Hello friends, and welcome back
00:00:21.23\00:00:22.42
to this program
"Books of the Book."
00:00:22.45\00:00:24.34
My name is Deyvy Rodriguez
and I am so happy again
00:00:24.37\00:00:27.82
that you can be with
us in this Bible study.
00:00:27.85\00:00:30.77
And we are in the Gospel of John
00:00:30.80\00:00:33.64
and today we are on Chapter 16.
00:00:33.67\00:00:36.47
So, if you have
a Bible somewhere,
00:00:36.50\00:00:38.84
I invite you to
open it to this chapter.
00:00:38.87\00:00:41.33
And with us is a
brilliant scholar
00:00:41.36\00:00:43.64
and I say brilliant because
just the Bible applications
00:00:43.67\00:00:46.81
that he brings
from the Gospel of John
00:00:46.84\00:00:50.19
as he calls it the--
it's a spiritual Gospel
00:00:50.22\00:00:53.18
and I've mentioned to
him, I understand why.
00:00:53.21\00:00:56.30
And he comes all the way
from Loma Linda, California.
00:00:56.33\00:00:59.30
He is the Dean of Religion
in Loma Linda University.
00:00:59.33\00:01:03.58
So, Dr. Jon
Paulien, welcome back.
00:01:03.61\00:01:06.14
Thank you. Thank you.
00:01:06.17\00:01:07.89
You know we are almost finished
with the Gospel of John.
00:01:07.92\00:01:10.71
That's right.
00:01:10.74\00:01:11.92
You said earlier that
this is your favorite gospel,
00:01:11.95\00:01:13.86
you've written
three books on it.
00:01:13.89\00:01:16.01
And I should probably
say that I didn't invent
00:01:16.04\00:01:18.27
the idea of spiritual gospel.
00:01:18.30\00:01:19.89
That's actually,
probably the earliest
00:01:19.92\00:01:22.56
summary of the gospel.
00:01:22.59\00:01:24.65
It's very early church
father like about 25-30 years
00:01:24.68\00:01:29.02
after the Gospel
of John was written,
00:01:29.05\00:01:30.88
he said, you know, he just talks
00:01:30.91\00:01:32.48
about Matthew, Mark and
Luke and he says, but John,
00:01:32.51\00:01:35.09
he brought a spiritual gospel.
00:01:35.12\00:01:37.23
And so already
right from the beginning
00:01:37.26\00:01:39.29
they were recognizing
there was something different
00:01:39.32\00:01:41.36
about this book
from the other three.
00:01:41.39\00:01:44.65
Now we were talking
about friendship last time.
00:01:44.68\00:01:47.23
We were. Yeah.
00:01:47.26\00:01:48.29
And I have to tell you
that you and I become friends
00:01:48.32\00:01:51.82
just in
producing these programs.
00:01:51.85\00:01:53.95
We didn't know each
other before we started.
00:01:53.98\00:01:56.58
And I am getting to
like this a whole lot.
00:01:56.61\00:01:59.79
Well, thank you.
00:01:59.82\00:02:00.85
I appreciate and I am
getting to like you. Yeah.
00:02:00.88\00:02:03.17
That just you know, we are
having more and fun as we--
00:02:03.20\00:02:05.49
Not that I hated you
or didn't like you before,
00:02:05.52\00:02:07.39
I am just saying that you know,
00:02:07.42\00:02:08.45
It's just very interesting
knowing you more and more.
00:02:08.48\00:02:10.49
Now we can just draw
the curtain on that, okay.
00:02:10.52\00:02:14.70
So today, we are on Chapter 16,
00:02:14.73\00:02:17.89
I see a lot of red
ink on my Chapter 14, 15
00:02:17.92\00:02:22.73
and now 16, even 17
00:02:22.76\00:02:24.78
and so we all know that
those are the words of Jesus.
00:02:24.81\00:02:29.90
Apparently He is
giving this long discourse.
00:02:29.93\00:02:32.45
So where are we now?
