WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.179 As I read this, remember that this is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, and sufficient word. 00:00:07.299 --> 00:00:10.019 This is God's very own word for you, his people. 00:00:10.599 --> 00:00:14.679 If you believe that, if you receive his word that way, then when we're done with the reading of scripture, 00:00:14.679 --> 00:00:18.240 I'll say this is the word of God and we can respond, thanks be to God. 00:00:19.900 --> 00:00:21.460 John chapter 14. 00:00:22.400 --> 00:00:24.260 Let not your heart be troubled. 00:00:25.080 --> 00:00:26.039 Believe in God. 00:00:26.519 --> 00:00:27.940 Believe also in me. 00:00:27.940 --> 00:00:30.760 In my father's house are many mansions. 00:00:30.880 --> 00:00:32.980 If it were not so, I would have told you. 00:00:33.539 --> 00:00:35.740 I go to prepare a place for you. 00:00:36.100 --> 00:00:41.439 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, 00:00:41.719 --> 00:00:44.659 that where I am, there you may also be. 00:00:45.340 --> 00:00:50.079 And whether I go, ye know in the way you know. 00:00:50.540 --> 00:00:54.219 But Thomas said unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest. 00:00:54.540 --> 00:00:55.700 And how can we know the way? 00:00:55.700 --> 00:00:58.980 In verse 6, Jesus said unto him, 00:00:59.640 --> 00:01:02.600 I am the way, the truth, and the life. 00:01:03.160 --> 00:01:06.140 No man cometh unto the father but by me. 00:01:07.180 --> 00:01:10.420 If ye had known me, ye should have known my father also. 00:01:11.060 --> 00:01:14.520 And from henceforth ye know him and have seen him. 00:01:15.980 --> 00:01:17.939 In verse 8, Philip saith unto him, 00:01:17.939 --> 00:01:22.620 Lord, show us the father and it sufficeth us. 00:01:23.239 --> 00:01:24.399 And Jesus said unto him, 00:01:24.959 --> 00:01:29.420 Have I been so long time with you, and yet you have not known me, Philip? 00:01:29.920 --> 00:01:32.060 He that has seen me has seen the father. 00:01:32.659 --> 00:01:35.479 And how sayest thou then, show us the father? 00:01:36.319 --> 00:01:40.259 Believe thou not that I am in the father and the father in me? 00:01:40.260 --> 00:01:46.219 The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself, but the father that dwelleth in me. 00:01:46.560 --> 00:01:48.000 He doth the works. 00:01:49.420 --> 00:01:53.160 Believe me that I am in the father and the father in me. 00:01:53.900 --> 00:01:57.620 Or else believe me for the very works sake. 00:01:58.320 --> 00:01:59.020 Verse 12. 00:01:59.019 --> 00:02:06.340 Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I shall do, he also does. 00:02:06.459 --> 00:02:11.319 And greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my father. 00:02:11.979 --> 00:02:18.740 And whatsoever you shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the father may be glorified in the son. 00:02:19.359 --> 00:02:24.359 If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it. 00:02:24.780 --> 00:02:26.280 This is the word of the Lord. 00:02:27.859 --> 00:02:28.759 Thanks be to God. 00:02:28.759 --> 00:02:29.340 You may be seated. 00:02:42.179 --> 00:02:47.819 The Bible tells us that the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever. 00:02:49.819 --> 00:02:50.739 Would you pray with me? 00:02:58.759 --> 00:03:06.659 Lord, thank you that you have not left us as orphans. 00:03:07.139 --> 00:03:13.399 You have led us all the way up to this point, and your Holy Spirit will lead us all the way home. 00:03:13.400 --> 00:03:30.400 We thank you, Lord, for the sureness of your promise, the words of God himself through the son, that you, you who called us, you will lead us all the way unto the father. 