Capture the Flag

Father, we ask that you just pour out the Holy Spirit deeply upon us,

that you might bring these words to our heart.

And Father, you know our real hearts, not the imaginary hearts that we think we have,

not the imaginary or fake hearts and fronts that we present to other people.

Father, you know those things within us that we're afraid of.

You know those things that we desire strongly, even lust after.

Father, you know what's really going on inside each one of us.

And so, Father, we thank you that you see the real me, the real each one of us,

and that you love the real me, the real each one of who we are.

And you pour out the Holy Spirit upon who we really are and minister to us as we really are.

So, Father, we thank you for this, and we ask that your Holy Spirit would come with power.

And all these things we ask in the name of Jesus, your Son and our Savior. Amen.

Please be seated.

So, speaking of what we're really like and what goes on in our hearts,

I have a bit of a confession to make to you.

So, no surprise, I'm working on my sermon in a coffee shop,

and it's a coffee shop in Centertown on Friday morning.

I was there for a while working.

And at around 1230, I'm walking down Bank Street in Centertown towards the office

and towards the first one of my afternoon meetings.

And my heart was really heavy, actually, as I was walking,

because I thought to myself, we're going to be looking at John chapter 16,

John 16 · chapter mention

I thought to myself, like, what on earth, like, why would any non-Christian come to hear about this?

I'm just being honest.

Like, why would any non-Christian want to come and spend some time looking at John 16?

You know, I invite people to come to the church, and I think to myself,

what if a couple of them came today?

And we're looking at John 16.

And they'd probably just shake their head, like, there's nothing in there.

I mean, it might be interesting if you're a Christian,

but there doesn't seem to be anything like that in me.

And it was really weighing on my heart that that's sort of how I was thinking about the text.

And I guess indirectly, I'm complaining to God as well, right?

True confession.

And so, you know, in heaven, I'll find out that around 12.30 on Friday,

one of you were praying for me, that it didn't come from me.

But I felt this thing, well, I need to pray about that.

I need to not only complain about this.

I need to not complain about it to myself, but just say it to God.

Like, God, like, what on earth am I supposed to do with this type of text?

Like, I could preach it to Christians, and I could give a lecture on it,

but what on earth am I supposed to say?

Like, why on earth would a non-Christian want to hear this text?

And I start to pray this as I'm walking down Bank Street, you know,

on a Friday afternoon in Centre Town in Ottawa.

And one of the very first things that came into my mind was it's as if God almost rebuked me,

but in a gentle way.

And he said, George, what do you mean that there's nothing in this text that connects to non-Christians?

And then I start to remember what's in the text.

And in the text, it talks about being excluded from important social institutions.

And I'm thinking to myself, good grief, we have the Me Too movement, the Black Lives Matter movement.

We have all sorts of people in Canada complaining in the First Nations about the demotion of the attorney,

you know, the, oh, what's her name now?

It's gone from me.

You know who I mean.

Her being demoted and put into Veterans Affairs.

And here this text is going to talk about exclusion from important social institutions.

The text is going to talk about religiously motivated and justified killing.

And you can hardly read a paper for a week without seeing about that there's something going on somewhere in the world

and even in North America where people are killing their kids for honor reasons and shame.

And the text talks about sorrow and it talks about right and wrong.

And it talks about self-justification.

And it talks about how people judge things.

And it talks about the importance of truth and the importance of lies.

And it talks about weeping.

And it talks about lamenting.

And it talks about joy.

And it talks about childbirth.

And it talks about anguish.

And it talks about rejoicing.

And it talks about love.

And it talks about hiding and being scattered.

and it talks about peace

and it talks about politically expedient murder

and political show trials

and all these things start to go through my head

and I think to myself,

well, God, I guess you're right.

Like maybe this text does touch the real world.

I mean, that's all in John 16.

Everything I just said is in John 16.

Like I didn't add something.

So then I start to puzzle over the text

and what on earth I'm going to say.

And I, you know, sometimes when you watch movies

about the, you know, like Star Wars or Star Trek,

you'll see aliens with four arms.

So I'm going to do four on other hands.

You have to be an alien to do all four of the other hands

because there's going to be four on other hands.

You see, on one hand,

this text really does talk about

the world that we actually live in all the time,

even in Canada,

which we might think is one of the best countries in the world.

We might say that we're way better

than the Democratic Republic of Congo

or some other place.

But the fact of the matter is,

is that, I mean, we're better in some ways economically,

but there's all sorts of other things

about our country that's wrong.