00:02:32.48\00:02:33.79
Well, one of the
interesting things about it is
00:02:33.82\00:02:35.95
He repeats Himself a lot
00:02:35.98\00:02:37.77
in these chapters
over and over again.
00:02:37.80\00:02:39.84
And I would remind our viewers
00:02:39.87\00:02:41.77
that we are in
skipping the references
00:02:41.80\00:02:45.15
to the Holy
Spirit in 14, 15 and 16
00:02:45.18\00:02:47.94
because we are going
to have a whole program
00:02:47.97\00:02:50.58
on the Holy Spirit and
that should be the next one.
00:02:50.61\00:02:53.24
But we are looking at
each of these chapters
00:02:53.27\00:02:55.47
and Jesus
constantly repeating Himself
00:02:55.50\00:02:57.70
because the
disciples just don't get it.
00:02:57.73\00:03:00.68
They are truly
clueless in this gospel
00:03:00.71\00:03:04.07
and that's
serving John's purpose.
00:03:04.10\00:03:07.10
In that he wants
us to understand,
00:03:07.13\00:03:09.34
having the physical presence
of Jesus is no guarantee
00:03:09.37\00:03:12.28
that you are
going to understand Him.
00:03:12.31\00:03:14.31
In fact the very
humanist of Jesus
00:03:14.34\00:03:16.68
may be a barrier to
receiving Him as God,
00:03:16.71\00:03:19.85
where as through the
words of the disciples
00:03:19.88\00:03:23.60
and through the
influence of the Holy Spirit,
00:03:23.63\00:03:26.71
people then can have a deep
00:03:26.74\00:03:29.49
and meaningful
relationship with the Jesus
00:03:29.52\00:03:31.71
even though they
cannot see, hear or touch Him.
00:03:31.74\00:03:34.82
Okay. And where are
we picking up today then?
00:03:34.85\00:03:37.43
We will go to Chapter 16
00:03:37.46\00:03:40.26
and here He is
continuing on from Chapter 15.
00:03:40.29\00:03:45.17
there were no interruptions
from the disciples in Chapter 15
00:03:45.20\00:03:48.46
but when you get to 16,
they start interrupting again
00:03:48.49\00:03:53.11
and their interruptions
rarely glorify them.
00:03:53.14\00:03:57.39
They tend to be a
little bit clueless.
00:03:57.42\00:04:00.72
But Jesus in Chapter 16
repeats a lot of the themes
00:04:00.75\00:04:05.60
that He has
covered in 14 and 15.
00:04:05.63\00:04:07.35
There's the theme
of the world's hatred
00:04:07.38\00:04:09.66
which we closed
with in Chapter 15.
00:04:09.69\00:04:12.67
There's the theme of going away.
00:04:12.70\00:04:14.89
I am going to be going away,
that happened at the beginning.
00:04:14.92\00:04:17.56
Now He comes back to it in 16.
00:04:17.59\00:04:20.00
The Holy Spirit of
course is repeated all through
00:04:20.03\00:04:22.53
and we will cover
that in the next program.
00:04:22.56\00:04:25.06
And He returns to the
themes of prayer and love,
00:04:25.09\00:04:29.25
which were particularly
strong in Chapter 14.
00:04:29.28\00:04:31.98
So 16 kind of pulls
together all of the themes
00:04:32.01\00:04:36.43
that He was talking
about in 14 and 15. Okay.
00:04:36.46\00:04:41.07
So why don't we get started
and we can go to verse 2.
00:04:41.10\00:04:46.64
"They will put you
out of the synagogues.
00:04:46.67\00:04:49.06
Yes, the time is
coming that whoever kills you
00:04:49.09\00:04:52.00
will think that he
offers God service.
00:04:52.03\00:04:55.59
And these things
they will do to you
00:04:55.62\00:04:57.22
because they have not
known the Father nor Me."
00:04:57.25\00:05:01.08
All right, so here it
talks about service to God
00:05:01.11\00:05:04.13
that they will kill you
00:05:04.16\00:05:06.14
thinking they are
offering service to God.
