1. The World will Hate You (verses 1-4).
2. The Spirit will Help You (verses 5-11).
3. The Spirit will Guide You (verses 12-15).

Consider the following Proverb:

Proverbs 15:23
To make an apt answer is a joy to a man,
and a word in season, how good it is!

This Proverb speaks of the beauty and power of timely words, that is, words that fit the situation. Words that come at the right season, speak to the need of the moment, and offer both wisdom and grace.

I’m picturing the one who is down and discouraged, and the timely word comes, “Remember that God’s grace is sufficient for you. He will be your strength” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

I’m picturing the one who is grieving the death of a loved one, and a timely word comes, “God knows your pain. He sees your tears. He is capturing them in his bottle. He will be your comfort” (Psalm 56:8).

I’m picturing the one who is facing guilt because of past sin. and a timely word comes, “Believe in the gospel! There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. Trust in his forgiveness” (Romans 8:1).

I’m picturing the one who is being tempted to sin. and a timely word comes, “I know your temptation feels strong right now. Your sin may appear appealing, but it’s end is death. Resist and stand firm” (Romans 6:23).

These are examples of timely words that help the one who receives them, giving them joy and hope. "To make an apt answer is a joy to a man, and a word in season, how good it is!" (Proverbs 15:23). We see such timely words in the Bible.

Do you remember when David was hiding his sin with Bathsheba. Nathan came in, and in a moment of divine timing, he confronted him with a parable of the rich man who takes the poor man’s lamb. David’s heart was pierced and he was brought to repentance, and restoration with God (See 2 Samuel 12 and Psalm 51). Nathan spoke timely words.

Do you remember the words of Jesus to the woman caught in adultery? When all of her accusers had left, and she was alone with Jesus, John 8:10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” John 8:11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more”

But timely words, which are spoken in season, by definition, are not always spoken. They await the right time. When Nathan spoke with David, it was a year after his sin. David wasn’t ready for Nathan’s parable until then. When Jesus spoke to the woman caught in adultery, it was only after her accusers left. It was only then that his words were timely.

We see such delay in timely words in Mark 9, when the disciples were coming down from the Mount of Transfiguration. "[Jesus] charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead" (Mark 9:9). There was a time to talk about the resurrection, but it was after the resurrection.

This is what makes timely words so difficult. Because, an ill-timed word may not be received well, like offering comfort that dismisses the pain, like offering advice that isn’t solicited, or like offering simple solutions to complex problems. A timely word waits for the moment. And a timely word fits the moment.

Well, as we come to the Scriptures, we will see Jesus speaking timely words to his disciples in John 16:1-15. My message is entitled, “Timely Words,” because, this is what we see Jesus giving his disciples in these verses.

Now, if you remember from previous weeks, these words come during the last night of the life of Jesus. He is with his disciples, giving them his final counsel. In this text, he is going to explain how the time has finally come for him to say some things to them. The timing wasn’t right before. But now, the timing is perfect. Jesus tells them of what it is that they need to know, as they begin to deal with life without him.

So, let’s read our text.

John 16:1-15
“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you.

“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Did you see how sensitive Jesus was regarding the timing of his words? In verse 1, Jesus says, “I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away." In other words, Jesus is saying, “I’m telling you now, so that when the time comes, you will be prepared, and you won’t fall away.”

In verse 4, Jesus says, "I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. Again, this is the same thought. Jesus says, “I’m telling you these things now, because, I want you to remember them in the future, when they will be useful for you. I didn’t tell you these things yet, because I was with you to help you, but I’m going away, and these words will help you when I’m gone.”

He also mentions the timeliness of his words in verse 12. Jesus says, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now." In other words, Jesus is saying, “I have some timely words to tell you, but now isn’t the time. There will be a time, but not now.”

So, let’s look at the timely words that Jesus tells his disciples. I believe that they can be broken down into three statements:. Here is the first: 

1. The World will Hate You (verses 1-4).

This is essentially what Jesus says in verse 2,

John 16:2
They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.

In verse 2 we see two expressions of hatred. Jesus had already told this to his disciples in chapter 15, verse 18-19, "If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you."

Here, in our text, Jesus is giving some examples of how it is that the world might express their hatred to the disciples.

First of all, "They will put you out of the synagogues.."

To the Jew, being put out of the synagogue was everything. In small towns, the synagogue was the center of all social activity. Weekly services were at the synagogue. The holidays were celebrated at the synagogue. Special events were celebrated at the synagogue. And to be removed from the synagogue was to be removed from all of these things, effectively being removed from society.

