The foundation of our communion with the Holy Spirit �
Posted : 16 Dec, 2013 02:27 AM
The foundation of all of our communion with the Holy Spirit consists in his mission as our comforter,
being sent for that purpose by Jesus Christ. This dispensation will be the first thing considered, so that we
have a correct understanding of its truth. The main promise and chief considerations, including the good
received and the evil prevented by it, are given in the beginning of the 16th chapter of John. I will view its
state as proposed there.
Our blessed Savior, being ready to leave the world, acquainted his disciples with what they were likely to
encounter. He explains the reason why he gave them the doleful tidings of his departure. He does so
considering how sad and dispirited they were when he mentioned it. Verse 1, �I have spoken these things
to you, so that you would not stumble.� He is saying, �I have acquainted you with these things beforehand
(that is, the things which will come upon you, which you are to suffer), so that you poor souls, who
expected another state of affairs, would not be surprised by it, or be offended at me and my doctrine, and
thus fall away from me. You are now forewarned, and know what to look for.� He says in verse 2,
�having said in general that you will be persecuted, I tell you plainly that there will be a combination of
all men against you, and all sorts of men will use their power for your ruin.� �They will cast you out of
the synagogues; in fact, the time comes that whoever kills you will think that he does service to God.� He
says, �The ecclesiastical power will excommunicate you. They will put you out of their synagogues; and
so that you may not expect relief from the power of the magistrate against their perversity, they will kill
you; and so that you may know that they will do it for that purpose, without check or control, they will
think that in killing you they are doing God good service; this will cause them to act rigorously, and
extremely.�
�But this is a shaking trial,� they might reply (Heb. 12:26). �Is our condition such that men, in killing us,
will think to approve their consciences to God?� �Yes, they will,� says our Savior; �Yet, so that you will
not be mistaken, or trouble your consciences about their confidence, know that their blind and desperate
ignorance is the cause of their fury and persuasion.� Verse 3, �These things they will do to you, because
they have not known the Father, nor me.�
This, then, was the state of the disciples. But why did our Savior tell them at this point? To add fear and
anxiety to their grief and sorrow? What advantage would they gain by that? Their blessed Master
essentially says in verse 4, �There are weighty reasons why I tell you these things. Chiefly, I provided
them to you so that when they happen, you may be supported with the consideration of my Deity and
omniscience, because I told you all these things before they came to pass.� Verse 4: �But these things I
have told you, so that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them.� �But if they are
so necessary, why is it that you have not told us before? Why not in the beginning, at our first calling?�
�Because,� says our Savior, �there was no need for that; for while I was with you, you had protection and
direction at hand.� ��And I did not say these things at the beginning, because I was present with you:� but
now the state of things is altered; I must leave you,� verse 4. �And for your part, you are so stunned with
sorrow, that you do not ask me �where I go;� which would certainly relieve you, because I go to take
possession of my glory, and to carry on the work of your salvation: but your hearts are filled with sorrow
and fears, and you do not so much as inquire after relief,� verses 5, 6. At this point, he adds that
wonderful assertion in verse 7, �Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away:
for if I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send him to you.� This verse, then, is the foundation of what will be declared later. It must be considered as to its words and
their interpretation.
1. In the preface to his statement:
(1.) The first word, �alla,� is adversative. It does not negate what goes before, but creates a transition:
�I know you have sad thoughts of these things; but nevertheless��
(2.) �Ego ten aleteian lego humin,� �I tell you the truth.� The words are very emphatic. They denote
some great thing to follow. First, �Ego,� �I tell it you, what will now be spoken; I who love you, who
take care of you, who am now about to lay down my life for you; these are my dying words, so that
you may believe me; I who am truth itself, I tell you.� And,
�Ego ten aleteian lego,� �I tell you the truth.� �You have in your sad, misgiving hearts many
misapprehensions of things. You think if I would abide with you, then all these evils might be
prevented. But you do not know what is good for you, nor what is expedient. �I tell you the truth;� this
is truth itself; quiet your hearts in it.� A great deal of evidence is needed to comfort their souls. They
are dejected and disconsolate, apprehensive about Christ�s absence from them, whether what they
perceive is true or false.
