If you would remain standing and take the pages of the scripture in your hand, and turn it together with me to Deuteronomy chapter 10. Our first scripture reading comes from the Old Testament. Deuteronomy chapter 10, verses 12 and 13. If you are using the church Bible, you will find it on page 197. Deuteronomy 10, 12 and 13. This is God's Word. And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul? and to keep the commandments and the statutes of the Lord, which I command in you today for your good. Amen. Turn now to John chapter 14. We'll continue considering this wonderful book together, John chapter 14. Our sermon text this morning will be verse 15 to 17. If you love me, Jesus said, you will keep my commandments and I will ask the Father and he will give you another helper. to be with you forever, even the spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. Amen. Let's pray. Our Father and our God, we now ask you to Open our eyes so that we would see. Open our minds and our hearts so that we would understand the message of your word. And then, like your servant Mary, we would treasure this word in our hearts and apply it in our Christian life. For the glory of your name, in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. You may be seated. As believers, we all know that our Lord Jesus Christ has given us many, many spiritual gifts. The first and the main one is our salvation. It is also called the eternal life that we have in Christ Jesus. Then comes our adoption by the Holy Spirit as sons and daughters of God. And then the everlasting hope and glory that we have in heaven where Jesus is preparing for each and every one of us a room. And he will come back and take us to where he is to be with him forever. We can go on and on and count all the gifts that the Lord Jesus Christ has bestowed upon us as believers in him. But what about the gift of the Holy Spirit this morning? I want us to think about the gift of the Holy Spirit. In our text this morning, we'll see our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ promising his disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit. Now this is a common subject for us. We all know who the Holy Spirit is. We all know that the Holy Spirit has been given to us by Christ as a gift. So what is new in our text this morning that we don't know anything about the Holy Spirit? Well, this morning I want us to ask this important question. When was Jesus promising his disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit? At what moment in their life? At what moment in his life and his ministry that Jesus promised his disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit? You see, this is very crucial for you and I, and for every believer. Because people tend to neglect and to forget, to remind themselves about the timing, the connection between the promise that Jesus made to his disciples about the gift of the Holy Spirit and the time frame in which and under which Jesus promised his disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit. You see, many people tend to neglect, to think about this. They don't really understand the connection between the promise and the timing. And then the result often is they misunderstand the person and the work of the Holy Spirit. in the life of the children of God. There is a great spiritual benefit for us to understand when Jesus promised the gift of the Holy Spirit to disciples. Now listen to this carefully. He promised them the gift of the Holy Spirit at the time He was preparing them for the time when he will no longer be with them in a physical sense. Remember what he told them in chapter 13, verse 33. He told them, little children, yet a little while I'm with you. You will seek me. And just as I say to the Jews, so now I also say to you, where I am going, you cannot come." He made this promise at the time that he revealed to his disciples that he was going to leave them. And then verse 36 and 37, Simon Peter said to him, Lord, where are you going? Jesus answered him. Where I'm going, he cannot follow me now, but he will follow afterward. And then in verse three of verse 14, let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. Then he told them this, I will go and prepare a place for you. I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am, Maybe also, you will also be with me. So this was the time that Jesus told his disciples that he was going to leave them. And what was the effect of that? What was the consequence of that? You remember, their hearts were greatly troubled. That's why Jesus told them in chapter 14, verse one, let not your hearts be troubled. The reason why their heart was troubled was because Jesus told them he was going to leave them. And they felt as if Jesus was going to leave them on their own, to themselves, as orphans. Because in verse 16, he tells them, I will not leave you as orphans. Jesus is God. He saw their heart. He saw what they were thinking, how they were feeling about the news they just heard from Him. I am going to leave you. Of course, He promised them heaven. He promised them a room in heaven, but that's to come. It was not there yet. And He told them, for a little while, you will be here in my absence. So I want you to imagine what they were thinking. And as they were thinking, what's going to happen to us? He's leaving us. He's leaving us to ourselves. Then Jesus told them, do not be afraid. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Not only I will prepare a room for you in heaven, but also I will give you the gift of the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit will dwell in you as a helper forever. And I want us to think about this this morning by God's grace. Under two simple points taken from our text. The obedience of the disciples is the first one I want us to consider. The obedience of the disciples, verse 15. And then the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the life of the disciples, verse 16 and 17. So first, the obedience of the disciples, verse 15. If you love me, Jesus said, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the father and he will give you another helper to be with you forever. What a promise. Jesus is promising his disciples. I don't want you to be worried. I don't want you to be troubled. I am not leaving you on your own. I am not leaving you to yourself. I'm not leaving you as orphans without a father. Help is on the way. I will give you the Holy Spirit. He will dwell in you forever. We'll come to that. But notice carefully, before he promises the gift of the Holy Spirit, He mentions something to them which is a qualifier. It's not a condition. It's a qualifier. I want you all to understand that. He told them, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. What is Jesus saying here? If you love me, you will keep my commandments. Is Jesus here acting as a lawgiver like Moses? Is your heart now saying, really? We came all the way to chapter 14 for you to tell us that The way to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, the way to receive salvation, the way to receive God's blessings in our life, is through keeping the commandments. What is Jesus saying here? Is He putting, obeying His commandments as a condition to the receiving of the gift of the Holy Spirit? Listen, if you have the Holy Spirit in you, you are a believer. If you have the gift of the Holy Spirit in you, you have believed in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. You have repented of your sin. Any person who would repent of his sin and put his trust in Jesus Christ, only in Jesus for salvation, he immediately receives the gift of the Holy Spirit. So Jesus is not putting obedience as a condition for the blessing of salvation, for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is not acting as a lawgiver. Remember what the Scripture tells us, John 1, 17. For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. And then Matthew 5.17, Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them, to fulfill the commandments, to fulfill the law of God on your behalf. But because you cannot fulfill the commandments, the law of God fully, Galatians 2.16, we know that a person is not justified by works of the law. That's the foundation, brothers and sisters in Christ. That's the foundation. Salvation is by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ alone. And the person who believes in Christ. receives the gift of the Holy Spirit. The moment a person confesses his sins and puts his trust in Jesus Christ, Christ alone for salvation, that person receives the gift of the Holy Spirit. Now, if that's the case, what is Jesus saying in verse 15? What is he saying? By, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. You see, what Jesus is telling his disciples, and by extension, all of us this morning is, the mark of a true believer, the mark of a true Christian, is love for Christ and obedience to his commandments. Jesus is saying that love for Christ is the fuel, the motive, for keeping the commandments of Jesus. Jesus is telling his disciples, let me tell you who the Christian is. Let me tell you who my disciple is. A Christian, a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ is a person who loves his Savior and who obeys his commandments. Love is the motive, obedience is the action. That's the work of a true believer. One who has been saved by grace and through faith in Jesus Christ alone. That person, he loves Jesus, he obeys Jesus. And we see this in many places in the scripture. In John 14, 21, Jesus said this, This is who a Christian is. And then in verse 24, Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine, but the Father's, who sent me, the one who loves me, obeys me." 2 John 1.6, listen to John. And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it. The mark of a Christian who is filled by the Holy Spirit, or will be filled by the Holy Spirit, is love and obedience. And in fact, John, in 2 John 1, 6, uses this statement, you heard about this from the beginning. What is he talking about? Well, God delivered the people of Israel from Egypt. from the hands of Pharaoh, from the false worship in Egypt. He delivered them by his mighty hand, without them doing nothing, without them even keeping his commandments. In fact, they broke his commandment, they broke his heart, they were rebellious, But then they cried to God for help, for deliverance. God was gracious. God was merciful to His own people. He delivered them from Egypt, you remember. The moment He delivered them from Egypt, saved, delivered, He gave them this commandment. Deuteronomy 6, verse 4. Hear O Israel! This commandment, listen, was given to those who have been delivered. This commandment was given to those whom God rescued from Egypt. It was a picture of God rescuing us, God delivering us from the sin slavery. And God was saying, now I delivered you. Now I rescued you. Now show your love to me by obeying me. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. Israel, My people, this is how I want you to show your love for me. Obey me. Obey me. A lawyer came to Jesus in Matthew 22, asking him, teacher, what is the greatest commandment? And Jesus told him, love your God with all your heart, with all your strength, with all your might and your soul. And the same, and the second like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. And then Jesus said, on these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets. Love for God and love for Jesus Christ, even as God. My friends, many today would say, oh yes, I love Jesus. What kind of question is that? Why are you asking me this question? Of course, I love Jesus. You love Jesus? The person would say, yes, I love Jesus. Do you obey his commandments? Do you obey his words? Jesus said, if you love my commandments, what are the commandments of Jesus, beloved? What are the commandments of Jesus? Is he introducing a new commandment? No. Jesus' commandments are God's commandments. And He just gave us the summary of all the commandments. Love God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your strength, with all your soul, and love your neighbor as yourself. Those are the commandments. And if you say, I love him, then you need to ask yourself, do you obey him? Some would say, yes, I love Jesus. I even stood before the congregation and made a public profession of faith. Great. That is good. But do you obey Him? Do you obey Him? It's not only about you confessing, acknowledging His name before God the Father and before all the witnesses. But do you obey Him? You see, Jesus is saying, If you love me, you will keep my commandments. Now let me ask you this, what does loving Jesus mean? What does loving Jesus mean? How do you, how would you understand, how would you define love for Jesus? We can understand love for Jesus in two ways. First, we appreciate his work on the cross because he took our place. We appreciate his work on the cross because he reconciled us with his father. He took the rod of God upon him and transferred His righteousness to us. His righteousness has been imputed upon us and we're receiving it by faith. Loving Jesus means appreciating His work on the cross. That's what it means. Then it also means regarding His commandments, regarding His will. Jesus said, I know my sheep. And My sheep hear My voice, and they follow Me, which also means obey Me. They hear My voice and they don't ignore My voice. They hear My voice and they don't disregard My voice, but they keep My voice. They guard My voice and they obey My voice. They keep them, they guard them, they obey them. Do you remember the psalmist in Psalm 119, 97? Where he said, Oh, how I love your law. I meditate on it all day long. I love your law. This is not legalism. This is evangelical obedience. This is gospel obedience. Do you love his law? Do you keep His commandments because you love Him? I would ask the children among us this morning, children, why do you obey your parents? Why do you obey the rule that your parents set at the house, in the family? Now, children, if you say to me, well, we obey our parents because we fear the punishment, That's not the right answer. But if you tell me we obey our parents because we love them, that's the right answer. That's the biblical answer. Love is the motive, not the punishment. Fear of punishment, but because we love Him. What the psalmist says in Psalm 26, 23, 2 and 3 is amazing. Listen to the psalmist, Psalm 26, verse 2 and 3. Prove me, O Lord, and try me. Test my heart and my mind, for your steadfast love is before my eyes. I walk in your faithfulness." Did you hear that? Nothing about himself, nothing about what he would do in order to obtain favor from God. But he said, prove me, O Lord, try me, test my heart and my mind, for your steadfast love is before my eyes. Whatever I do toward you, for you, about you, is because I love you, because your steadfast love on the cross, is before my eyes. Secondly, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the life of the disciples. Jesus said, if you love me and you will keep my commandments. So in a sense, you see, Jesus is saying here, My disciples, my true disciples, they love me and they obey me. That's the mark of a Christian. That's the mark of a Christian. Do you have that mark? And then he said, and I will ask the father and he will give you another helper to be with you forever. Now imagine how the disciples felt after that news, I'm leaving you, I am going to my father, shattered all their hope. And Jesus told them, I'm going to ask my father, and he will give you another helper. Another means, my friends, another means here, one like me. One like me. In the Greek language, it is parakletos, which means someone who comes alongside and help you. So Jesus was saying, don't worry. God the Father will give you a helper. In fact, Jesus told them, it would be better for you if I go. And this helper, this another helper, come to you. In John 16, verse 7, Jesus told them, Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away. For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you." Where does the Holy Spirit come from? From both the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit is given to us as a gift. from both the Father and the Son. And Jesus here is telling the disciples, in fact, let me tell you this, it would be better for you if I go. It is for your advantage. What does it mean? Well, Jesus was with the disciples only for three years. His time was limited. with the disciples. Jesus is telling them, the Holy Spirit will be with you forever, not only just for three years, but forever until you get to heaven, even in heaven. Forever! He will dwell in you. He will make you the temple of God. He will dwell in you now and forever. Romans 8, 9, You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Well, 1 Corinthians 6, 19, Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You see, Jesus is promising them this Helper, this Holy Spirit. Romans 8, 38 and 39. Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses. Why the gift of the Holy Spirit? First of all, the Holy Spirit, brothers and sisters in Christ, is a person. The Holy Spirit has been described in the Scripture for us as a wind, as a fire, as a dove, but the Holy Spirit is a person. We don't catch the Holy Spirit. Have you heard televangelists telling people, I'm catching the Holy Spirit. You catch the Holy Spirit and you stand alive? I don't think so. We don't catch the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was not given to us to do these silly things from the pulpit. laughing and giving false promises to people for our own personal gain. That's not the reason why the Holy Spirit was given to God's children, but to help us in our weaknesses. You see, we are in loss. We are going through hardship. We are going through trials. We are weak spiritually. The Holy Spirit is in us to strengthen us, to remind us about who we are, what we have in Christ. Likewise, the Spirit help us in our weakness, for we do not know what to pray as we ought. But the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groaning too deep for words. That's why He's dwelling in you. You see, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in you is such a marvelous gift that God has given you. Imagine what you can do without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in you. What is he doing? What is his role? What is his role? First, he teaches. He's our teacher. in this chapter, in chapter 14, 25 and 26. These things I have spoken to you while I'm still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Let me ask you this. Every time you read the Bible, you read the Scripture privately, you're sitting in your study, in your living room, reading the Scripture, wrestling to understand what you're reading, and then suddenly a light is dawned upon you, and you get it. You understand it. That's the work of the Holy Spirit. It's not the work of your flesh. He teaches He gives illumination, insight into the scripture, into the things of the Lord. That's why He's dwelling in us, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. That's why Jesus said, it is better for me to go and send the Holy Spirit to you. You need Him. Why? Because we tend to be weak at times. We're inclined to forget who we are in Christ, and the things that are promised for us in Jesus Christ, we tend to forget them. Sometimes we act as if we are orphans, without a Heavenly Father. Jesus knew that. He's God. And he gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit. So He's our teacher. He teaches us. He gives us illumination to the things of God. 1 Corinthians 2, 14 and 16. Listen to Paul. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him. And he's not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. How? The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit. Sometimes my personal experience, I will tell you, preparing a sermon, I come across a verse, I come across a doctrine that I really need to bring it home and teach you as God's people. And there are times that I struggle. What is this? How do I understand this? Where in the scripture should I go now to compare it with other scriptures? The Holy Spirit steps in and helps me to understand it. You see, the role of the Holy Spirit is so rich, so glorious, so amazing in our life. What else? The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin. In John 16, verse 8, the Scripture says, And the Holy Spirit will convict us of sin, and judgment, and righteousness. His work is a work of conviction, convicting us of sin, judgment, and righteousness. And then He strengthens us. He strengthens us. To do what? Well, He strengthens us to worship God, but also to obey Jesus Christ, our Savior. Again, you hear people saying, I love Jesus. I have confessed Jesus. But the way they live their life, they live their life as if they are masters of their own life. Jesus is not the Lord of their life. They don't obey Him. You see, our love for Jesus always matches with our obedience to Jesus Christ. So if you were a disciple, one of the 11 disciples, how would you react now? How would you respond to the promise of Jesus? And by extension, you see, you and I are disciples of Jesus Christ. We followed them in believing in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This promise is for us. If you love Jesus, if you obey his commandments, which also means if you are a Christian, a true believer, you have the Holy Spirit inside of you. You're not alone, my friend. You're not alone. You're not an orphan. You have a Heavenly Father in heaven and two intercessors, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The two persons of the Trinity comforts you, strengthens you, helps you. in times of weaknesses, in times of struggle in the Christian life. What a blessing, what a privilege, my friends. What a privilege it is for us to be followers of Jesus Christ. But my question to all of you, to bring it home and apply it in our own life, Examine your love and your obedience to Jesus. Are you loving Him? Are you obeying Him? If you are loving Him, if you are obeying Him, you are His disciple. You are His follower. And by the virtue of this promise, the Holy Spirit dwells in you. And He's testifying to you that you are indeed a child of God. And He is providing all those ministries that I just mentioned for you. He's teaching you. He's giving you illumination. He's strengthening you. He's reminding you of the things that you forget. In our bulletin, I picked one verse for us, for our meditation, reflection, even this afternoon. Romans 5, 5. And hope does not put us to shame, Paul said. Hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts. How? Through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. The hope in Christ will not put us to shame, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts so richly, so abundantly through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Amen. Let's pray. Our gracious and heavenly Father, Thank you for the provision of your world, the riches of your world. Lord, help us not to hide these things in our own hearts. Examine our own heart, our own life, especially in relation to our love and our obedience to your God. May each and every one of us obey the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in our life, so that in all these things we might be conformed to the likeness of your Son, Jesus Christ. Christ in us, Christ for us, and Christ through us. In His name we pray. Amen.