When Jesus said this, the threat was very real. In John 9, we read of the story of a man born blind, who Jesus healed. The Jews called his parents in to figure out exactly what happened to him. They asked to his parents two questions: “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” (John 9:19).

They answered the first question, but refused to answer the second question. They said, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself” (John 9:20-21). Then, John, the gospel writer gives us an explanation: "His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.Therefore his parents said, 'He is of age; ask him'" (John 9:22-23). The threat of being put out of the synagogue was so real and devastating to this man’s parents, that they wouldn’t even stand up for their son, saying that “He had an encounter with Jesus.”

Now, if these parents had been forewarned about this, their response may have been different. If they knew more about Jesus, and who he was, and what he taught, They may not have been so quick to dismiss the entire event, and let their son answer for himself.

And Jesus, in telling his disciples these things beforehand, is preparing them for a better answer. giving them time to think about it, that they might be willing to be put out of synagogue for the sake of Jesus.

The second example of what the world might do to followers of Jesus is to kill them: "Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God" (John 16:2).

This very thing happened to Stephen, the first martyr of the church. His story is told in Acts, chapter 7. When he preached to the Jews about Jesus, they didn’t want to hear it. They stoned him, believing that he was speaking against the law and the temple (Acts 6:23; 7:54).

Another example of this is the apostle Paul. Before Paul was a Christian, he was a Jewish leader. He was a zealous Jewish leader, who would travel into towns, looking for followers of Jesus, bringing them bound to Jerusalem to be prosecuted as heretics (Acts 9:2). All of the while being convinced that in doing so, he was serving God. But, in verse 3, Jesus says that the reality is quite the opposite.

John 16:3
And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me.

Paul thought that he knew God. Paul thought that he was doing a service for God. But he didn’t know God, and he wasn’t doing a service for God.

But Jesus, in telling his disciples these things beforehand, was telling his disciples what to expect, so that when it happened, they would be ready. They would be ready for people who are absolutely convinced that they are right and that the disciples are wrong.

Please know that for us, the same is true. As you encounter those who are resistant to your words as you speak about Jesus, you need to know that they think that they are arguing on God’s behalf, but they aren’t. And you need to know that nothing you say or do will convince them otherwise. So be ready. Be ready for rejection.

The whole reason why Jesus was telling his disciples these things is so that they wouldn’t be discouraged at their rejection and “fall away.” Look again at verse 1,

John 16:1
I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away.

That is, when the time comes, and people don’t believe, and they don’t trust in Jesus, but, rather they turn hostile toward you, know that everything is going according to plan. Don’t be discouraged. Don’t turn away from Jesus. Don’t think that because the world is rejecting you, that something has gone amiss. This is what it means to follow Jesus. "If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you" (John 15:20).

Think about the manager of a sales team, who is mentoring those who are making cold calls for sales. He says to his sales force, “Know that this is a difficult and discouraging job. For every 100 calls that you make, you will go to voicemail about 80% of the time. You will only have the opportunity to speak with 20 people out of the 100. Of those 20, five of these will hang up when they realize that you are making a sales call. Five of them will hear you speak for the first two sentences, and then interrupt you and say they are not interested. Five of them will hear you speak your first paragraph, and then say they are not interested. Of the five who actually engage you, two of them will hear you and tell you that they already have what you are selling and don’t need what you are offering. two of them will hear you and ask you to call them back at a more convenient time. But there will be one who will actually be interested.”

So, he says to his sales force, “Know that you will be rejected, far more often than not. But don’t be discouraged. Expect rejection. But know that there are some (1 in a 100) who will be interested in our product! We are looking for them. And it will take 100 phone calls to find the one who is interested.” Such a talk will help the sales force continue to make their calls, even when they are rejected in their calls 99% of the time.

This is much like what Jesus is telling his disciples. “I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away" (verse 1). Jesus says much the same thing in verse 4,

John 16:4
But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.

And so, church family, please know now, that the world is not open to the message of salvation that we bring to them. By in large, you will be rejected, even though you have the greatest news in the world!

The message we bring is that Christ Jesus has come to us, and has died upon the cross for us and for our sins. that we don’t need to work our way to God, or to be righteous enough to be accepted by God. Rather, that through faith in Jesus, we can be forgiven of all of our sins. Not because God merely looks past our sin in a random sort of way. But because Jesus actually paid the penalty for our sins, in dying for us in our place. He makes the offer that when we believe in him, that sin-payment will be applied to our account! And the world, by in large, rejects this message.

But knowing this beforehand is a timely word that will help you when you are hated and persecuted and slandered by those in the world. But Jesus has some other timely words for his disciples, which are more encouraging. Here’s the second timely word: 

2. The Spirit will Help You (verses 5-11).

John 16:5-7
But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.

