Would you turn with me to the Gospel of John, chapter 16, verses 25 through 33.
That's where we'll pick up our sermon series.
John, chapter 16, verses 25 through 33.
That's page 849 in the Pew Bible, if you want to follow along there.
Well, as we turn there to John 16, let me pray for us.
Father, we ask you this morning for your favor as we come to your word.
God, we know that in our own strength, in our own intellect, in our own wisdom,
God, we can't put all the pieces together.
So we need your help now, and we need your spirit to come.
Give us ears to hear, eyes to see, hearts to receive what you are telling us about yourself,
about your Son, Father, and about your saving purposes in the world.
We pray all this in Christ's name. Amen.
All right, let me read John 16, 25 through 33 for us.
Jesus says this,
I have said these things to you in figures of speech.
The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech,
but will tell you plainly about the Father.
In that day, you will ask in my name.
And I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf,
for the Father himself loves you,
because you have loved me, and I believe that I came from God.
I've come from the Father, and I've come into the world,
and now I'm leaving the world and going to the Father.
His disciples said,
Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech.
Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you.
This is why we believe that you came from God.
Jesus answered them,
Do you now believe?
Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come,
when you will be scattered,
each to his own home,
and will leave me alone.
Yet,
I am not alone,
for the Father is with me.
I have said these things to you,
that in me you may have peace.
In the world,
you will have tribulation,
but take heart,
I have overcome the world.
So,
when a speaker,
or when a teacher gets up and says,
In conclusion,
at the end of a lengthy lecture or lesson,
what do you expect to hear next?
Now you might be thinking to yourself,
Wow, the preacher's done already,
he just said in conclusion,
this is going to be a short sermon,
all right.
No,
well,
when the speaker gets up and says,
In conclusion,
usually you're expecting some sort of powerful summary,
some sort of main point of everything that's come before.
Here comes the big takeaway,
the parting shot.
And what we have before us,
in verses 25 through 33 of John 16,
are Jesus' concluding remarks,
to what we've come to call his farewell discourse.
Remember,
these last few chapters of John,
are the words that Jesus spoke to his disciples in the upper room,
right before his arrest and crucifixion.
And these are his sort of concluding,
summarizing remarks.
Now,
what makes us think that,
what makes us think that these are Jesus' concluding remarks?
Well,
we see twice in this passage that Jesus says,
I've said these things to you.
And these things,
as he puts it there,
probably refer to the whole of chapters 14 through 16.
This is all of what he's been saying.
I've been saying all these things to you.
And at the heart of this conclusion,
in verse 28,
Jesus gives us a summary of his mission.
Verse 28 says,
I came from the Father,
and have come into the world,
and now I'm leaving the world,
and going to the Father.
Now,
we've seen this kind of language often in John's Gospel,
most recently at the beginning of chapter 13.
But what Jesus really wants to drive home,
in this conclusion,
isn't just what his mission is,
but what it achieves.
Notice in verse 25,
Jesus says,
the hour's coming.
And in verse 26,
in that day,
and then again in verse 32,
the hour's coming,
the day,
the hour.
This is how Jesus,
throughout John's Gospel,
has referred to the climax of his earthly mission.
The great event,
that's going to change history forever.
Something big is coming,
and now it's here.
The hour I've talked about,
Jesus says,
the day you've been waiting for,
all that my mission is meant to achieve,
it's all impinging right now,
right here.
So what is it?
What does it all achieve?
What benefits come to us,
as a result of Jesus' mission?
What has the finished work of Christ,
actually accomplished?
What reality has this new day brought about?
You know,
I wonder if many of us,
whether you're new to Christianity,
or whether you've been a Christian for a long time,
I wonder if many of us don't really grasp
the fullness of what Christ has achieved.
Now,
if you're new to Christianity,
or if you're here sort of exploring spiritual things,
we're really glad you came out this morning.
And if you've been around Christianity for a long time,
we're glad you're here too.
But you know,
could it be that all of us
need Jesus once again
to show us what
he's actually achieved for us
through his death and resurrection?
What if we're only getting like
10 or 20 or 30 percent of it?
I mean,
wouldn't that be a tragedy
to go through life
only seeing part of the picture?
