Sermon Transcript
the message note sheet that has most of the verses that we’re going to be looking at just on there this morning, or, you know, use an iPad or whatever you’re going to use. There’s one in the pew too. John chapter 16. Last week David Collister, our young adults pastor, actually got us started in this chapter, and we’re just going to pick it up at verse 5 and take a little quick tour through this this morning. And it kind of fits what’s going on here for some people that are saying goodbye to family, and it may be just saying goodbye to your children that are going off to camp right now, to the high school camp.
That’s going to be fabulous at Hume Lake. Or it could be because you’re saying goodbye to a student who’s graduating, and they’re going to move away from home. And there are a lot of feelings possibly connected to both of those. Now if you’re a middle school student, you know, and your sibling is going off to college or something, this might be like the best time in the world for you. You know, you get their room or whatever.
So you don’t have any feelings of grief over the whole thing. Maybe you do. But if you’re a parent, this can be a tough time. I mean, if it’s the first time you send your kids off to college, that could be a challenge emotionally for you. If you’re, you know, sending the last one off to college, that could be a challenge too.
That one is like a— it was a nightmare for Bernice and me when we dropped Katie off at college and she was our last one. And the first one was actually worse in some ways when Brent went off to college. We all got together together as a family, this was my great idea, that the night before Brent would leave from home to— we’d take him away to college, we would have a family meeting. And I decided as the spiritual leader of our family that we would all encourage Brent by saying something about what he meant to us and a memory that we had as a family. That was a major breakdown.
I mean, the whole thing, it was a disaster. All I’m saying is, if you want to do yourself a favor, First of all, don’t go to one of these meetings, but secondly, don’t call one of these meetings for your family. It was an emotional mess. I was an emotional mess. Afterwards, our other 2 children went to Bernice and they said, Mom, when we leave home, could you make sure Dad doesn’t have one of these meetings with us?
Okay? So all I’m saying is, you know, you have a variety of emotions when people leave. And that’s to be expected. In this passage that we’re looking at this morning in John chapter 16, Jesus has announced that he’s leaving and it left them actually in a state of grief. If you’ve opened the account to John 16, look at verses 5 and 6.
Now I’m going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, where are you going? Because I’ve said these things, you’re filled with grief. We sometimes use the word grief-stricken or grief-filled or whatever it is. Is they were emotionally a mess. Physically, emotionally, spiritually, mentally, I don’t know.
They were just a mess and they were hurting so much that they didn’t even think, as it says there, they didn’t even think to ask him, so where are you going? And what’s it going to be like? And how’s this going to be for you? They didn’t ask him any of that. They were just completely focused on themselves and the pain that they were in and the separation feelings that they were dealing with at this point in time.
And if you go to the end of the account, go ahead, go down to verse 33. Jesus picks up this again and he said, I’ve told you these things, and we’re going to look at these things briefly this morning, so that in me you may have peace. They didn’t have peace at that moment in time having heard the fact that he was leaving. In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world. We all, and we’ve looked at this verse before, We wish he would have said, you may have trouble, but he said, you will have trouble.
We wish he would have said, you might have trouble, you won’t have trouble, but he said, you will have trouble. And yet he said there’s a way, even in the midst of a troubled world, when you’re experiencing trouble, there’s a way to take heart. And so what he talks about in this passage lifts their spirits. It’s a way to lift their spirit. This is training in how to get up when life gets you down.
This is training and how to take heart when you’re living with a heavy heart. And so this passage really speaks to us because all of us, probably this week or maybe today or this afternoon or whatever it is, something is going to hit you that can produce in you a heavy heart. And you know what this is like. And sometimes when we have a heavy heart, we can go down the road and lose heart and just basically give up and, you know, quit or whatever it might be. And so what Jesus wants to do is show them how to take heart.
He talks to them about taking heart. So look at the passage with me because this can be very helpful to us. And what I want you to see is just 3 matters that help us take heart. Verse 7 is where we’ll start. I tell you the truth, it’s for your good that I’m going away.
Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you, and when he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment. In regard to sin, because men do not believe in me. In regard to righteousness, because I’m going to the Father where you can see me no longer. And in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine.
That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you. So what’s the first subject that Jesus focuses on with these individuals who are filled with grief? He focuses on the Holy Spirit. And I want you to notice that he calls the Holy Spirit in verse 7 the Counselor, and in verse 13 he calls the Holy Spirit the Spirit of Truth. And he tells us specifically what the Holy Spirit’s going to do as the Counselor.
