great measure, is to guide the be liever into truth (I John 2:27). We are anointed as believers with the presence of the Spirit of Cod. He is our true Teacher. We live in a world where men search but are never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. As believers in Christ we have the Supernatural Helper who dwells within us. He is our resident truth-Teacher. What a marvelous promise this is! The world cannot receive this Spirit (John 14:17). Unregenerated man has no means of spiritual dis cernment. There is no capacity for perception or understanding (I Cor inthians 2:12-14). Apart from pos sessing the Holy Spirit it would be impossible to know the things of God. The Pharisees and false lead ers were reminded by Jesus that their father was the devil. They were blind to the truth being with one who was a liar from the be ginning. Since another like Christ had been promised with all of the ob vious attendant blessings, there was a danger that these disciples might get so excited that they would go out to turn the world upside down, only to be completely discouraged when everything did not go the way they thought it should. Our Lord gently warns them that the world still would not listen or un derstand generally speaking. If it did not comprehend Christ Him self, it would have little impact on those who purposely rejected the Saviour. In fact, they were told, "In the world ye shall have tribulation" (John 16:33). This promise of the Comforter is concluded with a strategic and dispensational statement, "For he dwelleth with you and shall be in
tion must be properly manifested by w illing subservience to His Word. This is illustrated so well in John 21 as Peter is confronted with the Master's question, "Do you really love me?" Obedience indi cates the validity of love. All the sentimental expressions mean little unless eager action follows. PROMISE OF A SUPERNATURAL HELPER The first promise is that of the Supernatural Helper (John 14:16, 17). Here is Christ's greatest gift to the believer. The Saviour was not going to leave them without anoth er Comforter! In the Creek the word means "the One called along side of to help." One way we know the character of this divine Helper is by the very word Jesus used. In the original language it means one of the same, exact, identical kind. There was to be no difference. This is why we know the Holy Spirit to be the exact essence of Christ. What a wonderful promise to realize that He will abide with us forever. This means eternally. This, in a sense, was even more for Jesus was not always at their side. Some times He was in other areas. This should assure us that once a per son receives this Helper he will never lose Him. The Comforter will never leave. There are those today who erroneously teach that sometimes for a Christian the Holy Spirit departs. At that point they unscripturally state that He needs to be sought to return again. Such a view cannot be substantiated when one considers the Saviour's own words. The picture of this Holy Helper is carefully defined in Scripture (vs. 17). He is known as "the Spirit of Truth" (16:13). His ministry, in
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