What Can Comfort Your Troubled Heart?

[0:00] As I read this, remember that this is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, and sufficient word. This is God's very own word for you, his people.

[0:10] If you believe that, if you receive his word that way, then when we're done with the reading of scripture, I'll say this is the word of God and we can respond, thanks be to God. John chapter 14.

[0:22] Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you.

[0:33] I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may also be.

[0:45] And whether I go, ye know in the way you know. But Thomas said unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest. And how can we know the way?

[0:55] In verse 6, Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the father but by me.

[1:07] If ye had known me, ye should have known my father also. And from henceforth ye know him and have seen him. In verse 8, Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the father and it sufficeth us.

[1:23] And Jesus said unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet you have not known me, Philip? He that has seen me has seen the father. And how sayest thou then, show us the father?

[1:36] Believe thou not that I am in the father and the father in me? The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself, but the father that dwelleth in me. He doth the works.

[1:49] Believe me that I am in the father and the father in me. Or else believe me for the very works sake. Verse 12. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I shall do, he also does.

[2:06] And greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my father. And whatsoever you shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the father may be glorified in the son.

[2:19] If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. You may be seated. The Bible tells us that the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever.

[2:49] Would you pray with me? Lord, thank you that you have not left us as orphans.

[3:07] You have led us all the way up to this point, and your Holy Spirit will lead us all the way home. We thank you, Lord, for the sureness of your promise, the words of God himself through the son, that you, you who called us, you will lead us all the way unto the father.

[3:30] Lord, that where you are, there we may be also. That when we have seen the son, we have seen God. We pray, Lord, that you'll give us eyes to behold you today.

[3:42] Give us ears that long to hear the gospel truth, the good news of Jesus Christ for this life and for all of eternity. And give us hearts, Lord, that are not cold any longer, that are not hard toward you, but hearts that melt at the glory of Jesus, our Savior and our Lord.

[4:00] May you be glorified, Father, as we walk through this wonderful passage and understand your meaning for your church and for our lives today. With your help, we ask. Amen.

[4:10] Amen. Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, what can comfort your troubled heart? What is it that can comfort your troubled heart?

[4:30] Mark Twain said, I am an old man and have known many a great trouble, but most of them never happened. He said, I have spent most of my life worrying about things that have never happened.

[4:44] Worrying, Mark Twain said, is like paying a debt you don't owe. If you're like me, it's hard to go one day without worrying, without having a troubled heart over something.

[4:58] And in this world, our flesh is so weak and our hearts are deceiving, aren't they? That's what we're told in Jeremiah 17, that the heart is deceitful above all things. My heart's telling me to be anxious.

[5:10] My heart's telling me to worry. Can I even trust my heart like that? Maybe today God brought you in need of hope.

[5:21] You need something solid. You know your own heart, it can't be trusted. But what can you put your hope in? We saw in John chapter 13, verse 21, how our Lord Jesus himself was troubled in his heart.

[5:37] Do you remember that? Jesus became troubled of heart, and that was not a sin. Jesus never sinned, and his heart was troubled. So a troubled heart is part of the curse of being in this fallen, broken world.

[5:51] Now the good news for us is that Jesus let his heart be troubled in this world, in our place, so that we could have comfort in him. What was troubling Jesus' heart in the chapter right before this is that he knew he would be bearing your sin on the cross.

[6:11] That's what agonized his soul. That's what troubled his heart so much. He knew the works he came to do, and he would do them to completion.

[6:24] Well, in this setting, in John 14, the disciples are in the upper room. This is the Thursday before Good Friday. Hours away, the countdown clock is ticking to when Jesus will bear the sin of God's people on their behalf.

[6:40] And you remember how the sheep pick up the emotions of the shepherd we talked in Psalms? Well, if Jesus is troubled in heart, and he knows this is his last supper with his disciples, that sets the tone in.

[6:53] That fills the whole room. And you can see the faces of the disciples, they are troubled in heart. And that's why Jesus speaks to them. In verse 1 of chapter 14, he gives them a command.

[7:04] He's troubled of heart, but he says, let not your heart be troubled. Don't let it. The good news we get in verse 9.

[7:16] Look at chapter 14, verse 9. But Jesus brings it with an edge. In verse 9, he says, I have been with you so long.

[7:27] Three years of ministry together. You've seen the power of heaven on display on all that I do. But look at what he says to Philip. You still don't know me, Philip?