And this Bible text is actually talking about

all sorts of really important things.

On the other hand, you could say that the problem

that, like, people have are that,

like, if there's some non-Christians

who've come for a variety of reasons,

maybe because you're on a spiritual quest,

maybe because it's an assignment at school,

maybe because you were dragged here,

you know, whatever.

On the other hand, it could seem like this is,

like, not a good text to talk about the real world

because in some ways it sounds a little bit about,

like, a horror movie

because it's going to talk about a world

where there's a devil and the devil is described

as the ruler of this world.

And that sounds a little bit like a horror movie.

You know, on the other hand,

like, with that still hand,

I'm still on that hand.

And on that hand,

horror movies are really popular

and lots of people, in fact,

believe that demons exist.

It's not unusual to see people

in coffee shops and others

that wear talismans

to repel evil spirits.

So, in fact,

a text about the reality of the devil,

it might exclude some people,

but for other people,

it's talking about something

that, in fact,

matches their experience and their fears.

On the other hand, though,

it sounds a little bit like

the world of those

religious fundamentalist crazies

that are so politically incorrect

that all the way through the text,

it talks about God as Father.

And, George,

don't you know that

I've had an abusive father

or somebody else might say,

I've spent my whole life

trying to get under the foot

of my dad,

get his voice out of my head

because he was such a bad dad.

And, George,

why are you so stuck

on using a text

that talks about God as Father?

That just sounds like

the worst type of religious fundamentalism.

And on the other hand,

well, actually,

if you could put up

the first point, Andrew,

and the first point

is just the last verse

in chapter 16,

verse 33.

If we're honest,

a text like this

sounds like something

a crazy person would say,

right?

Just before I,

well, in fact,

I'll read it right now.

What the text says,

and I've used it

at the net version

of the Bible,

which is a really good version

of the Bible, by the way,

I have told you these things

so that in me

you may have peace

in the world.

You have trouble

and suffering,

but take courage.

Take courage.

I am victorious

over the world.

It's Jesus speaking.

I have told you

these things

so that in me

you may have peace

in the world.

You have trouble

and suffering,

but take courage.

I am victorious

over the world.

And right in the context

of the book

and this book

is written by an eyewitness

and he wrote the book

while lots of eyewitnesses

and earwitnesses

of Jesus

were still alive

and they could have said,

no, no, no, no, no, no,

that's not what he said.

This book is written

by an eyewitness

and

and Jesus

says this

just before he's captured,

just before

all of his disciples

run away,

just before

he is unjustly

accused

and just before

he's unjustly

condemned as guilty

and just before

he is

declared to be guilty

purely and utterly

for reasons

of political expediency

because the Roman ruler

knew that he was innocent

and he's

found guilty

purely and utterly

to score political points

and just before

he's whipped

and beaten

and just before

he's crucified

and just before

he dies

he says

he says

I have told you

these things

so that in me

you may have peace

in the world

you have trouble

and suffering

but take courage

I am victorious

over the world.

and if we are

honest

this is complete

and utter

crazy talk

but here's the problem

with this

nothing about

if you read

the biography

of Jesus

and you read

any one of the four

ancient biographies

of Jesus

at no point in time

does he actually

come across

as crazy.

I mean we all

know crazy

right?

