Well, you who have endured me for many years know that there's always an interesting outcome
! It is usually that I come with an extra full heart.
!
For example, I would like to pray and then have you look at the passage and open the
passage and study it together with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Let's pray.
Our Father God, we are so thankful this morning that you are God and Savior.
And that we are together this morning to exalt the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the
Savior of the world and someday will be revealed as the supreme ruler and the one who has authority
over all things.
We thank you for the ministry of the indwelling Spirit and for the blessing that he is to us as believers this morning as we open this word that you have given to us, sufficient for all that we need.
And that we may rely upon him to quicken our hearts that seeing in these pages the glory of the Lord Jesus are changed from glory to glory through the Spirit.
And we thank you in advance for what you will do among us.
And we pray it in Jesus' name.
Amen.
At the very beginning of our message this morning, let me tell you that there is going to be a portion of the passage that I will not get to.
And so I want you to anticipate next week.
I want you to look just for a moment.
Go to John chapter 16, verse 24.
One of the things that goes with Bible preaching is taking time to explain the passage that's always true,
but also on occasion taking time to explain the passage in the context and frame of the culture that we live in.
And so I want to tell you ahead of time, next week, I'm going to take one of the favorite passages of prosperity televangelists,
and I'm going to give you a clear understanding of what the scriptures have to say about what it means to pray in Jesus' name.
We're going to look at that next week.
So here we are in John chapter 16, and we are now in verse 16.
A little while, and you will see me no longer, and again a little while, and you will see me.
So some of his disciples said to one another, what is this that he says to us, a little while, and you will not see me,
and again a little while, and you will see me, and because I'm going to the Father.
So they were saying, what does he mean, a little while?
We do not know what he's talking about.
Jesus knew what they wanted to ask him.
So he said to them, is this what you are asking yourselves, what I mean?
By saying a little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me?
Truly, truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.
You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy.
I want you to stop just a minute against the background of that passage, and I want you to think with me just for a moment.
I want you to look at me.
I do.
Please.
I want you to look at me.
What do you really need, honestly?
What would you really, really like to have?
What would help you?
Would it help if you felt better about yourself?
I mean, that's not atypical.
People talk about it all the time.
I don't feel good about myself, and you know, it's okay.
Would you like to feel better about yourself?
Or how about this?
Are you looking at me?
Because I'm talking to you.
How about this?
I would like more people to like me.
I really would.
I'd like more people to like me.
Or, here we go.
I would like better grades.
I was fishing on a boat Monday, and the guy who was the guide or helper, you know, he shared with me that he'd actually taken senior class four times, and I thought, ha, I'm ahead of you.
I only took junior year once.
And I was like, would you like to get better grades?
I remember those days.
Well, here's another one.
How would you like to have more money?
I mean, honestly.
Be real.
I mean, would you like to have more money?
Or, I would just like to be free from my anxiety and my depression.
Here's Jesus.
By the way, do we believe in Jesus as our Savior, as our personal Lord and Savior, and the one who is the greatest blessing of all of our lives?
Do we really believe in him?
Amen.
Sometimes what we say we believe in and how we act don't connect.
And I want to challenge you this morning to think clearly about the connection between who Jesus is and all of the things that we try to place in his place in our lives.
Our lesson this morning actually has its roots back in John chapter 13, verse 1.
And so I want you to turn back there just for a moment.
Keep your finger there in 16 because we are coming back to it.
But in John chapter 13, verse 1, it says,
John chapter 13 is the introduction, verse 1, is the introduction to a four-chapter exposition that is referred to by some scholars as the upper room discourse.
In other words, it was a series of lessons and statements that Jesus made during the Last Supper for his disciples in the backdrop or against the backdrop of the fact he knew he was going to be crucified and he let them know he was leaving.
And you can understand their anxiety at that fact.
They had put all that they had into following Jesus.
And not only that, but they had developed a clear sense of the animosity and the hatred of the Jewish leaders towards Jesus.
And they knew that there was an intention to destroy him and to kill him.
And they wondered, well, what's going to happen to us?
And here they were in the middle of that.
And Jesus, in his love for them, wants to do the most important thing for them he can.
