or formatting errors.