Sin, Righteousness and Judgment

“And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” John 16:8.

WE ARE nearing the close of the earthly ministry of Jesus when we study this sixteenth chapter of St. John’s Gospel. We are hearing His last words of advice to His chosen disciples gathered around about Him. Last words are always interesting. While this is true of every one it would also be true of Jesus. The last words of your mother; the last words of counsel of your father; the last word that you heard your boy say when he slipped away into eternity. Everything Jesus said was matchless. He spoke as never man spoke before Him. He spoke with authority and not like the scribes. He charmed little children from their play; He turned men from their daily activities and He made women forsake all and follow Him just because they heard Him speak.

But somehow when we come to this time of His earthly career, when the shadows are lengthening, His words seem to be specially precious: “I go to prepare a place for you.” How many times we have read it in the presence of our friends who were suffering: “And if I go and prepare a place for you,

I will come again.” How many times we have comforted ourselves with that assurance. When the day has been dreary, when the night has been dark and the sky overcast, when we seemed to be hopeless and helpless, we have again turned our hearts upwards as we have said, “O Lord, how long? How long?” His W’ords are matchless. But these words of the text are wonderful. “When He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.”

It is scarcely necessary I should say to you that He is here referring to the Holy Spirit of God. If you are familiar with the setting of this text of Scripture, and if you will read at your convenience the verses preceding and the Scripture immediately following, you will find there are three special things Jesus suggests the Holy Spirit will do.

First, He will compensate for the absence of Himself. It would be a marvelous thing to have Jesus here in person; if we could look up into His face, if we could gaze upon the hands that were pierced with the nails and see the side that was thrust through with the spear! But if the words of Jesus are true — and we have proved them to be true — then we may have the same joy if we realize the presence of the Holy Spirit of God. For He will make Jesus real to us.

In the second place, this Spirit of God will continue the training of Jesus’ disciples. He will lead them into all truth and His work is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. So there is really no excuse for ignorance on the part of those of us who are Christians. Moody used to say that there were depths in God’s Word that he could not sound, and yet in the same Book we read that the Spirit of God will lead us in our search after truth into the very deep things of God so that we may know about His Word, know about His Son, about Himself and about His will.

In the third place Jesus suggested to His disciples that the Holy Ghost would interpret Himself to them. Just as Jesus interpreted the Father to His disciples. You will remember that He said one day, “He that hath seen me, hath seen my Father.” So that if you would have the best revelation of God you need not expect to find it in nature, although that is great; you need not expect to behold it in force, although that is wonderful; if you would have the best revelation of God, you must find it in Jesus. Therefore, the next statement is true.

If you would know Jesus you must throw wide open the door of your heart and let the Spirit of God come in. You must yield absolutely to Him and when He has entered in He will interpret Jesus to you. He will make his way plain before you. He will tell you what it means to bear His cross; He will tell you what it means to live in His spirit. So that at once we have answered the argument that is being made in these days, that evangelism is a bit out of place because it is fitting men for the next world and not fitting them for this. That evangelists are a bit behind the times because they fail in their preaching to sound what is known as the social note. If the Spirit of God has possession of our lives, if He is interpreting Jesus to us, then here and now we would seek to live as He would live, so that the Spirit of God is here doing exactly what the men of these days contend He should be doing.

There are reasons why we should understand the work of the Holy Spirit of God. We are living in what is known as the dispensation of the Spirit, we are living in a time when the Holy Spirit is specially operating, when He has a special field of service, bounded on the one side by Pentecost and on the other side by the return of Jesus, whenever that may be. I do not know when it is to be, nor do you know. God’s word does not state it. But with Pentecost on the one side and the coming of Jesus on the other side — like two great mountain peaks — between the two the Holy Spirit of God is working. I do not mean to say there is no reference in the Old Testament to the Holy Spirit at work. He spoke by the lips of Abraham. He was present in the testimony of Isaiah. Over and over again you read of the work of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. You remember in the days of the flood when Noah opened the window of the ark a little dove flew forth. Whenever, in the Old Testament or in the New Testament, you find a dove mentioned there is at least a suggestion regarding the Holy Spirit of God. This little dove flew forth over the waste of waters and found no place to rest its feet and came back to Noah’s outreaching hand. He opened the window of the ark a second time, and the little dove flew here and there and found an olive leaf and came back to rest upon Noah’s hand. But when he opened the window of the ark a third time the dove flew here and there and found a resting place for its feet, and came no more forever.

The Old Testament is full of types and prophecies which are fulfilled in the New Testament, and this picture of Noah’s dove is a splendid illustration of the work of the Spirit. Back in the Old Testament He moves this one, He stirs that one, but He does not seem to abide. When Jesus Christ was crucified on Calvary He made His way back to the Father, saying, “Peace has been made in the death of the Son.” But when the fullness of time had come, when the disciples had waited after continuous prayer together, suddenly with the rushing sound as of a mighty wind the Holy Ghost came upon them working marvelous transformations. Peter, the man who denied his Master, preaches the wonderful sermon of Pentecost; Peter, the fisherman of old, speaks to the people and three thousand souls enter the Kingdom.