He was going to die for them.
But here, in the face of the anxiety, in the face of their fear, in the face of their concern, Jesus wanted to comfort his disciples.
And so, as we work our way through the passage, this is what I want you to understand in this four-chapter passage.
The comfort that Jesus gave to his disciples and the comfort that he gives to us is all about the person and work of our triune God.
You got that fixed in your mind?
If you want to press the sermon together in one little thing, the solution to all of your challenges lies in the person of God.
That's important.
Because we're all the time engaged in the effort of stuffing a lot of other things into that place.
And then kind of wondering, why am I not satisfied?
Why am I still anxious?
Why am I filled with discouragement and depression?
And hardship is overwhelming me.
I love the songs we sang this morning.
By the way, I don't want Emma to sing while I'm preaching, but I thought those words fit.
You know, it's like, wow, they connect.
And so here we are looking at Jesus ministering to his disciples, and he wants them to understand that the characteristic,
the substance of what was going to help them through the hours to follow and the remainder of the lives
in which all of the ones in the upper room, except for John, were going to die as martyrs.
You think your life's hard?
I want you to mark John chapter 14, verse 1, just kind of as a starting point of this a little bit in terms of the issue of the triune God.
And here's Jesus saying, John 14, 1,
Let not your hearts be troubled.
Point.
Just kind of stick it in your mind.
We choose to let our hearts be troubled.
Would you write that down?
We choose to let our hearts be troubled.
It's a conscious choice.
Here is Jesus telling us, don't do it.
Let not your hearts be troubled.
Why?
You believe in God.
Believe also in me.
We see that John 14, 15 continue this theme of giving us great encouragement.
But let us come towards the end of this lesson that Jesus is giving to his disciples about why they should be confident and joyful
and at peace in the midst of the adversity.
And listen to what he says here in John 16, verse 20.
Kind of mark the recurrence of the words related to the issue of joy.
John 16, verse 20 says,
Your sorrow will be turned to joy.
I will see you again, in verse 22.
And your hearts will rejoice.
And no one will take your joy from you.
And then in verse 24.
Ask and you will receive that your joy may be full.
Jesus spent four chapters.
Or John spent four chapters diving in to the issue of what Jesus taught his disciples.
And it is there for us and our value.
And so let me ask you a question as we kind of get into this.
And think about this.
Would you say, now look at me.
Would you say that your life is one that is marked by joy?
Joy?
Fair question?
Is your life one that is marked by joy?
I was reading an article about an employer that has put together 20 questions that he uses to find out whether an individual,
a candidate, is going to succeed in his company.
One of the first ones is this.
And he said that he can usually tell whether a person is going to succeed from two questions in particular.
The first one is this.
What is a privilege?
Second one is this.
Is it important to be on time?
Well, we won't go there because I'm not going to be on time this morning.
But I'll just kind of let you know ahead of time.
My question to you is, would you say that your life is one that's marked by joy?
Now, by the way, don't ask yourself that question.
Go to your wife and say, hey, honey.
How am I doing that joy thing?
You might practice in the bathroom before you talk to her.
But, you know, it's okay.
Okay, here we go.
I want you to look at the passage.
And as you pick up there in John chapter 16, verse 16, I push this together going from verse 16 down through about 20.
And I want you to recognize that Jesus demonstrates a perfect care for his disciples.
A little while and you will see me no longer.
And again a little while and you will see me.
As you begin reading this passage, you may think to yourself,
Now, why didn't he make it simpler and clearer?
Here he is making a statement during the Last Supper.
And the statement is less than absolutely simplistic in its presentation.
I remember reading an outstanding book on preaching that said there are three points to it.
One is this, is be simple, be clear, and be passionate.
My wife says there's a fourth one.
That has to be short.
And I've never figured that one out.
Well, that's two signals in one day about how long I'm going to be and I will be on time.
Maybe not.
Okay, here we go.
Here's the point.
Jesus is teaching here and he could have made things easier to understand.
I mean, how many of you read that?
I got that.
That's easy.
No?
It's a little tough.
What's he mean?
And we find the disciples were asking the question of themselves and one another.
Verse 17.
So some of his disciples said to one another,
What is this that he says?