[7:39] You still don't know me? You've been this close. You've seen the heavenly power on display. Do you still not know who I am?

[7:52] Well, how is that supposed to comfort a troubled heart? Jesus is saying, when you see me, you are seeing God. Do you know me? Do you even know God?

[8:06] So my proposition for us today is this. The better that you know the everlasting God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort.

[8:19] The better that you and I know the everlasting God, the better we will receive and experience and enjoy heavenly comfort, even while we're in this troubled world.

[8:31] Do you need comfort for your heart? Do you need hope? Then know God through his son. I see six exhortations for us.

[8:43] The first one is this. You can know God only if you know his son. Look at verse four. Jesus says, you know the way to where I am going.

[8:54] Now Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way? And Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth and the life.

[9:05] No one comes to the father except through me. You can know God only if you know the son. There is no other way to know God.

[9:18] See, Thomas is the one who wanted to put his fingers inside of that nail hole. And he needed to touch in order to really confirm, is this true?

[9:30] Is it possible that God took on flesh and God was crucified? And Thomas says, we do not know where you're going. We know your heart is troubled. But you're saying we're going to know the way.

[9:42] We don't even know how to get to where you are. Really, Thomas' relationship is in question. And Jesus' answer gives us some insights into what was on their hearts. They knew of the Old Testament God.

[9:54] They knew of God's faithfulness. They knew his word. And they knew everything that Jesus has said. But they did not have the Holy Spirit to give them the faith to believe and to be regenerated. So they had a partial knowledge of the father, a partial knowledge of the son.

[10:09] How does this all fit together? Aren't you grateful for guys like Thomas? Jesus, disciples that need Jesus to break it down. You know, John's simple page.

[10:19] Who is Jesus? What is he saying? Jesus says, I am the way. You want to know where I am going? You do know the way. I am the way.

[10:32] See, Thomas, his heart is troubled. He fears losing Jesus forever. He says, if you tell us where, then we will go. But right now, I don't have enough information.

[10:43] It seems impossible to ever be able to dream of being with you again. And Jesus says, oh, beloved disciples. And notice his words in verse 6.

[10:54] He says, I am. I am. This is reminding the people of God of how the Lord revealed himself to Moses in Exodus chapter 3 verse 14.

[11:05] You want to tell the people who is it that sent you, Moses? You tell them it is, I am. Jesus has already said, I am the bread of life in John 6. I am the light of the world in chapter 8.

[11:17] I am the door, chapter 10. I am the good shepherd, chapter 5. I am the resurrection and the life, chapter 11. I am the way. I am the truth.

[11:29] I am the life. He says in chapter 14. If you know me, then you know the way. There is only one truth.

[11:43] There is the truth. That's an unpopular thing to say. There is the truth. R.C. Sproul said, no one will be able to say, God, if only I had known that you existed, then I would have surely served you.

[12:04] He says, Jesus Christ says, I am the truth. That excuse is annihilated. God has given sufficient evidence for all to believe.

[12:17] That's what he's telling Thomas and all the disciples and whoever has an ear to hear. Don't play in this game of saying, I need more information. I need to have all of my questions answered. Jesus is saying, those things, you may wonder that, but I am the truth.

[12:33] If you receive me, you have received life. Jesus is saying, if you walk away from me, you walk away what is undeniable.

[12:45] Man has no excuse. When you behold Jesus Christ, the Son, the way, the truth, the life, you have the promise of eternal rest by God's finished work through his Son.

[12:58] There is only one hope of eternal life. This clear statement, we know. We know this is true. We tell our friends.

[13:08] We, when we get the opportunity to minister the gospel and proclaim Christ, we say this. But how often it is that those excuses come into our own minds. If I can just do more, if I can be a better person, then I'll know that that eternal life is there for me.

[13:23] And Jesus says, there is only one hope of eternal life. It's through the way, which is Jesus Christ. Thomas Watson said, eternity to those without Christ is a night that has no sunrise.

[13:41] But eternity to Christians is a day that has no sunset. If you have life in Christ now in this present evil age, you know, you've tasted the life of the age that is to come.

[13:55] You know eternal life on the day where there will be no more sunset. There will be no more darkness. Jesus says very clearly, no one, no one comes to the Father except through me.

[14:12] Our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. He says, if you believe in me, the way, the truth, and the life, you will dwell with me in my Father's house.