The Holy Ghost is here to-day finding His abiding place in the hearts and lives of believers. When Jesus spoke to His disciples in the fifteenth chapter of John, twenty-sixth verse, He said, “When He is come,’ He will testify of me.” In another place it is said, “I will bear witness of Him.” There is also an illustration of this in the Old Testament. In the Book of Ezekiel, chapter forty-seven, first verse, where the sanctuary is being described, it says that there ran out a river by way of the door and past the altar, and the river ran eastward. That would mean nothing to you as a Gentile, but it would mean everything to the Jews. The east meant everything to the Jew. He pitched his tent facing the east. Why? Because he was looking for the coming of the Messiah. It is a great illustration that this river, flowing forth from the sanctuary and starting east, is like the Holy Spirit of God, who always witnesses to Jesus. And when this river flowed east it is said that everything it touched came into life. This also is an illustration of the Holy Spirit of God. He is the secret of power.

Now I have no word to say against intellectual ability. It would be quite possible for one to be a giant intellectually and at the same time be absolutely loyal to everything Jesus commanded him to do. I have nothing to say in criticism of the man who occupies a high social position. His passion for Jesus may be in no way hindered by his surroundings. But I have this to say — beyond the power of intellect, beyond the power that comes with social distinction, beyond man’s genius, is the power of the Holy Spirit of God. When He possesses us then our lives are made wonderful. It is that which makes the difference in testimonies. One man speaks and you fall asleep, another man speaks and it is like the call to battle. That is the difference in singing. Some people sing artistically, correctly; everything they sing seems to be perfect. They have all the qualities of the master who taught them; they can interpret the most classical music the world has ever known, and when you hear them you are charmed with their skill, but you are not moved. Another rises to sing and instantly your heart is strangely stirred, you find your tears flowing, and when the singer comes to the end of the song, you have no words to express your pleasure. Now, I hold that the difference is this. One sings, possibly, with the spirit of man, the other sings in the power of the Holy Ghost. It makes all the difference in the world.

If we are living in the dispensation of the Holy Spirit of God, the third person of the Trinity, and if His dispensation is bounded on the one side by Pentecost, then I turn to the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles and read the thirty-third verse which is St. Peter’s explanation made to those who marveled at his power; to those who hurled at him the accusation that the people were drunken with wine; this is his explanation: “Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.” Jesus had ascended to His place in glory. He was there exalted. I can imagine that all heaven was filled with praise at His return and because He was exalted and honored, Pentecost had come.

We hear a great deal in these days about Pentecost repeated. You cannot repeat Pentecost. It is unnecessary that we should repeat it, but we may have a Pentecostal experience just in proportion as we take Jesus into our lives and truly exalt Him. It is for this reason that we ought in these days in our singing, our testimony, our preaching, our praying, to keep Him on the throne of our lives, for when we keep Him exalted in thought, in speech, in life, God has promised that the Holy Ghost shall be poured forth upon us.

Now for the text: “When He is come He will reprove the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.” Therefore, with this text of Scripture I am pleading for the man who is not a Christian, for the man who has fallen into sin, for the woman whose life is unclean; I am here making an appeal to the man who is sceptical, to the one who is dishonest. When He is come He has a three-fold work to do. He will reprove or convict of sin. He is not here to convince you that you are a drunkard, you know that; He is not here to convince you of the fact that you are dishonest. He knows that and you know it. What is He here for? He is here to convict you of sin. You are a drunkard because you have not put Jesus in His right place. You are dishonest because you have put Him out of His possession. You are impure because you have not believed in Jesus. And you are where you are, in doubt and despair, because you have not trusted Him. The greatest sin in the world is not drunkenness, the greatest sin in the world is unbelief. Jesus said it. And when you stand at the judgment bar of God He will not ask you whether you were a drunkard, whether you were impure, or whether you were dishonest, He will ask you this: “What did you do with Jesus?” And as you answer that question you will stand or fall. “When He is come He will reprove the world of righteousness, of sin, and of judgment.” “Of righteousness because,” He said, “I go to my Father and ye see me no more.” There is stated in God’s Word over and over again, this word, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” Have you sinned? Again, “The wages of sin is death.” Tell me if you have sinned. In the midst of your despair, in the face of your weakness, I stand before you with my Saviour and in this Book it is written, “He was delivered because of our offenses.” Jesus can save you. I turn back to Isaiah and I read, “The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” I turn back again to the New Testament and I read, “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many.” He is answering before God for you as He presents Himself a sacrifice. He was delivered because of our offenses, He was raised because of our justification.