Go back to verse 7. The Holy Spirit will convict the unbelieving world of guilt in 3 ways: in regard to sin, in regard to righteousness, and in regard to judgment. So if you’ve ever wondered, you know, what exactly is the Holy Spirit doing in the world, here’s a definition of that. The Holy Spirit is convicting those in the world who are guilty of their sin, righteousness, and judgment. So as the Counselor, He’s going to convict unbelievers of sins, especially the sin of unbelief.
If you don’t believe in Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, the Holy Spirit is going to be working to help you come to a place where you understand that you’re separated from God, as we all are, and we need a Savior. Our sin has separated us from God. And in this specific case, he’s talking about the sin of unbelief in Jesus Christ as the Savior. And then the Counselor will convict unbelievers of righteousness, which tells us of God’s righteousness but our unrighteousness. That God is righteous, we’re not.
He’s holy, we’re not. And therefore, because we are unholy people, our sin has separated us from God. So this whole matter of righteousness. And then the Counselor will convict unbelievers of coming judgment, that there is a day of judgment that is coming. The judgment’s going to come on Satan and all of his followers.
There’s a day when justice is going to be done on evil. It will be condemned, and it will be punished. Now let me ask you a question. Have you ever tried to bring up those 3 subjects with somebody who’s not a Christ follower? Sin, righteousness, and judgment.
And how did it go? Well, I know how this usually goes. It doesn’t go usually well at all, right? We’re going to talk about sin, righteousness, and judgment. And usually there’s a lot of pushback on sin, righteousness, and judgment.
So why is Jesus bringing this up at this point? Because from the beginning he had called these guys to be his followers, and he said from the beginning, and I’m going to teach you to be fishers of men. I want you to be witnesses for me. I want you to go into all the world and share the gospel, which concerns sin and righteousness and judgment. And Jesus as our Savior.
I want you to share that with others. And at this point in time, he’s just said to them, but I’m leaving now. Now, how would you feel if all of a sudden this challenge, this commission, is laid on you, and now you’re obligated to go into the world and share this gospel with others? I think it would put a burden inside of you, wouldn’t it? And that’s exactly what they’re feeling at this point.
My son Brian, when he finished his business degree, a graduate degree in business, he was given a job, or actually got a job working for a friend who owned a company, but he also owned Carvel Ice Cream, a Little Caesars store, and Cinnabon. So he had 3 stores, and my son went to work for him. And a couple months in, this owner said, I’m going to go up north and I’m going to launch some more stores. So I’m going to leave these 3 stores for you to take care of. Well, he was already burdened by the management responsibility of these 3 stores, and now a couple months in to have the owner leave and take off, it was a lot of pressure, especially on a young man who had just got married.
So if you could just put all of that scenario together, and he did the best that he could with it for several months after, but then he said, I’m not taking this any longer, and he moved on to some other things. Well, it’s kind of the same thing here. These guys are being saddled with the responsibility that they don’t feel they are adequate to handle. Are you adequate to handle the responsibility of talking to unbelievers about sin and righteousness and judgment? Answer: No, we’re not.
And what Jesus wants them to know is that that responsibility of convicting a person of sin, righteousness, and judgment is not their responsibility. It’s going to be the responsibility of the Holy Spirit who comes. But not only that, he says the Spirit of Truth will speak truth and guide you into truth, verse 13. And this Spirit of Truth who will come will come to make known that which I have already made known. Now that’s helpful just to think about, because if you’ve ever tried to script a conversation with somebody who’s outside the family of God, and you say to yourself, well, here’s what I’m going to say, and then they’ll say, and then I’ll say, and then they’ll say, and then I’ll say, and you think that, you know, I’ll just try to figure out in advance what we’re going to talk about, usually that doesn’t work.
Have you ever had that work? It’s never worked for me. I mean, I oftentimes go over things in my mind, even if it’s just a casual conversation with somebody we’re trying to fix the relationship. Have you done this? You know, you think about in advance, I’m going to try to start the conversation this way and all of that.
