“And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteous, and of judgment. Of sin, because they believe not on me; of righteousness because I go to my father, and ye see me no more; of judgment because the prince of this world is judged” – John 16:8-11
LIGHT FOR NOW: God’s Spirit does point out our wrongdoings, and does not clap for or pamper our wrongdoings.
We’ve seen and established in the previous study that what Jesus was discussing in the context of the above text (John 16:8-11) was His resurrection (John 16:7) and not Christian living. So the above text becomes proof texted when it is used to support or establish the notion that the Holy Spirit literally does nothing when we sin because the context was not on Christian living but His resurrection. Now James’ submission has been used by some to support this wrong notion, but what exactly was James saying in James 1:5 which reads “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him”. Notice the word “upbraids not”, which could also mean to find wrong or fault. The context of James’ words here is persecution and trial of faith. Remember context is always king. That same word “upbraid” was used for other instances; “Then began to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repenteh not…” (Matthew 11:20). So, in Matthew 11:20, the word “upbraid” was used for Jesus. In Mark 16:14, it was used for Jesus again, it reads “Afterward, he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen”. So, Jesus was said to have upbraided, could this be contradictory because of James 1:5? The answer is no. In bible interpretation, words only have their true meaning in sentences used, not necessarily dictionaries. The question now is, did Jesus find fault? He corrected like every teacher should; Jesus definitely told them their wrongs, unbelieves and He taught them. This is where mere fault finding differs from correction. In correction, deeds done wrong are pointed out. Mark 4:40 reads “And he said unto them, why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith”. In Matthew 17:17, Jesus said, “Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? Bring him hither to me”. That’s the Spirit speaking in the above texts, the Spirit of God, and He was telling them that they did wrong. So God’s spirit does point out our wrongdoings, He doesn’t clap for our wrongdoings telling us we are righteous. Hallelujah!!!
INSTRUCTION: Know that in correction, deeds done wrong are pointed out.
PRAYER: I receive understanding, in Jesus Name, Amen.
QUOTE: In correction, deeds done wrong are pointed out.
DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: MARK CHAPTER 4; EVENING: MATTHEW CHAPTER 17
