Breaking the Word

"A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me."  So some of his disciples said to one another, "What does this mean that he is saying to us, 'A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me,' and 'Because I am going to the Father'?" So they said, "What is this 'little while' (of which he speaks)? We do not know what he means." Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, "Are you discussing with one another what I said, 'A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me'? Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy. (Jn 16:16-20)

Jesus was revealing the father to his disciples and so doing he was revealing himself. One of the points of revelation was about his future: where he will be and where he will go to etc. The disciples did not understand this revelation. They had listened to him many times and most of Jesus’ revelation they understood. But the present revelation they did not understand.

Jesus was talking about his going to the father. But the disciples were not understanding this. Jesus was talking about the father and the heavenly things but the disciples were understanding everything in earthly way and in relation to here and now. They were so much caught up by this world and the thoughts of the world that they found it very difficult to understand the heavenly realities and the revelation of heavenly things.

The disciples will weep and mourn because Jesus has left them in this world and this world will hate them and persecute them. The world will be rejoicing in its own way. Grief and rejoicing are also this worldly realities and expression and feelings. This worldly feelings are not for ever. They would not last longer. The grief that thie disciples feel in this world are of no importance. The true rejoicing are lasting and in fact they are from God.

"I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming. He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. Everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. (Jn 16:12-15)

Jesus came into the world to reveal God. He did reveal God to his disciples. He has not completed the revelation of all the truth because the disciples were not prepared to receive it all at once. They needed time and space to receive. They needed to wait for sometime to receive certain aspects of truth. The Holy Spirit whom the father sends will lead all men to all truth.

The spirit has only one job to do. He will declare all and so doing he will glorify Jesus. His declarations are independent ones but they are all from Jesus and hence he is only to complete the work that Jesus has begun. He will complete it because he will continue the same work of Jesus. Because of this continuity and completion and through this, that the spirit will glorify the son.

This is in no way to say that Jesus is independent and he has his own specific works. All what he does and speaks are from the father. Everything that belongs to the father belongs to Jesus. So Jesus is like the father and the spirit continues to do the same work like Jesus and hence he is like Jesus. Individuality and the identity of the three persons are declared by Jesus in this passage.