"Now I am going to the one who sent me,
and not one of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'
Peter had tried to ask this question before but got an answer that wasn't what he wanted to hear. He couldn't follow Jesus and in his effort to do so he would end up denying him (see John 13:36-38). After that it seemed that no one was bold enough to pursue the question. It did sound a lot like Jesus was talking about suffering and death as a destination. It was enough to make grief fill the hearts of the disciples but it did not inspire them to ask for details. Was it at that point a failure of their friendship that they seemed unwilling to understand what Jesus had in his heart as that which he must do? They grieved for Jesus going insofar as it affected them, but they could not offer him the consolation of appreciative understanding. They looked away from the darkness to provide temporary solace for their own hearts while leaving Jesus alone and isolated.
But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go.
For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you.
But if I go, I will send him to you.
Jesus knew that there was a missing piece without which his disciples would not be able to fully understand or appreciate what he was doing or why it must be done. Without the Advocate the disciples only had worldly standards "in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation". These were the standards by which the world judged Jesus to be a sinner and worthy of condemnation. The disciples would need the power of the resurrection and the assurance of the Holy Spirit to fully recognize that the cross was not the world's judgment on Jesus but rather that of Jesus on the world. In the eyes of the authorities the cross condemned Jesus as sinner. But in the eyes of the Spirit the cross was a condemnation of sin itself. One who was a wholly innocent and spotless lamb was condemned by the world, had abuse and violence heaped upon him, and yet was vindicated. Sin itself, cycles of abuse, violence and scapegoating were all unmasked. It seemed that on the cross it was Jesus that was condemned. But it was rather both sin and death that were condemned along with the ruler of this world. Jesus was the one who was revealed, through the cross, to be the righteous one of God. And it was the Holy Spirit who would so cement these realities in the hearts of the disciples and future generations of believers that they could base their entire lives henceforth on the conviction they received from him.
But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go.
Do we really believe Jesus when we hear that he said that it was better that he go? Most of us do not find this to be an immediately obvious truth. Even by looking at a decent portrayal of Jesus in a movie or on TV we can easily imagine how wonderful it would be to have him physically present in our lives. Yet he promised and assured us that the Holy Spirit was a blessing that was still greater. If we find it hard to believe it may well mean that there is still power in the promise of the Holy Spirit that is untapped and remains for us to claim as our own. Maybe we're still living without the full conviction about the truth of the Gospel message that he longs to seal in our hearts. Certainly the coming of Pentecost is the perfect time to open ourselves more entirely to all that he wants to do in us.
About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying
and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened,
there was suddenly such a severe earthquake
that the foundations of the jail shook;
There is no other way to explain the behavior of Paul and Silas than to say that they were motivated by the full conviction of the Holy Spirit. They knew Jesus was the righteous one and as such they knew that to be imprisoned and condemned in the eyes of the world was no failure on their part. They were able to rejoice even in the most difficult circumstances because the Holy Spirit had them rooted in the higher reality of Gospel truth. He wants to root us in that same reality, if we will but let him.
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise
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