00:03:30.400 --> 00:03:33.500 Lord, that where you are, there we may be also. 00:03:34.800 --> 00:03:38.180 That when we have seen the son, we have seen God. 00:03:39.140 --> 00:03:42.719 We pray, Lord, that you'll give us eyes to behold you today. 00:03:42.980 --> 00:03:49.759 Give us ears that long to hear the gospel truth, the good news of Jesus Christ for this life and for all of eternity. 00:03:49.759 --> 00:04:00.379 And give us hearts, Lord, that are not cold any longer, that are not hard toward you, but hearts that melt at the glory of Jesus, our Savior and our Lord. 00:04:00.479 --> 00:04:08.979 May you be glorified, Father, as we walk through this wonderful passage and understand your meaning for your church and for our lives today. 00:04:09.060 --> 00:04:10.159 With your help, we ask. 00:04:10.579 --> 00:04:10.840 Amen. 00:04:10.840 --> 00:04:10.939 Amen. 00:04:13.180 --> 00:04:19.240 Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, what can comfort your troubled heart? 00:04:21.139 --> 00:04:24.639 What is it that can comfort your troubled heart? 00:04:30.740 --> 00:04:38.199 Mark Twain said, I am an old man and have known many a great trouble, but most of them never happened. 00:04:38.199 --> 00:04:43.599 He said, I have spent most of my life worrying about things that have never happened. 00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:48.519 Worrying, Mark Twain said, is like paying a debt you don't owe. 00:04:50.139 --> 00:04:57.079 If you're like me, it's hard to go one day without worrying, without having a troubled heart over something. 00:04:58.360 --> 00:05:03.000 And in this world, our flesh is so weak and our hearts are deceiving, aren't they? 00:05:03.000 --> 00:05:08.279 That's what we're told in Jeremiah 17, that the heart is deceitful above all things. 00:05:08.680 --> 00:05:10.220 My heart's telling me to be anxious. 00:05:10.360 --> 00:05:11.620 My heart's telling me to worry. 00:05:13.180 --> 00:05:15.319 Can I even trust my heart like that? 00:05:18.120 --> 00:05:21.100 Maybe today God brought you in need of hope. 00:05:21.699 --> 00:05:23.160 You need something solid. 00:05:23.439 --> 00:05:25.360 You know your own heart, it can't be trusted. 00:05:25.819 --> 00:05:27.459 But what can you put your hope in? 00:05:27.459 --> 00:05:37.560 We saw in John chapter 13, verse 21, how our Lord Jesus himself was troubled in his heart. 00:05:37.779 --> 00:05:38.419 Do you remember that? 00:05:39.519 --> 00:05:42.779 Jesus became troubled of heart, and that was not a sin. 00:05:43.759 --> 00:05:46.419 Jesus never sinned, and his heart was troubled. 00:05:47.579 --> 00:05:51.639 So a troubled heart is part of the curse of being in this fallen, broken world. 00:05:51.639 --> 00:06:00.879 Now the good news for us is that Jesus let his heart be troubled in this world, in our place, so that we could have comfort in him. 00:06:02.560 --> 00:06:11.099 What was troubling Jesus' heart in the chapter right before this is that he knew he would be bearing your sin on the cross. 00:06:11.779 --> 00:06:13.740 That's what agonized his soul. 00:06:14.399 --> 00:06:16.300 That's what troubled his heart so much. 00:06:16.300 --> 00:06:22.100 He knew the works he came to do, and he would do them to completion. 00:06:24.759 --> 00:06:29.100 Well, in this setting, in John 14, the disciples are in the upper room. 00:06:30.160 --> 00:06:32.400 This is the Thursday before Good Friday. 00:06:33.300 --> 00:06:40.540 Hours away, the countdown clock is ticking to when Jesus will bear the sin of God's people on their behalf. 00:06:40.540 --> 00:06:46.520 And you remember how the sheep pick up the emotions of the shepherd we talked in Psalms? 00:06:47.100 --> 00:06:53.100 Well, if Jesus is troubled in heart, and he knows this is his last supper with his disciples, that sets the tone in. 00:06:53.140 --> 00:06:54.160 That fills the whole room. 00:06:54.939 --> 00:06:57.860 And you can see the faces of the disciples, they are troubled in heart. 