In this sermon, Pastor Nathan explores Jesus’ promise of the Holy Spirit in John 14:25–31 and explains how the Holy Spirit brings peace to believers.
Pastor Nathan has long held that the pulpit is not a platform for ongoing political commentary — it exists to exalt Christ, proclaim the gospel, and declare the righteousness of God's truth. Yet being centered on Christ does not mean being silent about society. We are called to be salt and light in our communities.
Not all civic issues are alike. Jagged line issues — such as fair housing, economic policy, and international relations — involve principles where sincere Christians may disagree on application. But straight line issues move directly from biblical command to clear application, without question.
Two amendments are before Virginia voters in the coming weeks. Both are straight line issues requiring a biblical response.
Amendment 1: Would make abortion a constitutional right in Virginia, expanding its reach to later stages of pregnancy.
Amendment 2: Would repeal Virginia's existing amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman, constitutionalizing same-sex marriage.
Brothers and sisters — exercise your God-given responsibility. Vote no to both.
Every time we turn on the news, we are reminded: we live in a world at war. Historians have observed that human history is little more than a timeline of broken peace treaties — and that peace itself is only a momentary interlude for both parties to reload.
From ancient conflicts to present-day tensions between Iran, the US, and beyond — the nations have never found lasting peace.
A battle over truth itself — what is right, what is marriage, what is life — plays out in courtrooms, legislatures, and culture.
Questions of identity, purpose, and completeness create an inner restlessness no worldly solution can cure.
Cosmic powers — angels and demons — war over the people of God. This warfare is real, unseen, and unceasing.
At the root of all warfare is this: humanity is at war with God. Our lack of peace with God is precisely why we have no peace in the world, in society, or within ourselves. Into this war-torn reality, Jesus came — taking on flesh — that we might have peace.
"These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, 'I am going away, and I will come to you.' If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place, you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here."
— John 14:25–31
The Holy Spirit is a Presence of Peace. Last week we explored the Holy Spirit as God with us and within us. Today we see Him as our Helper — sent by the Father in the name of the Son — to instruct our hearts and to be the living peace of Christ dwelling within us.
In John 14, Jesus unpacks the glories of the Holy Spirit — referred to by the Greek word Parakletos, meaning "one called alongside." He walks with us in companionship and works within us to refine our affections, reshape our desires, and conform us to the image of Christ.
John 14:15–24 — The Spirit enables obedient love. "If you love me, keep my commandments." Our love for God is demonstrated through holy living — in marriage, purity, words, and worship. None of this is possible apart from the Spirit's daily help.
John 14:25–31 — The Spirit teaches us peace with God and the peace of God. He is a living seal, a guarantee of right standing before the Father — bringing the words of Christ to life within the believer's heart and mind.
And it is no coincidence that the Apostle Paul, writing to the Galatians, names the first three fruits of the Spirit as love, joy, and peace — the very marks Jesus speaks of most deeply in John 14–17. These are the preeminent signs that someone belongs to Jesus.
"He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." — John 14:26
Jesus first made this promise to His disciples — men who had no written New Testament, only the Old Testament Scriptures. The Spirit would teach them and bring Christ's words to remembrance. These disciples — Peter, John, Paul, Mark — would become the very authors of the New Testament, writing as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21).
The Bible is therefore inerrant, infallible, and authoritative — the very sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6), profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3).
The Spirit no longer inspires new Scripture, but He illuminates the Scripture already given. An unbeliever may read the Bible and sense a vague majesty — but without the Spirit, true comprehension is beyond reach. For the believer, the Word comes alive. As Paul writes, "To set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace" (Romans 8:6).
A woman studying English literature at Oxford — a feminist agnostic — was required to read the Tyndale and King James Bible. She came to find fault. Instead, she was captured by its glory and eventually came to saving faith. Then she said: after believing, the Bible came alive like never before.
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you." — John 14:27
Scripture is clear: humanity is by nature at enmity with God, enemies deserving death. Peace with God is a status — the declaration that through Christ's blood, the war is over. We are reconciled. Justified. Forgiven. This is vertical peace — the foundation upon which all else rests.
The peace of God is the outworking effect of peace with God. It is the sense of completeness, wholeness, and shalom — the rich Hebrew word meaning not merely the absence of conflict, but the fullness of flourishing, contentment, harmony, and fulfillment. It transcends circumstances.
Jesus says "my peace" — not a commodity, but His very own peace: the peace He enjoys in perfect fellowship with the Father. A peace of righteousness and right standing. He descended into our hell to give us His shalom. As one theologian says, peace is "the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ."
Hell is not a place of indulgence or dark sovereignty. Satan does not reign there — he dreads it and will be cast in at final judgment (Revelation 19–21). Hell is the place where God's common grace is entirely removed.
John Milton's caricature — "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven" — is mythology, not Scripture. Hell is not sovereignty. It is destruction.
This is the weight Jesus bore. He — sinless, righteous, at peace with His Father — voluntarily entered death. Not because sin had any claim on Him. Not because He deserved it. But because He chose it. "So that the world may know that I love the Father."
Jesus took our hell. He absorbed the just wrath of God against sin. He gave us His peace in exchange — peace with God, purchased by His blood, and the ongoing peace of God, delivered by His Spirit.
"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
— Romans 8:1
If you know where you stand — that you deserve hell but have been given His peace — how can that not produce in you love, joy, confidence, and security? The Holy Spirit whispers it still: You are secure in Christ. Nothing can pluck you out of His hand.
In verse 28, Jesus says, "I am going away, and I will come to you." He gently rebukes the disciples for grief — they are so consumed with their own loss that they have missed the glory of the plan. He must go so the Spirit can come. The Father is "greater" here not in divine nature (a point that refutes Arianism), but in positional headship and earthly context — Jesus in His incarnation has not yet re-entered the Father's full glory. That glory He reclaims in the resurrection. The Spirit — sent as the living deposit of Christ's presence — becomes our guarantee of peace, our assurance of right standing, our Companion in every moment of warfare and doubt.
In verses 30–31, Jesus declares: "The ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me." Satan would be permitted to bring Jesus to the cross — but not because death had any rightful claim. Jesus was sinless. He was not under the curse of Adam. Death was not deserved; it was volunteered — an act of love for His Father, a love that bleeds outward to invite all who believe into that same divine fellowship. And because the enemy has no claim on Jesus — and you are united to Christ, hidden in Him — the enemy has no claim on you. Rise. Let us go from here.
If you are here this morning and abortion is in your past — there is grace. If you are wrestling with same-sex attraction, gender confusion, or any other struggle the culture has named and the world has normalized — there is grace. In Christ, there is forgiveness, joy, and the real possibility of growth and transformation.
Like the Apostle Paul wrote: "And such were some of us" (1 Corinthians 6:11). Come to Jesus — no matter what is in your past. His peace is for you. His Spirit is for you. His arms are open.
Then rise — as Jesus said to His disciples. Go from here bearing the peace of God that transcends all understanding. Let the Holy Spirit's love, joy, and peace flow through you to a world still at war. Exercise your faith in your home, your workplace, your vote, and your witness. Be the salt and light you were called to be.
The enemy has no claim on Christ. You are in Christ. The enemy has no claim on you.
"To set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace."
— Romans 8:6
He illuminates the Word and brings Christ's truth to remembrance.
He took our hell and gave us His shalom — peace with God and the peace of God.
He dwells within as a seal and guarantee of our right standing in Christ.
In Christ, there is no condemnation — rise and go forth in His victory.
The Holy Spirit: A Presence of Peace