[14:27] Let that comfort your troubled heart today. You know God through Jesus Christ. You will dwell with him forever. And the better you know the everlasting God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort.

[14:43] Which brings us to our second truth. You can know God only if you have seen the Son. Do you have eyes to see? Look at what Jesus says in verse 7.

[14:55] If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on, you do know him and have seen him. In verse 8, Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father and it is enough for us.

[15:09] And Jesus said to him, have I been with you so long and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say show us the Father?

[15:22] Philip says, similar to Thomas, I want to see heaven. I want to see the Father. And his witness, he will say, you are my son. You are the one that these disciples are to trust.

[15:34] And Jesus says, if you have seen me, Philip, you have seen the Father. Where else do we hear about Philip? Philip is the one when the crowd is following Jesus and the disciples and they were hungry.

[15:47] And Philip brings the problem to the Lord. And the Lord, I praise God for guys like Thomas and Philip. They are not afraid to ask what everyone is thinking. But Jesus' answer then was very similar now. He says, Philip, do you know who I am?

[15:58] I am the bread of life. I am the bread of life, Philip. This is who I am. And here he says to Philip, Philip, do you know who I am? If you have seen me, the Son, you have seen God himself.

[16:13] You have seen the Father. See, God is spirit, the Bible tells us. And you cannot see him and live. But Jesus is bringing this good news.

[16:24] You see God when you see his Son. And you and I, we see God when we see Jesus Christ lifted up off the pages of the Bible. And he opens our eyes to behold God himself in the flesh.

[16:36] Pastor John Gill said, as you increase in the knowledge of God the Father, you increase in your knowledge of God the Son.

[16:48] And as you increase in your knowledge of God the Son, you know more about God the Father. Because God is spirit, but God is one. And that was the mission for which Jesus came. So that your eyes could behold this God who is spirit, the creator of all.

[17:02] And see him as a man, as your mediator, as your representative walking this earth and living for you. John Gill explained, the disciples at this point, they had some knowledge of both Father and Son.

[17:17] But it was very small and obscure. In comparison to when the Holy Spirit would be poured out from on high on the church. He said, then you shall have an enlarged knowledge of both the Son and the Father.

[17:33] Do you have eyes to see? Spiritually, your eyes of faith, do you behold Jesus Christ, the Son of God? Do you behold his work from heaven on earth, in time, in history, to redeem you?

[17:50] To live the life you could never live and to pay the price that God demanded. So that you could be with him forever. Do you see this wonderful Lord Jesus? Do you see your Savior, the Son of God himself?

[18:05] If you do, then our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. If you have seen, if you have beheld, if you put your eyes on Jesus, then you have seen God.

[18:18] Isn't that comforting? The better you know the everlasting God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort. We want to know him more and more and more and more, don't we?

[18:30] So number three, you can know God only if you have heard the Son. You need to know the Son. You need to see him.

[18:41] You need to hear his word. And it's not enough to have heard from God through the Son once. We need to hear him like the daily bread. He is speaking continuously.

[18:51] We need the words of Jesus himself to wash over us. Do you have ears to hear? Look at what Jesus says in verse 10. Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?

[19:05] The words that I say to you, I do not speak of my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his work.

[19:16] Jesus says that as I speak the words revealing God to you, it's the words from heaven that I am speaking. And as I speak and proclaim, I am the Word made flesh.

[19:29] You are hearing from God himself. You are hearing the full revelation of God's plan. And it is God who does his work. How? Through the words that Jesus is speaking.

[19:42] The promise of dwelling with God one day is only possible if it's God working that to save sinners.

[19:54] And it's only possible if that same God who speaks out his word and gives you ears to hear and gives you a heart to receive the gospel truth. That spirit is the one that then indwells you and prepares your soul for that day when you will enter the glorious presence of God fully and consummately.

[20:11] And we long for that great day. But there's no way to that dwelling with God unless it's through the words that Christ himself is speaking to you. You must hear him.

[20:23] And you must respond. So how do you know God more? If comfort for our hearts comes through knowing him, how do we know him more and more and more? We know him by hearing his word.

[20:35] Jesus says, I am the Word of God. And to hear me is to hear from God himself. When Jesus preached the gospel, though, as he walked on earth, some believed.

[20:46] But it was very limited. Isn't that the shocking thing as we read the gospels? Some believed. But it fell on deaf ears for most. Many did not have ears to hear until the Holy Spirit was poured out through the church.