And usually it never goes the way that we plan to have it go at all. What’s Jesus saying here? He’s saying, and what you need to say in these conversations, I’m going to take care of that too, because the Spirit of Truth is going to be inside of you, and the Spirit of Truth will work to guide the conversation and lead you into the truth that needs to be said at this point in time. Now this is why— look at verse 7. This is why Jesus says, I tell you the truth, it’s for your good that I’m going away.
Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. See, they thought up to this point in time it was anything but good to hear Jesus say, I’m leaving. But Jesus is saying, no, you’ve got to understand it’s good that I’m going to leave, because when I leave, the Holy Spirit is going to come and reside in you, and he’s going to be with you, and he will counsel you, and guide you, and teach you, and comfort you, and encourage you, and help you, and correct you, and empower you. It’s a good thing that I’m leaving, because when I ascend, the Holy Spirit is going to descend, and you’re going to see things happen in ways that you could have never imagined. And if you follow the early church account where we’re told that Jesus said to them, you are to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world after the Holy Spirit comes upon you, after you’re empowered by the Holy Spirit, if you follow that that early account of the church, you know that the first thing that Peter did and the others was they stood downtown Jerusalem and they preached the gospel of sin and righteousness and judgment.
I mean, they went so far as to say, and you guys crucified the Savior, but God raised him up. And they gave this message, and instead of the people being put off by it, they said, what must we do to be saved? And if you know the account, there were 3,000 that were saved on that day, and that was all the result of the work of the Holy Spirit. Some of us this morning need to take heart in our witnessing in realizing that ultimately it’s not us who’s going to convict somebody or convince somebody that they need Jesus Christ. It’s God through the work of the Holy Spirit.
And it’s not a burden that we have to carry. Some of us are carrying a burden about this in such a way that we don’t even have conversations with unbelievers because we think our responsibility to convict them of sin and righteousness and judgment. It’s not.
Have you seen this where you’re talking to somebody and you don’t know what to say, but then you’re reminded of the fact that the Holy Spirit is in you? If you’re a follower of Christ, the Holy Spirit is in you, and you found yourself saying, Lord, would you show me what to say right now? Would you tell me what to say right now? And have you experienced this?
I’ve experienced this. I experienced it just recently. I was sitting in the home of a member of our church, and I was trying to figure out how do we get to this certain issue. There was something that we needed to talk about, and I didn’t want to force it. And so I was just praying underneath my breath, Lord, if you want me to talk about this, would you just make it happen?
Would you bring us in this conversation to that? And the Holy Spirit did. They brought the subject up. They opened the door. And I was able to just walk right through the door.
That wasn’t me opening that door. That was the Holy Spirit. You see, this burden of being His witnesses, of being saddled with this responsibility, was causing grief in them. And it could be causing grief in you because you think that it’s just all about what you convince others of. It’s not.
That’s what God does. So what’s Jesus saying here? He’s saying, look for the Holy Spirit to do what you can’t. Look for God to do through you what you can’t do. Ask him to guide you into the truth.
Ask him to work in that life of that person that you really care about who right now is rejecting Jesus Christ, and there’s no way that you’re going to convince them without the work of the Holy Spirit. Look for God to do what you can’t. There’s a second way that Jesus says take heart. Go on, look at verse 16, and I want you to notice as we read these few verses here, I want you to notice the 3 words a little while. A little while.
Verse 16, in a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me. Some of his disciples said to one another, what does he mean by saying, in a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me? And because I’m going to the Father. They kept asking, what does he mean by a little while? We don’t understand what he is saying.
Jesus saw they wanted to ask Him about this, so He said to them, are you asking one another what I meant when I said, in a little while you will see Me no more, and then after a little while you will see Me? I mean, it’s like you read this, is this a riddle or something? What’s going on here? And of course, we read this and we got hindsight advantage so that when we look at verse 16 where Jesus said, in a little while you will see Me no more, He was talking about what? We know.
His death. And the last part of the verse, verse 16, and in a little while you will see me. What was he talking about there? His resurrection and his post-resurrection appearances. But they didn’t know that.
They didn’t know what Jesus was getting at. They had no clue. So Jesus added, verse 20, I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. Now why would the world rejoice about Jesus’ death? Because they finally got rid of that fake Messiah.
They finally got rid of that troublemaker, but for his followers, they were going to mourn over that fact. You will grieve, Jesus said, but your grief will turn to joy.