Understand that.
You're hoping someone in the crowd got it.
And none of them did.
And so Jesus knew what they wanted to ask him.
So he said to them,
Is this what you are asking yourselves?
What I mean by saying a little while and you will not see me.
And again, a little while and you will see me.
Well, you would think that after Jesus asked the question,
he would then make it profoundly simple.
Let me give an illustration of that.
Remember when he was teaching the crowd about the parable of the sower and the seed, right?
And after that parable had been taught,
and I have no doubt,
it doesn't tell us in the text,
but I can just imagine the wise disciples,
as they were listening to the teaching of Jesus with their hands folded over the chest,
like they're nodding their heads.
I mean, you know, I got that.
And so when they got privately away from the crowd,
what did they do?
Does anybody remember?
Jesus, John is having trouble with this.
I understood it,
but I thought you might want to explain it for him, right?
They just said,
Can you help us with this?
And you'd think that Jesus would have made their concern
something that was understandable by his explanation.
But listen to what he says.
Truly, truly, I say to you,
you will leap and weep and lament,
but the world will rejoice.
You will be sorrowful,
but your sorrow will be turned to joy.
Imagine you at that time listening to those words.
Would you have said,
Ding, I get it.
That was easy.
Thank you.
No.
You look at that and say,
Well, that didn't help me.
I don't understand that.
So here is Jesus giving his final lesson before the cross,
and he's still speaking in this poetic and cryptic terminology.
It's no wonder that the disciples didn't get it.
And I want you to know that he could have made it plainer.
So let's ask ourselves a question.
This is one of the things that as you learn to study the Bible,
and here's a little point,
one of the purposes of a preacher is to teach God's people how to do it for themselves.
Agreed?
So one of the questions you ask yourself is,
Why is that there?
Why did Jesus not make it clearer?
He could have done that, right?
Why did he make it a little difficult?
Well, the text doesn't give us clear indication,
but when we gather the larger matter of what the Scriptures tell us,
we learn several things that I think are worth our attention.
For one, Jesus wants us to learn to think more carefully,
and sometimes when he doesn't make it just crystal clear at the moment,
you are forced to dive into the passage and think about it more carefully.
Why?
Why is it there?
What's this for me?
And Jesus often used parables and imagery in teaching
to lead his disciples to think more deeply and more carefully.
I think another reason that we could come to grips with is this,
is that untested faith is not strong faith.
Believing Jesus and getting out of the boat may seem significant,
but it really pales in comparison to the lesson that Peter learned afterwards.
Do you follow that?
When he took his eyes off of Jesus, what happened?
He was overwhelmed by the circumstances,
and he lost control of the moment in his own heart,
and down he went.
How many of you have taken your eyes off of Jesus this last week?
Did it get messy?
Yes, always.
And so I want you to understand that sometimes God lets us go through things
to test our faith and teach us to rely on him.
Furthermore, hard things help us to learn to lean on the Holy Spirit.
It is things that are hard to understand that force us to learn to listen more
and lean hard on the enabling of the Holy Spirit.
One of the things that, as I think back over 35 years of preaching,
has changed over the years in my approach to study
is that there was a time where a predominant amount of attention
was given to the language and the construction of the text,
and that is important.
You can never step away from the flow of the text,
but one of the things I've learned is that prayer,
prayer, and cross-referencing as the Spirit of God
and the cross-references in the passage help you kind of connect things together
and fit it.
It takes time.
I think there's another thing that you have to recognize.
Sometimes God recognizes that we need to learn to wait.
I think, just keep your finger there in John
and go back with me to Luke 18, verse 34.
Luke 18, verse 34.
Wouldn't you like to know just exactly what's going to happen for you tomorrow?
I do.
God's in control.
End of discussion.
Luke 18, verse 34.
Let me read it to you.
Here it is.
But they understood none of these things.
Jesus is talking about his crucifixion, etc.
And says, but they understood none of these things.
This saying was hidden.
Question, who did the hiding in this case?
God did.
Elsewhere, Jesus says, he's praying, he says,
I thank you, Father, that you have hidden these things,
but you have revealed them to the disciples.
You remember on the passage, the road to Emmaus?
