Jesus had just told His disciples that He was leaving them, that one of them would betray Him, the bravest of the bunch would deny Him, and that the rest of them would scatter. The disciples didn’t know what to make of this news. Jesus had been telling them that He would be handed over, beaten, and crucified but none of that had really begun to sink in yet…until now. As the disciples wondered about what Jesus was telling them and questioned where He was going that they couldn’t follow they became disquieted and their hearts grew troubled. They wrestled with concerns like how they would function without Jesus and whether or not they would ever see Him again. It is in this trouble and the anxiety of His disciples that Jesus speaks comforting words of truth that they would not be shaken.
Do you know that this is who our Lord is? Paul calls Him in 2 Cor. 1:3-4, “The God of all comfort…who comforts us in our every affliction.” Isaiah 63:9, says of the Savior and His people, “In all their affliction He was afflicted.” One of my most cherished verses of our Lord (Is. 42:3) says, “A bruised reed He will not break and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish…”. In our brokenness, our weakness, and afflictions – He is not quick to snap and toss us aside like a twig or stomp us out like a burning ember but he stoops to mend, to strengthen, and to fan our weak faith that we would not be troubled but trust in Him. What we learn in Jesus’ interaction with His disciples is that He loved us enough to die for us and He loves us enough to care for and equip us not to be troubled. He says in John 14:1, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” There is God’s will on the issue of trouble and our response to it. Jesus then continues, “Believe in God; Believe also in Me.” The way to freedom from a troubled heart and rest in anxiety is to put our trust in the Lord.
What does our Lord give us to believe and hold to? Well, number one, He gives us Himself. He says, “Believe in Me.” Our hope when we are troubled is to put our trust in Almighty God. He is the One who holds all things. He is the ruler over all things. As the hymn goes, “Though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.” What else does Jesus give us to believe? His promises. As another hymn sings, “Standing on the promises that cannot fail. When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail, By the living Word of God I shall prevail, Standing on the promises of God.” There is promise after promise in John 14 and throughout all of Scripture for us to hold to and rest in because of Jesus Christ and what He has done for us. We can take God at His Word because He always keeps His promises. He has demonstrated and proven this to be true. How do I let not my heart be troubled? How do I stand firm in this world – in light of my past, my sin, my anxieties, the pressures upon me, the uncertainties before me, and the questions within? By looking to the Savior Jesus Christ and standing on His Word. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life.” It is only in, by, and because of Jesus.
Keep Looking To Christ, Pastor Rudy