What if the reason Christianity
hasn't really worked for you,
again,
whether you're totally new to the faith,
or whether you've been in the faith
for a long time,
is because
you're trying to ride the bicycle
with only one pedal.
Right?
It doesn't seem like a very smooth ride
when you're just sort of going like this.
Maybe we're missing something.
So let's look again.
Let's hear how Jesus brings
his discourse to a conclusion.
And what we see
is that the finished work of Christ
brings about
at least the things
that Jesus mentions here.
He mentions three things.
Three massive benefits
that flow to us
through his finished work.
And the first one
we see in verse 25.
And it is this.
Jesus says,
the first thing
that my finished work
is going to bring to you
is at last
clear knowledge
of God the Father.
Let me read verse 25.
Jesus says,
I've said these things
to you in figures of speech.
The hour is coming
when I will no longer
speak to you
in figures of speech
but will tell you
plainly about the Father.
So up to this point,
Jesus has been trying
to teach the disciples
using what he calls
figures of speech.
Metaphors,
stories,
parables,
hyperbole.
And at times,
it's all seemed
a little enigmatic.
It seemed a little cryptic
at times.
Figures of speech.
You see,
Jesus knew
that his disciples
wouldn't really understand
all that he had
to tell them
until his hour
had come.
And again,
in John's gospel,
Jesus' hour
is the hour
of the cross
and the resurrection.
But once Jesus
accomplishes that work,
the figures of speech
will finally
become clear.
And Jesus himself
will then
be able to speak
to them plainly
about the Father.
We read in the book
of Acts
that after his resurrection,
Jesus spent 40 days
with the apostles
and with those early disciples
teaching them
about the kingdom of God.
And one of those times,
one of the first happened
on the road to Emmaus.
You remember that story
from Luke 24
when Jesus met
two downcast disciples
who were heading
out of Jerusalem.
They thought that
Jesus was the Christ,
but then they had
watched him get crucified
and who had ever heard
of a crucified Messiah?
So they were discouraged
and downcast.
But Jesus,
the risen Jesus,
meets these men
and walks with them.
And they don't recognize
him at first.
And as they're walking along
and they share with him
what they've been thinking
and what they've been feeling,
the risen Jesus says to them,
don't you see,
was it not necessary
for the Christ to suffer
and then to enter
into his glory?
And then the gospel of Luke
says,
beginning with Moses
and all the prophets,
Jesus began to interpret
to them in all the scriptures
the things concerning himself.
In other words,
after his death
and resurrection,
Jesus starts teaching them
plainly about the Father
and about the Father's plan
and how it has all been achieved
through his own death
and resurrection.
Because now that he had died
and risen again,
the full knowledge of God
could be had.
So let me put this another way.
You and I can't really have
a clear knowledge of God
apart from the cross.
Jesus could have tried to tell them.
In fact, at times
he did try to tell them.
But until the disciples
saw the cross
and met the resurrected Jesus,
only then did it all make sense.
Only then could Jesus'
plain words finally hit home.
And it's the same for us.
You and I can't really have
a knowledge of God
apart from the cross of Christ.
Do you want to know
the wisdom of God?
Do you want to know
the mercy of God?
Do you want to see
and understand
the justice of God?
Do you want to grasp
the goodness of God?
Then friends,
you have to look
at the cross.
John Stott,
the 20th century English
pastor and writer,
once said,
and I'm paraphrasing here,
he said,
you know,
in a world of so much suffering,
he said,
I wouldn't even believe
in the existence of God
if it weren't for the cross.
But in light of the cross,
in light of the fact
that God enters
into human suffering
and doesn't remain distant
or uninvolved
or unaffected
by the world's suffering,
in light of the cross,
John Stott says,
now I can actually believe
in a God at all
because we see
that God is there
and that he is merciful
and that he is just
and that he is wise
and that he is good.
The Old Testament
is filled with prophets
through whom God spoke
and through whom God showed us
what he was like.
But the crucified
and risen Jesus
is the true
and better
and best prophet
who is able
through his own person
and work
to speak to us
plainly
and openly
and clearly
about who God is.
No one else could do that
the way Jesus can.
We don't need to guess
or to grope
or to hope
that maybe one day
we could possibly figure out
what God is like.
