Better
John 16:7:
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
This has to be one of the most shocking things Jesus ever said, along with one of the least believed.
Most Christians think that it would be better if they had lived when Jesus walked the earth so that they could meet Him and hear Him and have Him minster healing to them in person. But Jesus made it clear that we have it BETTER today in this age in which the Holy Spirit has been poured out.
If Jesus were walking the earth today as He did in the four gospels and we wanted healing, we’d have to hop on a plane to Tel Aviv and catch a bus to whatever town Jesus is currently in, then find Him. We’d have to hope Israel’s rocket-launching neighbors are in a good mood that day. We’d have to wait our turn to get ministered to.
But in the age of the Holy Spirit, people can just find one of countless Bible-believing Christians on the earth to lay hands on them in Jesus’ place. Many more people can be healed at once. We can believe and receive healing based on what Jesus already did for us. Still better, we can be the Bible-believing Christians who lay hands on other people and let them know how they can believe and receive healing too.
Jesus never spoke in tongues, and His followers didn’t either until the Day of Pentecost. No one could pray out mysteries before the Holy Spirit came. The prophets, priests and kings had the anointing under the Old Covenant, but all believers have the anointing under the New Covenant (1 John 2:20). Only specially-selected people got to prophesy under the Old Covenant, but in the Age of the Holy Spirit, we can ALL prophecy as the Spirit leads (1 Corinthians 14:31). There are so many benefits to us in the age of the Holy Spirit, it would take a whole separate discussion in this book to go into the details of who you are and what you have because of what Jesus did for you! The people who lived before Christ’s resurrection didn’t get to enjoy what we have.
I can imagine what must have gone through the minds of the disciples when Jesus made the shocking statement that it was “expedient” for Him to leave and send the Holy Spirit. “This Man has the greatest healing ministry ever seen on the earth, and it’s BETTER for Him not to be here in person? We’ve never seen anyone cast out demons like Him or teach like Him, and it’s supposed to be a good thing that He won’t be here doing it anymore? That doesn’t sound very expedient to me!” Surely they realized how good things were for them. If they had questions, they could just ask Jesus in person. How could you beat that? Well, we can now have the Holy Spirit, who is just as much God as Jesus is, and HE leads us into all truth (John 16:13). You just ask Him instead of Jesus.
Jesus surely didn’t have modern denominational Christianity in mind when He made His statement! It is not better at all. The sick are not being healed, demons are not being cast out, the real gospel of the kingdom is at best preached partially, and no one prays out mysteries in tongues or flows in the gifts of the Spirit. Many believers think they are unworthy little worms who must put in supposedly humble requests for healing “if it be God’s will.” Others are stuck in religious rituals and practices that contradict what the Bible says about what Jesus did for us.
Did the Father just not reveal the future state of Christianity to Jesus? Was Jesus wrong that things would be better in the age of the Holy Spirit? No, He was never wrong about anything. We are the ones who are wrong to settle for anything that isn’t better.
The “better” is still here, available for all who dare to believe Jesus’ words!
Anything that isn’t BETTER than what the disciples had when Jesus walked the earth is not biblical Christianity! This fact should cause us to look at our churches and realize an extreme need for change on our part. We can’t expect God to change (Malachi 3:6). We are the ones who must search the Scriptures, see God’s blueprint for Christ’s Body on the earth, and make the needed changes. The only acceptable vision for our churches must be something that people can compare to the days of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and say, “This is better!” To settle for anything less is to make a liar out of Jesus. To settle for anything less shortchanges ourselves and our fellow believers and God Himself.
Let’s shake off complacency and contend for the faith as it was once delivered (Jude 3). What would happen if you had a church full of people who all believed what Jesus said? I hope your church has fun finding out!