00:05:06.17\00:05:08.58
The interesting piece of that
00:05:08.61\00:05:10.64
is that the Greek word is
not the normal word for service.
00:05:10.67\00:05:14.56
It's the word latria
00:05:14.59\00:05:15.84
which actually
means sacrificial service.
00:05:15.87\00:05:18.31
It's the kind of
service you did in the temple,
00:05:18.34\00:05:21.78
doing the sacrifices.
00:05:21.81\00:05:23.47
In other words, they think
that they are portraying God
00:05:23.50\00:05:28.82
the way He should be portrayed.
00:05:28.85\00:05:30.71
People who kill
in the name of God
00:05:30.74\00:05:33.95
are people who think
of God as blood thirsty,
00:05:33.98\00:05:37.62
think of God as one
who delights in death
00:05:37.65\00:05:40.63
but this is not the kind
of God that Jesus has brought.
00:05:40.66\00:05:45.55
We become like
the God we worship.
00:05:45.58\00:05:49.22
And if we worship a God
00:05:49.25\00:05:51.33
that is fearsome and
threatening and so on,
00:05:51.36\00:05:54.94
we will tend to behave
that way toward others.
00:05:54.97\00:05:58.27
Interestingly enough there's
a faculty member on my staff
00:05:58.30\00:06:03.19
at Loma Linda University
00:06:03.22\00:06:05.30
who has been
doing brain research
00:06:05.33\00:06:08.53
where they use brain scans
00:06:08.56\00:06:10.10
to actually
look inside your head
00:06:10.13\00:06:12.41
and see the brain and
they've come to realize
00:06:12.44\00:06:14.89
the brain is very malleable,
it's kind of like Jell-O,
00:06:14.92\00:06:19.22
it's the consistency of it.
00:06:19.25\00:06:20.28
That's why it's
important to wear helmet
00:06:20.31\00:06:22.20
when you are on a
motorcycle, things like that
00:06:22.23\00:06:24.49
because you know, you bounce
your head off the concrete
00:06:24.52\00:06:27.30
and all that stuff
is sloshing around,
00:06:27.33\00:06:29.11
that's not good, you see.
00:06:29.14\00:06:31.00
So they can
look inside the brain
00:06:31.03\00:06:33.73
and they've discovered
that the brain take shape,
00:06:33.76\00:06:36.89
changes shape based on
your thoughts and feelings
00:06:36.92\00:06:41.31
that we can
actually, even older people
00:06:41.34\00:06:44.71
can change the way they think
00:06:44.74\00:06:46.25
and change the way
their brain functions.
00:06:46.28\00:06:49.65
And what he has
discovered in his research
00:06:49.68\00:06:52.21
that people whose view of God
00:06:52.24\00:06:54.26
is judgmental
and cruel and so on,
00:06:54.29\00:06:57.76
such a view of God
actually stuns the brain
00:06:57.79\00:07:01.97
and makes it more rigid
and less able to function
00:07:02.00\00:07:06.05
where as person
whose view of God
00:07:06.08\00:07:08.17
is kind and loving and friendly
00:07:08.20\00:07:11.13
like the God that
Jesus is portraying here,
00:07:11.16\00:07:14.25
that view of God actually
makes the brain healthier.
00:07:14.28\00:07:18.51
Now that's not
final word all of itself,
00:07:18.54\00:07:21.59
it's a scientific word but
it's very, very interesting
00:07:21.62\00:07:24.83
that the view of God
portrayed in the Gospel of John
00:07:24.86\00:07:27.73
is actually healthy for us.
00:07:27.76\00:07:30.60
And here he shows that
people have the capacity
00:07:30.63\00:07:34.43
to kill in the name of God.
00:07:34.46\00:07:36.55
They think they
are doing God service.
00:07:36.58\00:07:39.25
They will do such things
00:07:39.28\00:07:41.25
because they have not
known the Father, interesting.
00:07:41.28\00:07:46.78
They are serving God
but they have not known Him.