This is the preface to what our Savior was about to deliver to his disciples. It will be a weighty,
convincing affirmation, to separate their thoughts from prejudice, and to prepare them to receive that
great truth.
2. In the assertion that follows: �Sumferei humin, hina ego apelto.� It is expedient for you that I go away.�
There are two things in these words: Christ�s departure; and its usefulness to his disciples:
It is known what his departure will mean; his bodily presence will be withdrawn from the earth after his
resurrection. The �heavens receive him, until the times of the restitution of all things,� Acts 3:21. In
respect to his Deity, and the exercise of his love and care towards them, he promises to be with them to
the end of the world, Matt. 28:20. Of this he says, �Sumferei humin,� �It is conducive to your good; it is
profitable for you; it is for your advantage; it will provide the end you aim for.� That is the sense of the
word that we have translated �expedient.� �It is for your profit and advantage.� This, then, is what our
Savior earnestly asserts, desiring to convince his sorrowful followers of its truth. His departure, which
they so much feared and were troubled to think of, would turn to their profit and advantage.
3. It might be expected that they would accept this affirmation of truth. But because they want to know
the basis for it, he gives them certainty and evidence for the proposition. He expresses it negatively and
positively: �If I do not go away, he will not come; but if I depart, I will send him.� I have spoken before
concerning Christ�s going away. I will now address the sending and the coming of the Comforter.
�Ho parakletos�: Because the word has a number of meanings, many translations have retained the
original word �paracletus,� as the Syrian does. Some think it was a word used among the Jews (the
Chaldee paraphrase makes use of it in Job 16:20). And among the Jews it signifies one who taught others
in a way that delighted them in his teaching, that is, in a way that makes him their comforter. In Scripture
it has two eminent meanings. It may either be an �advocate� or a �comforter.� Our Savior is called
�parakletos,� meaning advocate, in 1John 2:1. Whether it is better rendered an advocate or a comforter
here in John 16 is less clear.
Looking at the disciples� sorrow and trouble, and it seems to require the Comforter: �Sorrow has filled
your hearts; but I will send you the Comforter.� But looking at the words that follow, which mention the unique work for which he is sent, they seem to require that he be an Advocate, to plead the cause of
Christ against the world, verse 8. I choose to interpret the promise by its occasion, which was the sorrow
of his disciples. I prefer Comforter here.
Our blessed Savior declared who this Comforter is in John 15:26. He is �Pneuma tes aleteias,� �the Spirit
of truth.� That is, he is the Holy Spirit who reveals all truth to the sons of men. Two things are affirmed
about this Comforter: (1.) He will come. (2.) Christ will send him.
(1.) That he will come. His coming is conditioned on Christ going away: �If I do not go away, he will
not come;� �If I do go (eleusetai [NT:2064]), he will come.� So there is not only the mission of
Christ, but the will of the Spirit in his coming: �He will come,� his own will is in his work.
(2.) That Christ will send him. �Pempso auton,� [NT:3992;846] �I will send him.� Our Savior
instructs his disciples by degrees in the mystery of his sending the Spirit. In chap. 14:16, he says, �I
will pray the Father, and he will give you another Comforter.� He goes one step more in verse 26,
�But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name.� In 15:26, he
says, �I will send him from the Father.� And then here, absolutely, �I will send him.� This business of
sending the Holy Spirit by the Son was a deep mystery, which they could not handle all at once.
Therefore he instructs them in it by degrees. Sending him argues for the Spirit�s personal procession
from the Son.
This is the summary: the presence of the Holy Spirit with believers, as their comforter, is better and more
profitable for them than the corporeal presence of Christ, now that Christ has fulfilled the one sacrifice for
sin that he was to offer.
The Holy Spirit is promised for two purposes:
[1.] As a Spirit of sanctification for the elect, to convert them and make them believers.
