Let’s read John 14:16-17, “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.” This is a new era. The New Testament is very special: it talks about the Holy Spirit many more times than the Old Testament does. When Jesus was on earth, He also mentioned the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist, the pioneer of the Lord, grasped the most essential points. He proclaimed, “Behold, the lamb of God.” In the Old Testament, from Genesis onward, all the offerings mentioned foreshadowed the Lamb of God who was to come. The Son of God became the Son of Man, the Lamb of God. It’s so precious that a Man became the Lamb and was sacrificed for us. This Man was the Son of God.
John mentioned that He was the son of God. God let John know that the one on whom the Holy Spirit came upon was the Son of God, who was also the Lamb of God. God’s beloved Son became the Lamb of God. Genesis 22 mentioned “Jehovah-Jireh” which means “The Lord will provide”. God indeed prepared for us. This is so amazing that the Lord came to redeem us and solve the greatest problem between God and man, which is sin. John also mentioned that Jesus baptized with the Holy Spirit. Who was He, that He could baptize with the Holy Spirit? In fact, He ascended to Heaven and sent the Holy Spirit to us. Furthermore, John proclaimed that the Lord was the Bridegroom. He said he rejoiced when he heard the voice of the Bridegroom. We should rejoice even more because the church is the bride of the Lord.
John was from the Old Testament time, but what he proclaimed about the Lord was astonishing. First, he told us that Jesus was the Son of God, who came to the earth as a Man. This is great news and a great mystery. He also mentioned that this Son of Man became the Lamb that would die for us. All these seemed impossible. Moreover, He sent the Holy Spirit to live in the disciples’ hearts. Abba, the Lord, and the Holy Spirit also live in our hearts forever. It’s so wonderful that He forever lives in us. Not only is He present with us, He is our Bridegroom. The difference between us and the Lord seems so great, but He is the Bridegroom and the church is His Bride! We are His darling. The Song of Solomon in the Bible concisely expresses our relationship with the Lord. Now that we already know all this truth, we might find it “no surprise”. The Lord has opened our eyes so that we see and accept this truth. But it should make us all amazed because it is magnificent. John had the courage to declare all these important things in his generation. God causes the impossible to be possible–we used to be so different from Him but now we are so close to Him.