00:06:58.500 --> 00:07:00.240 And that's why Jesus speaks to them. 00:07:01.320 --> 00:07:04.860 In verse 1 of chapter 14, he gives them a command. 00:07:04.860 --> 00:07:10.220 He's troubled of heart, but he says, let not your heart be troubled. 00:07:11.000 --> 00:07:11.819 Don't let it. 00:07:13.960 --> 00:07:16.199 The good news we get in verse 9. 00:07:16.300 --> 00:07:17.980 Look at chapter 14, verse 9. 00:07:19.699 --> 00:07:21.520 But Jesus brings it with an edge. 00:07:22.720 --> 00:07:26.580 In verse 9, he says, I have been with you so long. 00:07:27.020 --> 00:07:28.540 Three years of ministry together. 00:07:28.939 --> 00:07:32.800 You've seen the power of heaven on display on all that I do. 00:07:32.800 --> 00:07:34.740 But look at what he says to Philip. 00:07:35.340 --> 00:07:37.720 You still don't know me, Philip? 00:07:39.379 --> 00:07:41.139 You still don't know me? 00:07:42.040 --> 00:07:43.460 You've been this close. 00:07:44.360 --> 00:07:47.840 You've seen the heavenly power on display. 00:07:48.840 --> 00:07:50.879 Do you still not know who I am? 00:07:52.280 --> 00:07:54.819 Well, how is that supposed to comfort a troubled heart? 00:07:56.319 --> 00:08:00.980 Jesus is saying, when you see me, you are seeing God. 00:08:00.980 --> 00:08:02.100 Do you know me? 00:08:02.800 --> 00:08:04.220 Do you even know God? 00:08:06.340 --> 00:08:09.020 So my proposition for us today is this. 00:08:09.360 --> 00:08:12.860 The better that you know the everlasting God, 00:08:13.520 --> 00:08:18.759 the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort. 00:08:19.759 --> 00:08:23.019 The better that you and I know the everlasting God, 00:08:23.120 --> 00:08:28.699 the better we will receive and experience and enjoy heavenly comfort, 00:08:28.699 --> 00:08:31.060 even while we're in this troubled world. 00:08:31.060 --> 00:08:33.720 Do you need comfort for your heart? 00:08:34.659 --> 00:08:35.860 Do you need hope? 00:08:37.059 --> 00:08:40.000 Then know God through his son. 00:08:40.879 --> 00:08:43.179 I see six exhortations for us. 00:08:43.259 --> 00:08:44.039 The first one is this. 00:08:44.120 --> 00:08:48.559 You can know God only if you know his son. 00:08:48.559 --> 00:08:50.039 Look at verse four. 00:08:50.539 --> 00:08:53.519 Jesus says, you know the way to where I am going. 00:08:54.559 --> 00:08:58.559 Now Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you are going. 00:08:58.659 --> 00:08:59.699 How can we know the way? 00:09:00.219 --> 00:09:05.059 And Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth and the life. 00:09:05.059 --> 00:09:09.759 No one comes to the father except through me. 00:09:10.879 --> 00:09:14.959 You can know God only if you know the son. 00:09:15.079 --> 00:09:18.019 There is no other way to know God. 00:09:18.019 --> 00:09:25.960 See, Thomas is the one who wanted to put his fingers inside of that nail hole. 00:09:26.799 --> 00:09:30.460 And he needed to touch in order to really confirm, is this true? 00:09:30.539 --> 00:09:34.399 Is it possible that God took on flesh and God was crucified? 00:09:35.939 --> 00:09:38.340 And Thomas says, we do not know where you're going. 00:09:38.919 --> 00:09:40.100 We know your heart is troubled. 00:09:40.980 --> 00:09:42.759 But you're saying we're going to know the way. 00:09:42.840 --> 00:09:45.000 We don't even know how to get to where you are. 00:09:45.000 --> 00:09:48.259 Really, Thomas' relationship is in question. 00:09:49.320 --> 00:09:52.200 And Jesus' answer gives us some insights into what was on their hearts. 00:09:52.340 --> 00:09:54.279 They knew of the Old Testament God. 00:09:54.600 --> 00:09:55.919 They knew of God's faithfulness. 