I'll read our sermon passage, which is verse 1 of John 14.
! I read this trusting that it's God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, sufficient, powerful word for you and for me.
John 14, 1.
The words of Jesus Christ.
Let not your heart be troubled.
You believe in God.
Believe also in me.
The word of God for the people of God.
Thanks be to God. Please be seated.
O living God, three in one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we praise you for your faithfulness, Lord, for your covenant kindness to your people.
We thank you for how you have spoken.
You've revealed yourself through Jesus Christ for how all of the scriptures testify of him and for how your Holy Spirit ministers Christ to your people.
Every single one from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue.
Lord, that you give the gift of faith to see Christ.
Lord, that you give the gift of God.
To hear the good news.
To respond to the voice of the chief shepherd of our souls.
We pray, Lord, that your Holy Spirit will help Pastor Chris Ewell as he ministers Christ to us today.
We pray that your Holy Spirit will also help us, Lord, to receive Christ.
To pay attention to the words that we're receiving, Lord, as they're words from you.
We pray that your word, Lord, will burn in our hearts.
And that we'll be able to grow and be sustained in our faith because you are the one who purchased your people.
You're the one who made us right.
And you are the one who has committed yourself to sanctifying us until you present us complete and perfect in Christ at the great day when he comes again.
We long for this day, Lord.
And until then, we trust that even receiving this sermon today is one of the means you will use to fulfill your promises.
Please do this, Lord.
For Christ's sake we pray.
Amen.
It is a rich blessing to be with you this morning to minister God's word to you.
A rich blessing from the one who tenderly loves his sheep.
And so may our eyes be fixed upon the great and glorious shepherd of our souls this morning, our Lord Jesus Christ.
So if you would fix your eyes upon our text this morning.
John 14, verse 1.
If you don't mind, I'd like to pray again.
Father, our glorious God.
God, you are merciful.
You are gracious.
God, our hearts tremble before your holiness.
And Father, let us consider your holiness this morning.
We would consider your great and glorious nature.
That we would consider your sovereign providences.
That the trials and tribulations that you have given us in our life, we want to thank you for them.
For they have grown us.
They have matured us.
And they have allowed us to fix our eyes upon you.
The author and perfecter of our faith.
So I just pray for us this morning, O God.
That your word would cut us like a two-edged sword.
Going down to the very bone and marrow of who we are.
That you would teach us and rebuke us and correct us.
And convict us and convict us and train us in righteousness.
Oh, Father, we thank you, God, for this divinely appointed means of grace that you have given us.
The preaching of your word.
The listening of your word.
And all of us engaged together in unified spirit.
To learn and grow in the gospel of grace.
And we say this in the name of Christ.
Amen.
In our text this morning in John 14, verse 1.
It says,
Do not let your heart be troubled.
Believe in God.
Believe also in me.
The word of God also reads in Psalms 27, verse 5.
For in the day of trouble,
He will conceal me in His tabernacle.
In the secret place of His tent,
He will hide me.
He will lift me up on a rock.
And we are welcomed into the Holy of Holies this morning.
In our passage.
To gaze upon the glorious love of our Savior toward His covenant children.
Even reminding us in John 13, verse 1.
Jesus, knowing that His hour had come,
that He would depart out of this world to the Father,
having loved His own who were in the world.
He loved them to the end.
So at this family tuck,
Christ is gathering in this upper room.
His eleven.
Judas has already left.
And He's loving those that are His.
He's loving them all the way to the end.
So whatever we read in chapters 14, 15, and 16,
from this point forward,
in the upper room discourse,
you must come through the archway,
through the gate,
through this door.
that everything is part of Christ loving His own.
And loving them all the way to the end.
I mean, there are dark hours on the horizon for the eleven who love the Lord.
He has just revealed this at the end of chapter 13.
Three shocking realities.
First, He has told them that one of them will betray Him.
Chapter 13, verse 21.
Truly, truly, truly, I say to you,
that one of you will betray Me.
Second, He has equated glory with the suffering of His cross.
In verse 31.
Now is the Son of Man glorified,
and God is glorified in Him.
For our Lord Jesus,
the unimaginable sufferings of the cross
are but a few short hours away.
Remember, they are to Him unimaginable trials and sufferings.
He has told them that He was going away
and that He could not follow at the present moment.
And third, He's just told Peter
that He would deny Him three times.
Verse 38.
Will you lay down your life for Me?
Truly, truly, I say to you,
a rooster will not crow until you deny Me three times.
And so He knows that all the other disciples
will even desert Him in His final hours.
For if you strike the shepherd,
the sheep will scatter.
Added to the emotional turmoil
that the disciples felt,
they had been shamed.
Just a few moments later,
walking to the upper room,
they were having a discussion about
who would be the greatest.
Pride was filling their heart.
They were even shamed by their prideful refusal
to wash each other's feet,
which prompted our loving Savior
to stoop down to the servant position.
So what will He do now?
Well, He does what He always has done.
And He will always do for you and I.
He begins to minister the grace of God
to their deeply troubled and deeply confused hearts.
And if there is ever one thing
that we need to understand
and grasp regarding this farewell discourse,
it is this,
that as our Lord Jesus analyzes the needs
of His little children,
His covenant children,
as you will see at the end of chapter 13,
as He, as the covenant head of His family,
seeks to minister to them
and understand what is pressing their need,
what is it do you think that He does
in the last hour before His death?