Again, we have heard Jesus say these things to his disciples. He has told them that he is going away (John 14:2). He has told them not to be troubled or afraid (John 14:1). He has told them that he will send the Holy Spirit to them. He has told them that the Holy Spirit will help them in their ministry. "I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth" (John 14:16-17a). "But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me" (John 15:26).

But there is one thing here that Jesus really hasn’t yet told his disciples. It comes in verse 7.

John 16:7
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away,

That is, it’s better for the disciples for Jesus to be gone and for them to have the Holy Spirit. We wouldn’t think this. We would think that there could be anything better for the disciples than having Jesus right there with him. Yet, Jesus says that it is to their advantage that he leaves, and that the Holy Spirit comes upon them.

The Spirit can minister everywhere. Jesus in his humanity was able to be in only one place at one time. But the Spirit would come and indwells the disciples, and could be with each disciple wherever they might be!

The Spirit can minister at all times. Jesus in his humanity was able to minister to his disciples as long as he was awake and aware. But the Spirit would come and be with the disciples at all times throughout the day or the night. whenever something is needed, the Holy Spirit can deliver.

The Spirit can minister deep to the heart. Jesus in his humanity was able to counsel his disciples and direct them and teach them and comfort them. But the Spirit, residing in the heart of every believer, could personally direct and guide and teach each of the disciples.

This is good news for the disciples. This is good news for us.

Do you realize that you, as a believer in Jesus are better off than the disciples were, who walked and talked with Jesus? Often, we can fall into this mindset, that it would have been better for us if we had lived in the days of Jesus to be one of his disciples, to see him, to watch his ministry, to see him teach, to feel his touch. But it’s not! It’s better for his disciples that the Spirit came! It’s better for us that the Spirit is with us! It’s better, not only for us, but for our evangelism. Look at verses 8-11.

John 16:8-11
And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

As we tell others of Jesus, We are like the salesman, doing the discouraging work of making sales calls, most of which will be rejected. But we aren’t relying on percentages, as if we tell 100 people of Jesus, that only one will respond. No, it’s far more encouraging than this. Jesus is telling us that when we tell others of Jesus, there is someone else telling them of Jesus as well.

Do you remember my message from last week? I preached from two verses John 15:26-27, “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning." When we tell others of Jesus, the Spirit is working behind the scenes. The Spirit is the convicting those we speak with of sin, righteousness and judgment.

It’s as when the sales force makes their phone calls, the Holy Spirit is a co-worker on the other end, who prepares the way, “Hey Bill, It’s raining outside. Do you know of where we can get any umbrellas?” Then you call. the phone rings on the other end, and you give your sales pitch, “Rain or shine, don’t get caught unprepared! This is Bob from StormShield Umbrellas. We’ve got the toughest, most reliable umbrellas on the market—windproof, waterproof, and designed to last. Are you interested in umbrellas today?” Your sale is almost guaranteed! why? Because there was someone on the other end who was preparing the way.

This is what the Holy Spirit does in the lives of those we speak with. He prepares the way by preparing the heart of the hearer. quietly working in the hearts of people before we even speak with them.

The Holy Spirit convicts of sin, by showing the reality of our separation from God and the moral standard of holiness that we fall short of. The Holy Spirit brings awareness of our need for forgiveness and the consequences of sin in our lives.

The Holy Spirit convicts of righteousness, by revealing the need we have to be righteous before a holy God. The Holy Spirit points us to the righteousness of Christ, showing that through faith in Him, we are made right with God.

The Holy Spirit convicts of judgment, by exposing the brevity of life, and how we will stand before the Lord to give an account for our lives. The Holy Spirit reveals the certainty of God's final judgment, making clear that our only hope is in Jesus and in his righteousness.

These words bring to mind Paul’s evangelism before Felix.

Acts 24:24-25
After some days Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment,

Paul was aligning himself with the Holy Spirit, preaching a three-part sermon: 1. Righteousness 2. Self-control 3. The coming judgment. During and after his preaching, Paul waited for the working of the Holy Spirit. It says in verse 25 that "Felix was alarmed" at these words. He then said, "Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you” (Acts 24:25). I believe that the Holy Spirit was convicting Felix of his sin and he was having none of it. So he turned against Paul and sent him back into the prison cell and said, "when I want you back, I will call you back." Felix was hoping that Paul would give him some money (as a bribe) in exchange for his release (Acts 24:26).