And you’re thinking, how’s that? A woman— and he gives this analogy— a woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come. You know, the point of delivering this baby. But when her baby is born, she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. How many of you can identify with this?
Anybody? Yeah, no men, just women. I mean, what is this? This is a picture of the birthing experience, right? We recently were in the hospital for the birth of Tinley, which is really special, to our daughter-in-law and My son, second son.
And so we’re there in the hospital, and just before the baby was to be born, they brought us into her room, and she was in excruciating pain. I mean, she just wanted to get this thing over with. It was not going good at that moment in time. So, you know, we did everything we could. Bless you, bless you, this is going to be great, you know, and all the rest of that.
But at that moment, all she’s thinking about is this baby’s got to get out of here, right? And so all of that. Scene. And then they had the baby, and then we came back into the rooms, you know, a while later when they invited us back. And she was so happy.
Everything was fine. It was— she was ecstatic. And what Jesus is saying here is essentially the same thing. Yes, right now it’s bad, but there’s joy that’s coming. So he says in verse 22, so with you, now is the time of grief, but But I will see you again.
That’s a lot of certainty in that. And you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. What’s Jesus doing in this situation where they’re, they’re, you know, wallowing in self-pity that Jesus is going to leave them? Jesus is shifting their focus or their perspective and helping them see their immediate sorrow in light of the future, that this isn’t the end of the story. There’s more to this story.
Another way to say this is simply this: He wants them to know that on the other side of an excruciating crucifixion is exhilarating joy.
And He wants us to know that too, especially in circumstances where we need to take heart. Remember last week David commented on Hebrews chapter 12, verses 1 to 3, where it says, therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him who has endured such hostility by sinners against himself, so that you may not grow weary— and here it is— and lose heart.
See, we’re all prone to lose heart, aren’t we?
We’re all prone to experience an ongoing heavy heart. You know, I was able to quote that from memory Why I was able to do that? Because some years ago, in the midst of heavy heart circumstances, I said, I got to memorize some scripture that can give me some hope right now. And this was one of the important scriptures to me because this scripture speaks about the importance of fixing our eyes on Jesus, the one who for the joy set before him endured the cross. Yes, there was an excruciating crucifixion, but he went through the excruciating crucifixion in light of the exhilarating joy that was yet to come.
And what Jesus is trying to say to them right now to lift their spirits and to lift their hearts is that this is just for a little while. This is not permanent. This is just for a little while. And in their case, it was just a very short little while. That they were going to experience this grief.
And in the same way, the Scripture talks about how our pain and our suffering is just for a little while. 1 Peter 1:6, in this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. And then again later in 1 Peter 5:10, and the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong and firm and steadfast. What’s Jesus saying to them to help them lift their spirits? He’s saying you look for the work of the Holy Spirit, and you look past— you’ve got to look past excruciating pain to exhilarating joy.
This is not the end of the story. There is joy coming. And live the present in light of the fact that there is a coming joy. I mean, some of you students know this right now, right? I don’t know if all of you are out of school.
If you’re in Sunnyvale Middle School District or that district, Sunnyvale, you’re probably still in school and you’re getting out on Wednesday or sometime this week or whatever it is. But some of you just finished school. And part of the ability to endure those last days of school is knowing this is going to be over really soon and we’re going to start summer vacation. And some of you are living that way right now with regard to your life too. You’re just thinking, I can hardly wait to get to vacation.
Did you notice, YoPros, how happy David was last week because he was just a couple of days before leaving for Hawaii for this 10-day vacation. I mean, that’s enough to get you excited. And some of us, you know, we’re looking at the weather report the last couple of days because things got a little bit warm here. I’m going to use those words, a little bit warm here. They weren’t as warm as over in the valley where, you know, Merced, where we have a lot of family.
It was 107 there yesterday, which equaled Phoenix, Arizona, that was 107. And you’re in the midst of that, what are you thinking about when you’re in the midst of that? You’re not thinking, oh, this is going to be the rest of my life like this. I hate this. I can’t stand this.
Now if you’re in Phoenix, you’re thinking, this could go on for a long time. Yeah, it’s true. It probably is going to go on until about September, October. If you look at the 10-day forecast, it’s over 105 every day right But here, you know, some of us the last couple of days, we checked the forecast and we knew it was going to drop some today and it’s going to drop some more tomorrow. And we’re like, okay, I could do this.