What He does is He does
in the following chapters,
chapters 14, 15, and 16,
and a closing prayer for them in 17,
He sees the depth of their troubled heart.
He sees the pressing need
that is consuming them.
And what does our Lord Jesus Christ now do?
He does something very remarkable.
It's in this really dark hour
that He gives to them really the clearest light.
And all that He now says,
in essence, He is saying this,
sink your lives into the Holy Trinity
as you trust in the grace of the triune God,
into the glory of the triune God.
Fix your eyes upon the glory of Christ.
It is the glory of the triune God
into the mystery of the triune God.
For your great need this morning
is to discover who God is.
To be reminded of who God is.
Now that would become increasingly clear
as you are reminded of the Upper Room Discourse.
I'm sure most of you have read it.
But the principle lying behind our Lord's teaching
is a principle that we greatly need
to understand for our own spiritual good.
and its significance of grasping
the importance of the doctrine of God.
Knowing God will do more for your troubles
in your life as a Christian
than anything else.
Knowing the will of God
will do more for your life
and the tribulations
than anything else will.
Knowing God will do more
for the mortification of your sin
than anything else.
exploring the height
and the breadth
and the depth
of the grandeur
of God's ontological nature.
The glory of God.
The attributes of God.
The incarnation of Christ.
Knowing and understanding
from Genesis 3, 15 onward
is the work of the covenant of grace
on your behalf.
Knowing God
and His redemptive covenant
will do more for impacting
how you live in this world
than anything else.
And that is Jesus' significant ministry
to His disciples
really at this critical time
in their lives.
It is as if He's taking them
by the hand in these chapters
and saying,
let me take you
and explore with you
the depths of the triunity of God.
Now these opening words
of John chapter 14
as you know
have brought untold comfort
and help to Christians
throughout the ages
especially Christians
going through hard
and distressing times.
Actually,
the Puritan John Owen
says this about verse 1.
He says,
quote,
no other verse
has helped me more
to understand
that a sense of God's presence
and love
is sufficient
to rebuke all anxiety
and fears
and to calm the troubles
and to give me
in the midst of turmoil
a solid consolation
and joy.
And so Jesus' disciples
are troubled.
And Jesus is going
to give them a remedy
for a troubled heart
as well as ours.
He's going to tell them
that they have
a prescribed proportion
given to them.
And what is true for them
is true for all believers
today.
And we're going to note
three things
as we consider together
this singular verse
as our focus
is upon this portion
of the upper room.
The words of our Lord
Jesus Christ
to His weary saints.
And the first
is the sovereign appointment
of sorrows
in the saints.
And the second
we will go to the solemn
command of Christ
towards struggling saints.
And then third
we will strengthen
our gaze
toward the triune God
for you the saint.
So we see first
the sovereign appointment
of sorrows
in the saints.
Look at verse 1
with me beloved.
Do not let your heart
be troubled.
Believe in God
and believe also
in me.
And let us remind ourselves
that we need to be careful
with a passage
like this
because it's just
this kind of passage
that we're so familiar with.
Often spoken at funerals
especially verses 2 and 3.
And rightly so
but often with familiar passages
we can read over them
carelessly.
And in the type of passage
that really requires
for us to place
our tent here
and to really ask ourselves
what is Christ
commanding us
to do?
What is He supplying
to obey the command?
I mean Christ
not only commands us
to obey
but He also gives us
all the things necessary
to be obedient.
And yet before we can
understand Christ's command
we must
understand
our condition.
There is the certainty
of trouble
and it is sovereignly
appointed
for the saints.
Verse 1 says
do not let your heart
be troubled.
And the world
in which we
are called
as Christians
is not a
sanctuary of ease
but it is full of
tribulation.
Isn't it beloved?
I mean Scripture
has always reminded us
of this.
Job 14 verse 1
man who is born
of woman
is short lived
and full of turmoil.
Job 5 verse 7
for a man
is born for trouble
as sparks fly upward.
I mean the fall
has left
no corner
of our life
untouched.
And therefore
trouble meets us
from every side
and every angle.
I mean let us
recognize this.
And not be blind
to the reality
of a fallen world.
The fallen condition
of men.
I mean the weight
within our homes.
There are
maritable troubles.
I mean the closeness
of earthly bonds
often feel strained
because sin
so still
clings
closely to us.
Raising our children
in the Lord
comes with
tribulent times.
We have trouble
with sin
within our homes
and patient
pride,
harsh words,
cold affections.
Sanctification
is real
but it's not yet
complete
and so we struggle.
Even Paul cried
for the good
that I want
I do not do.
Romans 7
19
so the Christian
home is not
exempt from
spiritual warfare.
Indeed
it's a
primary ground.
And then we have
the war within.
We have the
daily trouble
of bringing
our own sins
under submission
to Christ.
Put death
therefore what is
earthly in you
Paul says
to the Colossians.
So mortification
is not an easy
work.
It's a continual
work of the saint.
I mean the Puritans
spoke of it as a
lifelong combat.
The flesh
resistant.
The old man
lingers.
And though sin's
dominion is broken
as Romans 6
14 tells us
its presence
remains
therefore
we groan
wretched man
that I am
who will set
me free.
We also carry
the burden
as I know
many of you
do
of non-believing
family members.
Those who seem
indifferent to
eternity.