[2.] As a Spirit of consolation to believers, to give them the privileges of the death and purchase of Christ.
It is only in the latter sense that he is spoken of here. As to his presence with us in this regard, and the
purposes for which he is sent, we will observe
1. The source of his coming;
2. How he is given;
3. Our manner of receiving him;
4. His abiding with us;
5. His acting in us; and
6. The effects of his working in us. How we hold communion with him will appear from all of these.
1st. The source of his coming is mentioned in John 15:26, �Para tou Patros ekporeuetai,� �He proceeds
from the Father.� This is the fountain of his dispensation. There is a twofold �ekporeusis� [NT:1607], or
�procession� of the Spirit:
(1st.) �Fusike,� or �hupostatike,� in respect to substance and personality.
(2dly.) �Oikonomike,� or dispensational, in respect to the work of grace.
In the first respect, he is the Spirit of the Father and the Son, proceeding from both eternally, and so
he receives his substance and personality from them. This is not the business at hand. I will only say
that, here lies the first foundation of all our distinct communion with him and our worship of him. But
we cannot progress beyond the bare acquiescence of faith in this revealed mystery, performing what
is due him solely on the account of his participation in the essence of God. And so I will not dwell
upon it.
His �ekporeusis� or proceeding, mentioned here, is his dispensational proceeding to carry on the work
of grace. It is spoken in reference to his being sent by Christ after his ascension: �then I will send him
who proceeds from the Father,� Jn. 15:26. When God was said to �come out of his place to punish the
inhabitants of the earth,� Isa. 26:21, it did not refer to any mutation in God, but to the work of
punishment he would effect. The Spirit is likewise said to proceed in reference to a specific work,
which is to testify of Christ. This cannot be assigned to him in respect to his eternal procession from
the Father and the Son, but only in respect to his actual dispensation. It is also said of Christ, �He
came forth from God,� Jn. 16:30. The mention of the Father in 15:26, and not the Son, only reflects
the gradual way by which our Savior reveals this mystery to his disciples, as mentioned earlier. He
does refer to himself as sending the Spirit in John 16:7. This external relation of the Spirit to the
Father and the Son in respect to his operation, proves his internal relation to them in respect to his
personal procession.
Three things may be considered in the foundation of this dispensation, and in reference to our
communion with the Holy Spirit:
[1st.] The will of the Spirit is in the work: �Ekporeuetai,� �He comes forth himself.� Frequent
mention is made of his being sent, given, and poured out. It should not be understood to mean
that this Spirit is an inferior, created spirit, a mere servant, as some have blasphemed. Nor does
his personality principally represent the virtue of God, as some have fancied. He has �idiomata
hupostatika,� personal properties, applied to him in this work. This argues for his personality and
liberty. �Ekporeuetai,� �He, of himself and of his own accord, proceeds.�
[2dly.] The condescension of the Holy Spirit in this dispensation, to proceed from the Father and
the Son in this work. Taking on this work of a Comforter, as the Son took on the work of a
Redeemer, will be discussed later.
[3dly.] The fountain of all this is discovered to be the Father. It is done so that we may know his
works in pursuit of electing love, which is always ascribed to the Father. This is the order that is
intimated here: First, there is the �protesis� of the Father, or the purpose of his love. This is the
fountain of all. Then there is the �erotesis,� the asking of the Son, John 14:16, which includes his
merit and purchase. From this follows the �ekporeusis,� or willing proceeding of the Holy Spirit.
And this also testifies to the foundation of this whole discourse, namely, our unique communion
with the Father in love, the Son in grace, and the Holy Spirit in consolation. This is where that
fellowship of the Holy Spirit begins to which we are called. His gracious and blessed will, his
infinite and ineffable condescension, is seen by faith as the foundation of all those effects that he
works in us, and the privileges that we partake of by him. Our souls are uniquely conversant with
him. Our desires, affections, and thankfulness are focused on him: more about this later. This is
the first thing to consider in our communion with the Holy Spirit.
