It really is something that Jesus Christ told his disciples that it would be advantageous to them if he left them (John 16:7). Take this truth in as if you were there with our Lord and you will see just how outrageous those words must have seemed to them. Jesus tells them, “If I don’t go away, the Comforter will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send him unto you.” “Well, Lord,” they must have been thinking, “how can it be more advantageous for us? We have seen you walk on water. You have heald the sick. You’ve cast out demons. And then there was the time you raised Lazarus from the dead. We just don’t understand how your departure will make things better.” “Right,” our Lord responds, “you do not understand. But you can believe.”
Petecost reminds us that we live by faith not by sight, we live by faith, not by complete understanding. By all means, you can reason from the things Christ says. You can reason to your heart’s content from the Word. But you cannot sit in the swamp of unbelief and reason your way to the Word. Jesus smiles at one of the disciples, saying, “You don’t understand? Well, you’re definitely not going to understand if you don’t start by believing what I’m telling you.”
Pentecost kills the sin of stagnant, swampy unbelief. The Spirit is Living Water. And He will flow. It is not your job to keep up with Him. You could never do that. He’s not some stream running along beside you. He is a stream that has been poured out in your hearts. Your job is to trust the Word and ride the river.
Jared Longshore – May 19, 2024
