The Holy Spirit was given to prepare [the disciples] for revelation at a whole new level. He would take them where Jesus couldn’t. Perhaps this is part of the reason Jesus said, “It is to your advantage that I go . . .” The indwelling Holy Spirit enables us to bear more of the revelation of Jesus than was possible for the original twelve disciples.
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.” (John 16:13-15 NASB)
The Holy Spirit is assigned to take us into all truth. The word “all” here is staggering, and should be. What makes this even more stunning is the realization that truth is to be experienced; the Holy Spirit is therefore leading us into experiencing all truth. He receives all of His instructions from the Father. It was the Holy Spirit upon Jesus that enabled Him to know what the Father was doing and saying. That same gift of the Spirit has been given to us for that same purpose.
One of the assignments of the Holy Spirit is to let us know what is to come. If you read commentaries and various reference materials, you’ll notice most think the promise of knowing what’s coming is all about us being aware of coming calamities. Theologians tend to focus on problems because few truly believe in the glorious church. Everyone from world leaders to musicians, to actors and business leaders, are telling us of the coming calamities. We don’t need the Holy Spirit for that purpose when people without God can do it. Rather, we need Him to see the coming glory! The warnings of difficulties are necessary as they help us keep our priorities straight. But it’s the Father’s good pleasure to give us the mysteries of the kingdom. And there’s no pleasure in speaking of the death and destruction of the unrighteous. It’s still called the good news for a reason.
