Christ Our Comforter
Nearly all denominations teach only the first part of the promise of the Comforter, which is JOHN 14:16-17. But what does the full promise of JOHN 14:16-23 say about who our Comforter is? Our Lord Jesus Christ expressly said that He Himself would come to us (JOHN 14:18) and be in us (JOHN 14:20), for He would manifest Himself to us (JOHN 14:21-22). See the full promise for yourself:
John 14:16-23 ..."And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU COMFORTLESS: I WILL COME TO YOU. Yet a little while, and the World Seeth Me No More; But Ye See Me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I AM IN MY FATHER, AND YE IN ME, AND I IN YOU. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I WILL LOVE HIM, AND WILL MANIFEST MYSELF TO HIM. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, LORD, HOW IS IT THAT THOU WILT MANIFEST THYSELF UNTO US, AND NOT UNTO THE WORLD? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and We Will Come Unto Him, And Make Our Abode With Him."
Did Christ proclaim that He Himself is our Comforter? Any Biblical question must be answered with Biblical definitions, not human traditions. See for yourself the Biblical definitions (combined with SOP quotes) for all of the Comforter passages from John chapter 14 to chapter 16:
Question - Who is the "Comforter" (Greek: parakletos)? John 14:16
Answer - 'My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an ADVOCATE (GREEK: PARAKLETOS) with the Father, JESUS CHRIST THE RIGHTEOUS.' 1 John 2:1
"LET THEM LINK UP with one another and with CHRIST. Let them study the seventeenth of John, and learn how to pray and how to live the prayer of Christ. HE IS THE COMFORTER. He will abide in their hearts, making their joy full. His words will be to them as the bread of life." (RH, Jan 7, 1903 )
"CUMBERED WITH HUMANITY, CHRIST COULD NOT BE IN EVERY PLACE PERSONALLY; therefore it was altogether for their advantage that He should leave them, go to His father, and send the Holy Spirit to be His successor on earth.
THE HOLY SPIRIT IS HIMSELF divested of the personality of humanity and independent thereof. HE WOULD REPRESENT HIMSELF as present in all places by HIS HOLY SPIRIT, as the Omnipresent." 14MR 23.3
Question - - Who will 'abide with you forever' John 14:16
Answer - 'Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS, even unto the end of the world. Amen.' Matthew 28:20
"While JESUS ministers in the sanctuary above, HE IS STILL BY HIS SPIRIT THE MINISTER OF THE CHURCH ON EARTH. He is withdrawn from the eye of sense, but HIS PARTING PROMISE IS FULFILLED, 'LO, I AM WITH YOU ALWAY, EVEN UNTO THE END OF THE WORLD.' Matthew 28:20. While He delegates His power to inferior ministers, HIS ENERGIZING PRESENCE is still with His church." DA 166.2
Question - Who is 'truth?' John 14:17
Answer - ' Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.' John 14:6
Question - Who is the 'Spirit of truth?' John 14:17
Answer - 'And because ye are sons, God hath SENT FORTH THE SPIRIT OF HIS SON INTO YOUR HEARTS, CRYING, ABBA, FATHER. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God THROUGH CHRIST.' Galatians 4:6-7
Question - Did Christ ever refer to Himself as 'He'? John 14:17
Answer - 'But HE that entereth in by the door is the SHEPHERD OF THE SHEEP. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear HIS VOICE: and HE calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when HE putteth forth HIS own sheep, HE goeth before them, and the sheep follow HIM: for they know HIS voice. ... I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.' John 10:2-4, 16-18
"But little did they yet suspect who their traveling companion was. They did not think that the subject of their conversation was walking by their side; for CHRIST REFERRED TO HIMSELF AS THOUGH HE WERE ANOTHER PERSON." DA, 800
Question - Does Christ 'come to you'? John 14:18
Answer - 'Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I WILL COME IN TO HIM, AND WILL SUP WITH HIM, and he with me.' REVELATION 3:20
"ONLY CHRIST CAN CLEANSE THE SOUL TEMPLE. But He will not force an entrance. He comes not into the heart as to the temple of old; but He says, 'Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I WILL COME IN TO HIM.' Revelation 3:20. HE WILL COME, not for one day merely; for He says, 'I will dwell in them, and walk in them; ... and they shall be My people.' 'He will subdue our iniquities; and Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.' 2 Corinthians 6:16; Micah 7:19. HIS PRESENCE WILL CLEANSE AND SANCTIFY the soul, so that it may be a holy temple unto the Lord, and 'an habitation of God through the Spirit.' Ephesians 2:21, 22." DA, 161
Question - Is Christ 'in you?' John 14:20
Answer - 'I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but CHRIST LIVETH IN ME: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.' Galatians 2:20
"When God's people take the position that they are the temple of the Holy Ghost, CHRIST HIMSELF ABIDING WITHIN, they will so clearly reveal Him in spirit, words and actions, that there will be an unmistakable distinction between them and Satan's followers." Ms100, July 14, 1902
Question - Christ said "we will come" - Who comes with Christ? John 14:23
Answer - 'Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; AS THOU, FATHER, ART IN ME, AND I IN THEE, THAT THEY ALSO MAY BE ONE IN US: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; THAT THEY MAY BE ONE, EVEN AS WE ARE ONE: I IN THEM, AND THOU IN ME, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.' John 17:20-23
"IF YOU CONTINUE TO BELIEVE AND OBEY THE TRUTHS YOU FIRST EMBRACED REGARDING THE PERSONALITY OF THE FATHER AND THE SON, you will be joined together with Him in love. THERE WILL BE SEEN THAT UNION FOR WHICH CHRIST PRAYED just before his trial and crucifixion: 'That they all may be one; AS THOU, FATHER, ART IN ME, AND I IN THEE, THAT THEY ALSO MAY BE ONE IN US: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I IN THEM, AND THOU IN ME, THAT THEY MAY BE MADE PERFECT IN ONE; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me."