2dly. The manner of his bestowing or communicating to us from this fountain, that is, how he is given,
should also be considered. It denotes three things:
(1st.) The freeness of it. Thus he is said to be given, John 14:16; �He will give you another
comforter.� The most frequent adjunct of the communication of the Spirit is that he is given and
received as a gift: �He will give his Holy Spirit to those who ask him.� A gift is free. The Spirit of
grace is given of grace. The Spirit of sanctification, or the Spirit to sanctify and convert us, is a gift of
free grace. In respect to consolation, the Spirit is a gift as well; he is promised to be given to
believers. Hence, the Spirit is said to be received by the gospel, not by the law, Gal. 3:2. He is
received of mere grace, and not of our own procuring. All his works are called �charismata,� [NT:5486] meaning �free donations.� He is freely bestowed, and he freely works. The different
measures in which he is received arise from the fact that we have him by donation, or free gift. This is
the tenure by which we hold and enjoy him, a tenure of free donation. That is how he is to be seen, to
be asked, and to be received. In our communion with the Comforter, faith also draws together his will
with the gift of the Father and Son. The one respects the distinct operation of the Deity in the person
of the Holy Spirit, while the other respects the economy of the whole Trinity in the work of our
salvation by Jesus Christ. The soul rejoices that the Comforter is willing to come to him, and is
willing to be given to him. And seeing that all of this is the will of the Spirit and the gift of God,
grace is magnified.
(2dly.) The authority of it. Thus he is said to be sent. Jn. 14:26, �The Father will send him in my
name;� and 15:26, �I will send him to you from the Father;� and, � I will send him to you,� 16:7. This
mission of the Holy Spirit by the Father and the Son, reveals the order of the subsistence of the
persons in the blessed Trinity, and the Spirit�s procession from the Father and Son. It also reveals the
order that is voluntarily engaged in by them to accomplish the work of our salvation. In his love for
us, there is a very special way of condescending by the Holy Spirit to the authoritative delegation of
Father and Son in this business. This speaks not of a disparity, dissimilitude, or inequality of essence,
but of oneness in this work. The office of the Holy Spirit is to be an advocate for us, and a comforter
to us. In respect to this office, he is sent authoritatively by Father and Son. This subjection or
inequality in respect to his office, does not in any way prejudice the equality of nature that the Spirit
has with Father and Son; no more than the mission of the Son given by the Father would prejudice his
own equality of nature. The right understanding of many mysteries in the gospel, and the ordering of
our hearts in communion with the Spirit, depend on this authoritative mission.
[1st.] Hence, the sin against the Holy Spirit is unpardonable. It has that color of rebellion put
upon it that no other sin has. This is because he does not come or act in his own name alone, but
in the name and authority of the Father and Son, from and by whom he is sent. Therefore, to sin
against him is to sin against all the authority of God, all the love of the Trinity, and the
condescension of each person to the work of our salvation. It is from the authoritative mission of
the Spirit that the sin against him is uniquely unpardonable. It is a sin against the united love of
the Father, Son, and Spirit. From this consideration, the true nature of the sin against the Holy
Spirit might be investigated. Certainly it must consist in contempt for some operation of his,
acting in the name and authority of the whole Trinity, and their ineffable condescension to the
work of grace. But this is another consideration.
[2dly.] Because of this mission, we are to ask the Father and the Son to give the Spirit to us. Luke
11:13, �Your heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.� Now the Holy
Spirit, being God, is no less to be invoked, prayed to, and called upon, than the Father and Son, as
I proved elsewhere. How, then, do we ask the Father for him, as we do in all our supplications, if
we also pray that the Father himself would come to us, visit us, and abide with us? In our prayers
that are directed to the Spirit, we consider him as essentially God over all, blessed forevermore.
We pray for him from the Father and Son, as being under this mission and delegation from them.
