"When Your World Explodes" August 30 Readings: John 14

Today's Reading - John 14

Background

I've always loved mountains. Maybe it's because I lived so long in flat places like Florida, but the majesty and awe-inspiring beauty of mountains move me. John 14-16 is a mountaintop of scripture. Like Romans 8, Psalm 23, 1 Corinthians 13, or John 3, it is among the Himalayan peaks of God's word.

It is a message that Jesus preached to his disciples the night before he died, his last words to them, preparing them to handle life when he went away. The entire sermon is about the peace that God gives in tough times. He knew the disciples' lives were about to be shattered into a million pieces and so he wanted to give them peace - real peace, God's peace. Is peace possible when storms rage all around? Do we have resources beyond those of our circumstances? According to Jesus, we do. From the opening words (Let not your hearts be troubled) to the last, "Take heart, I have overcome the world," Jesus is preparing his disciples for what lay ahead.

Every resource we need is ours both now and in eternity through Christ.

Devotional - When Your World Explodes

The sermon's first words border on the absurd. "Let not your hearts be troubled." In the next 24 hours, they would watch Jesus be arrested, tried, convicted, sentenced, beaten, condemned, mocked, tortured, paraded to Golgotha, and nailed to a cross. Well, to be honest, they wouldn't watch it because they would flee in fear. But their lives would be shattered completely as Jesus died on the cross in agony. Their world was about to explode. For Jesus to tell them not to be troubled by that is ridiculous.

Or it is miraculous. Either Jesus' words were cruel or he had provided all his disciples needed to walk in peace even when their world had been blown apart. What were these resources?

First, Jesus told them that he was going to prepare a place for them - one of the most misunderstood passages in the Bible. People assume that Jesus is in heaven working on a home improvement problem. But he was going to the Cross when he said that, not to Heaven. He was going to the Cross to prepare a place for us in eternal Heaven. You have an eternal home that nothing in this world can shake because of what Jesus did on Calvary. Take heart, my friend. No matter how bad the storms, you have a glorious future ahead regardless of how difficult the road is that lies ahead.

Second, Jesus let them know that he was all they needed. "I am the way, the truth, and the life." (14:6) Jesus is not the means by which we attain these things. He IS these things.

Third, Jesus assured us that in his name we could pray and the Father would hear and respond to our requests. What a blessing that is. God, the Creator, and Sustainer of the Universe hears my prayers when I pray in the name of Jesus. He hears and he cares. (14:13).

One of the most common themes throughout the entire sermon is the present ministry of the Holy Spirit - the comforter, our counselor, our Helper sent from God. When Jesus left he would be sent to the disciples. Jesus makes the remarkable point that we are actually better off having the Spirit in us than having Jesus with us.

Jesus sums it all up this way.

"Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Your heart must not be troubled or fearful."

Father, thank you for providing all I need to have peace in this troubled world.

Think and Pray

What situations or circumstances in your life are troubling you?
What are the promises and resources in this chapter that can help you in those circumstances?