I mean you're in a church

in downtown Ottawa

just go for a walk

down Rito Street

you will meet

all sorts of crazy people

and some of you

have been in move-in

and you live

right amongst crazy people

and some of us

struggle with mental illness

and I'm not saying this

to stigmatize mental illness

but you know

we have face-to-face

or maybe even

family relations

with people

who go off their meds

and they talk

like crazy people

but Jesus

is not

there's

you just can't

there's this huge

disconnect

between crazy talk

like this

and the fact

that there's nothing

else about the way

he speaks

that makes him

seem like he's crazy

there's this profound

disconnect

to which

you know I say

the only reason

any of us

would be reading

these biographies

about Jesus

is because the resurrection

changes everything

like the resurrection

changes everything

the death of Jesus

on one hand

we know from a spiritual

perspective

changes everything

but from a worldly

perspective

the Romans

crucified

I don't know

100,000 people

they crucified

tens of thousands

of people

there'd be no real

interest in reading

a biography

of somebody

who ends up

being falsely accused

and crucified

but the resurrection

changes everything

if the resurrection

actually happened

and there really

is good evidence

for it

like there really

is good evidence

for it

if the resurrection

happened

then that means

that most Canadians

think they live

in the real world

but they don't

and I'm not saying

that to insult

anybody

like most Canadians

it's funny

on one hand

we think we live

in the real world

yet a lot of what we

think of as the real world

we get from watching

movies and videos

I

just the other day

I finished a novel

by a Greek American

I'm going to pronounce

his name incorrectly

Pelicanos

something like that

he's written a lot of novels

and he's done some very

good work

in the medium

of TV

and shows

and I said to my wife

after I'd read about

a third of the book

I said

this guy's the most

amazing writer

in the world

for one particular thing

you know what's so shocking

about him

people go to church

in his book

like just think about that

if you watch

most American things

you would not think

anybody in North America

goes to church

that nobody in North America

reads the Bible

that nobody in North America

prays

but that's just wrong

and I'm reading this book

and it's filled

like it has

you know

it has cross dressers

it has thieves

it has hoodlums

it has gay people

and it has people

who go to church

and people who read

the Bible

and people who pray

and I said to Louise

like this is the first novel

I've read in five years

that actually describes

the real world

like what America's

actually like

you know

including the drug dealer

who goes to church

on Sunday

you know

I mean it's just

it's the real world

and most of us

think we're living

in the real world

but we don't

if the resurrection

actually happened

in 2004

some of you have heard

a version of this story

before

it's a true story

2004

there was this couple

and they decided

at the

I think it was like

the second week of August

that they wanted

to go see a movie

and that summer

there were two movies

there was a movie

that came out in July

I think

I hope I have this

the order right

and the movie

that had come out

in July

was Will Smith

the movie starring

Will Smith

called iRobot

did like 350 million dollars

worth of business

or something like that

iRobot

and then in early August

a movie starring

Tom Cruise

came out

called Collateral

very good movie

if you like those types

of movies

Tom Cruise plays

a bad guy

who sort of gets

a cab driver

to drive him around

while he kills people

not the cab driver

Tom Cruise

murders people

while the cab driver

drives him around

and so this couple

true story

this couple

they're going to the

movie theater

and the guy

says to the girl

like which movie

would you like to see

and she says

I'd like to see

both of them

but you know

I'd rather see

the Tom Cruise movie

but I'll see

either of them

so she's not really

paying any attention

the guy pays

the tickets

they go into the movie

and halfway

through the movie

she leans over

to her boyfriend

and says

this is a really weird

Tom Cruise movie

like when's he

going to show up

and he leans

back to her

and said

we're watching

iRobot

with Will Smith

we're watching

iRobot

with Will Smith

she spent

half the movie

thinking it was

a Tom Cruise movie

wondering why

nothing made sense

because iRobot

said in the future

with robots

that try to take

over the world

and the Tom Cruise movie

is said

I think it's in LA

in modern times

and you know

the fact of the matter

is

is that one of the reasons

that the world

doesn't make sense

to most Canadians

where they take refuge

in the manufactured

real world

of Hollywood

is they think

they're in one movie

but it's actually

a different movie

and we can only say

that if the resurrection

actually happened

if Jesus really did

rise from the dead

then what Jesus

is doing here

when he speaks

is reminding us

you and I

who spend our whole week

we read the newspapers

well I mean

maybe one or two of us

newspapers are these things

made out of paper

that they used to read

like a hundred years ago

but

where you look at

newspapers online

and YouTube

and Netflix

and movies

and TV

and all that

and we live that

whole week

and one of the reasons

that church is so important

is that we come together

to be reminded

about what the real world is

that's actually

what church should be

is where we

are reminded

oh yes

in the real world

in the real world

in the real world

not the world

of Globe and Mail

editorials

and CBC News

but in the real world

there is a God

who does exist

in the real world

that God

has revealed himself

through the scriptures

but preeminently

he has revealed himself

in the person

of his son

in the real world

he has revealed himself

most fully