And, indeed, God has clearly revealed himself in the order of this dispensation to us. Thus, in our
communion with the Spirit, we are to address him accordingly. That is, we not only address the
person of the Holy Spirit himself, but properly we address ourselves to the Father and Son for
him, which refers to this dispensation.
[3dly.] That is why such a great weight is placed upon not grieving the Spirit, Eph. 4:30. He
comes to us in the name, with the love, and upon the condescension of the whole blessed Trinity.
To grieve him for the purpose which will afterward be mentioned, is a great aggravation of sin.
He justly expects cheerful entertainment with us, because of who he is and the work he comes to do. But when we also consider that he is sent by the Father and the Son, commissioned with their
love and grace, to communicate them to our souls, this ought to instill unspeakable esteem with
believers. And so the manner of his communication indicates that he is sent by authority.
(3dly.) He is said to be poured out or shed on us abundantly, Titus. 3:6, �Hou ekseche-en [NT:1632] ef�
hemas plousios.� This was the primary way in which he was communicated under the Old Testament.
The mystery of the Father and the Son, and the matter of commission and delegation was not so
clearly revealed then. �Until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a
fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest;� Isa. 32:15. That is, until the Gentiles are
called, and the Jews are rejected. In Isa. 44:3, �I will pour my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessing
upon your offspring.� Zech. 12:10 is an eminent example and always comes to mind. �And I will
pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication;
then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his
only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.� This expression of being poured out or
shed is an allusion to water. It refers to all the uses of water, both natural and typical. I will not go
into the particular association between them, but perhaps efficacy and plenty are the primary
meanings.
This threefold expression of giving, sending, and pouring out the Spirit, gives us the three great
properties of the covenant of grace: First, it is free; he is given. Secondly, it is orderly and sure. It
comes from the love of the Father, by the procurement of the Son. This is where we get the Father
sending him, and the Son sending him from the Father. He is the gift of the Father�s love, and the
purchase of the Son�s blood. Thirdly, it is efficacious and plentiful.
3dly. The third thing to consider in the Spirit�s purpose, is our receiving him. Mind what I first proposed
of the Spirit: consider him as a Spirit of sanctification and a Spirit of consolation. Receiving him as a
Spirit of sanctification is a mere passive reception, just as a vessel receives water. He comes as the wind
on Ezekiel�s dead bones and makes them live (Ezek. 37). He comes into dead hearts, and quickens them
by an act of his almighty power. But now, as the Spirit of consolation, it is otherwise. In this sense, our
Savior tells us that the �world cannot receive him,� John 14:17, �The world does not receive, because it
does not see him, neither does it know him: but you know him, for he dwells with you, and will be in
you.� It is the Spirit of consolation, or the Spirit for consolation, that is promised here. This is evident
from the close of the verse, where he is said to be in them when he is promised to them. He was in them
as a Spirit of quickening and sanctification when he was promised to them as a Spirit of comfort and
consolation. He abides with them for that purpose. The power to receive the Spirit is denied to be in the
world. It is ascribed to believers. Unbelievers cannot receive the Spirit because they do not know him.
Believers can receive him, because they do know him. So there is an active power to be exercised in
receiving him for consolation, but not in receiving him for regeneration and sanctification. This active
power is the power of faith. In Gal. 3:2, they received the Spirit by the hearing of faith. In other words,
the preaching of the gospel instilled faith in them, enabling them to receive the Spirit. Hence, believing is
the qualification of receiving the Holy Spirit. �This he spoke of the Spirit, which those who believe on
him should receive,� John 7:39. It is believers who receive the Spirit, and they receive him by faith. There
are three special acts of faith in receiving the Spirit:
(1st.) It considers the Spirit as promised. It is faith alone that profits from the benefit of the promises,
�For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not
profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it,� Heb. 4:2. He is called the Spirit of that
promise, �In whom you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in
whom also after you believed, you were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,� Eph. 1:13. He is the
Spirit promised in the covenant. And we receive the promise of the Spirit through faith, Gal. 3:14. So
receiving the Spirit through faith is receiving him as promised. Faith looks at the promise of God and of Jesus Christ, of sending the Spirit for all those ends that he is desired. Thus faith depends on this
promise, waits for it, and mixes the promise with itself until it receives him.
