Christ's Doctrine of Faith: A Study of "Believing" in John's Gospel (John 7:39)

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John 7:39 reads: “(But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)” (KJV). This is the forty-first time the idea of believing occurs in John’s Gospel. Though the context-analysis paragraph will be short, we will engage in our usual practice of analyzing the context and noting facts about faith we will glean from John 7:39!

So, let’s examine the context! The Lord Jesus Christ has just declared that, for the one believes on Him, rivers of living water will flow out from his belly, as the Scripture has said. Right after that declaration, the text tells us that, by the “rivers of living water,” Jesus is speaking of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, which those who believe on Him should receive, since the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus’s glorification had not come yet. This is the context of John 7:39!

Now, what can we learn about faith from John 7:39? First, belief in Christ leads to the reception of the Holy Spirit. We see a confirmation of this truth in Galatians 3:2. Second, we see here how faith in Christ conforms one to the image of Christ (see also Romans 8:28-30). When one believes in Christ, receiving Him for who He is and what He has done, the Holy Spirit comes to live in Him yes, but to live in Him to accomplish what purpose? To make him like Christ in His perfect moral character, in both the outer and the inner man. This is why faith is a gift of God (Philippians 1:29) that transforms the soul [1], and why it will produce good works as a tree’s root produces fruit (Luke 3:7-14) [2]. Third, though this was mentioned in the previous post, faith in Christ makes the believer a spiritual blessing to others. In verse 38, Jesus says that rivers of living water will flow out of the believer’s belly. In verse 39, the text clarifies that the Lord is using a figure of speech to describe the Holy Spirit. So, in verse 38, Christ is saying that the Holy Spirit, in and through the believer, will spiritually bless others, since verse 38 says that this living water flows OUT of the believer’s belly. These are some things we can learn about faith from John 7:39!

[1] https://www.gracegems.org/07/08/faith.html

[2] Credit for pointing out the Bible's use of the tree-and-fruit analogy goes to the itinerant preacher Paul Washer. I do not recommend Mr. Washer for those who are unhealthily introspective, but I do want to give credit where it is due.