Those who ignore
the warnings
of the
Scripture.
Those who ignore
what should wake
them up from
their slumber.
That it is
appointed for man
to die once
and then comes
the judgment.
And they
appeared untroubled
by these words.
And yet they
stand on the
brink of
everlasting ruin.
And for them
there is little
concern.
For us
there is much
anguish.
I mean Paul
knew this sorrow.
I have great
sorrow and
unceasing grief
in my heart
as Romans 9
verse 2 says.
We also
endure betrayal
by those
close to us.
Those we have
walked in
ministry with.
Shared
fellowship with.
Scriptures
prepare us
for this.
A man's
enemies will
be the members
of his
household.
Matthew 10
verse 36.
David
laminated
it is you
a man
my equal
my companion
and my
familiar
friend.
Psalms 55
verse 13.
Even our
Lord was
betrayed with
a kiss.
Then we
have those
who walk
with us
for a little
while in
the church
only to
find out
all of our
efforts,
time,
and ministry
although not
in vain
does have
pain and
troubles and
trials attached
to it.
As the
moss, a
close
companion of
Paul,
abandoned the
truth for he
was in love
with the
present world.
There are
also those
times that
the ministry
especially for
the leaders
where we are
so troubled
that it's
likened to
death.
2 Corinthians
1 verse 8
For we do
not want you
to be unaware
brethren of
our affliction,
our troubles
which came to
us in Asia
that we were
burdened
excessively
beyond our
strength so
that we
despaired even
of life.
And then we
just have the
providential
troubles,
don't we?
The pressures
of daily
life,
the ordinary
pressures,
the strain
of schedules,
responsibilities,
the relentless
demands of
daily tasks
as Martha
was distracted
with all of
her preparations.
We also
face the
trouble of
sin's
consequences
catching up
with us.
Though
forgiven
consequences
often remain,
David was
pardoned as
2 Samuel 12
verse 13
told us,
yet the
sword did
not depart
from his
house.
Grace
removes
eternal
condemnation,
but not
always temporary
repercussions.
Then we
have the
hostile
trouble,
the world
that is in
opposition to
the very
gospel that
you believe
in.
Enemies
at every
territory.
And we
have the
task of
proclaiming
the message
that offends
the natural
man and all
of his
cardinal
desires.
Whether it
be the
homosexuals
or abortion
or the
misrepresentation
of Christ's
name with
all the
false
gospels
that use
Christ's
name to
gain glory,
wealth,
or reputation.
We have
all of those
troubles,
all of those
tribulations.
sins.
And then we
have cults
claiming and
professing to
know our
Savior, yet
deny His
deity.
I mean, the
spirit of our
age resists the
truth of
Christ, and
therefore they
will resist
His people.
Domestic
hatred surrounds
the true
church of the
Lord.
If the world
hates you,
you know that
it has hated
me before it
hated you.
John 15
verse 18.
Paul testified
afflicted in
every way, but
not crushed.
So troubles
from within,
troubles from
without,
troubles from
beneath in
temptation,
from every
side and
every angle.
And the
Word of God
warns us of
the troubles
of this
world.
Christ is
going to warn
them again
even.
In the
upper room
discourse in
chapter 16,
he says this
in verse 33,
These things I
have spoken to
you, so that
in me you may
have peace, but
in the world you
have tribulation.
But take
courage.
I have
overcome the
world.
And so the
disposition of
the heart of
the disciple this
morning, or the
heart of anyone
listening to the
words of Christ
that is in
Christ, at this
moment in the
upper room, is a
heart full of
trouble.
The Christian
life is a hard
pressing road if
you haven't
noticed.
Our Lord says
in Luke 10
verse 3,
Go behold, I
send you out as
lambs in the
midst of wolves.
Paul encourages
the church during
persecution after
being stoned in
Antioch and then
returning to
Antioch.
He records this in
Acts 14 verse 22,
strengthening the
souls of the
disciples, encouraging
them to continue in
the faith, saying
through many
tribulations you
must enter the
kingdom of God.
I mean, consider
how Paul strengthened
them.
He strengthened
them not by
promising ease, but
by preparing them
for endurance.
He did not say
tribulations may
come, did he,
beloved?
No, what does he
say?
He said tribulations
must come.
We will enter
through them.
That word must
speaks of divine
necessity.
And so it's not
accidental.
It is ordained.
The path to the
kingdom is appointed
by God himself
through his
sovereign means.
And so where do
we get the idea
that we are supposed
to have an easy
life in this
fallen world?
I mean, consider
this, beloved, if
the Father did not
spare his own
son, how shall
we be spared
from troubles?
Right?
He who did not
spare his own
son, but delivered
him over for
us all.
I mean, mark the
weight of that
phrase, he did
not spare.
The beloved, the
eternal son in whom
the Father was well
pleased, as Matthew
3 verse 17 says,
was not shielded
from suffering.
He was appointed
to it.
Isaiah foresaw it.
It pleased the Lord
to crush him, that he
was put to grief.
And so the cross was
not accidental.
It was ordained.
The spotless lamb
bore wrath, shame,
rejection, and death
for us.
If ever there was one
who might seem
deserving of exemption,
it was Christ.
And yet he learned
obedience through what
he suffered.
And shall you, his
servant, expect a
softer path than the
master?
In John 15, the
word of God reads
there, a disciple is
not above his
teacher.
If they persecuted
me, they will also
persecute you.