00:07:46.81\00:07:51.34
If you serve God in cruel ways,
00:07:51.37\00:07:54.11
if you serve God in
vicious judgmental ways,
00:07:54.14\00:07:58.45
you don't know God.
00:07:58.48\00:08:00.78
And God Himself
comes in a different way.
00:08:00.81\00:08:05.88
It's interesting, the cruelest
people of the ancient world
00:08:05.91\00:08:09.36
were probably the Assyrians
and they had the cruelest gods.
00:08:09.39\00:08:13.93
Many of the gods
of the ancient people
00:08:13.96\00:08:16.17
were very arbitrary,
severe, cruel, judgmental
00:08:16.20\00:08:21.65
and these people behaved
like the gods they worshipped.
00:08:21.68\00:08:26.20
So it's very, very important
as we come to know Jesus,
00:08:26.23\00:08:29.51
He transforms our
brains and even our lives
00:08:29.54\00:08:33.27
so that we become more like Him.
00:08:33.30\00:08:36.33
And the interesting
thing is you would think
00:08:36.36\00:08:39.40
that someone who loves
everybody like Jesus did,
00:08:39.43\00:08:43.79
someone who is gracious
and kind would be very popular.
00:08:43.82\00:08:47.95
You think that, right? Not true.
00:08:47.98\00:08:51.39
The one thing most
people will not tolerate
00:08:51.42\00:08:56.04
is if someone loves their enemy.
00:08:56.07\00:08:59.30
If I love your enemy
00:08:59.33\00:09:01.33
that will be very
challenging for our friendship
00:09:01.36\00:09:04.43
because you want your friends
00:09:04.46\00:09:06.70
to be enemies of
your enemies, you see.
00:09:06.73\00:09:09.49
And that's the
way human beings are.
00:09:09.52\00:09:11.18
So a person who
truly loves everybody,
00:09:11.21\00:09:14.06
having received
the Spirit of God
00:09:14.09\00:09:15.97
and that attitude of God,
00:09:16.00\00:09:18.11
such a person actually is
very irritating and infuriating.
00:09:18.14\00:09:23.90
And people will reconcile,
enemies will reconcile
00:09:23.93\00:09:27.87
to kill somebody
who loves everyone.
00:09:27.90\00:09:29.64
And that's what
happened to Jesus.
00:09:29.67\00:09:31.40
Herod, Pilate and Caiaphas
were enemies of each other
00:09:31.43\00:09:35.10
and yet they all came
together to destroy Jesus
00:09:35.13\00:09:38.35
because they saw in
His gracious loving spirit,
00:09:38.38\00:09:41.90
a threat to everything
that they believed in.
00:09:41.93\00:09:45.10
Well, as the Bible says,
00:09:45.13\00:09:46.66
"You worship me with your lips
00:09:46.69\00:09:48.74
but your hearts
are far from Me."
00:09:48.77\00:09:50.78
Well put, well put.
00:09:50.81\00:09:52.41
That certainly fits in
there very, very beautifully.
00:09:52.44\00:09:55.97
Let's go on to verse 7.
00:09:56.00\00:10:00.08
"Nevertheless I
tell you the truth.
00:10:00.11\00:10:02.54
It is to your
advantage that I go away
00:10:02.57\00:10:05.35
for if I do not go away,
the Helper will not come to you
00:10:05.38\00:10:09.18
but if I depart, I
will send Him to you."
00:10:09.21\00:10:13.00
He says, "It's to your
advantage that I go away."
00:10:13.03\00:10:18.47
It's better for you if I go away
00:10:18.50\00:10:20.80
and here
disciples are all depressed
00:10:20.83\00:10:23.87
that Jesus is
going away and He says,
00:10:23.90\00:10:27.39
"Its better for
you if I go away."
