Which Is Better – Jesus Next To Us Or the Holy Spirit Within Us?

Which Is Better – Jesus Next To Us Or the Holy Spirit Within Us?


In the Gospels, Jesus walked beside His disciples, taught with authority, healed the sick, and calmed the storms. It’s easy to long for such tangible closeness. Who wouldn't want to have Jesus next to them, offering direct answers and divine miracles on demand?


Yet, in a stunning and often overlooked promise, Jesus told His disciples something radical:


“It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you.” (John 16:7)


This wasn't poetic fluff. Jesus meant it. The transition from the old covenant age to the new creation in Christ wasn’t about losing something—it was about gaining everything.


The Limitation of Jesus Beside Us


When Jesus was physically on earth, His presence was geographically limited. He could be in Galilee or Jerusalem, but not both. He could minister to the crowds, but not simultaneously dwell within each person. His ministry—though perfect—was bound in time and space, and operated within the framework of the old covenant world-That world was passing away.


The Spirit Within – God's New Covenant Upgrade


Paul’s letters present a post-cross, post-parousia world where the fullness of God now dwells within believers, not in temples, tabernacles, or merely beside them. The Spirit is not an inferior substitute for Jesus’ physical presence. The Spirit is the presence of Christ—in unlimited measure.


“Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16)


“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27)


Jesus WITH US was wonderful. But Jesus IN IS transformative.


The old covenant temple system is gone. The separation between God and man has been permanently dissolved. There is no more “waiting for the Spirit” or “hoping for the kingdom.” The Spirit is here. The kingdom has come. And believers are the full expression of God's indwelling presence on earth.



Why This Is Better


1. Unlimited Access – No more pilgrimages. No more needing to find where Jesus is. He is within you. Always.



2. No Mediation Needed – The Holy Spirit communicates truth directly, without priests, rituals, or sacred buildings.



3. A New Creation Reality – The Spirit within is evidence that we are the new creation Paul spoke of (2 Corinthians 5:17), a post-70 AD reality where the presence of God fills His people.



4. Power to Transform – The Spirit sanctifies, teaches, convicts, comforts, and empowers from the inside out. It doesn't just guide beside us—it re-creates us inwardly.



5. True Rest and Union – We are no longer striving to reach God. He has made His home in us (John 14:23).




The Age of Fulfillment Is Here


In a Preterist framework, the promises Jesus made about the Spirit and the kingdom have already been fulfilled. We are not waiting for a future outpouring or hoping for Jesus to one day reign physically on earth. His reign is real now—in the realm of the Spirit—and His throne is within His people. The Holy Spirit isn't a placeholder for Jesus’ absence; He is the evidence of Jesus' exaltation.


"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (2 Corinthians 3:17)




Conclusion


As awe-inspiring as it would be to walk beside Jesus of Nazareth, we must not trade that for the glory of having His Spirit within. He didn’t just leave us with memories or instructions—He gave us Himself, in full measure, to dwell in our hearts and animate our lives. So the question, “Which is better—Jesus beside us or the Spirit within us?” isn’t merely hypothetical. It’s the foundation of new covenant life. And the answer is clear: The Holy Spirit within us is better.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

No One Knows the Day or Hour — Matthew 24:36, the Feast of Trumpets, and the Witness of 70 AD

 No One Knows the Day or Hour — Matthew 24:36, the Feast of Trumpets, and the Witness of 70 AD When Jesus said in Matthew 24:36, "But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only," many have taken this to mean a far-future, end-of-the-world event. But what if this phrase had a much more specific meaning to Jesus’ Jewish audience—one tied to their festal calendar, their historical context, and even the events of 70 AD? Let’s unpack this verse and its connection to the Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah), the idea of two witnesses, and the prophetic imagery of Revelation 11—all pointing to a first-century fulfillment. The Feast of Trumpets and the Phrase "No One Knows the Day or Hour" The phrase “no one knows the day or the hour” was commonly associated in Jewish idiom with the Feast of Trumpets—the only festival that began on a new moon (Tishri 1). Since the new moon is difficult to predict precisely, ancient I...
Read more

Ezekiel 38-39 has been fulfilled in the book of Esther-Quick Reference

Ezekiel 38-39 has been fulfilled in the book of Esther-Quick Reference ***The Jews’ victory caused 75,310 people (Esther 9:10, 15, 16). This corresponds with the enemy deaths in Ezekiel 38-39. ·          Esther 9:10 10 the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. But they did not lay their hands on the plunder . ·          Esther 9:15-16 15 The Jews in Susa came together on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, and they put to death in Susa three hundred men , but they did not lay their hands on the plunder . 16 Meanwhile, the remainder of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces also assembled to protect themselves and get relief from their enemies . They killed seventy-five thousand of them but did not lay their hands on the plunder. ·          Ezekiel 39:11 11 “‘On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, ...
Read more

Ezekiel 40

Image
INTRODUCTION Picture yourself as a Jew in the exile. You lost your home, your family, and even questioning your faith in the midst of God’s promises. You are traumatized and broken by the events that have transpired. All hope seems loss. Then Ezekiel the Priest says that you will inherit a new Temple and a new land with more responsibility added to you. More responsibility that you couldn’t fulfill the first time, which is why you are exiled in the first place. And get this, it is all invisible. This would have not gone well for Ezekiel by simply telling the Jews their inheritance was invisible. However, that’s not the case. Thankfully, our God is very descriptive about the measurements and dimensions of the Temple. We have a basis to compare the old Temple and old land to these new promises. Since the Jews were involved in the construction, they would be familiar with the size of the Temple and the land. When Ezekiel was telling the Jews about these measurements, it blew their mind...
Read more