00:09:56.000 --> 00:09:56.740 They knew his word. 00:09:57.019 --> 00:09:58.759 And they knew everything that Jesus has said. 00:09:58.860 --> 00:10:04.500 But they did not have the Holy Spirit to give them the faith to believe and to be regenerated. 00:10:05.019 --> 00:10:08.559 So they had a partial knowledge of the father, a partial knowledge of the son. 00:10:09.019 --> 00:10:10.679 How does this all fit together? 00:10:11.840 --> 00:10:13.639 Aren't you grateful for guys like Thomas? 00:10:13.639 --> 00:10:17.539 Jesus, disciples that need Jesus to break it down. 00:10:17.759 --> 00:10:19.100 You know, John's simple page. 00:10:19.559 --> 00:10:20.460 Who is Jesus? 00:10:20.600 --> 00:10:21.319 What is he saying? 00:10:23.159 --> 00:10:25.679 Jesus says, I am the way. 00:10:26.419 --> 00:10:27.879 You want to know where I am going? 00:10:28.240 --> 00:10:29.299 You do know the way. 00:10:29.500 --> 00:10:31.019 I am the way. 00:10:32.899 --> 00:10:35.080 See, Thomas, his heart is troubled. 00:10:35.199 --> 00:10:37.000 He fears losing Jesus forever. 00:10:37.919 --> 00:10:40.980 He says, if you tell us where, then we will go. 00:10:41.100 --> 00:10:43.179 But right now, I don't have enough information. 00:10:43.179 --> 00:10:47.459 It seems impossible to ever be able to dream of being with you again. 00:10:48.459 --> 00:10:50.919 And Jesus says, oh, beloved disciples. 00:10:51.539 --> 00:10:53.779 And notice his words in verse 6. 00:10:54.120 --> 00:10:55.739 He says, I am. 00:10:57.039 --> 00:10:57.839 I am. 00:10:58.699 --> 00:11:05.620 This is reminding the people of God of how the Lord revealed himself to Moses in Exodus chapter 3 verse 14. 00:11:05.620 --> 00:11:08.560 You want to tell the people who is it that sent you, Moses? 00:11:08.799 --> 00:11:10.639 You tell them it is, I am. 00:11:11.519 --> 00:11:14.639 Jesus has already said, I am the bread of life in John 6. 00:11:14.840 --> 00:11:17.539 I am the light of the world in chapter 8. 00:11:17.899 --> 00:11:19.580 I am the door, chapter 10. 00:11:19.639 --> 00:11:21.539 I am the good shepherd, chapter 5. 00:11:21.899 --> 00:11:25.519 I am the resurrection and the life, chapter 11. 00:11:25.519 --> 00:11:27.340 I am the way. 00:11:27.840 --> 00:11:29.460 I am the truth. 00:11:29.879 --> 00:11:32.000 I am the life. 00:11:33.079 --> 00:11:34.600 He says in chapter 14. 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:38.659 If you know me, then you know the way. 00:11:40.860 --> 00:11:43.659 There is only one truth. 00:11:43.659 --> 00:11:45.659 There is the truth. 00:11:45.659 --> 00:11:47.519 That's an unpopular thing to say. 00:11:48.519 --> 00:11:50.339 There is the truth. 00:11:55.059 --> 00:12:03.679 R.C. Sproul said, no one will be able to say, God, if only I had known that you existed, then I would have surely served you. 00:12:04.779 --> 00:12:07.779 He says, Jesus Christ says, I am the truth. 00:12:08.879 --> 00:12:11.360 That excuse is annihilated. 00:12:11.360 --> 00:12:17.139 God has given sufficient evidence for all to believe. 00:12:17.500 --> 00:12:21.480 That's what he's telling Thomas and all the disciples and whoever has an ear to hear. 00:12:21.960 --> 00:12:24.560 Don't play in this game of saying, I need more information. 00:12:25.060 --> 00:12:27.240 I need to have all of my questions answered. 00:12:27.379 --> 00:12:33.300 Jesus is saying, those things, you may wonder that, but I am the truth. 00:12:33.659 --> 00:12:37.000 If you receive me, you have received life. 00:12:37.000 --> 00:12:44.960 Jesus is saying, if you walk away from me, you walk away what is undeniable. 00:12:45.740 --> 00:12:47.480 Man has no excuse. 00:12:47.639 --> 00:12:58.279 When you behold Jesus Christ, the Son, the way, the truth, the life, you have the promise of eternal rest by God's finished work through his Son. 00:12:58.279 --> 00:13:03.159 There is only one hope of eternal life. 00:13:03.159 --> 00:13:06.799 This clear statement, we know. 00:13:06.959 --> 00:13:07.819 We know this is true. 00:13:07.899 --> 00:13:08.699 We tell our friends. 