The Helper

And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper...that He may remain with you forever.

...you know and recognize Him, for He lives with you [constantly] and will be in you (Jn. 14:16,17).

Jesus called the Holy Spirit "The Helper" in Aramaic, translated in Greek as the Paraclete, in Latin as The Advocate.  All three of these terms, meaning the same thing, carry slightly different intonations to us.  Advocate, from the Latin, comes from the prefix "ad" (for) and from the root "vocare" (speak).  It is a legal term meaning Lawyer---one who speaks for us in a court of law, when we are accused of a crime.  I think the British still use the term "Advocate" today for their lawyers. 

The Holy Spirit helps us by speaking to us and for us.  As He spoke to the prophets long ago, and to those who wrote Scripture, so He speaks today within us.  He is the Voice of God to us, in us, and for us.  One way to listen to His voice is to keep a journal.  Not everything we write will be the voice of God, but eventually, if we are listening, we will hear God speak to us.  It was said of Samuel that he did not let [God's] words fall to the ground.  I wonder how many times the Advocate has spoken to us and we have let His words fall to the ground.  Keeping a journal is a way to listen to what God is saying to us.

Paraclete---from the Greek para (alongside of) and caleo (called).  The Paraclete is the One Called to be Alongside of us constantly and forever. Jesus promised that He would never leave or abandon us.  The way He remains with us is by pouring out in us and on us His own Spirit of Truth.  You will know Him and recognize Him because He will be in you (but not in the world.)

We have inside us a voice, a prompt, that recognizes Truth, that tells us when someone or something rings false. Our minds may not be able to discern the lie, but the Spirit inside us warns us, checks our steps, makes us hesitate.  The Spirit of Truth does not reside in the world; it is hard for "the world" to recognize Truth, so they chase after every lie and falsehood.  If we are tuned to the Spirit of Truth, we will often get a "funny feeling" that something is not right, although we may not be able to figure out exactly what's wrong.  That's often a good time to get alone with a journal, opening our hearts to the Spirit speaking within us.

One of the ways the Spirit operates in us is to make the Person of Jesus Christ live in us.  He turns the spotlight on the Scriptures and makes them real to us, allowing the Person of the Christ to emerge. 

The "fruit" or result of listening to the Spirit, the Helper, the Paraclete, the Advocate is peace and joy.  No longer are we tossed about with every wind and wave but our little boat remains steady and calm.  There is One given to us by Jesus Himself that breathes in us and speaks in us, Who says, Be not afraid; I am here.  What a Gift, the Helper!