In this chapter, we slow the pace on purpose and go to the Scriptures to answer one question: who is the Spirit that Jesus promised to send?
The answer is the whole point. The Helper is not a separate Spirit sent in place of Jesus. He is the Spirit of Jesus — the fullness of God who was in Christ, now poured out and living in you.
This is not theology for the sake of theology. What you believe about who Jesus is will shape the encounter you have when you meet Him.
Main Points
What we believe about who Jesus is, shapes the richness of the encounter that we have with Him.
We can know God, but we cannot know Him without His help.
We can abide in Jesus, because He is more than just a man.
God was manifest in the flesh of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In Jesus was not merely a portion of God, but all of God.
Jesus is the full self-revelation of the Father, who is a divine, eternal Holy Spirit. Therefore, when we see Jesus, we see the Father—just as He said.
Jesus is the one who poured out the Holy Spirit that the Father had promised.
The Spirit of God that was in Christ is now Christ in us.
Reflection
Take a moment to reflect on the following questions.
What truths have I learned in this chapter?
In what ways have my present beliefs been challenged or strengthened?
If you are walking through this section with a person or group, take time to share your responses.
Discussion
Get ready to talk.
If you are walking through this section with a person or group, get some dialogue going with the following questions and corresponding points.
1. What we believe about who Jesus is, shapes the richness of the encounter that we have with Him.
If someone asked you today who Jesus is, what would you say?
How does your knowledge of Jesus, impact your experience with Him?
If all of God is revealed in Jesus, how does that change how you approach Him?
2. We can know God, but we cannot know Him without His help.
First Corinthians 2:14 says the natural man cannot receive the things of God, because they are spiritually discerned. What does that mean?
Peter did not figure out who Jesus was on His own; the Father revealed it to him. How does that impact your pursuit to know who Jesus is?
If we cannot know God without His help, how does that impact your understanding of why Jesus came, and who Jesus is?
3. We can abide in Jesus, because He is more than just a man.
The disciples of Jesus were already abiding with Him, but Jesus said they would soon be abiding in Him. What do you think is the significance of that?
If Jesus were only a man, His nature would be limited to His own body, and as a consequence, abiding in Him would be impossible. What does His invitation to abide in Him reveal about who He is?
A branch abides in the vine, because it can’t have life of its own. So, if we are branches, can we spiritually live apart from Jesus?
4. God was manifest in the flesh of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In Jesus was not merely a portion of God, but all of God.
Colossians 2:9 says that in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Does this mean that when we encounter Jesus, we are encountering all of and everything that God is?
Why did God become a man?
Was Jesus a part of God? Or was all of God in Jesus?
5. Jesus is the full self-revelation of the Father, who is a divine, eternal Holy Spirit. Therefore, when we see Jesus, we see the Father—just as He said.
Philip asked Jesus to show him the Father. Jesus answered, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” What was Philip looking for that was already standing right in front of him?
Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would be called “The Everlasting Father.” Who was in Jesus that made this prophecy’s fulfillment possible?
If Jesus is the revelation of the Father, what impact does this have on how you view Jesus?
6. Jesus is the one who poured out the Holy Spirit that the Father had promised.
Is the Holy Spirit a different or same Spirit as the Father?
Jesus pours out the Holy Spirit. This Holy Spirit was promised by God, who is our Father. What is significant about Jesus, and who or what He is, that made Him capable of pouring out this Spirit?
“I will come to you.” That’s what Jesus told His disciples. Yet, when He did, it was as the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2. Does this mean that the Holy Spirit, was the Spirit that was in Jesus?
7. The Spirit of God that was in Christ is now Christ in us.
What does it mean to have Christ in us?
Romans 8:9 says that if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. Is having the Spirit of Christ, the Holy Spirit, optional for a believer?
If the Spirit that lives in us is the Spirit of Jesus Himself, how does that impact your understanding of what it means to meet Jesus?
Response
Take a moment to reflect on the following questions, and how you will respond to the truths you have learned.
How will I apply the truths I've learned?
Is there a way that I can use what I have learned to impact someone in my life?
If you are walking through this section with a person or group, take time to share your responses.