Here is Jesus walking with them.
I'm Jesus in the flesh.
And it says what?
Their eyes were holden.
I love that little phrase in the King James,
and their eyes were holden.
You know, they couldn't see.
They didn't get it.
And so here we find Jesus ministering to his disciples.
And in the midst of the flow of the lesson,
he still is speaking in this veiled terminology
that ultimately will benefit them
and help them understand what to really trust in eventually.
So I want you to recognize that if you are here this morning,
like the disciples in the face of adversity,
and your life is marked by challenges,
and you find yourself inclined towards worry,
did I miss anybody?
Okay.
If you really long for his peace,
you must really long for his word.
Fix that in your minds.
If you really long for his peace,
you must long for his word.
Let me say that again because I think it's important.
If you long for his peace,
you must long for his word.
Now, lest we think writing Bible verses on our hand
is really the key,
the purpose of the word that we have in our hand
is to draw our attention to the person,
not just ink, but the person.
And so if you long for peace,
you must long for the word.
Well, let me come to the second part here,
and that is our Savior's greatest help.
Here he is speaking to his disciples.
They're going to watch him be crucified very shortly,
and they are filled with a certain level of anxiety
that I got to tell you,
as tough as your life is today,
you're probably not in the spot
that the disciples were that night.
Would you agree with that?
I don't think there's anyone here
that is uncertain,
or at least has reason to believe
that they're probably going to be persecuted
and killed tomorrow.
I want you to take up verse 20 with me now
and look at what Jesus says.
It starts out pretty distressing.
He's trying to help them, right?
Truly, truly, I say to you,
you will weep and lament,
but the world will rejoice.
Well, that's good news.
Oh, there we go.
But your sorrow will be turned to joy.
Yeah, when?
I got to tell you,
to imagine walking with Christ
and not recognize that you're going to have
adversity and difficulty,
or to listen to someone who proposes
that all of the difficulties of life
are just a lack of faith on our part,
and if you just believed harder
and put more money in the offering plate,
it would go better.
That's a liar from hell.
Got to tell you.
Here is Jesus.
He said, hey,
you are going to be sorry.
It is going to be hard,
but eventually your sorrow will be turned to joy.
And then he uses a beautiful picture.
When a woman is giving birth,
I've never been through that.
I got to tell you that,
but I've observed,
and I probably better let that one
stay right where it is.
Let's get down to the theological stuff here.
Verse 22,
So also you have sorrow now,
but I will see you again,
and your hearts will rejoice,
and no one will take your joy from you.
What we find here in this text,
beginning there in verse 22
and carrying on down through verse 24,
is in a sense kind of a distillation
of what we found in chapter 14, 15 in particular,
in which I would put it this way,
the comfort and the encouragement
that John gleaned from the lesson
that Jesus taught his disciples
on the eve of his crucifixion
is this.
Jesus would rise again,
and Jesus will come again.
Look at what he says there.
He says,
I will see you again.
Hey, listen.
The thing you need the most
is to see Jesus.
The thing that is most important to you
in the adversity and trials that you have
is your relationship with Christ.
He is the one who is your great comforter
and your consolation,
and your relationship with him
is at the very heart
of whether or not you are terrified
or anxious or uncertain or depressed.
I got to say that,
and there's some of you out here
that are thinking to yourself,
Pastor, that's just spiritual words.
It's not real life.
Do you hear me?
You tell me you believe in Jesus
for your salvation,
but you don't buy the rest of it.
My little dog, Phoebe,
is a classic illustration
of the value of relationships.
A couple years ago,
Judith and I took,
we took ourselves camping,
but Phoebe went along
because we didn't want to leave her
in the house by herself.
And camping down at Old Man's Cave
in the fall when everybody else has left,
we try to avoid the crowds,
you know, Memorial Day and Labor Day,
we're kind of on the other side
of those things.
And we were camping in November,
and around about 11 o'clock,
there was a chorus of coyotes
that just decided to light up
just down the hill from us.
And it's like, oh, no big deal.
And Judith said, what is that?
That's coyotes, you know.
My little dog was scared,
I mean, spitless, okay.
I mean, she's about 10 pounds.