Jesus has come
and he speaks to us
plainly.
Isn't that good news?
Now by a way
of quick application
where do we find
this plain speech
of Jesus today?
Where do we go
and get it
if we're interested
in reading it
or understanding it
or hearing it?
Is there any record
of what Jesus taught
the apostles
after his resurrection?
Or has it been
sort of lost
in the hands of history?
Well friends
this is the good news.
The apostles
didn't just teach
and preach
the message
that Jesus gave them.
They actually
wrote it down.
When you read
the New Testament
you aren't reading
a document
that was written
like hundreds of years
after the fact
in some sort of
long historical game
of whisper down the alley.
No.
You're reading
the accounts
of the eyewitnesses.
You're reading
the letters
of the apostles themselves.
And as we saw
a few weeks ago
in verses 15 through 16
of chapter 16
Jesus himself promised
that the Holy Spirit
would be at work
in those apostles
making sure
that they taught
clearly and truthfully
all that Jesus
had taught them.
So friends
whether you're new
to the faith
or whether you've been
in the faith
for a long time
if you want to hear
the plain words
of Jesus
about who God is
and what God's plan
is like
read the apostolic witness
that is the New Testament.
There it is.
The plain speech
of Jesus
given through
the apostles
for us.
Read the New Testament.
Read it with others.
Wrestle with it together.
Ask the Holy Spirit
for help.
And always read
with the cross
before you.
And then we can enjoy
this first great blessing
that Jesus has won for us.
A clear knowledge
of God.
But that's not all.
The finished work
of Christ
doesn't just bring
the clear knowledge
of God.
It also brings
the direct love
of God the Father.
And we see this
in verses 26 and 27.
Let me read those verses again
and let's look
at those verses again.
Jesus says,
In that day,
that is after Jesus'
death and resurrection,
in that day
you will ask in my name
and I do not say to you
that I will ask
the Father on your behalf
for the Father
himself loves you
because you have loved me
and I believe
that I came from God.
Now multiple times
in the last three chapters
and if you've been here
this summer,
you know as we've been
walking through
John 13 through 16,
multiple times
in the last three chapters
Jesus has spoken
to the disciples
about prayer.
And the next chapter,
chapter 17,
actually is Jesus' prayer
for his apostles
and for us.
And we're going to get to that
in the next few weeks.
So Jesus has talked a lot
about prayer in this section.
And in particular,
he's talked about praying
in his name.
That is on the basis
of all that he's done.
But here,
Jesus wants to clarify something.
He wants to clarify
that asking in his name
does not mean
that Jesus has to sort of
go to the Father
on our behalf
as a sort of go-between
in our prayers.
Jesus is saying,
no, it's not like sort of
asking your manager
to talk to their boss
to see if you might
maybe get that new computer
you need at your desk.
No, as a result
of what Jesus has done,
Jesus himself says
we now have direct access
to the Father.
Why?
Jesus says,
because the Father himself
loves you.
Do you see, friends,
because of the cross,
because of how
simply,
the simple,
sheer magnitude
of the cross,
you don't need
a go-between.
You don't need
Mary
to take your request
to God.
And you don't need
saints
to take your request
to God.
Listen,
Jesus says,
you don't even need
Jesus now
to take your request
to the Father
on your behalf.
He has so fully
and utterly
forgiven all of your sins.
Jesus says,
so fully and utterly
turned away
the wrath of God
from you
that you are free
and welcomed
and loved
to bring your request
directly to the Father.
When we come,
as the end of verse 27 says,
to love Jesus
and believe that
He came from God,
we have
the love of the Father.
loving Jesus
and believing
that Jesus
came from God,
this ushers us
into the unmediated
love of God the Father.
Now, of course,
it's also true
that the love
of the Father
precedes,
comes before
our love of Jesus
as well, right?
John 3.16
has made that
abundantly clear
to us in our series
of John, right?
God's love comes
before
our ever-loving Him.
We love
because He
first loved us,
but when we embrace
the love of God
in Christ by faith,
it's as if then
the love of the Father
doubles back again,
wave upon wave
of love.
God loves us
first in Christ.
