The Spirit shall not Speak of Himself

By: Demario Carter

A Difficult Text

When it comes to understanding the truth about the Holy Spirit, perhaps one of the most difficult Bible texts is John 16:13. Jesus says,

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.”

This text has been a stumbling block for many individuals. It is often used to promote the idea that the Holy Spirit is a distinct being, separate from the Father and the Son. It is often claimed that, because the Spirit of Truth “shall not speak of himself,” but shall only speak what he hears, he must therefore be a different God being other than Jesus because the spirit speaks of Jesus. This conclusion is a very common objection to the belief that the Holy Spirit is Jesus himself, divested of humanity, coming to the believer in spirit form. One may still question, how can we conclude that the Holy Spirit is indeed Jesus when Christ declared that the Holy Spirit “shall not speak of himself?” Clearly, the Holy Spirit speaks of Jesus. Let us take a closer look to discover what Jesus is really saying and we’ll let the Scriptures explain to us what our Lord meant when he said, “he shall not speak of himself.”

Did Jesus Speak of Himself?

First, let us consider when Jesus was on the earth. Did Jesus speak of himself?

“Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me [the Father]. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.” –John 7:16-18.

Notice what Jesus just said. Anyone who speaks of himself would be seeking his own glory. And since Jesus was not seeking his own glory, he would not speak of himself; his doctrine was of his Father. In fact, there is one who speaks of his own. He is called the father of lies. Of Satan, Jesus says, “When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” –John 8:44.

But didn’t Jesus often speak of himself? Didn’t he teach that “I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil” Matt. 5:17, “I am meek and lowly in heart” Matt. 11:29, “I am the bread of life” John 6:35, “I am the light of the world” John 8:12, and many more doctrines about himself? The answer, of course, is yes. But while he often spoke about himself, Jesus never spoke of himself. He says,

“For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. … whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.” –John 12:49, 50.

Based off Jesus’ statement here, would it be reasonable to say that the Son of man cannot be Jesus because the Son of man just said that he has not spoken of himself? Would anyone come to the conclusion that it must be someone other than Jesus speaking? Now, of course, that would be a preposterous claim. Yet, that is what many do with the statement of Jesus in John 16:13 regarding the Holy Spirit. They cling to the belief that, because the spirit of truth “shall not speak of himself,” but shall only speak what he hears, he must therefore be someone other than Jesus because the Spirit clearly speaks of Jesus. But what Jesus is simply saying is that he did not speak of his own authority or of his own source. Every word that Jesus spoke was of his Father. He simply taught what God told him to teach. In John 14:10 Jesus says,

“Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.”

Again, Jesus is simply telling us that what he says did not originate with himself; rather, the words originated with the Father. So what was Jesus saying in John 16:13 when he says the spirit of truth “shall not speak of himself?”

The Spirit Speaks of His Father

Well, first notice what Jesus did not say. He did not say that the spirit shall not speak about himself. Rather, he said the spirit “shall not speak of himself.” And there is a significant difference between these statements. When we read John 16:13, we often think in terms of the former, that the spirit shall not speak about himself; therefore, we conclude that the spirit cannot be Jesus because it is obvious that the spirit speaks about Jesus; he glorifies Jesus. But this is NOT what Jesus was saying. He said the spirit of truth “shall not speak of himself.” What Jesus is simply saying is that the spirit of truth would not speak of his own authority or from his own source. This is exactly how it was for Jesus while he was on earth; he did not speak of himself or from his own source. Rather, he only spoke what he heard from his Father. In like manner, the Spirit of Truth, as the spiritual manifestation of Jesus, would not speak of himself or from his own source. Rather, the spirit of truth would only speak what he hears and receives from the Father. The spirit of Jesus hears what the Father says and, in turn, reveals that truth to the believer. This is why Jesus says,

“He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” –John 16:14, 15.

Jesus says that all the Father has belongs to the Son. Therefore, all things that the Spirit of Truth receives from the Father belongs to the Son and is meant to glorify the Son. Who is it that actually receives from the Father and shows it to the believer? Notice this example:

“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him [Jesus Christ], to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he [Jesus] sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.” –Revelation 1:1 [Brackets mine]

This shows the intimate relations between the Father and his Son. The Father loves his Son so much that he reveals to his Son all things concerning his Son, who then reveals himself to us through the ministry of his angels. Notice what Jesus says,

“For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth him all things that himself doeth: and he will show him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.” –John 5:20.

Now in a broader sense, would it surprise you that Jesus could do nothing of himself? Jesus says,

“When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.” –John 8:28.

 Jesus could do nothing of himself, including speaking. The same is true of the Holy Spirit. The source of all that the spirit reveals is the Father. And since the Spirit of Truth is the personality of Jesus himself, the spirit only speaks from the authority of his Father, just as it was when Jesus was physically on earth.

Friends, it is a beautiful, wonderful truth that the Holy Spirit is not another being, but the spiritual manifestation of Jesus himself. It is he who does not speak of himself, but of his Father. He is he who is “… the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by [him].” –John 14:6

Jesus is the Comforter

In John 14, Jesus talks of the Comforter as a third person. He says,

“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.” –John 14:16, 17.

Whosoever could Jesus be referring to? Himself or someone else? It was Jesus who was dwelling with them whom the disciples knew. Friends, Jesus is the Comforter! It is he who wants to abide in your heart. Listen to his words to you today:

“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. … and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.”–John 14:18, 19, 21.

“Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” –2 Corinthians 3:17.

“But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.”—1 Corinthians 6:17

The Greatest Gift

Friends, what a wonderful comfort to know that it is Jesus himself, along with his Father, who abides in our hearts.  It is not another person who is like Jesus. The spirit of truth is none other than he who is the way the truth and the life. Read carefully this passage from the prayer of Jesus to His Father,

“I in them [followers of Christ], and thou [Father] in me [Jesus, the Son], 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 17:23

While Jesus was on earth, he often spoke about himself, but Jesus never spoke of himself. In like manner, the Spirit of Truth, being Jesus, reveals himself, but such revelations are not of himself; they originate with the Father. Whatsoever is revealed by the spirit was first received from the Father.

Brethren, I praise God for the greatest gift he could ever give; the gift of his Only Begotten Son. This gift is available for you today. God wants to give you this gift by giving you the Spirit of Truth, the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, the Son of God himself. Friends, do you have this gift? Do you want this gift of life? I leave you with these inspired words:

“The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. … And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. … He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” –Romans 8:16; Galatians 4:6; 1 John 5:12.