November 2

The Comforter

But I tell you the truth, it is for your benefit that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. — John 16:7 BSB

Why did the coming of the Comforter depend on Christ’s departure? One reason is that the Comforter could not come until the great offering for sin had been made. The Father sent the Son to be the atonement for the sins of the world. Without the shedding of blood, there could be no forgiveness of sins. Therefore, no redemption could be offered or applied until Jesus had made His great sacrifice. He had to go away and die before the Comforter could come. Christ’s humanity, like a precious alabaster box, had to be broken so that the sacred ointment of His blessed life could be poured out for the world.

It was also necessary for Christ to return to the Father as the Son of Man, representing humanity, and to be received into the Father’s embrace. Humanity had to ascend to heaven before the Spirit could descend to humanity on earth. Christ also said that He would send the Comforter. But He could not do this until He had returned to His glory and been exalted to His throne of power in His humanity.

These are some of the reasons why Jesus had to go away before the Comforter could come. We now live under the blessed reign of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we wish we could have lived during the time of Christ’s presence on earth and look back on that period as the brightest and most glorious days in history. But in reality, we have even greater privileges now than those who knew Christ in the flesh. We have the same blessed Presence, but without the limitations of a physical body. Christ is now available to millions everywhere, in ways far more profound than He was to the few who saw Him in person.