A look at the Holy Spirit Jesus promised in the Gospel of John

What word associations do you make with “Holy Spirit”? Speaking in tongues? Sanctification? Pentecostalism? Prophecy? Charismatic? Mystical? Spiritual? Inspiration of Scripture? Based on Jesus’ words to the disciples in John 14-16, I suggest still another one—contextualization.

To contextualize means to adapt or modify according to changing circumstances. In John 16:13-14, Jesus tells his followers that his Spirit, which will come to accompany them, “will guide you into all the truth” and “let you know what is going to happen” (CEV). And this truth about what is going to be happening in the changes and vicissitudes of history will be the truth as it was disclosed in Jesus. But to understand these verses we must look at the larger passage, beginning in chapter 14.

The Gospel of John was one of the last, if not the last, book of the New Testament to be written. Its readers did not live in Palestine. They lived in a different geographical location and culture about 100 years after Jesus lived and ministered in Palestine. The whole Gospel, and especially chapters 14-16, was written to help followers make a transition from the visible presence of Jesus as a real physical person to the invisible presence of Jesus as a real spiritual presence.

The Gospels, which tell us about Jesus, do not say much about the Holy Spirit. Indeed, Jesus himself did not say much about the Spirit. But according to John’s Gospel, Jesus introduced the Spirit as his own continuing presence with his followers at the end of his career just before he was crucified. In 14:18 he tells them he will not leave them like orphans when parents die. He promises, “I will come to you” in the form of the Spirit.

The disciples did not expect the Messiah to die, and they were shocked and terrified at the thought. Jesus was talking about his death, and they thought that meant that everything they had experienced with him would come to an end. He first tries to make it clear that his “going away” does not mean he will absent himself from them. In chapter 14, Jesus tries to calm their fears that God will not be with them after he has gone away. He says the change will actually mean more intimate relationship with the Father because he is going to the Father. It will mean more freedom and confidence to act in his name, not less. But how will he be with them after his death?

John was written for those who had not seen and touched Jesus yet had come to believe on him. “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe” (20:29). While Jesus was with them he was their rabbi (teacher). He was their connection to God. They recognized him as the personal representation of God, the Father of all things. After Jesus was no longer physically present, they had to make a transition in their allegiance directly to the Father. And Jesus in the form of his Holy Spirit was important to this transition.

John’s Gospel is an interpretation of Jesus’ life and ministry in light of what had happened in the intervening years. The disciples often did not understand Jesus when he was among them. But after he was no longer a historical presence with them, they recalled things he said and did. In different times, places and circumstances, things Jesus had said came to mind, and they said to themselves, “Aha, now we know what he meant.” Jesus attributes this “Aha” moment to his continuing presence with them as the Holy Spirit.

Here we must carefully note how Jesus identifies the Holy Spirit, which the Father will send, with his own person and message. The Spirit is Jesus present in a different mode. It is not just a spirit of high morality and religion. The Holy Spirit is the spirit—breath, inspiration, power—of Jesus. In fact, our word spirit is perhaps not the best word to translate the original, which means breath or wind. But the message and example of Jesus remains central for the new movement. The Spirit, Jesus says, will take my message and example and declare it to you.

But he says more. In 16:12-15, he promises that his holy presence will show them how to understand and apply his teaching in the changing times. The phrase at the end of verse 13 is often translated, “He will show you things to come.” This is not a promise of prophetic predictions but of prophetic insight into what God is doing in our changing world and the relevance of Jesus to its diverse cultures. As in Isaiah 42:9 and 46:10, God’s Spirit declares what God has in mind so that God’s people know how to respond in the historical situation. This is the essence of what we call contextualization.

The Spirit speaking in the character and authority of Jesus continues to guide the body of Christ as it moves through the changes of history and across the boundaries of cultures. As much as we honor the Bible, it is a book written in the first instance for subjects of the Roman Empire in the ancient Mediterranean cultures and cannot be applied literally in the variety of cultures around the modern world. It is the Spirit that makes it possible to translate and apply the message of Jesus across cultures without loss of authenticity. The Spirit gives insight into the significance of Jesus for changing culture and guides into all truth. The Spirit as the spirit of Jesus inspires and strengthens us to keep the faith and follow the pattern of life Jesus demonstrated. This is the secret of the Christian mission around the world.

C. Norman Kraus is a member of Park View Mennonite Church in Harrisonburg, Va.