We respond
by loving Christ
and then the love
of the Father
washes back over us.
And this is a love
that welcomes
all of our requests.
You know,
the priests
in the Old Testament
would mediate
for the people of God.
The priests
would bring their sacrifices
and bring their requests
to God
on the people's behalf.
But don't you see
that the crucified
and risen Jesus
is the true
and better priest,
the priest
to end all priests.
He has accomplished
a reconciliation
so full
and so final
that we can come
to the Father
with utter liberty
and make all our desires
and all our requests
known.
And the Father listens,
and the Father delights
in you
and you have
his full approval
because of what
Jesus has done.
Isn't it true
that so many of us
are living,
whether consciously
or unconsciously,
for some kind
of approval?
We're so anxious
to be liked
and accepted.
Often we end up
saying or doing things
that we don't even
necessarily maybe
agree with at the time
because we want
to really be accepted
and we want
to really be liked.
But friends,
look at the new day
that Christ has opened up
for you
and for me.
You don't have to live
for the world's approval
anymore.
You can lay that down
and you can rest
in the only approval
that really matters,
the love of God
the Father.
And here's the thing,
when we stop
needing the world's
approval,
then we can actually
begin truly loving
the world
in grace and truth.
No longer are we worried
whether people like us,
now we can be concerned
about how we can truly
be salt and light
in the world
for the world's sake,
that they might see
the love of the Father
through us.
So the finished work
of Jesus brings
a clear knowledge
of God the Father
and the direct love
of God the Father.
But the third thing
Jesus mentions
and the last one
we'll talk about
is that it brings
the victorious peace
of Jesus' Son.
And this is verses
28 through 33.
Let me read this paragraph
again and let me invite
you to follow along.
Jesus says,
I came from the Father
and have come into the world
and now I'm leaving the world
and going to the Father.
His disciples said,
Ah, now you are speaking plainly
and not using figurative speech.
Now we know
that you know all things
and do not need anyone
to question you.
This is why we believe
that you came from God.
Jesus answered them,
Do you now believe?
Behold, the hour is coming,
indeed it has come,
when you will be scattered,
each to his own home,
and will leave me alone.
Yet I am not alone,
for the Father is with me.
I've said these things to you,
that in me you may have peace.
In the world you will have tribulation,
but take heart,
I have overcome the world.
So in verses 29 and 30,
the disciples sort of mistakenly think
that now they've got it all figured out.
Oh, Jesus,
you said you weren't going to speak
in figurative speech.
Oh, we're here now, right?
We get it.
We know it all.
We've made it.
We've got it.
And yet this is one of those
many moments in the Gospels
where the disciples are putting
their foot in their mouth, right?
Jesus knows they don't quite get it yet.
In a few short hours,
they would all be scattered.
Judas would betray him.
The disciples would abandon him.
Peter would deny him.
And they would all fail him.
Every single one.
They would all fail him.
And friends,
so have we.
So far,
Jesus has been talking about
the knowledge of God
and the love of God,
but how does this knowledge
and love hit home
when our souls are troubled
and tossed
by our own failures?
others.
This month,
this week,
this weekend,
have we,
like the disciples here,
made a very good show
of professing
to believe in Jesus
only to turn around
and when the pressure comes,
fail him.
And at times,
fail him miserably.
Jesus says,
in this world,
you will have tribulation.
And yes,
that word tribulation
means persecution
or oppression,
but you know,
the root word
of that word tribulation
means pressure.
Pressure.
Jesus is saying,
in this world,
the pressure's gonna come.
The world's gonna pressure you
to perform,
to act in all the right ways,
to measure up,
to meet the standard,
to prove yourself
through your own ability
and through your own wisdom
and your own strength
and your own good deeds.
And the world's not just
gonna pressure you
to perform,
the world's gonna pressure you
to conform,
to say and do things
that everyone else
is saying and doing,
to fall in line,
to go with the flow.
In this world,
you will have
tribulation,
trouble,
pressure.
Brothers and sisters,
is your soul
troubled today?
Do you feel the pressure,
not just of the world,
but of your own sin,
of your own failure
to withstand
the pressure of the world,
your own failure
to follow and obey him
when that pressure comes?
But listen to what
Jesus says here.
