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The Spirit of Truth (part 4)

The Spirit of Truth (part 4)

by Ralph I. Tilley

Thus far in this series we have made the following observations about the Holy Spirit, whom Christ called the Spirit of truth, in the Gospel John, chapters 14-16:

the Spirit of truth is the sole conservator of orthodoxy;

the Spirit of truth convicts the sinner of sin and draws him to Christ;

genuine disciples of the Lord Jesus love God’s truth;

every believer’s body is the temple of the indwelling Spirit of truth;

the world is incapable of receiving the Spirit of truth;

the Spirit of truth bears witness to Christ.

Now I wish to make two further observations about the Spirit of truth, drawn from the words of Jesus in his Final Teaching to his disciples.

The Spirit of Truth Guides the Apostles into All Truth

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not
speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come” (John 16:12-13).1

While the Lord Jesus ministered on earth, he revealed the truth of God to his disciples as they were capable of receiving it. At times he dispensed truth as one
would use an eye dropper—in small doses. At other times he provided his disciples with a full course meal, as in the Olivet Discourse. While they didn’t always
comprehend what Jesus was teaching at the moment, Jesus knew that what he shared with them on each occasion would eventually become clear. He was
the master Teacher, sent from the Father to disclose to his followers what he had first heard and observed himself.

As long as he walked with the disciples in the flesh as the incarnate Son of God, Jesus faithfully expounded God’s truth. However, there was so much more
they needed to know and understand, and he would soon be leaving them to return to the Father. What was to become of his disciples? How would Jesus
ensure that they would be cared for when he left them? Another Paraclete was the answer. Whereas the first Paraclete (Jesus) had physically walked with
them, the next Paraclete would personally inhabit them. Whereas the first Paraclete had taught them as much as he possibly could in the time he was with
them, the second Paraclete would “guide them into all truth.”

What did Jesus mean by “he will guide you into all truth”?

First, it is important to remember who Jesus’ audience was when he spoke these words: the Twelve (Judas would later betray him). Jesus said to these chosen
men—the Apostles—that following his departure and the descent of the Spirit, the Spirit of truth would be their faithful escort in directing and illuminating their
minds into all the truth. The “truth” he refers to must be understood to be the truth as it is found in Jesus, the truth necessary to one’s salvation (in all of its
dimensions), all the truth God in his sovereignty wishes the Church to know, including the truth about End Time events (for example, as revealed in the Book of
Revelation).

What evidence do we have of Jesus’ teaching about the coming Spirit’s guiding the Apostles into all the truth? The answer is simple: the 27 books of the New
Testament.

Those who identify with the historic, orthodox Christian faith believe the Gospels, Acts of the Apostles, Letters, and Apocalypse (of course we believe the Old
Testament was inspired as well) to be the written result of the Spirit’s guiding specific men to write down on parchment truth for Christ’s Church to read and to
be edified thereby. The Spirit, following Christ’s ascension, did not reveal nor guide the Apostles to write anything which contradicted Christ’s own teaching
while he was here on earth. The fact is, each Person of the Trinity always works in concert with one another and is never in conflict with another member.

While the Apostles never wrote anything which was in conflict with what Christ taught during his earthly ministry, they did write about matters that enlarged

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upon Jesus’ teaching, as well as writing about issues which Christ neither explicitly addressed nor amplified upon.

We must be clear about this matter of the unique guidance into all the truth which the Apostles were given. If we are true believers, we must believe that what
Jesus said was truth. If we believe what Jesus said was truth, we will believe that when Jesus said the Eleven would be guided “into all the truth” by the Spirit of
truth, we will believe what these men wrote to the Church was truth—truth for their time and truth for our time. Jesus was the truth; Jesus spoke the truth;
Jesus’ apostles wrote the truth.

Since the true Church down through the ages has affirmed the inspiration and authority of these revealed, written words (the holy Scriptures), no individual, no
local church, no ecclesiastical gathering has any authority from the Head of the Church to alter or revise God’s revealed truth. Those who introduce and
champion changes to God’s revealed, written revelation are impostors and false teachers who corrupt the Word of God. The apostles predicted such individuals
would eventually plague the Church.

“. . . but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel
contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary
to the one you received, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:7-9).

“Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith” (2 Tim.
3:8).

“But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even
denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of
truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words” (2 Pet. 2:1-3).

God-chosen preachers and teachers are called by God to preach and teach the truth of God, the Word of God. They have no other calling; they have no other
text. They are to be faithful dispensers of the revealed Word of God.

In combating the error in the Galatian churches, Paul was neither timid nor willing to negotiate truth away. Of the false teachers he says,

“. . . to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you” (Gal. 2:5).

The same Apostle warned Pastor Timothy about what was to be the content of his messages:

“Teach and urge these things. If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching
that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about
words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth . .
.” (1 Tim. 6:2-5).

Christ and the Apostles taught that there is such a thing as truth. Christ claimed to be the truth; he said the Apostles would be guided into all truth; and the
Apostles and First Church were called by God to preach the truth, the revealed Word of God. So are we.