Actually, beloved, the
constant counsel of
Scripture is quite the
opposite of the
modern evangelical
churches teaching on
the life of a
Christian.
For the Scripture
teaches us God
leaves his church in
a tribulent world to
show his amazing
sovereign power.
The Scripture
nowhere promises
exempt from sorrow.
Rather, it prepares
all believers for it
by those divinely
appointed means of
grace.
For even Paul says
later, in 2 Timothy
3, verse 12,
indeed, all who
desire to live
godly in Christ
Jesus will be
persecuted.
So God has one
son without sin,
but he never has a
son without trials.
If the Father
loved you enough
not to spare
his own son for
your redemption,
he loves you
enough not to
spare you and I
from what will
conform you to
his son.
For this is the
purpose we are
saved.
And even
attaching to his
covenant of
redemption,
Romans 8,
verse 29 says,
for those in
whom he foreknew,
he also predestined
become conformed to
the image of his
son.
So there are
sorrows.
The reality of your
life as a Christian
will be one of
full of trials and
tribulations and
troubles that arise
from every side of
us.
From a fallen
creation,
sickness,
frailty,
death.
As Romans 8,
verse 22 says,
for we know that
the whole creation
groans and
suffers the pain of
childbirth together
until now.
And not only this,
but also we
ourselves having the
first fruits of the
Spirit, even we
ourselves groan
within ourselves,
waiting eagerly for
our adoption as
sons, the
redemption of our
body.
And even Peter
addresses this in
1 Peter 4,
verse 4.
The Word of God
reads there,
in all this they
are surprised that
you do not run
with them in the
same access of
indulgence and they
malign you for it.
And so this world
is full of troubles,
but it's sovereignly
ordained by God.
And so for the
Christian, for the
child of God, you're
not promised that
you'll be freed from
hard times.
Quite the opposite.
Christ has explained
to us, you will have
a hard time,
tribulations.
And in the midst of
these, the Christian
heart can be
troubled.
And this is why
Jesus addresses the
saints'
tribulance.
Hearts here.
And He gives
them a solemn
command in the
midst of their
struggles.
He gives them a
solemn command of
Christ toward these
struggling saints.
I mean, look back
at verse 1.
Do not let your
heart be troubled.
I mean, make no
mistake, beloved,
this is a command.
The command of
Christ is clear.
What is Christ
commanding us?
What is Christ
commanding the
disciples in this
hour of hardship?
Do not let your
heart be troubled.
And the word that is
used here for
trouble is the same
exact word that He
used in John
chapter 12,
verse 27 of the
Lord Himself.
Now my soul has
become troubled.
And sometimes the
English translation,
of course, doesn't do
justice to the actual
term that's being used
in the Greek.
The word here for
trouble is terresto.
It means agitated.
It means to be
stirred up.
The same word,
for instance,
that was used to
describe what the
angel did to the
water at the pool of
Bethesda.
And so if you turn
back to John 5,
we get a word
picture of it.
In John chapter 5,
verse 7, when Christ
is about to minister
grace to that lame
man by the pool,
it says,
The sick man
answered him,
Sir, I have no
man to put me into
the pool when the
water is stirred up.
And so the Lord
uses a picture there.
And this is so
helpful.
In other words,
the soul, the human
soul, according to
Christ, is pictured
as water that is
either calm and
peaceful and quiet,
no movement,
all is at rest,
or it's stirred up.
Emotions going back
and forth like waves
and tides and
splashing and
slothing everywhere.
It's one of the
two.
And he's saying
that this is the
case about the
disciples.
The one who knows
their hearts, as
John 2 tells us.
The one who knows
every trouble of
their soul.
He knows every
thought of their
mind.
And so their
hearts are stirred
up to the shocking
words about his
death and betrayal.
And so when you
think of this word
trouble, when you're
looking at this
word, think of the
raging waves of the
sea in the midst
of a particular
violent storm.
And then you have a
good idea of what
is meant by
troubled.
You have a good
idea of what's
going on in their
hearts.
And so there's
confusion, there's
bewilderment.
If nothing else, we
can learn from this
is that genuine
faith is often
punctuated then with
these troubles,
punctuated with the
times of distress.
Now when you begin
to look everywhere
else in the word of
God, it gives you a
little handle on what
this word also means.
In Acts chapter 12
verse 18, it says
this, the word of
God reads, now when
day came, there was
no small disturbance
among the soldiers as
to what could have
become of Peter.
And so they were
disturbed by the
present circumstances.
Acts 15 verse 24
uses the same word,
since we have heard
that some of our
number to whom we
gave no instruction
have disturbed you
with their words
unsettling your
souls.
And so it could be
false doctrine that
stirs up a believer.
And disturbs him,
shaking his
assurance everywhere.
Paul uses the same
thing in Galatia.
Those who are trying
to disturb you,
trying to distort the
gospel in Galatians
1.7, only there are
those, some who are
disturbing you and
want to distort the
gospel of Christ.
And so it was
unsettling for the
church.
It was unsettling for
Paul.
In John 11 verse
33, it's used of
wakes and funerals
like Christ comes
to Lazarus' tomb
and he was deeply
moved in spirit and
trouble.
Peter uses it in
1 Peter 3 verse 14
and do not fear
their intimidation,
do not be troubled.
And so everywhere
we see this.
And so here in
John 14 he uses it
twice.
