What is the Gospel? When you boil it all down, what are the key elements of the message of hope that we hold out to the world? You might want to stop the conversation right here and talk about that! Let’s say the 3 key elements that someone would have to get hold of in order to be able to meaningfully repent and trust Christ?
Well, we don’t have to guess. Jesus lays them out for us in the passage before us this week. But I warn you, it’s a far more combative message than we might be used to. We were thinking last week about how the world will ‘hate’ the Church (Jesus’ word (Jn.15:18-25), not mine). In fact, we know Jesus is right about this, which is why we re-brand the message. We can talk about God’s love without people getting too riled; likewise, kingdom values and the ‘common good’, and Christ as fulfilment and giving purpose and meaning to our lives. Little of that is going to irritate ‘the world’, unless they are so ideologically secularist that any mention of Jesus at all is considered ‘offensive’.
The problem is that we can say all that, and avoid preaching the Gospel to which the Spirit wants to testify. And herein lies what we see as a problem for us - the very things that the Spirit of Christ wants to put front and centre in our evangelism are the very things we want to hide out back. And we want to hide them because we are fully aware they will cause problems. Jesus’ warning about the world’s hatred makes a lot more sense when we realise that the Spirit wants us to be talking about sin and righteousness and judgment (16:8). But in avoiding these things we are storing up problems for the Church.
Not only is the question of the Spirit’s involvement raised, but there is the matter that the Gospel we preach will shape the kind of Christians we produce. If we omit the issues of sin and repentance from our Gospel, we can hardly spring them on the unsuspecting when they decide they want to find fulfilment in Jesus. That’s ‘bait and switch’, and at best it lacks a certain integrity. But the alternative is that we end up with Churches full of people following Jesus, but without categories for spiritual growth in holiness; who struggle to reconcile the idea of judgment with a loving God, and who feel threatened and destabilised in their faith at any mention of sin. That will not bode well for the Church of the future… or indeed of today.
Questions:
What are the benefits of the Advocate being sent to the Church (v.7)? Why should we think it is for our good that Jesus is gone, but the Spirit has come?
Why does Jesus give the Spirit this particular title (Counsellor / Advocate) in the context of this teaching about His ministry? What does it mean, and how is it designed to encourage us in the light of Jesus’ teaching?
Why does the Spirit want to focus on ‘sin and righteousness and judgment’ in this way (v.8)? Doesn’t this sound like a fairly miserable kind of Christianity we’d rather leave in the mediavel age? If you brought a non-Christian friend to Church, how would you feel if the sermon focussed on those themes?
In what ways is ‘the world’ wrong about sin, righteousness and judgment? How does a true preaching of the Gospel challenge people’s ideas on these matters?
Why are these such critical issues for people as they decide whether to become Christians or not? Do you think people can become Christians without these featuring?
How should this shape our evangelism at MIE?
When you read through the Apostles’ preaching in the Book of Acts, how can you see the evidence of the Advocate shaping their message (see: Acts 2:22-41; 3:11-26; 4:8-12; 10:34-43; 13:16-41; etc)?