She's just lunch.
That's what it is.
And she was quivering like,
I've never seen her that anxious
in all of her previous life.
And she was just about
to the point of apoplexy,
which is a medical condition.
She was having problems.
I got a hold of her,
tucked her into my sleeping bag,
and she crawled down to the very end.
Okay?
But I got to tell you,
she was better in the bag
than she was outside of the bag.
Now, I shouldn't tell you this,
but I will.
Being who I am
and entire sanctification
hasn't happened yet,
and I'm waiting for that.
Even a year after that,
and I won't do it here in the church,
but I can tell you,
if I would mimic a coyote,
that dog would just start shaking
like she was dying.
It's like, ah!
I've stopped.
Don't anybody,
don't send me an email.
Okay.
I've got to tell you,
Phoebe's favorite place
is wherever the two of us
are in a room.
I didn't tell you about Phoebe
for Phoebe's sake.
I told you about Phoebe
to help you understand
that when we understand
there is nothing more precious
and more prized
and more significant
and more comforting,
more stabilizing in our life
than our relationship
with the triune God.
Everything else is secondary.
You can't medicate
and replace Jesus.
You can't entertain
and replace Jesus.
You can't miss the fact
that in the absence
of the comfort
of the person
of the Lord Jesus Christ
and our triune God,
there is no substitute.
the second thing
that I want us to see
in the passage
is the Holy Spirit
will be with us.
Now, this is a little tough,
but we'll get there.
Okay.
Verse 23,
in that day,
you will ask nothing of me.
Truly, truly,
I say to you,
whatever you ask
of the Father in my name,
he will give it to you.
Now, if you go back
in your thinking,
and I'm not going to
take the time this morning
to do it,
but in John chapter 14
and John chapter 15,
this phrase,
in that day,
is connected to the person
of the Holy Spirit.
I got to tell you,
we sometimes diminish
in our thinking
just how valuable
our relationship
with the Holy Spirit is.
when Jesus said it,
you can do nothing.
What?
You can do nothing
without me, right?
And he says to the disciples,
he says,
listen,
it's to your benefit
that I go away
because if I don't go away,
you're not getting,
you won't have the comforter.
So what is it
that is of help to us?
It's number one,
that I have a relationship
with Christ
and I know he is risen
and I know he's coming again.
Secondly,
I know that the Holy Spirit
is with me
and I have great comfort
in that fact.
Third,
the Father will answer
our prayers
to know him more.
Look at John chapter 16,
verse 24.
Until now,
you have asked nothing
in my name.
Ask and you will receive
that your joy
may be full.
Hey,
what's it like
to not be a happy person?
Does anybody know?
Yeah,
I do.
In fact,
every one of you out here
know what it is
to not be a happy person.
You've had plenty
of practice.
I've got to tell you this.
Here is Jesus saying,
listen,
you ask
and he will answer.
So what do you want?
What do you want?
Ask and you will receive
that your joy
may be full.
The idea of your joy
being full
means this,
that you have
all
and more
than you ever
imagined
was needed.
Ask
that your joy
may be full.
What do I need?
I only need one thing.
I need to know
the Lord Jesus Christ
and the power
of his resurrection
and the fellowship
of his suffering.
There's nothing else.
Remember what Paul said?
He said
that I might know him,
that I might,
what do I want?
I want to know him.
And so this morning
as you
look at this text
and I step away
from it here,
I got to tell you
that the world
is full
of false promises
and false profits
of things
that are going
to satisfy you.
And there's some
of you this morning
that are chasing those
and you're wondering
why your life
is just so
turmoil filled.
God will not
let
a substitute
survive
do you know
why?
Because he doesn't
like idols
and you're wondering
why you're frustrated
with the pursuit
you have
that doesn't have
Jesus at the center.
He's not in favor
of it.
And so let me
press it together
this way.
The Bible is clear
that the person
of Christ
is more precious
and satisfying
than the presence
of Christ.
Christ.
The person
of Christ
is more
satisfying
than the gifts.
Try that
because I saw
some of you
wrinkle your brow
and you're wondering
person,
presence,
he's present.
No, I'm talking
about gifts.
Okay.