And in verse 1
and verse 27 later
on, peace I leave
with you.
My peace I give to
you.
Not as the world
gives to you, do I
give to you.
Do not let your
heart be troubled.
Nor let it be
fearful.
So it's described
in the same way in
John 13 verse 21
concerning the
betrayal of a
close friend.
Where it says,
when Jesus had said
this, he became
troubled in spirit.
So we are in this
immediate context.
And yet Jesus is
commanding his
covenant children,
don't be troubled.
There's something
else to notice here
too.
It's in that, in the
tense of this word
troubled, the verb is
a continual tense.
So it carries this
meaning, let not your
heart continue to be
troubled.
And that's important
because Jesus is not
saying don't ever be
troubled.
Because the trouble you
are experiencing can be
genuine concern.
Right?
Paul was genuinely
concerned for the
churches.
2 Corinthians 11
verse 28, apart from
such external things,
there's a daily
pressure on me of
concern for all the
churches.
Galatians 4 verse 19,
my children with whom
I am again in labor
until Christ is formed
in you.
So he's not saying you
need to quit being
troubled or that genuine
Christians don't have a
troubled heart.
He's not saying that.
He's saying don't allow
your heart to continue to
be troubled.
Because you might ask,
how does Jesus command me
not to be troubled?
But yet I know these
verses say he was
troubled.
And if it's not a sin for
Christ to be troubled,
or Paul to be concerned
about how it could possibly
be a sin for me and my
heart to be troubled.
You have trouble in this
world and there are
reasons, as we've noted,
to be troubled.
But Jesus is saying don't
continue to have a
troubled heart.
Don't dwell in your
troubles.
Since the imperative mood is
addressing the emotional
state, it's best to take this
command in this sense
concerning the disciples.
Be self-controlled.
It's not good for us to let
our feelings rule our minds
and our hearts.
To let our feelings of fear
and anxiety or trouble
wash us again and again
without addressing them.
It's not good for the
Christian to live in the
state of trouble.
I mean, sinless sorrow
flows from holy
affection, godly concerns
with godly trust, yet
sinful disorder flows
from unbelief or
neglect of gospel
promises.
And so the big
perspective in all of
this, and that is
precisely because Jesus
was troubled with all
the events of his
crucifixion, to endure
that it's now possible
for us not to be
troubled.
To look to him and
praise the Lord for that.
For his merit of trouble
is our righteousness, and
now we can have peace.
So Jesus is telling his
disciples to not be
troubled.
And the wonderful thing
about our Lord Jesus
Christ is that he knows
our frame.
Not by the observation
of omniscience only,
but by his common
humanity with us.
That he is bone of our
bone and flesh of our
flesh.
That by his common
humanity with us,
he knows our troubles.
He said it over and
over in the gospel to
prepare us for this
moment in verse 1,
my soul is troubled.
So he knows what heart
trouble is because he
has experienced sinless
heart trouble.
But our heart trouble is
at times sinful, isn't
it?
When our troubling
concerns turn into
continuous anxious worry,
it becomes sinful.
His wasn't, right?
1 Peter 2 verse 3
speaks of the trouble
of the Lord, and it
says, while being
reviled, he did not
what?
Revile in return.
While suffering, he
uttered no threats, but
kept entrusting himself
to him who judges
righteously.
And Peter says we will
share in this suffering.
1 Peter 4 verse 12,
Beloved, do not be
surprised at the fire
ordeal among you,
which comes upon you
for your testing, as
though some strange
thing were happening
to you, but to the
degree that you share
the suffering of Christ,
keep on rejoicing, so
that also at the
revelation of his
glory, you may rejoice
with exultation.
So he's not oblivious
to their need.
That's a great thing to
know, isn't it, beloved?
When you come to cast
yourself upon the Lord,
he's never saying, I
didn't realize things
were that bad.
Neither does Jesus
dismiss the trouble of
a fallen world.
He doesn't say things
here on earth will get
better either.
He doesn't give them
some sort of false hope
that everything on earth
is going to get better
for them.
No, trouble will increase
for the believer, as
Paul said in 2 Timothy
3 verse 1.
But realize this, that in
the last days, difficult
times will come.
And then verse 13, but
evil men and imposters
will proceed from bad
to worse, deceiving and
being deceived.
So he doesn't minimize
their troubles.
He said right here what
we have.
So we have a prescribed
portion that he sets
before them.
What does he do?
What does our Lord do?
In the midst of their
trouble, do not let your
heart be troubled.
Well, our Lord sets their
gaze.
He redirects their gaze.
He strengthens the troubled
saints by fixing their eyes
upon the triune God.
Let not your heart be
troubled, but look at this.
Look at the strengthening
gaze toward that triune God
where all of our eyes
need to be.
Verse 1, believe in God
and believe also in
me.
And yes, there's a
realism about troubles.
But he directs their
gaze from the realism
of their woes to the
realism that is found
in the triune God.
And we ask ourselves,
why do we get stirred up
or troubled?
What is when we think our
resources are not able to
meet the need?
Whether that need be
spiritual, physical,
emotional, whatever the
need is.
And yet there's nothing in
the text about positive
thinking.
This is not some
philosophical self-help
that our Lord gives to
His troubled disciples.
This is not a moral
therapeutic gospel spoken
from many pulpits today.
Here's no worldly
encouragement, no
cardinal stratagem of
self-exhortation.