by dying on a cross

and it is precisely

by his death

upon the cross

and his resurrection

that the glory

of God

and the love of God

is most fully

and perfectly revealed

and that's the real world

and the wonderful thing

about this text

because what's going to happen

immediately after this

we will look at this

over the next couple

of weeks

is that we

over

John

records for us

how Jesus

prays

not only over

the disciples

that are in front of him

but how he prays

over you and me

and he prays

a prayer of consecration

over us

but what we're

hearing here

from Jesus

and what we see

in this quote

is that if Jesus

really did

die upon the cross

and he really did

rise from the dead

then the justice

of this world

is judged

and the religion

of this world

is judged

and the spirituality

of this world

is judged

and we human beings

are judged

and for a brief moment

we are reminded

of the reality

of the fact

that every single person

will die

and death

appears to win

and in this text

it is not about

how great

and glorious

we are

but it is

that Jesus

has conquered

all of the injustice

all of the false religion

all of the lies

and he has conquered

death itself

and he reaches

across eternity

to human beings

ordinary human beings

like you and me

and says

that if you put

your faith

and trust in me

you will share

in my victory

you

ordinary people

like you and me

will share

in my victory

just before we start

to read this text

because we are actually

going to read it

because it's

at the end of the day

all I'm doing

is helping us

to understand

the text

but it's more important

that you remember

the text

than you remember

what I said

because the text

is God's word

my words are my words

just one other thing

about the text

which makes it very hard

for us to understand

even when we look

at this text

you know I have told

you these things

so that in me

in me

you may have peace

in the world

you have trouble

and suffering

but take courage

what does that

take courage

I am victorious

over the world

part of the problem

we have with reading

the text

when we read it

is that we

all week

we have two different

basic songs

playing in our heads

and partially

it will connect

to political differences

amongst us

by the way

those of us

more on the left

our favorite song

is we shall overcome

we shall overcome

we shall overcome

someday

with the emphasis

on we

and those of us

who are more

on the right

we sing

I shall overcome

I shall overcome

I shall overcome

someday

but those are

sort of the two

basic narratives

that we or I

will overcome

it's viewed as

immature

to have somebody

else overcome

for you

we all sort of

understand that

there's some times

in our life

when things are

just completely

and utterly chaotic

and terrible

in our life

and we just want

somebody to come

and rescue us

but once we're rescued

we want to be able

to go back to singing

we shall overcome

or I shall overcome

because that's the song

of the world

and it's immature

to live your life

as if somebody else

will overcome

but you see

the problem with this text

is once again

this text is talking

about the real world

the real world

where people die

the real world

where people have

trouble and sorrow

the real world

where there is injustice

the real world

that we actually live in

and at the heart

of this real world

entering into the real world

is learning to sing

a very different

type of song

worthy is the lamb

that was slain

worthy is the lamb

that conquered the grave

worthy

worthy

worthy

worthy is the lamb

that was slain

to receive power

and wealth

and riches

and glory

he is the one

who's conquered

he is victorious

and my victory

comes not in being

who I am

but in who he is

and having my hand

in the hand

of the one

who is victorious

and so it is

that I learn

some other song

I surrender all

I surrender all

all for thee

my precious savior

I surrender

all

and the funny thing

about this text

as we're now

about to read it

is that

when we actually

the thing about Jesus

is that as we listen

to this

the text

the text is all

talking about

how Jesus

is the savior

but

and we're to trust

in him

that our peace

and our courage

comes in him

but if you look

at the text

again

it's when we

acknowledge

that he is

victorious

over the world

that he wants us

to have courage

to face life

he wants us

to have courage

to face education

he wants us

to have courage

to face our debts

he wants us

to have courage

to face our problems

he wants us

to have courage

to face

those huge things

that we have to face

in our lives

it's

this funny

funny thing is

and it's not funny

because it's the real world

because in the real world, I'm a creature and God is God.

And God is the one who's created all things.

And God is not a distant God off snoring or in the bathroom

or doing something different while the world moves on.

But in the real world, God is active and present and hidden

and moving towards its end.

And he takes human beings like you and me,

ordinary, fallen, fallible, dying human beings like you and me.

And he makes us his children

and he helps us to share in the victory of Jesus.

And as we listen to the words of Jesus,

it's all about how you go and how you do

and how you go and how you do.

You see, it's this very odd truth.

It isn't that the Bible teaches us

that we should always be bowing to other people

as if we shouldn't be doormats

and everybody else has to be taller than us.

It's this profound, continual spiritual truth

that when we bow to Jesus,

we are taller in our day-to-day lives,

but not taller in a way that will mean that we oppress,

but that we bless.

Taller in a way that means

that we don't bow down to evil or to lies,

but we stand straight and speak truth to the lie.

Because that's how Jesus saves us to be,

to be more fully human.

So let's look very briefly at the text.

Turn in your Bibles to John chapter 16.

John 16 · chapter mention

John chapter 16.