The person of Christ
is more precious
and satisfying
than the gifts.
Second,
the Bible
is also clear
that the word
of Christ
is more satisfying
and more settling
than anything
the world
can ever offer.
Great peace
have they
who love thy law
and nothing
shall offend them.
I got to tell you
as I was listening
to our singing
this morning
and one of the things
that I am so richly
blessed by,
oh,
I forgot to tell you
a little sidebar.
I'll come back to that.
But I want you to know
that Pastor Shearer
has decided
that the next book
we're going to preach
out of is Isaiah
and I got to tell you
I'm really pumped
about that.
I've already started
studying for it.
Isaiah's the fifth gospel
just in case you're wondering.
It's in the Old Testament
but it's the fifth gospel.
That's the way some people,
I'm fired up about that.
Now where was I?
Okay, here we go.
Get this point in your minds.
The word of Christ
the word of Christ
is what we are comforted by,
what we're encouraged by,
what we're strengthened by,
what we're established by.
I can't help but think
about the church's
current love affair
with what the world
has to offer.
I see it all over the place.
Here's what Jeremiah
chapter 2 verse 13 says.
Let me read it to you.
For my people
have committed two evils.
Jeremiah chapter 2 verse 13.
They have forsaken me
the fountain of living waters
and hewed out cisterns
for themselves,
broken cisterns
that can hold no water.
Hey, hey,
remember what I asked?
Would you say
that people would say
that you're generally
a pretty happy person?
Huh?
Right?
There's only one reason
to be happy.
It's not because
of who I am
or who you are.
It's because of Jesus.
So when you go around
as a grumpy,
frumpy person,
it's like,
hey,
you're not seeing Jesus
very good.
I'm going to press it
all together this way
and close.
Jesus,
who is the way,
the truth,
and the life
cares deeply
about you today.
That's a fact.
If you are here
this morning
and he has blessed you
with salvation,
he does not want you
to live a cloudy
and joyless life.
Hey,
does that mean
you will not have
any troubles
and challenges?
You will.
John chapter 16,
later he says,
in this life
you will have,
you're going to have
hardship,
you're going to have
difficulty.
But the thing
that doesn't change
is that the believer
who knows Christ
has the comfort
and the encouragement
of a relationship
with the living God
and is blessed
in that relationship.
And so here you are,
the greatest remedy.
Now listen to me.
The greatest remedy
for worry,
for depression,
for anxiety
is nothing less
than a clear view
of our triune God.
That is a foundational
Bible truth.
And it is as significant
in the theology
of Scripture
as the fact
that salvation
is the work of Christ.
in our life.
If you are here today
and you know Christ,
you have all
that you need
to live a life
that is not clouded
and broken,
but one that
looks forward
to the day
that you are going
to see Him
face to face.
If you do not
know Christ
this morning,
I can understand.
And I'm very sympathetic
because here you abide
under the cloud
of sin
and guilt
and shame
and fear.
You're uncertain
of how the story ends.
You're striving
to place
into the
God-shaped hole
in your heart
all kinds of things
that will never satisfy.
And I want to tell you
this morning,
Jesus died for your sins
on the cross.
He stands ready
to forgive you
and to grant you
everlasting life.
And do you know
what He needs
to hear from you?
He needs to hear
a humble
and a broken spirit
that says,
I'm a mess.
I can't save myself.
And I believe
you died on the cross
to pay the penalty
for my sins
and you rose again.
And I take you
at your word.
Let's close in prayer.
Our Father God,
we are overwhelmed
when we stop
and think about
your unfailing love
for us.
That as the passage
in Romans says,
while we were yet sinners,
Christ died for us.
And we find
great satisfaction
in the blessing
of having relationship
with you.
I pray for those
that are here today
that do not know
the Lord Jesus
as their Savior.
Some who may be here
fully deceived
by the enemy,
thinking that
a childhood confession
or probably even
showing up
is sufficient.
but burdened
with the cloud
of doubt
and shame
and guilt
and having no remedy,
draw them to find
the Lord Jesus
their Savior.
We ask this
in Jesus' name.
Amen.
As we sing
in closing,
I would encourage you,
let's stand together.
through you.