I picture Paul in the prison cell, awaiting the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of Felix. We don't know exactly what the Holy Spirit was doing in the heart of Felix, but we do know that Felix "sent for him often and conversed with him" (Acts 24:26). So, there was some stirring in the heart of Felix. Perhaps Felix simply enjoyed the company and talking about spiritual.

Well, that money never came and neither did his release. For he was still in prison some two years later when Porcius Festus succeeded Felix (Acts 24:27).

So, in our evangelism, as we speak with others about Jesus, we don’t have to rely upon percentages of sales calls. We rely upon the Spirit to do his convicting work in the lives of an unbelieving world. When the Spirit does his work, people come to faith in Jesus, through our witness and the witness of the Holy Spirit (John 15:26-27).

This is really, then, a call to prayer, that the Holy Spirit might work in the lives of those with whom we interact, friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers or others. So I encourage you to take a moment and pray for those in your life who need the Lord.

<Pray>

OK, let’s move on to my last point,

Here’s the third timely word that Jesus gives us this morning: 

3. The Spirit will Guide You (verses 12-15).

John 16:12
I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

In this case, the timely word is that the timely word will come later. Jesus won’t speak the timely word to the disciples, the Spirit will. We see this in verse 13,

John 16:13
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

Notice here how the Spirit will “guide” the disciples.

Think about a tour guide. You come into a city, which vast and unfamiliar. But you connect with a tour guide, who lives in the city, and has studied the city, and knows the history, and the most important landmarks. The tour guide takes to the best sites in the city, explaining the significance of the places and the buildings and the plazas.

This is what Jesus said the Holy Spirit would do with the disciples. He would be their tour guide, leading them into all truth. "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth" (John 16:13).
 
I believe that this has reference to the guidance of the disciples in writing the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit was guiding these disciples, like Peter and Matthew and John, to write the truth down for us to know the important things about God. I believe that this also extended to Paul, as well, as the Spirit guided him into all truth.

I believe that this also has reference to the building of the early church.

Acts 13:1-3
Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

The Spirit launched them to spread the gospel to the world. The Spirit guided them in what they should do and where they should go. Consider what we read about their second missionary journey:

Acts 16:6
And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.

The apostles were wanting to go south into Asia, but the Holy Spirit prohibited them from going there. The Holy Spirit was guiding them.

Acts 16:7
And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.

Mysia was to the west. The apostles were permitted to travel there. But when they wanted to go north to Bithinia, the Spirit stopped them and did not allow them to travel there. So, they continued to travel west.

Acts 16:8-9
So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

Here we see the Spirit working through a vision of what Paul saw in the night. And when Paul saw the vision, he made a quick decision to go to Macedonia.

Acts 16:10
And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Here is the Holy Spirit working to guide the apostles in the early missionary efforts of the early church. In Acts 13:1-3, we read of how the Holy Spirit launched them out. And in Acts 16:6-10, we see the Holy Spirit guiding them in where they should go.

I do believe that the Holy Spirit guides us today. His guidance is a bit different than in the case of the apostles, where he spoke audibly to them. But the Spirit guides us by placing impressions upon our hearts, impressions to pray, to speak, to listen, to apologize, to serve, to comfort, to encourage, or to give. In encourage you to trust these impressions. This is what it means to abide in Jesus (John 15:1-11), as we constantly pray and trust the Lord go guide us each moment of the day.

The work of the Spirit is summarized in verse 14:

John 16:14
He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Catch this deeply. The role of the Holy Spirit is to glorify Jesus. We often think that the most spirit-filled church is the most exciting, bubbly, happy, loud, chaotic sort of church, where there's lots of clapping and lots of dancing and lots of activity. The bigger the activity, the more people think that the Holy Spirit is moving.

But I say that the most spirit-filled church is the most Christ-centered church, because role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church is not activity, but glorifying Jesus. A church that's merely interested in happy energy, isn't necessarily Spirit-filled. A church that is Spirit-filled is the church that is most centered on the work of Christ and the gospel. "He will glorify me." To the extent that we are Spirit-filled, we will be glorifying Jesus, who has redeemed us.

John 16:15
All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Everything that Jesus has is the Father's. The Holy Spirit will then take this and proclaim it to the world. The Holy Spirit will proclaim Jesus and the work that he did for us on the cross.

We ought to rejoice in these timely words. Yes, the world will had you, but the Spirit will help you and guide you. Let's be a church that's open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Let's be a church that's entirely focused upon exalting and glorifying Jesus.

This sermon was delivered to Rock Valley Bible Church on October 26, 2025 by Steve Brandon.
For more information see www.rockvalleybiblechurch.org.