RH, Mar. 8, 1906, par. 18-19
Question - Who made "our abode" with us? John 14:23
Answer - 'Now OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF, AND GOD, EVEN OUR FATHER, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, COMFORT YOUR HEARTS, AND STABLISH YOU IN EVERY GOOD WORD AND WORK.' 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17
"By the Spirit the FATHER AND THE SON WILL COME AND MAKE THEIR ABODE WITH YOU." BEcho, Jan 15, 1893
Question - Who teaches us all things? John 14:26-28
Answer - "But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him." 1 John 2:27
"THE HOLY SPIRIT IS CONSTANTLY AT WORK, TEACHING, reminding, testifying, coming to the soul as a divine Comforter, convincing of sin AS AN APPOINTED JUDGE AND GUIDE. CHRIST WAS THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH. The world will not listen to HIS PLEADINGS. They would not ACCEPT HIM AS THEIR GUIDE. They could not discern unseen things; spiritual things were unknown to them. BUT HIS DISCIPLES see in Him the Way, the Truth, and the Life. And they shall have HIS ABIDING PRESENCE. THEY SHALL HAVE AN EXPERIMENTAL KNOWLEDGE OF THE ONLY TRUE GOD AND OF JESUS CHRIST WHOM HE HATH SENT." SW, Oct 25, 1898
Question - Did Christ talk about the Comforter in the style of proverbs?
Answer - "These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father." John 16:25
"The thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth chapters of John need careful study and earnest practice if we honor God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent." Lt 16j-1892.3
Question - Who is the Third Person of the Godhead?
Answer - "It is BY THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, WORKING THROUGH THE WORD OF GOD, THAT CHRIST SUBDUES HIS CHOSEN PEOPLE TO HIMSELF. In describing to His disciples the OFFICE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, Jesus sought to inspire them with the joy and hope that inspired His own heart. He rejoiced because of the abundant help He had provided for His church. The Holy Spirit was the highest of all gifts that He could solicit from His Father for the exaltation of His people. The Spirit was to be given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of men to this satanic captivity was amazing. Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the MIGHTY AGENCY OF THE THIRD PERSON OF THE GODHEAD, who would come with no modified energy, but in the fullness of divine power. It is the Spirit that makes effectual what has been wrought out by the world's Redeemer. IT IS BY THE SPIRIT THAT THE HEART IS MADE PURE. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. CHRIST HAS GIVEN HIS SPIRIT AS A DIVINE POWER to overcome all hereditary and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress His own character upon His church." DA, 671
"CHRIST GIVES THEM THE BREATH OF HIS OWN SPIRIT, the life of His own life. THE HOLY SPIRIT PUTS FORTH ITS highest energies TO WORK IN HEART AND MIND. The grace of God enlarges and multiplies their faculties, and every perfection of the divine nature comes to their assistance in the work of saving souls. THROUGH CO-OPERATION WITH CHRIST THEY ARE COMPLETE IN HIM, and in their human weakness they are enabled to do the deeds of Omnipotence." DA 827
Question - Why do we need to know that Jesus Christ is the Comforter?
Answer - "I COUNSEL THEE TO BUY OF ME gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and WHITE RAIMENT, THAT THOU MAYEST BE CLOTHED, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see." Revelation 3:18
"THE REASON WHY THE CHURCHES ARE WEAK AND SICKLY AND READY TO DIE, is that THE ENEMY has brought influences of a discouraging nature to bear upon trembling souls. He has SOUGHT TO SHUT JESUS FROM THEIR VIEW AS THE COMFORTER, as one who reproves, who warns, who admonishes them, saying, 'This is the way, walk ye in it.' CHRIST has all power in heaven and in earth, and HE CAN STRENGTHEN THE WAVERING, AND SET RIGHT THE ERRING." RH, August 26, 1890
Question - Finally, is this an eternal life issue?
Answer - ..."And THIS IS LIFE ETERNAL, that they might KNOW THEE THE ONLY TRUE GOD, AND JESUS CHRIST, whom thou hast sent." John 17:3
"Let the brightest example the world has yet seen be your example, rather than the greatest and most learned men of the age, WHO KNOW NOT GOD, NOR JESUS CHRIST WHOM HE HAS SENT. THE FATHER AND THE SON ALONE ARE TO BE EXALTED." The Youth's Instructor, July 7, 1898, par. 2
(Source: One True God Ministry)