The Spirit of Truth Guides True Christians into All Truth

But it must be said that Jesus had more in mind than the Apostles when he spoke these words: “he will guide them into all truth.” Every Christian who has lived
since Jesus made such a pronouncement more than two thousand years ago has also needed to be guided into all the truth necessary for his and her salvation
and preservation. The Apostles weren’t alone in their need to be guided into all truth. Stephen needed truth; Priscilla and Aquila needed truth; Dorcas needed
truth; Irenaeus and John Chrysostom needed truth; so did Augustine, Calvin, Luther, the Wesleys, and so do you and I. All Christians need to be guided into all
the truth necessary to his and her salvation and for an effective and fruitful life.

So how is it that the Spirit of truth will guide you and me into all truth? How we answer this question is critical. On the subject of revealed truth (divine
revelation), there are four categories of revelation to keep in mind. A brief overview:

1. General or natural revelation. As an example of God’s revealing himself generally to his creatures through his creation, Paul refers to this when he writes
about Gentiles who were uninformed as to the Law of God:

“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine
nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made” (Rom. 1:19-20).

Again,

“ For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.

They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even
excuse them . . . (Rom. 2:14-15).

2. Special revelation. There have been occasions when God has chosen supernatural means to communicate truth to a specific person or people. Examples of
special revelation are the giving of the Law on Sinai; the incarnation of Jesus Christ, God’s unique Son; the written Word of God; visions, such as the one Peter
received about preaching the gospel to the Gentiles. Special revelations involved miracle and witness. They are unique to a specific time and people, though the
results are timeless.

3. Progressive revelation. Many evangelical theologians believe some aspects of revelation are also progressive, the late John Stott being one. Stott said, “To
believe in divine revelation does not mean that God revealed everything to his people at once.”2 He proceeds to cite Isaiah 28:13 and Hebrews 1:1 as a basis for
this argument. Stott offers as an example of progressive revelation the doctrine of the Trinity and how the Scriptures progressively reveal more and more of this
truth as the biblical narrative unfolds.

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4. Personal revelation. Here is an aspect of revelation that unless carefully understood will cause great harm and bring much confusion to the Church, as it has
in many times and places.

Bible scholars are careful to distinguish between “revelation” and “illumination,” because they want to keep clear what is objective (revelation) and what is
subjective (illumination). For example, the resurrection of Jesus Christ was an objective event—the Father’s attestation to the Son’s life, unique death, and
witness. On the other hand, a believer must have the illumination of the Spirit in order to understand and assimilate this objective event. Stott says, “Both
processes are indispensable if we are ever to know God.” Then he illustrates.

Suppose, for example, we had met for an unveiling ceremony, the unveiling of somebody’s portrait. Suppose too that we had invited a blindfolded person to
accompany us. Before we can see the portrait, two processes are necessary. First, the picture must be unveiled, which illustrates the objective event
called “revelation.” But still our blindfolded friend cannot see. A second process is necessary in his case. His blindfold has to be removed, which illustrates
the subjective event called “illumination.” But because it involves the removal of a veil from our eyes or minds this illumination is sometimes also called a
“revelation.”3

The Apostle Paul prayed again and again that the believers of his day would be personally enlightened and illuminated regarding a wide range of spiritual truths
(see, for example, Ephesians 1:15-23; 3:14-21; Phil. 1:9-11; Col. 1:9-14).

Personal illumination, enlightenment, or revelation, must have its necessary and attendant safeguards. We should keep the following safeguards in view
whenever we have received some personal truth or leading we believe to be from the Spirit of truth. We should ask two serious questions.

1. Is this “revelation” consistent with the revealed, written Word of God?

2. Is this “revelation” consistent with the historic, orthodox teaching of the Church? There are always those fanatics rising up in the Church, avowing some
special insight and revelation, contrary to the written Word of God. It was true in Paul’s day (see Galatians); it is true in our day (for example, Joseph Smith and
Mormonism).

But there are many others in the Church that create much confusion by introducing their own personal insights and interpretations of Scripture, “insights” which
are contrary to the Word of God and the Church’s historic understanding. They offer such novel interpretations of Scripture because they are ignorant of the
Scriptures and the teachings of the Church Fathers, and are uninformed as to what the long history of the Church has taught about certain matters. They have
interpreted the Scriptures in isolation; they have neither respect for the Scriptures nor an appreciation of the Church’s long doctrinal tradition. In the words of the
Apostle Peter, speaking of Paul’s Letters to the churches:

“There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other
Scriptures” (2 Pet. 3:16).

Pastors and teachers of the Word of God are called by the Lord Jesus Christ to guard the holy deposit of truth entrusted to them by the laying on of hands. We
are not called to improvise, substitute or delete any of God’s words. To use popular terms: we are not called to “cut and paste.” We are called and
commissioned to

“. . . contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

“. . . guard the deposit entrusted to you” (1 Tim. 6:20).

We must also remember . . .

“. . . the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own
passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tim. 4:3-4).

Yes, the Spirit of truth guided the Apostles into all truth. Yes, the Spirit of truth is committed to guiding each believer into all the truth necessary for his and her
salvation. Jesus said it would be so. To that end, may the prayer of Eliza Hewitt (1851-1920) always be close to the lips of each of Christ’s disciples:

More about Jesus let me learn,

More of His holy will discern;
Spirit of God, my teacher be,
Showing the things of Christ to me.4

- Soli Deo Gloria -

To be continued.

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1. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a
publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2. John Stott, Evangelical Truth (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), 42

3. Ibid., 43

4. Taken from “More About Jesus” by Eliza Edmunds Hewitt.

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