John 16 · chapter mention

And here's how the text begins.

Remember, he's been talking for chapter 13, 14, 15.

He's talked about a variety of things.

13, about how he cleans them

and the shock about the fact that they're going to die,

that one of them has betrayed him.

He shocks them by saying he's going to leave

and they can't go where he's going.

He shocks them by saying Peter's going to betray him.

In chapter 14, he primarily talks about

comforting his disciples because of that bad news.

John 15, he talks about understanding

what it means to be in union with him

and how out of union with him,

we have the basis to have communion with him

and that fruit will flow into our lives.

And now he continues to teach and exhort us to move forward.

And here's how he begins verse one.

I have said all these things to you

to keep you from falling away.

They will put you out of the synagogues.

Indeed, the hour is coming

when whoever kills you will think

he is offering service to God.

And they will do these things

because they have not known the Father nor me.

But I have said these things to you

that when their hour comes,

you remember,

you may remember that I told them to you.

Now just sort of pause.

It begins with a very stark motive.

And you can already see it.

Remember I said how it talks about the real world,

the real world of religiously motivated killing.

This is the real world, folks.

This is the real world.

Religiously motivated violence and extremism

which the Bible here,

Jesus condemns unequivocally.

Anybody who does that

doesn't know the Father or me.

Period.

Exclamation mark.

No happy face.

Period and exclamation.

Now here's one more thing.

And in some ways,

I'm going to give you,

I'm going to bring out seven,

just very, very brief.

I'm just going to read the text.

Basically, the sentence will be self-explanatory.

But here's the thing

that will start to confuse us a little bit

as we read the text.

When I was a kid,

when I was a kid,

like, I don't know how old I was,

but when I was a kid,

I loved playing hide and seek.

And in my neighborhood,

by coincidence,

in the houses,

about two or three houses either way,

there happened to be all kids

roughly my age,

like within, you know,

in the age of my sister

and my brother and me.

And on summer nights,

when there was no school the next day,

one of the things that we loved to do

after dark was play hide and seek.

And I think about it now

because we just ran into

any old neighbor's property.

We had some type of rule

that you couldn't go,

like, beyond, you know,

whatever, you know,

Zelda's house that way

and you couldn't go beyond,

you know, Friedrich's house that way

or whatever it was.

But here it's dark

and we're just running into

our neighbor's backyards

and their bushes

and there was never any complaint about it.

The world was different.

I was just thinking about that

when I was preparing to the sermon.

That's really weird.

Anyway, there you go.

It was just a different neighborhood with kids.

Maybe it was because

it was a Jewish neighborhood,

all Jewish.

I was the only,

my family was the only Gentile family

in our street

and Jewish people love kids.

I don't know.

Maybe that's the reason why.

I love playing hide and seek.

And later on,

when I was a kid,

I'd never heard of the game

Capture the Flag.

But when my own kids

were a certain age,

one of the things they loved to play

was Capture the Flag.

And if we brought other people over

who had kids

and we had a huge front yard at the time,

we lived just outside of CARP

in the country

and one of the things they loved to play

was Capture the Flag.

Now here's the thing.

Here's the thing.

If we think we're playing hide and seek

and you're giving people advice

about how to hide,

that's one thing.

But if you're playing Capture the Flag,

and those of you who don't know

what these games are,

you can talk to somebody,

a younger person,

and they'll tell you what the games are.

But if you're playing Capture the Flag,

it's a very different set of rules.

You give different encouragements

to play Capture the Flag

rather than playing hide and seek

where you're always hiding.

Okay?

And what Jesus is talking about here

is Capture the Flag,

not Hide and Seek.

That's what he's talking about.

Jesus isn't saying,

listen to my words,

I'm going to tell you how to hide.

No.

Listen to me,

I'm going to tell you

how to capture the flag.

I renamed the sermon.

The bulletin has one name

for the sermon.

If you go online later on,

the sermon's name is Capture the Flag.

And the seventh sermon,

just little things,

the rest of it will all be very obvious.

It'll be very, very quick.

But Jesus is giving us advice

about how you capture the flag,

not how to hide.

Could you put up the first point, Andrew?

So all of my points

are going to begin the same way.

As you go,

as you go forward,

always remember.

As you go forward,

always remember

that belonging to Jesus

may cost you your life.

That's what Jesus just said.

Always remember,

as you go forward,

that belonging to Jesus

may cost you your life.

These will all be available online

if you can't get them down now.

And so,

that's how he continues to go.