He says,
Behold,
the hour is coming,
indeed it has come,
when you will be scattered,
each to his own home,
and leave me alone,
yet,
I'm not alone,
for the Father's with me.
Do you see what
Jesus is saying here?
He's saying that
even though the disciples
have abandoned him,
Jesus' mission
still goes ahead.
The Father is still with him.
The triune God
marches forth
utterly alone,
without any human help,
without any human contribution.
The Father and the Son
go forth together,
and accomplish
the redemption
of all who believe.
And the disciples
contribute nothing
to the saving work
of the Messiah.
They bring nothing
but their own failure
and their own abandonment.
And yet,
God does all the work.
And friends,
what do you and I contribute?
Nothing but the same.
We bring our failures
and our faults
and our sins.
And what does Jesus
give us in return?
Here's the great wonder
of the gospel.
What does Jesus
give us in return?
He gives us peace.
Peace.
Jesus offers peace
to troubled souls
utterly
and completely
free of charge.
Do you remember
the first thing
that the risen Jesus
said
to his disciples
when they were
huddled in the upper room,
afraid
and scared
and feeling
probably all sorts
of guilt and shame?
Jesus shows up
and he says to them,
peace.
Now, peace
was a sort of
typical Hebrew greeting
in the day.
But can you imagine
how it would have rung
on the ears
of those apostles
when they heard it
for the first time?
The risen Lord Jesus
with nail marks
in his hands
coming to them
and saying,
peace.
Why does Jesus
offer peace
to our troubled souls
utterly
and completely
free of charge?
Because although
the world
may do its worst,
Jesus says,
I've overcome
the world.
Literally,
I've conquered it.
I have reigned
victorious
over it.
The Old Testament
is filled
with kings.
Some of them are good.
Some of them are not so good.
But Jesus, friends,
is the true
and better king.
The king
of all kings
who once
and for all,
hanging from
a Roman cross,
raised on the third day,
ascended on high
above every principality
and power
at God's right hand,
Jesus
has overcome
the world.
All of its evil,
all of its violence,
all of its hatred,
and all of our evil,
and all of our violence,
and all of our hatred,
all of it
has been dealt with
at the cross.
And now,
there's peace.
A peace that passes
understanding
because it rests
not on our own
performance,
but on the work
of the triune God,
the Father
and the Son
and the Spirit
working out
in history
what they had planned
from eternity,
the peace
of God
for all
who are in Christ
through faith.
Now,
it's worth asking
ourselves,
whatever is it,
whatever it is
that we happen
to cling to
from time to time
for peace,
can you think of that
in your mind
when you're feeling
troubled?
Where do you go?
Where do you run?
What do you seek?
It's worth asking yourself,
is it working?
Could it be
that our troubled souls
need something deeper
than the surface
distractions
and entertainments
and exercises
that this world
so often offers
as the key
to lasting peace?
Our souls are troubled
because we need
to be reconciled
to our Creator.
But here's the good news,
in Him,
in Christ,
peace,
reconciliation
has been made.
If you are troubled
in conscience,
Jesus offers
lasting peace,
the forgiveness
of all your sins,
the indwelling presence
of God the Holy Spirit,
the certain hope
of eternal life,
and for all your earthly days,
a purpose,
a mission
to live for His glory
and for His kingdom,
to live at peace
and to be a peacemaker
wherever you go.
So friends,
in conclusion,
this is how Jesus concludes.
This is what His finished work
has accomplished,
the knowledge of God,
the love of God,
and greatest of all,
the peace of God.
So brothers and sisters,
as our Lord says here,
take heart,
have courage,
and let's keep our eyes
fixed on Jesus,
our prophet,
our priest,
and our king,
and let's live in all
the fullness of all
that He's accomplished
for us.
Amen?
Amen.
Let's pray.
Our Father,
by Your Holy Spirit,
we pray that You would
help us to grasp
how wide
and long
and high
and deep
is Your love for us.
By Your Holy Spirit,
enlarge our minds
and our hearts
to grasp all
that You've won
for us on the cross
and help us
to live the lives
of freedom
and humility
and courage
and peace
that You have won
for us.
We ask this in Jesus' name,
Father.
Amen.