???????????????????????????????????????????????JOHN 15:18-16:4 ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????Lesson # 32.

???????????????????????PROMISE OF PERSECUTION AND THE HOLY SPIRIT

I.? Introduction:? Benefits and Costs

???????????Q? If someone asked you today to describe the benefits of being a Christian what would you reply?

???????????Q? If someone asked you what is the downside or cost of being a Christian what would you reply?

???????????Q? What costs have you witnessed other sincere believers pay for their faith?

Note:? Tonight we are going to watch how Jesus prepares in another manner His disciples for His departure.? He will have “good news” for the disciples and “bad news” for them and the particulars in this combo will surprise you.

II.? Prophecy About the Relationship Between the World and Disciples:? Hatred.? John 15:18-25.

>>>> Have someone read John 15:18-19.

???????????Q? What is the “bad news”?

????????????? An = The world is going to hate you.? National polls tell us that people like Jesus, but if you question people who they think Jesus is, they usually have someone else in mind than the Biblical Jesus.? The Jesus of the Gospels claimed He was God and talked about sin, repentance, judgment as well as love.

???????????Q? Who did the world hate first?

????????????? An = It hated Jesus so much it killed Him.

???????????Q? According to verse 19 what causes world to hate believers?

????????????? An = They are no longer “of the world”, Jesus has “called them out”.? If we always fit in maybe we have not obeyed the call “to come out” of the world.

>>>> Have someone read John 15:20.

???????????Q? What does Jesus teach His disciples to expect?

????????????? An = The same treatment that He received.

???????????Q? What does it indicate if we are not hated?

????????????? An = Perhaps we are not like our Master.? >>> Have someone read Matthew 10:22-25.

>>>> Have someone read John 15:21

???????????Q? Why will people mistreat Jesus’ disciples?

????????????? An = Because they do not know God who sent Jesus.? If they knew God, they would know Jesus was God and they would recognize His disciples.

>>>> Have someone read John 15:22-24.

???????????Q? What is Jesus saying here?

????????????? An = His teaching and actions which backed up His teaching aroused a hatred that proved that they also hated God the Father.? Jesus gave them adequate evidence and in their hating of Jesus they proved their hatred of God, because all Jesus does He does at the will and authority of His Father.

???????????Q? If we are doing the will of our Master and “remaining” in His Word, will it expose the hatred of the Father in those we meet as well?

????????????? An = Jesus leads us to expect that we will face what He faced if we are “abiding in Him”.? If we are in the light, the dark sinfulness of others will be exposed.? >>> Have someone read John 3:19.

Note:? We should be people who bless, who love, who serve, but our presence, our practice of doing what is right will rub folks raw.

???????????Q? Have you ever experienced the saying “the darkness hated the light”?

>>>> Have someone read John 15:25.

???????????Q? When people hated Jesus or hate us what is it doing?

????????????? An = It is fulfilling the patterns spoken about in the Old Testament Psalms.? >>> Have someone read Psalms 69:4.

III.? Prophecy About the Coming Helper, the Holy Spirit.? John 15:26-27.

Note:? Now you are in for a surprise.? Jesus brings up another agenda, a surprising agenda that is much talked about in Christian circles today, but Jesus brings it up in a situation that we seldom acquaint it with.? Jesus has been prophesying of persecution and now He prophecies of something else.? He gave the “bad news” now He brings up the “good news”.

>>>>? Have someone read John 15:26-27.

???????????Q? What has Jesus prophesied about the believers He is soon going to leave?

????????????? An = He know speaks about the Holy Spirit.

???????????Q? What do you normally think of when you hear discussion about the Holy Spirit?

????????????? An = Seldom do we hear about the presence of the Spirit going hand in hand with persecution.? We often think of feelings, gifts, miracles, tongues, but Jesus speaks of hatred of the world and persecution in connection with the Holy Spirit.

???????????RQ? Would so many pray for the Holy Spirit if you knew persecution would result?

???????????RQ? What do these two verses teach us about the Holy Spirit what is His role?

???????????Q? What is He called?

????????????? An = He is called the Helper, sent from the Father at the request of the Son.? He proceeds from the Father and is the Spirit of Truth.?

???????????Q? What is His role?

????????????? An = His role is to witness of Jesus, just as we should be doing.

IV.? The Reason For Prophesying of Persecution:? So We Do Not Fall.? John 16:1-4.

>>>>? Have someone read John 16:1.

???????????Q? What agenda has Jesus brought up again?

????????????? An = Persecution.

???????????Q? According to John 16:1 why has Jesus made the prophecy about disciples being persecuted?

????????????? An = To keep them from falling, from stumbling.?

???????????Q? Has knowing that difficult times or situations were ahead ever helped you in other settings in your life, like work, sports, school, performing in music, etc.?

????????????? An = Is it not true that knowing some difficulties lie ahead, keep us from being overwhelmed when they hit?

>>>> Have someone read John 16:2-3.

???????????Q? What two things does Jesus predict will happen to His disciples?

????????????? An = They will be cast out of the synagogue and they will be killed by those who think they are doing God a favor.? Both of these are alarming.

???????????Q? What does Jesus mean by “being cast out of the synagogue?

????????????? An = Synagogue literally means “gathering”, church literally means “assembly”, in others words synagogue was the equivalent to church.? Jesus is predicting you will be through out of church for being a true disciple of Jesus.

???????????Q? Have you heard of modern examples of this happening or of martyrdom?

????????????? An = Jesus says when such things happen to true disciples it merely proves that those who do such things do not know the Father or do they know Me.

>>>>? Have someone read John 16:4.

???????????Q? Why has Jesus now just begun to predict their coming troubles?

????????????? An = Up until now He was bearing the brunt of all the flack.? Now that He was getting ready to leave, He is empowering them with the “works He did”, with power in prayer, and with the Spirit of Truth, and with that comes the same flack Jesus faced.

Note:? Jesus is going to speak of the Spirit again in the next few verses.? He has deliberately tied the teachings of persecution and the gift of the Spirit of Truth together.? In fact He has intertwined them in this section.? Time does not allow to do justice to all that we should look at in the next few verses so we will wait until next week, but clearly the Spirit of God is more than just the presence of miracles, tongues and spiritual experiences.?

???????????Q? What does this passage teach us if the Spirit is really present in us?? What will He cause, or expose in others, and what trouble could we be in for?

???????????Q? Should persecution or hatred from the world be a part of our experience?

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