Remember,

this is all advice

about how to play Capture the Flag,

not about how to hide

when you're playing hide and seek.

Verse,

the next part,

4b of chapter 16.

I did not say these things

to you from the beginning

because I was with you.

But now I am going to him

who sent me.

And in other words,

he's going back to God.

He's going to the Father.

The Father had sent him.

And none of you asks me,

where are you going?

They did ask him earlier,

but they haven't persisted in asking

because in the Irish expression,

they've been gobsmacked.

And they're sort of like

the deer in the headlight

and they don't know what to say.

But,

verse 6,

but because I have said

these things to you,

sorrow has filled your heart.

This is really important.

Listen to this.

Nevertheless,

remember,

he's telling them

that he's leaving.

I tell you the truth.

It is to your advantage

that I go away.

For if I do not go away,

the helper,

some of your Bibles

might say the comforter,

some might say the counselor,

some might say the advocate.

The Greek word

encompasses all of these ideas.

Advocate,

comforter,

counselor,

helper.

If I do not go away,

the helper,

the Holy Spirit,

will not come to you.

But if I go,

I will send him to you.

And when he comes,

he will convict the world

concerning sin

and righteousness

and judgment

concerning sin

because they did not

believe in me.

I mean,

that's in a sense

the solution to sin.

On one hand,

the solution to sin

isn't for me

to be able to

successfully show you

how sinful you are

so you can just feel

unbelievably miserable

or just stop feeling miserable

and just walk out of the room.

True story.

When I was in

the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa

and I was in my rural parish,

there was a guy who got up

in the pulpit.

He came back from his holidays

and he began to preach

and all he did was tell off

the whole congregation

about how bad they were.

And about seven minutes in,

the whole congregation

got up and left.

He was left at the front

of the church,

empty.

They all got up and left.

In fact,

in Anglican polity,

there's things called wardens.

The wardens

had to get the bishop

involved

because the bishop

had to negotiate

with the wardens

to get any of the people

to go back to the church.

So I could get them.

But you know what?

The solution to sin

isn't for me to say,

you're terrible,

you're terrible,

you're terrible.

No.

On one level,

we all know,

everybody knows

we're not perfect.

The thing that we need

to be convicted of

is the remedy to sin,

which is Jesus.

Verse 9,

concerning sin

because they do not

believe in me.

Concerning righteousness,

that is,

how things are made right.

Okay,

how are things made right?

Well,

because I go to the Father

and you will see me no longer.

You see,

Jesus' death upon the cross

and his resurrection,

that's what makes us right

with God,

with the creator of all things.

That's what makes us right.

We need to be convicted of that.

It's the Holy Spirit

who does that.

And then,

and then,

in verse 11,

concerning judgment,

because the ruler

of this world is judged.

And that's a reference

to the devil

and it's a very profound statement

that when you see evil

in the world,

whether it's evil

in North Korea,

whether it's evil

in parts of Canada,

that there is always

a demonic aspect to it.

And many people suffer

under a fear

of a personal type

of demonic oppression

and Jesus says,

my death and resurrection

is a complete unmasking

and defeat

of all that is

the most evil

in the world

and all spiritual powers.

And if you were

in certain parts

of the world

that still believes

in animism,

all your belief

in spirits

connected to trees

and rivers

and birds,

that's all judged.

If you could put up

the next point, Andrew,

what is Jesus saying?

That as you go forward,

always remember

that the gift

of the Holy Spirit

is to your great advantage.

That the gift

of the Holy Spirit

is to your great advantage.

Friends,

the Holy Spirit

is not a charismatic thing

and we shouldn't be upset.

We all probably know stories

of crazy charismatics.

I'm not saying

all charismatics are crazy,

but we all know stories

of crazy charismatics.

In fact, probably

if I just said,

during coffee time,

just share crazy

charismatic stories,

there'd be lots of laughter

as we talked each other

with crazy things

they've said and done.

Okay?

But let me tell you,

what does Jesus say?

The gift of the Holy Spirit

to Christians

is to your advantage.

It is a good thing

every day

to say,

just in the words

of Galatians 5,

I try to remember

to pray this every day,

every day.

I know some of you

think I'm crazy,

so the rest of you,

I try to remember

to pray Galatians 5 and 6

every day.

I say,

Father,

as I go through my day today,

help me to walk

by the Holy Spirit,

live by the Holy Spirit,

be led by the Holy Spirit,

and keep in step

by the Holy Spirit.