No, the peace of Christ
gives, that He gives
here is not fragile fruit
of self-persuasion,
but the purchased
possession of His blood
and righteousness.
I mean, the world
traffics in slogans
and sentiments,
but Christ bestows
Himself before you
this morning.
So nothing in this text
where you say to yourself,
well, I just hope
things will get better.
Or let me just think
for the best.
Or let me just envision
the best.
Or just fantasize
the best outcome.
Or as our world is
telling our children,
believe in yourself.
And this will somehow
build up your heart
and give you some
encouragement.
I mean, you and I
have been told
too much in our life
that we can help
ourselves if we will
just try hard enough.
That's nonsense.
This is no motivational
pep talk
that we hear blaring
from the mouth of Christ.
No, not at all.
No, to counter the trouble,
the Lord answers
by redirecting
our gaze upon
the triune God.
And He uses the word
pisto twice,
believe, believe.
And by believe,
the Scripture means
relational trust.
A trust that's founded
upon being in a
genuine relationship
with the Lord.
God.
This is what we
in the Reformation
tradition call
sola fidei.
Faith alone.
The rally
of the Reformation.
That faith is a gift
according to Ephesians 2.8.
That God gives
allowing us to respond
with our whole being,
our whole self
to God.
That when the believer
is faced
with constant sorrows,
we must be careful
to be in the word
of God
so frequently
that the great facts
about God
and the great facts
about the work
of redemption
and the great facts
about union in Christ,
they grip us.
And I believe them
and I rely upon them
and I'm comforted
by them.
So again,
we're not talking
about general optimism
here.
People just say,
I just believe
things have got
to get better.
No.
We turn our gaze
into penance
on knowing God.
The object of our trust
that we know Him.
And we must know
His character.
And that means
we must know
what He says
about Himself
in the one place
that He reveals
His character to us
and that's Scripture.
That all His attributes,
they are laid out there
beautifully for us,
so lovingly for us.
And as we know them,
we know Him.
Because Jesus says this
in His high priestly prayer
in John 17,
verse 3,
the Word of God
reads there,
this is eternal life
that they may know you,
know you,
the only true God
in Jesus Christ
whom you have sent.
You see,
the deeper you go,
the deeper you go
into the study
of the doctrine of God
and His ways
and the more you meditate
on His attributes
and His ways,
then the deeper
your trust can be.
And therefore,
the less troubled
your heart will be.
Something else
about this word believe,
it includes the idea
of being absolutely
persuaded about something.
In other words,
it means to trust,
it means to place
your total confidence.
It means to choose
completely
to trust everything
about your life
to entrust your well-being
to the Lord.
And so he's talking
about a belief here
but a certain kind
of belief.
Now this can be
a difficult phrase
to translate
at the end of verse 1,
not because the words
are difficult,
because they can be
translated as
indicative statements.
You believe God,
you also believe in me.
Or they can be
translated as
imperatives,
believe in God,
believe also in me.
Or they could be
indicative and imperative,
you believe in God,
then also believe
in me.
And it shouldn't be
read as an indicative
for Jesus is not
hoping to add belief
in Him to already
believing in God,
as if belief in God
and Jesus
could ever be separated.
Which as you know,
beloved,
and I hope you have
learned as you have
read in the Scripture,
that is a foreign thought.
It needs to be read
as an imperative.
Believe in God,
believe also in me.
So that the meaning
would be keep believing,
grow in your faith.
You've already
believed in God.
God has already
called you unto Himself,
drawn you to the Son.
So now keep believing,
keep trusting,
keep your eyes fixed
on Christ,
not on the things
of the earth.
So He gives them
really two root ways,
a remedy,
you could say,
for their troubled hearts.
And He says,
trust in the Father,
believe in God.
Now notice that Jesus
does not direct them
to look within themselves
to see if they're up
to the challenge.
Jesus does say,
well,
how much faith do you have
and how much faith
can you muster up?
No,
Jesus recognizes
none of those things
typical of modern
American religion
that is utterly
self-centered
and entirely subjective.
It is faith in the Lord
that is set before us.
He's saying,
continue to place
your confidence,
not into the troubles
around you,
not into the fluctuations
that are unsettling,
but place your confidence
this morning
and your trust
in God,
in His wisdom,
in His goodness,
in His power,
in His love,
in His unchanging grace.
So take for example,
Abraham in Romans 4,
verse 19.
We read this
about Abraham's faith,
which is what he's
telling them to do,
to have faith,
to believe in Him.
It says,
without becoming weak
in faith,
he contemplated
his own body,
now as good as dead,
since he was about
a hundred years old
and the deadness
of Sarah's womb.
And so he didn't
escape the reality,
did he?
Abraham didn't.
He knew it.
He saw it.
It says in that text
in Romans 4, 19
that he contemplated it.
He thought of it.
But he saw it
in relationship to what?
Verse 20,
yet with respect
to the promise of God.
Did you hear that?
Now respect
to the promise of God.
So let me turn
your attention
to the promise of God,
to the character of God.
He did not waver
in unbelief,
but grew in faith,
giving glory to God
and being fully assured
that what God
had promised,
He was able
to perform.
Look upon Him
who is worthy
of glory
and always good,
who Himself is love
and who is all-powerful.
Fix your gaze here
upon the covenant-keeping God.
Believe in God.