00:10:27.42\00:10:29.19
I remember when I
was back in college,
00:10:29.22\00:10:31.96
I had a girlfriend and she
lived down in South America,
00:10:31.99\00:10:35.61
that's where
her family came from
00:10:35.64\00:10:37.12
but they were now
living there by the college
00:10:37.15\00:10:39.93
and we spent you know a
year, year and half together
00:10:39.96\00:10:44.80
and really precious person
00:10:44.83\00:10:47.48
and I really think we
wanted to make it work.
00:10:47.51\00:10:50.90
But just somehow no matter
what we did it didn't work
00:10:50.93\00:10:54.80
and finally we came to
the summer and we said,
00:10:54.83\00:10:56.87
"Okay, we are both going
to be up here for the summer
00:10:56.90\00:10:58.44
but let's not have any
relationship with each other.
00:10:58.47\00:11:00.81
We just go separate
ways and see how that goes."
00:11:00.84\00:11:03.99
And as the summer
went on we discovered
00:11:04.02\00:11:06.03
we couldn't stand to be apart
00:11:06.06\00:11:08.41
and we couldn't
stand to be together.
00:11:08.44\00:11:11.16
It was a strange kind
of experience, you know.
00:11:11.19\00:11:14.23
When we were
together we were miserable
00:11:14.26\00:11:15.82
and now we are
apart we are miserable.
00:11:15.85\00:11:17.71
So at the end of the
summer she announces to me,
00:11:17.74\00:11:20.23
I am going back home, I am
going back to my home country.
00:11:20.26\00:11:24.69
I think that's the best for us.
00:11:24.72\00:11:27.17
It will be better
for you if I go away.
00:11:27.20\00:11:32.44
I thought that was crazy.
00:11:32.47\00:11:34.42
I didn't buy
that for one minute.
00:11:34.45\00:11:36.64
That was the--
that was the worst line
00:11:36.67\00:11:38.76
I'd ever heard for breaking up.
00:11:38.79\00:11:41.73
Sounds like a good one though.
00:11:41.76\00:11:43.63
No word for her.
00:11:43.66\00:11:44.96
But you know the
interesting thing about it is
00:11:44.99\00:11:47.16
less than a year
later I met the woman
00:11:47.19\00:11:50.87
who would become my wife
00:11:50.90\00:11:52.62
and as I look back on it now
from 40 years later, it's true.
00:11:52.65\00:11:57.65
It was better for both of us.
00:11:57.68\00:11:59.37
She has done very
well where she is.
00:11:59.40\00:12:01.35
She is an author and a teacher
00:12:01.38\00:12:03.23
and very beloved by her people.
00:12:03.26\00:12:05.77
And similar things
have happened for me.
00:12:05.80\00:12:09.41
So Jesus is
looking into the future
00:12:09.44\00:12:12.18
and recognizing
that yes, its painful now
00:12:12.21\00:12:16.63
but it's better
for you if I go away
00:12:16.66\00:12:19.17
because if I go away
the Holy Spirit can come
00:12:19.20\00:12:22.27
and the Holy Spirit
will do things for you
00:12:22.30\00:12:24.89
that wouldn't
happen if I was still here.
00:12:24.92\00:12:27.90
We will get into
that in the next program
00:12:27.93\00:12:29.78
but just a little
foretaste that Jesus recognizes
00:12:29.81\00:12:35.70
that His going away is
painful as it is for them
00:12:35.73\00:12:38.45
will be a
positive as well. Okay.
00:12:38.48\00:12:41.53
So well, then how do
the disciples take this
00:12:41.56\00:12:44.78
because it doesn't sound
very encouraging as you said?
00:12:44.81\00:12:48.28
Not at the time,
not at the time. Yeah.
00:12:48.31\00:12:51.33
So then shall we
keep reading here?
00:12:51.36\00:12:53.15
I would say let's
go on to verse 16-19
00:12:53.18\00:12:55.84
because the verses 7-15
are about the Holy Spirit
00:12:55.87\00:12:59.71
and we will cover that
next time but verses 16-19,
00:12:59.74\00:13:04.87
Jesus throws a
riddle at the disciples.
00:13:04.90\00:13:07.81
Let's see if we
can figure it out.