[21:01] Then Peter, the one who was ashamed to be associated with Jesus. Peter preaches in Acts 2. The Holy Spirit regenerated and dwelt among that church and gave them hearts to believe in Jesus Christ and to see his work like they had never seen before.

[21:18] See, we have nothing unless it's the Spirit ministering in his church. We have nothing. And we want to see our lives change.

[21:30] We want to know God more. We see lives that are so damaged and bruised and wounded. We need to pray for that powerful ministry of the Holy Spirit applying the Word of God to those like us who need him to speak to us so much.

[21:45] Your troubled heart, does it need comfort today? Are you burdened by your conscience? Do you hesitate to even ask God to see his face?

[22:00] Charles Spurgeon says, the knowledge of God is the great hope for sinners like you and like me. Oh, if you could know him better, you would fly to him.

[22:11] If you understood how gracious he is, you would seek him. If you could have any idea of his holiness, you would loathe your self-righteousness. If you knew anything of his power, you would not venture to be content with anything less than God himself.

[22:28] And if you knew anything of God's grace, you would not hesitate to yield yourself fully unto him. Do you know this gracious, glorious God?

[22:43] Our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. If you receive what Christ revealed, if you believe and listen to his word and receive it with a believing, trusting heart by faith, then you have heard from God himself.

[23:00] The better you know God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort. Number four, you can know God only on account of his work.

[23:12] You can know God only on account of his work. Look at verse 11. Jesus says, believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

[23:27] Jesus is holding himself, he's subjecting himself to a very high standard of credibility. You need to have multiple witnesses to bear testimony whether something is true. He's saying, my Father has spoken that it is true.

[23:40] I am telling you it is true, but also God has given me these works to do while I'm on this earth so that you will believe. That's why we have this gospel, this fourth gospel. The works of Jesus, what were they?

[23:53] What were the works of our Lord Jesus Christ? Well, everything that our God did in the flesh was his works. It was his entire life. From the moment he was in the womb until he relinquished his soul on the cross.

[24:09] It was his entire active and passive obedience. He was subject to God the Father, and he was actively fulfilling the law on behalf of those he came to save.

[24:21] That's why the Father sent the Son. It's so that you can know God. We read at the very end of this gospel in John chapter 20, verse 30, that Jesus also did many other signs.

[24:34] But these, we are told, were written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. So maybe you have a faith, and the faith says, I believe that Jesus was a historical figure.

[24:53] I believe that Jesus walked the earth in Israel. And I believe even that he did these miracles. The book of James, chapter 2, verse 19, tells us that this is a faith that leads to hell.

[25:05] That's not a true faith. It says that even the demons believe that much. The historical facts that Jesus lived and performed miracles.

[25:16] That's not what Jesus exhorts. He says, believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is me. You must believe that Jesus Christ, that historical man who lived on earth, he came to save sinners, being God himself.

[25:31] That's what you must believe. You must believe that each of these seven signs that we are given in the gospel of John point to the finished work of Christ on the cross. You must believe the gospel.

[25:44] That God is who he says he is. That you are before God a sinner in need of a Savior. And that only Jesus Christ can be the mediator between sinners and the holy God.

[25:57] And not only that those facts are true, you must believe that he is your righteousness. That he is Jehovah Sikkenu, your Savior. That he saved you from your sins.

[26:07] That's what you must believe. To be in the Father. To be counting on that life that is only possible through Christ. Well, what were those seven signs and how did they picture the gospel for us?

[26:22] Verse 11 tells us that this is why the Father sent the Son. The Father sent the Son to turn wine, wine, I'm sorry, to turn the water of the wedding feast into wine in John chapter 2.

[26:36] So that you could know that his blood provides. It's the blood of Christ like the wine that provides for his bride's wedding. The Father sent the Son to cleanse the temple in John 2.

[26:49] So that you could know God is zealous to dwell in you through the finished work of his Son. You are his temple. The Father sent the Son to cleanse you and to heal you.

[27:03] And the Father in John 4 sent the Son to heal the nobleman's son. So that you could know the power of God's Word. That alone can give you life.

[27:15] In John 5 we read how the Father sent the Son to heal that man who was lame. So that you can know that God who has the power to heal your body, He has power beyond that to forgive sin.