00:13:08.860 --> 00:13:13.100 We, when we get the opportunity to minister the gospel and proclaim Christ, we say this. 00:13:14.079 --> 00:13:17.899 But how often it is that those excuses come into our own minds. 00:13:18.159 --> 00:13:23.939 If I can just do more, if I can be a better person, then I'll know that that eternal life is there for me. 00:13:23.940 --> 00:13:28.100 And Jesus says, there is only one hope of eternal life. 00:13:29.020 --> 00:13:32.320 It's through the way, which is Jesus Christ. 00:13:32.780 --> 00:13:40.280 Thomas Watson said, eternity to those without Christ is a night that has no sunrise. 00:13:41.440 --> 00:13:46.900 But eternity to Christians is a day that has no sunset. 00:13:46.899 --> 00:13:55.459 If you have life in Christ now in this present evil age, you know, you've tasted the life of the age that is to come. 00:13:55.840 --> 00:14:00.159 You know eternal life on the day where there will be no more sunset. 00:14:00.379 --> 00:14:02.059 There will be no more darkness. 00:14:03.559 --> 00:14:12.019 Jesus says very clearly, no one, no one comes to the Father except through me. 00:14:12.019 --> 00:14:16.899 Our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. 00:14:17.379 --> 00:14:26.079 He says, if you believe in me, the way, the truth, and the life, you will dwell with me in my Father's house. 00:14:27.159 --> 00:14:29.480 Let that comfort your troubled heart today. 00:14:30.659 --> 00:14:33.679 You know God through Jesus Christ. 00:14:33.960 --> 00:14:35.460 You will dwell with him forever. 00:14:35.460 --> 00:14:42.820 And the better you know the everlasting God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort. 00:14:43.800 --> 00:14:45.460 Which brings us to our second truth. 00:14:45.620 --> 00:14:49.320 You can know God only if you have seen the Son. 00:14:50.740 --> 00:14:52.160 Do you have eyes to see? 00:14:52.900 --> 00:14:54.660 Look at what Jesus says in verse 7. 00:14:55.700 --> 00:14:58.300 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. 00:14:58.740 --> 00:15:02.879 From now on, you do know him and have seen him. 00:15:02.879 --> 00:15:09.059 In verse 8, Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father and it is enough for us. 00:15:09.439 --> 00:15:14.100 And Jesus said to him, have I been with you so long and you still do not know me, Philip? 00:15:14.860 --> 00:15:17.220 Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. 00:15:17.980 --> 00:15:20.259 How can you say show us the Father? 00:15:22.980 --> 00:15:26.659 Philip says, similar to Thomas, I want to see heaven. 00:15:26.779 --> 00:15:27.720 I want to see the Father. 00:15:28.779 --> 00:15:30.919 And his witness, he will say, you are my son. 00:15:30.919 --> 00:15:33.479 You are the one that these disciples are to trust. 00:15:34.139 --> 00:15:37.779 And Jesus says, if you have seen me, Philip, you have seen the Father. 00:15:39.699 --> 00:15:41.139 Where else do we hear about Philip? 00:15:41.279 --> 00:15:46.159 Philip is the one when the crowd is following Jesus and the disciples and they were hungry. 00:15:47.299 --> 00:15:49.019 And Philip brings the problem to the Lord. 00:15:49.240 --> 00:15:52.139 And the Lord, I praise God for guys like Thomas and Philip. 00:15:52.240 --> 00:15:54.139 They are not afraid to ask what everyone is thinking. 00:15:54.599 --> 00:15:56.799 But Jesus' answer then was very similar now. 00:15:56.899 --> 00:15:58.919 He says, Philip, do you know who I am? 00:15:58.919 --> 00:16:00.719 I am the bread of life. 00:16:01.879 --> 00:16:03.120 I am the bread of life, Philip. 00:16:03.199 --> 00:16:04.059 This is who I am. 