And this is the remedy
for the troubled disciples
in this moment.
Believe in God.
Christ says,
continue to believe in God.
You know Him.
Christ doesn't bring
anything new to them.
You know this God.
You, 11,
have already trusted in Him.
And so Christ is really saying,
consider your God.
Let not your hearts
be troubled.
Why?
Because you consider
your God
in the midst
of those adversities
and troubles.
Now proclaim the faith
that you know Him.
And so the cure
for the troubled heart
is something
that has not changed
throughout human history.
The cure is
genuine trust
in the Lord.
I mean,
let's think of the Old Testament
for a moment.
God's people,
they were frequently
told to trust
in the Lord.
They were expected
to trust
in God.
Let me just give you
a few examples
this morning.
Deuteronomy 20,
verse 1,
when you go out
to battle
against your enemies
and see horses
and chariots
and people more
numerous than you,
do not be afraid
of them,
for the Lord your God
who brought you up
from the land of Egypt
is with you.
Jeremiah 17,
verse 7,
blessed is a man
who trusts
in the Lord,
who trusts
in the Lord,
doubly repeated.
It's the same thing
that the Psalms
train us in.
Psalms 28,
verse 7,
the Lord is my strength
and my shield,
my heart,
trust in Him
and I am helped.
Psalms 27,
verse 1,
the Lord is my light
and my salvation,
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the defense
of my life,
whom shall I dread?
Psalms 42,
verse 11,
it says there
the Word of God reads,
why are you in despair?
O my soul,
and why have you
become disturbed
within me?
Hope in God,
for I shall yet
praise Him,
the help of my
countenance
and my God.
And so the gaze
of the Christian
is to be fixated
upon the object
of faith
that is found
in God Himself.
And so,
beloved saints,
these are the words
not only to the leaven,
but to every single believer.
an exhortation
which we constantly need
to be reminded,
believe in God.
Believe in God,
O Christian,
for your Father
is possessed
with infinite power
and wisdom
and goodness
that He knows
what is best for you.
This is why
in Luke chapter 12,
verse 32,
Jesus says,
do not be afraid,
little flock,
for your Father
has chosen gladly
to give you the kingdom.
But fear not,
beloved,
for it is your Father's
good pleasure
to save you,
to redeem you,
and to one day
glorify you.
So Jesus is constantly
reminding us,
believe in God
and His absolute sovereignty,
His infinite wisdom,
His unchanging faithfulness,
His wondrous love
for you,
for He will love you
to the end.
That is His promise.
I mean,
think about how God
has been described
for us in Scripture.
And in each of these
descriptions,
troubled heart,
you grabbed hold of this.
And you reckon it
to be the reality
and not fantasy.
And you live upon it.
And you not be tossed
to and fro
as so many are.
in Psalms 102,
verse 25,
talks about the
unalterable
and timelessness
of our Lord.
It says,
of old you have
founded the earth
and the heavens
are the works
of your hands.
Even they will perish,
but you endure.
Psalms 103,
verse 19,
the Lord has established
His thrones
in the heavens
and His sovereignty
rules over all.
It rules over all places,
all events,
all circumstances.
1 Timothy 6,
verse 15,
He who is blessed
and only sovereign,
the King of kings
and the Lord of lords.
Isaiah says
in chapter 25,
verse 1,
O Lord,
You are my God.
I will exalt You
and I will give thanks
to Your name
for You have worked wonders.
Plans formed long ago
with me.
perfect faithfulness.
So we are not alone.
Christ knew of these things
with His disciples.
He knew of the trouble Himself
and He trusted
the Father perfectly.
That He experienced
all that man experienced.
And He tells them
to fix their eyes
to trust in God.
But not only does He give them
that remedy,
believe in God,
and yet Jesus also goes on
to say,
trust in the Son.
Did you notice that?
It says,
believe in God
and believe also in Me.
In Me.
It's not necessarily
the presence of faith
and it's certainly
not the feelings
we have of faithfulness,
but it's the object
of faith
which matters.
Jesus is pushing Himself
as it were
to the forefront
as the exclusive object
of their faith
and of our faith.
But this is Christ alone.
Standing next to
faith alone.
That if one is weak
and the other collapses.
If one is misunderstood,
the gospel is obscured.
To say we are justified
by faith alone
is to say that we are justified
by Christ alone.
To say we are saved
by Christ alone
necessarily means
we receive Him
by faith alone.
These are not
competing truths.
They are inseparable beams
of the same gospel light
and that is what
He is putting before them.
Come to Me.
All who are weary
and burdened
may come to Christ.
So Christ is the object
of our faith.
He's the root of it.
And our sanctification
is in that same root.
The branch does not
draw life from itself
nor does holiness
grow from that native soil.
No, all grace flows
from union with Christ.
The Savior who justifies
will also sanctify.
1 Corinthians 1 verse 30
But by His doing
you are in Christ Jesus
who became to us
wisdom from God
and righteousness
and sanctification
and redemption
and yet it's falling
on these ears
of the disciples
and if you've read
in John 14
you know they don't
truly grasp all of this
but Christ is building them.
He's preparing that soil
for them to be strengthened
to be sanctified.
I mean consider it
this morning beloved
Christ Himself
is our sanctification.
So He's claiming
to not only be
the object of justification
but of sanctification
as well.
And in claiming this
here in verse 1
He's associating Himself
with God.
Isn't He?