[27:28] The Father sent the Son to feed the multitude in John 6. So that you could know that Jesus Christ is the bread of life from heaven.

[27:39] Given for your nourishment while you sojourn as a pilgrim on this earth. The Father sent the Son to heal the blind man in John 9. So that you could know that God opens your eyes while you are still blind and in darkness.

[27:54] So that you will believe in Him. And the Father sent the Son to raise Lazarus from the dead in John 11. So that you could know there is a life to come.

[28:08] And the only one who has power over death that can promise resurrection when this life is over. It is the Son of God Himself. He has the keys to life and death.

[28:18] Well, as our Lord Jesus tells the disciples, If you see me, if you believe me, if you hear me, you receive this gospel truth.

[28:31] Then you have eternal life. His greatest work was yet to come. But it was only hours away. It would be the work that He did on the cross. And it's on the cross that we know God most fully.

[28:45] We know His glory and His justice. We know His glory and His grace. And those two are pictured perfectly on the cross. Where the Father's own Son gives up His life.

[28:56] Bearing your sins so that you can have life in Him. 1 Corinthians 2 verse 2 says, Do you want to know God?

[29:13] Then you need to know Jesus Christ and Him crucified. The cross is what pulls you into this intimacy of knowing the Son as your Savior. It's at the foot of the cross that you see God in His glory on greatest display.

[29:28] If you want the Lord to minister through you, to work through your life with whatever He brings to you, we need to be like Paul. We need to decide to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

[29:42] God does not work through know-it-alls. God works through those who know Him. And who know Him crucified. And that's to identify with Him in His suffering, in His crucifixion.

[29:54] It's to take up our cross daily as a reminder that we don't live for this life. We live through union to Christ. Do you know Christ and Him crucified?

[30:07] Do you know His path, the way of the cross? It's only if you lay down your life in repentance that you can have life in Him. And that's how our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart.

[30:23] You believe on account of the work that Christ did. And you have life in Him. The better you know the everlasting God, the more you have everlasting comfort for your heart, even in this life.

[30:41] Number five, you can know God only through the work that the Holy Spirit will do through you. That's what He says to the disciples in verse 12. Truly, truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do.

[30:55] And greater works than these will he do. Because I am going to the Father. On one level, these are special words to the apostles who are going to be sent out with the Holy Spirit working wonders as we read in the book of Acts.

[31:11] On another level, it's true that with the indwelling Holy Spirit, every true believer knows this glorious work of God in a personal, intimate, powerful way.

[31:23] And in this moment, Jesus had not yet atoned for their sins. But the Holy Spirit was going to minister that comfort to those of us who need to rest in Him. Charles Spurgeon says, The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever engage the attention of a child of God is this.

[31:45] It is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God, whom He calls His Father.

[31:55] There is nothing greater we can set our minds on than God Himself and God on display through the works He has done through Christ, worked out by His Spirit into His people.

[32:09] The Holy Spirit causes you to hear the gospel. The Holy Spirit heals your blind eyes. He opens your deaf ears. He replaces your hard heart. It's the Holy Spirit who calls you, regenerates you, converts you.

[32:25] Through the work of the Holy Spirit, Christ presents you to the Father, and you are declared righteous. You are justified. Then the Holy Spirit gives you that seal of assurance, I am adopted.

[32:37] I can cry out to the Lord as my Father. He sanctifies you. He preserves you. And that Holy Spirit working in you, He will glorify you one day. Your union to Christ now, it will be on glory when you're joined with Him in heaven.

[32:51] Your body will be resurrected. And you'll be displaying that union that you've enjoyed with Christ spiritually now fully and consummately. And in preparation to that, it's the Holy Spirit that bears the fruit of Christ's righteousness in you.

[33:07] He tells you the good news that you belong to Christ in life and in death. He is your only hope. And as He leads you all the way, when people look at you, they don't see you anymore.

[33:20] They start to see Christ who is dwelling through the Spirit inside of you. It's His righteousness that's working into you, transforming you. So our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart by this ongoing ministry of the Holy Spirit, applying this finished work of Christ into your life.

[33:38] If we look back on these disciples, the words they were hearing, they died as martyrs. Their lives they gave up.

[33:51] They found that way of the cross. But their lives were like the seeds. And from that foundation of the church, the Holy Spirit has continued to move and grow and draw more sons and daughters into this growing family of God.

