When Jesus says the Advocate will come and convict the world in regard to sin, righteousness, and condemnation, he means something different by convict than is commonly understood. Ordinarily, to convict someone is to find them guilty of a crime or wrongdoing, and then condemning them to some sort of punishment. In a formal sense, a judge is the usual administrator of such a process.
Jesus, on the other hand, uses the word “convict” in referring to the role of the Advocate as we would use the word convince. The Holy Spirit will come and convince us of the truth about sin, righteousness, and condemnation to guide us on the right path that leads to the Heavenly Father. Jesus does not intend to condemn the world. He makes this clear when he says: “If anyone hears my words and does not observe them, I do not condemn him, for I did not come to condemn the world but to save the world (Jn 12:47).
Had Jesus meant to convict and condemn us, he would have referred to the Holy Spirit as our judge. Instead, he refers to the Holy Spirit as the Advocate. He sends the Holy Spirit as our Advocate, not our judge. An advocate is one who helps, supports, guides, and defends those in his or her charge. Jesus sends the Holy Spirit as our Helper, our Defender, our Light in a world of darkness to convince us about the values needed for righteous living.
Jesus wants us to live according to the values of God rather than the values of the world. Seek first the kingdom of God, he tells us (Mt 6:33). Make God's will the priority above all else, including material needs and personal desires. Jesus emphasizes the possibility of this orientation when he urges us to “be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). Jesus puts it this way because the holiness of God and his perfection are one in the same thing. “I am who I am,” God tells Moses (Ex 3:14). God is love, God is truth, God is beauty, God is unity, God is good, God is perfect, God is Holy.
In human terms, we might say that God is a person of integrity who always lives in a manner perfectly consistent with his values. God is never anything but God, and all that God does is always completely consistent with who God is. God is love, the very essence of his being (1Jn 4:8). God is slow to anger, generously merciful, gracious and kind (Ps 108:8-9). God is just and fair, showing no partiality (Rm 2:11). God is always faithful to these values because God is always true to himself.
The same can be said of Jesus. Jesus came to do the father’s will, and never deviated from that purpose. He was perfect in his resolve to carry out the will of the father as he understood it. He applied that understanding in his life to the best of his ability, even to the point of surrendering his life for our sake. Jesus remained true to himself and to what God called him to be. In human terms, Jesus was a person of integrity.
Jesus, therefore, is our model who shows us that living in accordance with the values of God means being true to ourselves as God fashioned us and called us to be. This is how Jesus lived (1 Jn 2:5-6). From the very beginning, God called us to a life of holiness (Eph 1:4). This universal call to holiness motivates Paul’s instruction to the Romans: “Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect” (Rm 12:2).
Living in a manner consistent with the values of God is a life of integrity made up ordinary things done with extraordinary devotion to God.[1] The Holy Spirit is our Advocate who guides us in this pursuit. When we listen to the Holy Spirit and follow the Word of God, we stay in a right relationship with God. We then have no fear of condemnation. A life of integrity based on the values of God is how we find true peace and lasting joy (1 Chron 29:17).
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