00:13:07.84\00:13:09.96
"A little while,
and you will not see Me
00:13:09.99\00:13:12.65
and again a little
while, and you will see Me,
00:13:12.68\00:13:14.99
because I go to the Father.
00:13:15.02\00:13:16.92
Then some of His
disciples said among themselves,
00:13:16.95\00:13:19.38
What is this that He says to us,
00:13:19.41\00:13:21.01
'A little while,
and you will not see Me,
00:13:21.04\00:13:23.00
and again a little
while, and you will not see Me.'
00:13:23.03\00:13:25.19
And, 'because I
go to the Father'
00:13:25.22\00:13:27.32
They said therefore,
00:13:27.35\00:13:28.68
"What is this that He
says, 'A little while'?
00:13:28.71\00:13:31.33
We do not know
what He is saying."
00:13:31.36\00:13:33.11
Now Jesus knew that
they desired to ask Him,
00:13:33.14\00:13:37.08
and He said to them,
00:13:37.11\00:13:38.66
"Are you inquiring among
yourselves about what I said,
00:13:38.69\00:13:41.60
'A little while,
and you will not see Me
00:13:41.63\00:13:43.55
and again a little
while, and you will see Me'?"
00:13:43.58\00:13:47.38
Wow, that sounds very--
even hard to read there.
00:13:47.41\00:13:50.72
Yeah, yeah. It's
a riddle, you see.
00:13:50.75\00:13:53.58
And there's four pieces to this.
00:13:53.61\00:13:55.58
First of all they
will see Him no more,
00:13:55.61\00:13:58.67
second, they will see Him,
00:13:58.70\00:14:01.64
third, He is going to the father
00:14:01.67\00:14:04.09
and fourth, it's
going to be a little while.
00:14:04.12\00:14:07.47
And what is this little while?
00:14:07.50\00:14:09.88
So there, a little
while we will see Him
00:14:09.91\00:14:12.50
and little
while we won't see Him
00:14:12.53\00:14:13.93
and a little while he
will go to the father.
00:14:13.96\00:14:16.24
And so the riddle is all there.
00:14:16.27\00:14:18.49
And like many things
in the Gospel of John
00:14:18.52\00:14:20.86
there's a double meaning here
00:14:20.89\00:14:23.07
because on the one
hand in the immediate future
00:14:23.10\00:14:27.11
Jesus is going
away. Where is He going?
00:14:27.14\00:14:30.26
He is going to the
cross, He is going to death
00:14:30.29\00:14:33.76
and they can't follow Him there.
00:14:33.79\00:14:36.02
But while He is going
away and they won't see Him,
00:14:36.05\00:14:40.06
shortly after they will see Him.
00:14:40.09\00:14:43.08
He will be raised from the dead.
00:14:43.11\00:14:45.76
But then He is going away again,
00:14:45.79\00:14:49.27
He is ascending back to heaven.
00:14:49.30\00:14:51.45
And when He ascends to heaven,
00:14:51.48\00:14:53.58
they won't see Him.
00:14:53.61\00:14:55.22
He will go to the Father
00:14:55.25\00:14:56.65
but then eventually
at the return of Jesus
00:14:56.68\00:14:59.85
they will see Him again.
00:14:59.88\00:15:01.65
So Jesus is
introducing major themes,
00:15:01.68\00:15:04.76
death in
resurrection, second coming,
00:15:04.79\00:15:07.43
all of that is packed
in to these simple words
00:15:07.46\00:15:11.36
but unless you
know that larger picture
00:15:11.39\00:15:13.42
the riddle is unsolvable.
00:15:13.45\00:15:15.10
The disciples are
just spinning their wheels
00:15:15.13\00:15:17.17
trying to figure out
what Jesus was saying.
00:15:17.20\00:15:19.89
Well, friends, we
are going to continue
00:15:19.92\00:15:21.24
on this Gospel of John.
00:15:21.27\00:15:23.22
So stay with us
after this break.
00:15:23.25\00:15:25.23