And that is a good prayer

to pray.

Where am I?

Verse 12.

I still have many things

to say to you,

Jesus says.

Verse 12.

But you cannot bear them now.

You can't carry them.

He's talking right

to the disciples.

When the Spirit of Truth comes,

that's how he talks now

about the Holy Spirit,

the Spirit of Truth.

He will guide you

into all the truth,

for he will not speak

on his own authority

or out of himself,

but whatever he hears

from the Father and the Son,

he will speak

and he will declare to you

the things that are to come.

I want to break this up

into two things.

If you could put up

the next point, Andrew,

here's the thing.

As you go forward,

always remember,

always remember

to believe the truth

and nothing but the truth.

Be the BS detector

in your office.

Now, that might mean

you want to chat

with a really wise guy

like Victor

as to when you just

publicly say to your boss

that's BS

or whether there's a more

circumspect way

to say it.

But be the BS detector.

Like, the Bible,

when it says here

believe the truth,

it means you need

to listen well

and study well

and think well

and inquire well

and understand

what people are saying

and understand

what's true

and what's false in it.

But at the end of the day,

when the Bible says

that it's to your advantage

that the Holy Spirit

is going to come,

it's to your advantage

I give you the Holy Spirit.

And who is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit

is the Spirit of truth.

He will lead you

into all truth.

Then the truth

is your friend.

And the cry of our heart

in every meeting,

in every class,

and even when we read

and when we watch TV

should be,

Lord,

may the Holy Spirit

help me to know

what's true

and believe what's true

and nothing

but the truth.

Continue on.

The next verse.

Verse 14.

It's all part of the same idea

but I wanted to divide it up.

He will glorify me,

that's the Holy Spirit,

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.

And actually,

if you take verses 12 to 15

as a group,

it's one of the reasons

why Christians believe

that you don't,

every,

that the,

what I'm holding here

in the New Testament,

the New Testament

is the apostolic testimony

to Jesus.

And Jesus is saying here,

I am going to work in you

so the New Testament

can be written.

And so that whether or not,

remember when I was in Angola,

one of the things

I was doing,

some of the people

I was meeting with in Angola

were people

who were giving

a semi-nomadic tribe

that had no written language,

they were giving them

a written language

and they were translating

the New Testament

into that new language

so they could read

the apostolic testimony

for themselves.

We have a man

connected to our church

who has gone to a people group

in Asia

that did not have

a written language

and he is giving them

a written language

and translating the New Testament

into their language

so that they can learn

to read the language

they speak

and they can read

the apostolic testimony

to Jesus.

And that's the point

if you could put it up.

As you go forward,

always remember

to humbly learn

from the scripture.

As you go forward,

always remember

to humbly learn

from the scripture.

A little saying,

you've heard me say it before,

to many people

in Christian circles,

to ask what the Bible says

is to reveal yourself

as a narrow-minded,

knuckle-dragging fundamentalist.

But the truth of the matter is

that when you ask

what does the Bible say,

you're asking

the Jesus question

because Jesus asks

that question all the time.

What does the Bible say?

Search the scriptures.

Let's continue on

as we get through

the rest of this text.

Verse 16,

famous text for some,

a little while

and you will see me no longer

and again,

a little while

and you will see me.

So some of his disciples

said to one another,

what is this that he says to us

a little while

and you will not see me

and again,

a little while

and you will see me

and because I am going

to the Father.

So they were saying,

what does he mean

a little while?

There's a bit of a clue

and interpretation

that the same phrase

is said lots of times.

It probably means

it's important.

Okay?

We do not know

what he's talking about.

Jesus, verse 9,

knew that they wanted

to ask him.

So he said to them,

is this what you are asking yourselves,

what I meant by saying

a little while

and you will not see me

and again a little while

and you will see me?

Truly, truly,

I say to you,

you will weep and lament

but the world will rejoice.

You will be sorrowful

but your sorrow

will turn into joy.

When a woman is giving birth,

she has sorrow

because her hour has come

but when she has delivered the baby,

she no longer remembers

the anguish

for the joy

that a human being

has been born into the world.

So also,

you have sorrow now

but I will see you again

and your hearts will rejoice

and no one will take

your joy

from you.

Now,

Jesus is talking about

two things at the same time.

On one level,

he's talking very specifically

in the original language.

It's two things

at the same time.