He's associating Himself
with God
as the object of worship.
I mean this is
high Christology.
For Jesus is linking
Himself with God.
And for you beloved
you recognize this
because to believe
in God's Word
is to believe
in the Word made flesh.
He's saying
I'm the object of faith.
He's making Himself
equal with God.
And this yet again
as we see everywhere
in the Scripture
and especially
in the Gospel of John
the divinity
of Christ's glory
being set before us.
That He's identifying
Himself with the Father
just like in John 10
verse 30
surely ringing in our ears
I and the Father
are one
for He is the true Emmanuel
who answers within.
So this is not
someone foreign
coming to us
saying believe in Me.
No this is God Himself.
And here's our Lord
beginning to sink
their mind
and their hearts
into the doctrine
of the Holy Trinity.
And Paul says
to the Colossians
and he says it
while he's in jail
Colossians 1 verse 19
For it was the Father's
good pleasure
for all the fullness
to dwell in Him.
And in chapter 2 verse 9
he says for in Him
all the fullness
of deity dwells
in bodily form.
So all the fullness
of God is packed
into the human body
and soul of Christ.
The second person
of the triune God
the Son of God.
So let's be clear
then here today
what Christ is saying.
We cannot consider God
without considering Christ.
We cannot know God
without knowing Christ.
We cannot genuinely believe
and trust in God
without believing
in His Son.
John 5 verse 23
the Word of God
reads there
so that all
will honor the Son
even as they honor
the Father.
He who does not
honor the Father
who sent Him.
And so we cannot
see God
without first
seeing His Son
for they are one.
And our great mediator
in His work
is exactly this
to bring us
close to God.
And we can never
be close to God
if we are not
truly close to Christ.
So this is primary
beloved.
This is preeminent.
The only right passage
to peace with God
and peace of God
as John 14 verse 6
will say
is Jesus said to them
I am the way
the truth
and the life
and no one comes
to the Father
but through Me.
And so it's through
Christ alone
that we can believe
in God.
And in this text
we have that
proclamation
so that we would
set our eyes
not upon our troubles
not upon our circumstances
not upon what the world
throws at us
but that we may
continue to look
towards Christ.
Christ has invited us
as His covenant children
to partake in Him.
And so He says to them
believe in God
but believe also
in Me.
And this is the prescribed
portion
for our troubled hearts.
Christ ever placing
before you this morning
His nature.
who He is.
But as you look
at yourself
and you think
I'm discouraged
with perhaps
the circumstances
discouraged
perhaps
with what I find
inside my own soul
when I go looking
as I rehearse
my own thoughts
and as I rehearse
all that is taking
place within me.
And as we examine
our hearts
and we find
remaining corruption
coldness in prayer
wondering thoughts
even this morning
unbelief
fear
and spiritual weakness
we feel the pressure
of that indwelling
sin
warring
against the law
of God
as Paul
describes in Romans 7
we feel the hatred
of the world
the accusations
of Satan
and the burden
of present trials
we feel all of that
and our Lord
comes to us
and He interrupts
everything else
that's going on
in our little world
and He says
believe in Me
trust in Me
continue to believe
continue to be poured out
for the sake
of Christ
and the Trinity
is precisely
what we need
to know God
is precisely
what we need
for every trial
on this world
that is why Christ
gives them that
in His final hours
to encourage them
and to display to them
that He will love them
to the end
to continue to fix
and redirect
their troubled hearts
into fixing their gaze
upon Him
isn't that what Hebrews 12
2 has taught us
fix our eyes
on Jesus
gaze upon Him
beloved
the author
and perfecter
of faith
who for the joy
set before Him
He endured the cross
despising this shame
and He sat down
at the right hand
of the throne
of God
return again
and again
to the cross
return again
and again
to the empty tomb
return again
and again
to the throne
of grace
and lay your burdens
there
confess your sins
and your troubles
there
anchor your hope
there
and though the storms
of life will come
indeed they will
you will find
beneath every wave
is an everlasting
grace
and beneath your weary
soul
are the everlasting arms
of the loving Father
and the gracious Son
trust in God
trust also in Christ
for in Him
and Him alone
your troubled hearts
finds its place
of rest
in the place
of Christ
John 14 1
do not let your heart
be troubled
believe in God
and believe also
in me
let's go to our Lord
oh Father
you're so gracious
oh God
you're so gracious
to love us
to the end
we creatures
who know
who we are
we know
how sinful
we are
oh God
we know
how Lord
we can
often try
to solve
our own issues
our own troubles
ourselves
by our own
marriage
and our own
works
God
but yet
you come
with words
of life
you come
with words
of comfort
and encouragement
but also
words of rebuking
and you come
to us
in a command
and you say
for us
to trust in you
to believe
upon you
Father
let us
do that
give us
the strength
to God
because we
cannot do it
on our own
we are quite
helpless
we pray God
that you would
give us
the strength
to trust you
the strength
to get into
our word
daily
the strength
to pray
to you
the strength
to even
come before
the Lord's
table
and really
reflect upon
what Christ
has done
oh Father
let our hearts
remember
what was spoken
to those
disciples
has spoken
to us
that we should
believe in you
and believe
in the son
that you have
sent
and let us
do that
oh God
and let us
not grow weary
in doing it
yet let us
finish this race
clinging
to the arms
of our Savior
and we say
this
in the name
of Christ
Amen