I could get past this. And that’s what Jesus is suggesting here. You’ve got to see your immediate circumstances in light of the fact that this is just for a little while. And so look past this to the exhilarating joy which Jesus focused on that’s yet to come. And as we do that, our spirits lift.
Then there’s one other matter that Jesus brings up. Verse 23: In that day you will no longer ask— and I want you just to note the word ask here— in that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. By the way, let me just just make a note here because this is a shift now. He’s telling them that they could go directly to the Father through him, through Jesus.
We can go— if you have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, you don’t have to go through somebody else to get to God. You could go directly to God through Jesus Christ. And he’s now telling them this wonderful news that he is opening a direct door of access to God, and they can ask in Jesus’ name for what they need. Until now, He says, verse 24, you’ve not asked for anything in my name. So He’s teaching them a new way of praying: Ask, and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
I think that’s interesting. Maybe one of the reasons our joy isn’t complete is because we’re not asking the Father in Jesus’ name. Jesus is saying, complete joy. And some of us, you know, have heard that joy is unconditional. No, it’s conditioned right here upon prayer.
It’s upon— it’s conditioned upon our asking the Father in Jesus’ name. And the result of asking the Father in Jesus’ name is experiencing joy that’s complete, that’s perfect, lacking in nothing. Verse 25: Though I’ve been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use the kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father. See, He’s been talking about His Father with vine and branches and shepherd and sheep analogies and all of that, and He’s saying, we’re just going to cut to the chase now. In that day you will ask in My name, I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf.
Meaning, up to this point in time, I’ve been basically doing the praying, okay? I’ve been asking the Father that your faith may not fail and other matters like that, but now you’re going to have the privilege to go directly to the Father. And He says in verse 27, No, the Father Himself loves you. He wants them to know that. And by the way, the word that’s used here for love is not the usual word you would think.
The word agape is the usual word that we talk about, which is a love of sacrifice. But this is the word phileo, the word that we get Philadelphia from, philos. It’s the word for friendship. And so what He’s saying is the Father Himself loves you as His friend. Because you have loved— the remainder of the verse— you have loved, and that second love is the same word, because you have loved and have believed that I came from God.
You have loved me. Because you love me as your friend, my Father loves you as his friend. Any friend of the Son is a friend of the Father.
I came, he says, from the Father, and I entered the world, and now I am leaving the world, and I am going back to the Father. See, what Jesus wants them to know is that now this friendship with him has opened an access to being a friend of God, and God is their friend, and he wants to hear from them as friends. They have a channel of communication communication. Well, that lifted their spirits. Look at verse 29.
Then Jesus’ disciples said, now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. Now we’re getting it. Now we can see that you know all things, that you’re omniscient, all-knowing, and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions, meaning nobody has to sit down and question your origin. And nobody has to sit down and question your authority because you are who you said you are. This makes us believe that you came from God, which Jesus has been trying to tell them from the beginning.
And Jesus answers at this point, verse 31, you believe at last! But a time is coming and has come when you will be scattered, each to his own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me. Can I just insert a thought there?
Some of us this morning may feel like everybody’s abandoned us and we’re all alone. And what Jesus is saying here is, even though you’re going to abandon me, I want you to know that there will never be a minute that I’m alone because my Father will be with me. And the same for us here. Even if everybody around us rejects us, God will not. I’ve told you these things, he says, verse 33, so that in me you may have peace.
In this world you have trouble, but take heart, I’ve overcome the world. What’s Jesus saying in this last little section? He’s saying, look up. He’s already talked about looking for the Holy Spirit to do what it is we can’t. He’s already talked about looking past the excruciating pain to exhilarating joy.
And now he’s saying, look up and ask for God’s help. Use the privilege of prayer. Whatever has you worried, whatever has you beaten down, whatever has you burdened or under the pile, take it to God and use the privilege of prayer. Did Jesus do that? Well, you know, just moments after this conversation he had with the disciples in the upper room, they left the upper room and they went to a garden where Jesus began to pray.
And he was burdened. He was burdened because he’s about ready to face the cross. And it says in Mark 14, verse 33, he took Peter, James, and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death, he said to them. Stay here and keep watch.
Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and he prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. What did Jesus do? He did exactly what he’s encouraging them to do, what he’s training them or teaching them to do, which today he’s training and teaching us to do, and that is to go to the Father. It’s to look up and in prayer ask him to take care of this burden, to ask him to relieve the burden. 1 Peter, chapter 5, verse 7 says, Cast all your anxiety upon him, because he cares for you.
And, you know, Philippians 4:6-7, Don’t be anxious about anything, but But in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. What a picture! We have the privilege of taking all this stuff that burdens us to God in prayer, and the promise is he’ll give us peace that will guard our hearts and our minds. And one of my favorite verses is Hebrews 4:15-16, where it says, and let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Do you do that?
Some of us know exactly what that means because we do that all the time. Last night I got a Facebook message from a friend. This person said, would you please pray for my husband? He’s got esophagus cancer.
And she asked if I would join with some others in praying for her husband who has esophagus cancer. She’s lifting her spirits by lifting her prayers to God.
I have a friend— some of you have heard that my friend Greg Williams’ wife just died less than 2 months ago. It was an unexpected death. A young, wonderful wife, mother, teacher, committed Christ follower, active church member. Young adult leader. She was on a field trip with her 5th graders and she died.
It was totally unexpected. As you can imagine, Greg has been struggling with a heavy heart. He could easily lose heart right now. And I’ve talked to him and I’ve watched this play out on Facebook. He decided that he would take over her account and he made it a joint account.
And he’s been processing his feelings on this Facebook page. And as I’ve watched this, I’ve thought to myself, here’s a guy who is taking heart in the midst of a situation that could just— is tearing his heart apart. On May 18th, he wrote, it’s been a month since Connie got really lucky. And I thought, isn’t that an interesting way to think about death? My wife got really rocky.
Today was a little better as far as adjusting to the new reality. I thought how much a blessing it was for Connie not to have any fear or suffering. Straight into his presence. That was her desire, to go that way, and God granted her that. Connie is laughing and dancing.
A couple days later, May 21st: Psalm 126:5-6, those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him. He writes, my honest first response was, I’m tired of all this weeping stuff. But this is the bottom line for me and those going through struggles: there are eternal rewards that are not measurable except in my soul filled with joy from the Lord. May 23rd.
Our minds are powerful things that when left unchecked that really can play havoc with our emotions, our hearts, and our well-being. So he says, take your thoughts captive and be thankful. Or think of Philippians 4:6-7, those verses I just mentioned: be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. This, he says, is what gives us peace in the midst of trials.
May 25th: Last night I climbed Mount Horeb again. I mean Squaw Peak. If you know the Phoenix area, Squaw Peak’s this tough one to climb over there. He writes: It might as well have been Mount Horeb. I didn’t see any burning bushes, but God gently refocused me again.
By the time I got down, I really felt his peace. Was that because God was refocusing me? Refocused in quietness and trust is your strength. He promises to finish the task until we get lucky.
What’s the bottom line of what Jesus is saying here? Simply this: that if we take heart, if you take heart what Jesus said, if you take to heart what Jesus said, it will do your heart good.
If we look for the work of the Holy Spirit to do what it is that we can’t, if we look past our excruciating pain to exhilarating joy, and if we look up to God and ask for his help in time of need— in other words, if we take heart— it will do our hearts good. Well, as we continue this morning to worship this God who brings the comfort that we need and the instruction and the learning that we need to live in a world that’s filled with troubles. Let’s just ask him to do what it is that he wants to do in our hearts right now. And as we continue with worship, we’re going to have our worship team come back up. As we continue in worship this morning, let’s just take some time to reflect consciously, to consider what is it that he wants us to do.
Based upon what it is that we’ve heard this morning and the appropriate response, response that he would have us to make. Would you pray with me before we sing? Father, thank you. Thank you for the encouragement that is found in such practical ways in the scriptures that speaks to us right where we are. And my prayer would be for all of us that we would take heart even in the midst of grievous circumstances, that we would take responsibility to apply what it is that we see in the scriptures that you teach us.
And may we be people who do then look for your work, for the Counselor, the Comforter, to work in miraculous ways in and through us. We pray, Father, for your work in helping us see our present circumstances from a little while perspective, to see the exhilarating joy that is to come. May that transform how we view what we are faced with in the present, and may we find in You as we go to You in conversations like this one peace that passes all understanding. We ask that You lift burdens even today, even now as we sing. We just trust You with what You want to do in each of us for Your name’s sake.
For we pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.