On one hand,

he's telling his disciples,

I'm about to die

and you're going to be crushed

but on the third day

I'm going to rise

and your joy

will be unspeakable.

And he's also speaking

down the corridors

of history to us

and he's even speaking

to the apostles

after he ascends

into heaven

that there will be times

we have lots of sorrow

but if you could put up

the next point,

Andrew,

as you go forward,

always remember,

always remember

that Jesus will

assuredly return

as liberating Lord.

He will assuredly return

as liberating Lord.

Verse 23,

In that day you will ask

nothing of me,

right,

when he returns.

Truly, truly,

I say to you,

whatever you ask

of the Father in my name,

he will give it to you.

Until now you have asked

for nothing in my name.

Ask and you will receive

that your joy

may be full.

I have said

these things to you

in figures of speech.

The hour is coming

when I will no longer

speak to you

in figures of speech

but will tell you

plainly about the Father.

In that day you will ask

in my name

and I do not say to you

that I will ask the Father

on your behalf

for the Father himself

loves you

because you have loved me

and have believed

that I came from God.

I came from the Father

and have come into the world

and now I am leaving

the world

and going to the Father.

Andrew,

could you put up

the next point?

Please,

as you go forward,

always remember

to pray

like you were talking

to your dad.

And some of you

might say,

George,

if you knew my dad

you would not say that.

But then I would just add,

even when we complain

about how bad

our dads are,

it is because

on one level

we have an image

of what a good dad

would be like.

for those of us

who are Christian dads

right here,

texts like this

are always

a time

that call us

to get on our knees

and ask the Father

to help us

to be a great dad

to our kids

and to repent

of the way

that we have been

a bad dad.

but we all have

this basic sense

of what a good father

would be like.

And that's what Jesus

is talking about.

And so Jesus

is saying

as you go forward,

always remember

to pray

like you were talking

to your dad,

a good dad

who always listens

to you

and loves you.

And now we bring it

to a close.

Verse 29.

His disciples said,

Ah,

now you are speaking

plainly and not using

figurative speech.

Now we know

that you know all things

and do not need

anyone to question you.

This is why we believe

that you came from God.

Jesus answered them

and he answers them

with love.

Do you now believe?

Behold,

the hour is coming,

indeed it has come,

when you will be scattered,

each to his own home

and will leave me alone.

Yet I am not alone

for the Father is with me.

And then Andrew,

could you put up

the last,

the first point again?

Why don't we say this

together,

out loud?

Can you say it with me?

I have told you

these things

so that in me

you may have peace.

In the world

you have trouble

and suffering,

but take courage.

I am victorious

over the world.

Please stand.

If you have not

yet called out

to Jesus

to be your Savior and Lord,

there is no better time now

than just to call out

to him.

Say something like,

I want to live in the real world

and I know

that I will not be victorious

over death

or even the evil

in my life.

I ask,

I thank you,

Jesus,

that your great victory

can be for me

and I reach out to you

that I might share

in your victory,

that you might be

my Savior and Lord.

There is no better time now

than to pray that prayer.

And for the rest of us,

some maybe as dads

have to pray

a bit of prayer

of repentance

and prayer of longing,

but for all of us,

we can pray

that the Lord

will help us

to leave this place today

knowing the real world

and living with courage

under Jesus

and the power

of the Holy Spirit

in the real world.

Let's pray.

Father,

we thank you

for the different places

that you have called us to.

Father,

we confess

some of us

wish we had a better job

or lived in a better house

or are looking forward

to a new day

and new opportunities

and Father,

we know that

some of these

are good things,

that it's not a bad thing

to have ambition.

It's not a bad thing

to seek

to maybe have

that more responsible job

or have more education.

Father,

it's not a bad thing.

But we ask,

Father,

that in all things,

Father,

that we might know

that we live

in the real world,

that we might remember

that you are God,

that Jesus did die

upon the cross,

that he did rise

from the dead,

that he is risen,

that he will return again

and that the Holy Spirit

has been given to us

for our great advantage.

Father,

pour into our heart

the desire

to walk with the Holy Spirit

and live by the Holy Spirit

and be led by the Holy Spirit

and keep in step

with the Holy Spirit

and grant us,

Father,

the desire

to turn from lies

and to know the truth,

to do the hard work

and the humbling work

of knowing the truth

and believing

in the truth

in all things.

Father,

we ask that you would do

this wonderful

and mighty work

in our lives

all for your great glory

and we ask

all of this

in the name of Jesus

and all God's people said,

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.