In John 14:26
Jesus says to His disciples,
“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
will send in my name,
will teach you all things and will remind you
of everything I have said to you.”
As we study this passage, as with all passages, we need to address the immediate context and then draw applications to ourselves for our day.
Let’s look first at what Jesus was saying to His disciples and the effect of the Holy Spirit upon them. It is clear from many gospel passages that the disciples didn’t understand the ultimate meaning of Christ’s teaching regarding His death, burial, and resurrection.
An example of this is found in John 13:31–38. After the Lord’s resurrection, the Holy Spirit comes upon the disciples as recorded in Acts 2:1–13. Note, immediately after that, Peter addresses the crowd and explains what is going on at that moment and preaches the resurrection of Christ. Thus, the first fulfillment of John 14:26 occurred. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit “will teach you all things,” and on the day of Pentecost the disciples understood what happened regarding Jesus and especially the meaning of His death and resurrection.
Also, the Holy Spirit reminded the disciples of Jesus’ teachings and the details of the events in His life so as to record them in the gospels and explain them in the epistles. The apostle John later wrote, “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30–31). And Peter wrote, “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing” (1 Peter 3:9)— a clear reference to Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5:43–47). Again, Jesus had promised the disciples that the Holy Spirit “will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you,” and we have the New Testament as a result.
For believers today, the Holy Spirit illuminates the Bible for us. At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit indwelt us, and we were given a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26). As the Lord told Israel,
“And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow
my decrees and
be careful to keep my laws”
(Ezekiel 36:27).
Without the Holy Spirit enabling us to understand the Bible and God’s commands, we could not understand or obey them. Paul states this reality in 1 Corinthians 2:13–14:
“This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities
with Spirit-taught words.
The person without the Spirit does not accept
the things that come from the Spirit of God
but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are
discerned only through the Spirit.” Thus, for us today, the
Holy Spirit enables us to understand, live out, and apply God’s Word
in our lives.
In summary, in John 14:26 Jesus promises His disciples in the upper room that the Holy Spirit would enable and equip them to remember, write, and apply the life and teaching of Jesus. The Holy Spirit guided them to record and write the New Testament (2 Timothy 3:16–17; 2 Peter 1:20–21). For us today, the Holy Spirit enables us to understand and live out God’s Word as we follow Jesus, and
He brings to our remembrance “
the word planted in you”
(James 1:21).
illumination in the spiritual sense is
“turning on the light” of understanding
in some area. Throughout the ages, people in every culture and religion have claimed some kind of revelation or enlightenment from God (whether true or not). When that enlightenment deals with new knowledge or future things, we call it prophecy. When that enlightenment deals with understanding and applying knowledge already given, we call it illumination. Regarding illumination of the latter type, the question arises,
How Does God do It?
The most basic level of enlightenment is the knowledge of sin, and without that knowledge, everything else is pointless. Psalm 18:28 says,
“You, O LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.”
Psalm 119, which is the longest chapter in the Bible, is a
song about God’s Word.
In verse 130, it says “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
This verse establishes the basic method of God’s illumination. When
God’s Word enters the heart of a person, it gives light and understanding to them.
or this reason, we are repeatedly told to study the Word of God.
Psalm 119:11 says
“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” Verses 98 and 99 say
“Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are ever with me.
I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.”
Regular study of the Word of God will give direction and understanding
in the issues of life. This is the first method of God’s illumination
and the starting point for us all. In Psalm 119 we also find another type of
God’s illumination. Verse 18 says,
“Open my eyes that I may see
wonderful things in your law.”
These are not new revelations, but things which have been written and revealed long before, and just now understood by the reader
(one of those “aha!” moments). Similarly, verse 73 says,
“Your hands made me and formed me;
give me understanding
to learn your commands.”
The plea is for personal understanding and application
of God’s laws as they are studied by the individual.
Fifteen times in this psalm, God is asked
to teach or give understanding regarding His laws.
One passage that sometimes stirs controversy regarding illumination
is John 14:26,
“But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
will send in my name, will teach you all things and
will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
Jesus was speaking to His disciples in the upper room, giving them last instructions before His death. This special group of men was to be responsible for spreading the good news of Jesus Christ to the whole world. They had spent three and a half years with Him, watching His miracles and hearing His teachings.
They would relay those things to the rest of the world, and would
need God’s special help remembering those things accurately.
Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would teach them and remind them of what had been said, so they could give it to others
(including the writing of the Gospels).
This verse does not teach that the Spirit will do so with all believers
(though there are other verses that speak of the Spirit’s illuminating work).
What is the
Holy Spirit’s illuminating work in believers?
Ephesians 1:17-18 tells us that
the Spirit gives wisdom and revelation
concerning Jesus Christ,
and opens the eyes of understanding so we
can know God’s purposes in our lives.
In 1 Corinthians 2:10-13,
God has revealed His plans for us by
His Spirit,
who teaches us spiritual things.
The context here points to the Word of God as that which has been revealed. The Spirit of God will always point us to the Word of God for our instruction. As Jesus told His disciples in John 16:12-15, the Spirit simply repeats what the Father and the Son have already said.
This repetition helps us
remember and fully hear what God has already told us.
Sometimes we have to hear things several times;)
before we actually hear them.
That’s where the Spirit comes in.
One thing that is sometimes overlooked in the discussion of illumination is the purpose of it. To hear some arguments, it would seem that the whole purpose of illumination is an accurate and academic understanding of God’s Word. There is no question that God desires us to accurately understand what He has given us. Words have meaning, and we must pay attention to the details in those words. If, however, we stop there, we simply have an academic understanding of facts or philosophies, which do no one any good.
Going back to Psalm 119, we find purpose statements connected with the illumination verses. “I will meditate on your wonders” (v. 27), “I will keep your law and obey it with all my heart” (v. 34), “that I may understand your statutes” (v. 125), “that I may live” (v. 144).
The illumination always points to action.
Why does God help us understand His Word?
So we are able to live in its light.
First John 1:6 challenges us, “If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not
live by the truth.”
We could paraphrase it to say, “If we say we’ve been enlightened, but still walk in the dark, we lie about understanding God’s Word.”
The Spirit of God, who enlightens us to
hear and understand God’s Word,
then takes that knowledge and guides us in living it. Romans 8:14
says “For as many as are
led by the Spirit of God,
they are the sons of God.” The illuminating and
leading work of the Holy Spirit in our lives is a confirmation that we are indeed children of God.