Lecture 2 — Expedience of Christ’s going

^16:5^ And now I go to him who sent me, and none of you ask me: where do you go? [n. 2083]

^16:6^ But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. [n. 2084]

^16:7^ But I tell you the truth: it is expedient to you that I go: for if I go not, the Paraclete will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. [n. 2086]

2082. Above, our Lord dealt with what would console his disciples in their coming troubles. Here he deals with what will console them against his leaving. Our Lord consoles them against his leaving with three considerations: first, they will have access to the Father, as promised when he said, let not your hearts be troubled . . . in my Father’s house there are many mansions (John 14:1–2); second, because he was going to send the Paraclete, and so he said, and I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete (John 14:16); third, they will see him again, as he said, I will not leave your orphans, I will come to you (John 14:18). He explains these three things here, but not in the above order.

First, we see the promise of the Spirit;

second, the fact that they will see him again: **a little while, and you will not see me; and again a little while, and you will see me **(John 16:16);

third, we see their access to the Father, at, **and in that day you will not ask me anything **(John 16:23).

He does two things with the first:

first, he mentions that they need some consolation;

second, he gives it, but I tell you the truth: it is expedient to you that I go.

He does two things with the first:

first, he foretells his leaving them;

second, he mentions the effect of this prediction: but because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.

2083. He is leaving them, going to the Father. He says, I was with you till now, now I go to him who sent me, that is, to the Father. This is a mark of perfection, for a thing reaches its perfection when it returns to its source: I am ascending to him who sent me (Tob 12:20); the rivers return to the place from which they came (Sir 1:7). He went, in his human nature, to the one with whom he was from all eternity, in his divine nature.

This was explained more fully before.

2084. He adds, none of you ask me, where are you going?

Why does he says this? For Peter asked, Lord, where do you go? (John 13:36); and Thomas said, Lord, we do not know where you go (John 14:5).

Both Chrysostom and Augustine give an answer to this, but not the same one. Chrysostom says that when the disciples heard that they would be killed and cast out of the synagogues, they became so sad and stunned that they practically forgot about Christ’s leaving them and losing the thread of his thought did not ask him about this. So Christ says, but because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Thus when our Lord says, and now I go to him who sent me, and none of you ask me, where are you going? he is really reproving them, according to Chrysostom. They did not question him about this: ask your Father, and he will show you (Deut 32:7); search out and seek, and she will become known to you (Sir 6:28).

Augustine, on the other hand, thinks that the statement, and now I go to him who sent me, does not refer to this very time when he is speaking, but refers to the time when he was to ascend into heaven. It was like saying: you asked me before where I was going; but I will be going now in such a way that you will not have to ask me, where are you going? because as they were looking on, he was lifted up (Acts 1:9).

2085. Now he mentions the sorrow of the disciples. For Chrysostom this sorrow is the effect of Christ’s prediction- For Augustine, their sorrow is the effect of Christ’s leaving, for they were glad to be in his presence, and attracted in a certain carnal way to him in his human nature, like one friend is pleased at the presence of another. So they were sad that he was leaving: weeping may tarry for the night, that is, the time of the passion, but joy comes to the apostles with the morning of the resurrection (Ps 30:5). It is human for sorrow to touch our hearts, but it is bad when it completely takes over our heart because it then destroys our reason. So he says, somewhat like a rebuke, sorrow has filled your hearts; do not give yourself over to sorrow (Sir 30:21); let not your heart be troubled (John 14:27).

2086. Now he mentions one of the things which will console them, the promise of the Holy Spirit.

First, he promises the Holy Spirit;

second, he foretells the effect of the Spirit: and when he has come, he will convince the world of sin (John 16:8).

2087. He does two things about the first.

First, he points out the necessity of his going;

second, he shows that his going is beneficial.

He says, sorrow has filled your hearts, because I am leaving; but you should rather be glad, because it is expedient to you that I go, that is, it is very necessary for you, for if I go not, the Paraclete will not come to you. Furthermore, my going is very fruitful and beneficial for you, because if I go, I will send him to you.

2088. But, could not Christ have sent the Holy Spirit while he was still living in the flesh?

He could have, because even at his baptism the Holy Spirit descended upon him in the form of a dove and never left him. Indeed, from the instant of his conception he received the Spirit without measure. But Christ did not choose to give the Spirit to his disciples while he was still living among them for four reasons. First, they were not prepared, for carnal love is contrary to the Holy Spirit, since the Spirit is spiritual love. Now the disciples were affected by a certain carnal love for the human nature of Christ, without yet being elevated to a spiritual love of his divinity. And so they were not yet ready for the Holy Spirit: from now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view, with carnal affection; even though we once regarded Christ from a human point of view, before his passion, we regard him thus no longer (2 Cor 5:16).

Second, Christ did not give them the Spirit then because of the characteristic of divine help, which is to be especially present in times of need: a stronghold in times of trouble (Isa 9:9); for my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me up (Ps 27:10). Now as long as Christ was with them, he was all the help they needed. But when he left they were exposed to many tribulations, and so another consoler and helper was very quickly given to them: he will give you another Paraclete (John 14:16); whom will he teach knowledge? Those who are weaned from the milk, those taken from the breast (Isa 28:9).

Third, the Spirit was not given then out of consideration for the dignity of Christ. As Augustine says in his book On the Trinity, Christ as human does not have the power to give the Holy Spirit, but he does as God. When he was with his disciples, he seemed to be human, just like them. And so that it would not seem that it was a mere human being who was giving the Holy Spirit, Christ did not give the Spirit before his ascension: the Spirit was not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (John 7:39); send her forth from the holy heavens (Wis 9:10).

Fourth, the Spirit was not given at that time to preserve unity in the Church. We saw that John indeed did no sign (John 10:41), and this was so in order not to divert the people from Christ, and to make the superiority of Christ over John more evident. But the disciples were to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that they could do even greater works than Christ had done: and greater works than these will he do (John 14:12). If the Holy Spirit had been given to them before the passion, the people might have become confused as to who really was the Christ, and they would be divided: you have ascended to the heights, and have given gifts to men (Ps 68:18).

2089. Chrysostom thinks that we can use this as an argument against the Macedonians. They say that the Holy Spirit is a creature and the minister of the Father and the Son. But if this were true, the coming of the Holy Spirit would not have been a sufficient consolation to the apostles for Christ’s leaving them. It would be like the departure of a king, where the substitution for him of one of his ministers would not be a sufficient consolation. Thus, because the Holy Spirit is equal to the Son, our Lord consoles them by promising that the Spirit will come.

2090. Yet if the Son and the Holy Spirit are equal, why is it to their advantage that the Son leave so that the Holy Spirit can come?

The Son left as far as concerns his bodily presence, but he came invisibly together with the Holy Spirit. If the Son had dwelt here invisibly and said, it is to your advantage that I go because the Holy Spirit will come, people would think the Holy Spirit was greater than the Son.