There is an Old Testament illustration and a New Testament illustration that I would like to give you. In one of the Old Testament prophecies there is a verse which runs like this: “She hath received at the Lord’s hand double for all her iniquities.” That does not seem fair. Double, that is the statement. She hath received at the Lord’s hand — double. I think I know what it means. In the olden days if you and I had lived and I had become indebted to you, I would have written a note for you upon an indented piece of paper which would have been torn in two; I as the debtor keeping one piece and you as the creditor keeping the other; and when the debt was paid you would give me back the other piece and I would take that and nail it to the door of my home, double, to show that all my debt had been paid. Then listen to this Scripture: “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances

that were against us, and took it out of the way, nail-’ ing it to His cross. That is the Old Testament text. This is the New Testament illustration: Saint Paul is writing his letter to Philemon. He is writing it on behalf of Onesimus, the slave who had wronged his master and fled to the great city where Paul was. Paul listens to his story and then sends him back to his master with a plea. This is the plea: He does not say, “Receive Onesimus because I am an apostle,” or “because I am an aged man.” He says, “Receive him in my stead, and if he hath wronged thee or oweth thee anything, put that to mine account.” Hallelujah, what a Saviour! There is a hymn — I wonder if you know it:

He is there for me and for you. If that is true, then my relation to God is complete in Christ.

When the Civil War was on in the United States it is said Abraham Lincoln issued an order that for a certain time no man was to go home on furlough. During the time the order was in force a man made his way to the city of Washington to see the President. They would not allow him to see the President. He said his wife was dying and he wanted to go home jand see her. Still they refused to allow his admission. He turned away from the White House with his head bowed and anxiety expressed in every feature. ‘As he walked down the grounds President Lincoln’s is on came up to him and taking his hand, said, “What i is the matter?” He did not brush him aside. Joseph Parker says that there is a time in the life of every man when the touch of a child’s hand makes him strong. And so he turned to the boy and said, “My wife is dying and I wanted a furlough but they won’t allow me to see the President.” “Very well,” said the little fellow, “you take my hand, I am President Lincoln’s boy, and I will take you in.” He led him up the steps to the President’s room, but they would not allow him to open the door. They said, “The President is busy.” But the little fellow was not to be put

“Before the throne my Surety stan
My name is written in His hands/3

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off, and still held on to the man’s hand. Just then the door opened and he cried out, “Father, tell this man to let me come in.” Abraham Lincoln dropped his pen and said to the officer, “Let him in.” The boy came in with his new-found friend, and the soldier told his story. Abraham Lincoln dipped his pen in the ink, signed the order of furlough and sent the man home. The illustration is perfect. We are in sorrow because of sin, and Jesus of Nazareth, as the Son of man, lays hold upon us. But He is the Son of God as well, and when I stand in the presence of “Sod, then God will say, “All your sins are cast into the depths of the sea; all your sins are as far from God as the east is from the west; all your sins are behind my back, and all on account of Jesus. Hallelujah, What a Saviour! What a Saviour! “Of righteousness because I go to my Father and ye see Me no more.”

“Of judgment.” There is another place in the New Testament where we have a text like this. Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance and judgment to come. But in my text it is not judgment to come. It is “of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.” Who is the prince of this world? Jesus tells you. His adversary, the devil. The one who has assailed you to-day. Jesus said “The prince of this world is judged.” Why is he judged? That he may at last be overpowered. When Jesus stood upon the mountain and the devil offered Him all the kingdoms of the earth if He would bow down before him, He said as He wielded the sword of the Spirit, “It is written,” and again “It is written,” and the devil left

Him. But His conflict with him reached its climax when Jesus, hanging upon Calvary, bowed His head and said, “It is finished.”

There are two things I want you to know, this is the first: The devil only has such power over you as you will give him. You say, “I am a drunkard.” Oh yes, but you yielded. You say “I have broken my marriage vow.” Oh yes, but there came a struggle, and it was in the struggle between purity and impurity that you fell. Let me say it again — The devil has only as much power over you as you will give him.

The second is this. You may escape if you do two things. First, Pray. An old man who had been sixteen years a drunkard staggered into one of our meetings one night and sat down on a front seat. He had not listened to a word that I had spoken, I am sure, but he seemed charmed with the singing. When I gave my invitation to come into the lower room he came and with one of the members of my own household kneeling beside him, that poor old drunkard whose wife had died and whose children were disgraced, rose from his knees and said, “God be merciful to me, a sinner.” He told me he was tempted only once after that to drink. He was walking over the Hudson River bridge in Albany. It seemed as if all the devils in hell were clutching at his throat urging him to drink. He ran across the bridge, got into his little room, dropped down upon his knees, and said “O Jesus, I gave myself to you, don’t let me fall.” “And,” said he, “I never again was tempted to drink.”

The second way is this. The Bible is the sword of the Spirit. A friend once said to me that he knew a little boy who had promised that he would carry a Testament with him everywhere. One day after he had accepted Christ he was walking along the street when a temptation came to him. He took out of his pocket his little Testament, held it up as if he faced his adversary and said, “Do you see that, it is the sword of the Spirit.” He did not quote a verse, he simply held it up.

The way of life is plainly marked out. Our great adversary has a mortal wound. We may easily overcome him if we fight in the right way. Not in our own strength may we triumph, but in His who is the chief est among ten thousand. “To-day if ye will hear His voice harden not your heart.” To-morrow may never come, and if it comes the door of mercy may be closed.