(2dly.) Faith acts by prayer. He is given as a Spirit of supplication, that we may ask him as a Spirit of
consolation, Luke 11:13. Indeed, this asking of the Spirit of God, in the name of Christ, is the primary
work of faith in this world.
(3dly.) Faith cherishes the Spirit by being attentive to his impulses, improving his acting according to
his mind and will.
This is all I will say about our receiving the Spirit, sent of Jesus Christ. We do it by faith, looking at him
as purchased by Jesus Christ, and promised of the Father. We seek him at the hands of God, and we
receive him.
4thly. The next thing to consider in the Spirit�s purpose is his abiding with us. This is expressed two ways
in the Scripture:
(1st.) In general, it is said he will abide with us.
(2dly.) In particular, as to how he abides, it is by inhabitation or indwelling. I have spoken fully of the
inhabitation of the Spirit elsewhere. He is said to dwell in us primarily, or perhaps solely, as a Spirit
of sanctification or consolation. This is evident from the work he does. Because he is indwelling, he
quickens and sanctifies us, Rom. 8:11. He dwells in us as if in a temple, which he makes holy by
dwelling there, 1Cor. 6:19. �He will abide with you forever,� John 14:16, There is a difficulty in this
promise. His permanence in abiding relates only to sanctification, not to his role as Comforter. How is
it that the Spirit of sanctification dwells in us forever, making it impossible to completely lose our
holiness, and yet we may completely lose our comfort? A little to clear this up in our passage:
[1st.] He is promised to abide with the disciples forever, in opposition to the abode of Christ.
Christ, in the flesh, had been with them for a little while. Now he was leaving them and going to
his Father. He had been the comforter for a season, but he is now departing. In promising them
another comforter, they might fear that he would only visit them for a little while too, and then
their condition would be worse than ever. But our Savior says, �Do not fear that. This is the last
dispensation. There will be no alteration. When I am gone, the Comforter will do all the
remaining work. There is no other to look for. I promise him to you. He will not depart from you.
He will always abide with you.�
[2dly.] The Comforter may always abide with us, but he will not always comfort us. He is always
with us for other ends and purposes, such as to sanctify and make us holy. This was the case with
David, Ps. 51:11-12, �Take not your Holy Spirit from me.� The Holy Spirit of sanctification was
still with David; but he says, �Restore to me the joy of your salvation.� That is, restore the Spirit
of consolation that was lost when the promise was made good in the abiding of the Spirit of
sanctification.
[3dly.] The Comforter may abide as a comforter, even when he does not actually comfort us. In
truth, the essence of holiness requires that he cannot dwell in us without making us holy, for the
temple of God is holy. But his comforting is an act of his sovereign will. And so he may abide,
and yet not actually comfort us.
[4thly.] The Spirit often works to console us, even when we do not receive it. The well is close,
but we do not see it. We refuse to be comforted. I told you that the Spirit as a sanctifier comes with power to conquer an unbelieving heart. The Spirit as a comforter comes with sweetness, to
be received in a believing heart. He may speak, but we do not believe it is his voice. He may offer
consolation, but we will not receive it. �My sore ran,� says David, �and my soul refused to be
comforted.�
[5thly.] I deny that the Holy Spirit ever leaves a believing soul without any consolation. A man
may be darkened and clouded; he may refuse comfort; he may actually find none, and feel none.
But he has a radical foundation of consolation, which in due time will be realized. Therefore,
when God promises that he will heal sinners, and restore comfort to them, as in Isa. 57:18, it is
not that they were without any comfort, but that they did not have as much as they needed. It is
not my present purpose to list all the ways by which men refuse comfort, and come short of the
consolation that God wants them to have.
Being sent and given, the Spirit abides with believers, and does not leave them; but he shows himself in