[34:04] Look at the church now around the world, the work that God is doing in so many different parts. We have comfort that the Holy Spirit is powerfully at work. And when I'm troubled by the concerns of work and life and pressures and my fear of man and fear of failure, that gives us comfort, doesn't it?

[34:22] God is at work around the world. He is saving souls. He is the one mending families, healing those places where we're wounded and hurt. And it's the Holy Spirit that's taking forth the glorious name of King Jesus.

[34:36] And those who are rebelling and running away from Him are now running to the cross and declaring how great He is, their Savior. What a comfort to us that we can know God through the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit through His church.

[34:52] Well, number six, the last one is that you can know God only if you trust, personally trust, in the righteousness of His glorified Son.

[35:04] In verse 13, Jesus says, whatever you ask in my name, trusting in Christ, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

[35:15] If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. As the apostles went out with the early church, God put His magnificent power on display.

[35:30] And for all those questioning the authority of these ministers that Christ had sent out, they could look at the miraculous feats that God was doing through His church. And this was another witness from heaven that this gospel is true.

[35:42] This is not a different religion from the Old Testament. This is the fulfillment of all that God has promised. And whenever God is working now, whenever He stirs your heart to pray and to ask in His name, it's because He lives to intercede for His people.

[35:58] He is praying first. And when He puts a burden or a desire to pray in His name now, He's asking you to join your prayers to what He is already praying for. How much comfort and strength does that give us?

[36:11] We know we are praying because God is calling us to pray for what's on His heart. This also raises difficult questions for us. Like, I prayed for God to keep my family safe, and God did not answer that prayer.

[36:30] Notice how in verse 13, He says, Whatever we ask, it's in the name of Christ for the ultimate goal of the Son being glorified.

[36:49] Jerry Bridges helped me a lot with this difficult question of when it feels like we asked in God's name something good, and yet it didn't happen. Bridges commented, God never pursues His own glory at the expense of the good of His people, nor does He ever seek our good at the expense of His glory.

[37:09] There are times when it feels like it's not for our good, and we don't see His glory in it. So how was God glorified? Bridges comment, he says, God knows before He initiates or permits the adversity that you go through, He knows exactly how He will use it for your ultimate good.

[37:28] One day. The good that God works in our lives is in conformity to the likeness of His Son. So when you go through a trial and it feels like there was a prayer that wasn't answered, it still can be for your good if it's being used by God to conform you into the likeness of the Son, even if that means teaching you the way of suffering and the way of the cross.

[37:52] It is not necessary, Bridges said, it's not necessarily comfort or happiness, but conformity to Christ in an ever-increasing measure. It's God's glory, it's our good, never one at the expense of the other, but trusting God is wise to know what is our ultimate good, what is His ultimate glory, and we trust in His wisdom.

[38:17] So when we pray in Christ's name and for Christ's sake, we are praying for the glory of Christ's name with whatever we're going to ask, and we say, according to the Lord's will, we defer to Him.

[38:33] 2 Corinthians 8, 9 says, We are to know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ through which He has shown His rich mercy, yet for your sake, out of the glory of heaven, He became poor so that you, by His poverty, might become rich.

[38:50] When we're praying in the name of Christ, we're asking that He be exalted, even if it means our suffering, because He who was rich became poor. He who had all comfort in heaven, He became under trial, unpoverty, so that you could receive the blessing, and He took the curse in your place.

[39:11] And that's why we can trust our Lord Jesus Christ every time we pray that whoever believes and asks in His name for His glory, we will see the hand of God bringing that ultimate good out of any circumstance, whatever it is that comes to pass.

[39:28] We trust Him, and we ask His Spirit to teach us that. Well, I hope that if you're like me with the sleepless nights and the stress, and I can tell when I have the fear of man creeping in, I don't breathe very deeply, I hope that you're encouraged like me that the better we get to know our everlasting God through His Son, the more our hearts will enjoy His everlasting comfort through that union.

[39:59] Would you pray with me? from 2 Corinthians 2, 3. O Lord, may You be blessed. You are the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[40:12] You are the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. We praise You that You are the one who comforts us in our affliction. You are the one who ministers to us that we may be able to then turn and comfort those who are in affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves have been comforted by God.

[40:34] Thank You for this glorious ministry of Jesus Christ so that we can know You. We ask this in Christ's name and for His sake alone. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[40:44] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Bye. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Never. Amen.

[40:54] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[41:05] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.