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:07.979 And here he says to Philip, Philip, do you know who I am? 00:16:08.639 --> 00:16:12.419 If you have seen me, the Son, you have seen God himself. 00:16:13.139 --> 00:16:14.179 You have seen the Father. 00:16:15.719 --> 00:16:18.039 See, God is spirit, the Bible tells us. 00:16:18.099 --> 00:16:20.599 And you cannot see him and live. 00:16:20.600 --> 00:16:23.700 But Jesus is bringing this good news. 00:16:24.500 --> 00:16:26.700 You see God when you see his Son. 00:16:27.639 --> 00:16:32.159 And you and I, we see God when we see Jesus Christ lifted up off the pages of the Bible. 00:16:32.440 --> 00:16:36.580 And he opens our eyes to behold God himself in the flesh. 00:16:36.580 --> 00:16:48.620 Pastor John Gill said, as you increase in the knowledge of God the Father, you increase in your knowledge of God the Son. 00:16:48.920 --> 00:16:52.879 And as you increase in your knowledge of God the Son, you know more about God the Father. 00:16:53.379 --> 00:16:55.379 Because God is spirit, but God is one. 00:16:55.379 --> 00:16:57.919 And that was the mission for which Jesus came. 00:16:58.299 --> 00:17:02.200 So that your eyes could behold this God who is spirit, the creator of all. 00:17:02.580 --> 00:17:09.819 And see him as a man, as your mediator, as your representative walking this earth and living for you. 00:17:11.900 --> 00:17:17.319 John Gill explained, the disciples at this point, they had some knowledge of both Father and Son. 00:17:17.640 --> 00:17:19.839 But it was very small and obscure. 00:17:20.059 --> 00:17:24.640 In comparison to when the Holy Spirit would be poured out from on high on the church. 00:17:25.380 --> 00:17:32.400 He said, then you shall have an enlarged knowledge of both the Son and the Father. 00:17:33.580 --> 00:17:35.000 Do you have eyes to see? 00:17:37.100 --> 00:17:42.240 Spiritually, your eyes of faith, do you behold Jesus Christ, the Son of God? 00:17:43.520 --> 00:17:49.420 Do you behold his work from heaven on earth, in time, in history, to redeem you? 00:17:50.240 --> 00:17:54.500 To live the life you could never live and to pay the price that God demanded. 00:17:54.500 --> 00:17:56.559 So that you could be with him forever. 00:17:56.960 --> 00:17:59.700 Do you see this wonderful Lord Jesus? 00:18:00.619 --> 00:18:03.519 Do you see your Savior, the Son of God himself? 00:18:05.380 --> 00:18:09.539 If you do, then our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. 00:18:10.680 --> 00:18:18.099 If you have seen, if you have beheld, if you put your eyes on Jesus, then you have seen God. 00:18:18.099 --> 00:18:20.259 Isn't that comforting? 00:18:22.259 --> 00:18:27.399 The better you know the everlasting God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort. 00:18:28.019 --> 00:18:30.339 We want to know him more and more and more and more, don't we? 00:18:30.339 --> 00:18:36.500 So number three, you can know God only if you have heard the Son. 00:18:38.899 --> 00:18:40.139 You need to know the Son. 00:18:40.339 --> 00:18:41.139 You need to see him. 00:18:41.240 --> 00:18:42.659 You need to hear his word. 00:18:43.459 --> 00:18:46.959 And it's not enough to have heard from God through the Son once. 00:18:47.319 --> 00:18:49.319 We need to hear him like the daily bread. 00:18:49.659 --> 00:18:51.279 He is speaking continuously. 00:18:51.740 --> 00:18:55.099 We need the words of Jesus himself to wash over us. 00:18:55.099 --> 00:18:57.439 Do you have ears to hear? 00:18:59.319 --> 00:19:01.139 Look at what Jesus says in verse 10. 00:19:01.819 --> 00:19:05.139 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? 00:19:05.839 --> 00:19:16.899 The words that I say to you, I do not speak of my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his work. 00:19:16.900 --> 00:19:25.080 Jesus says that as I speak the words revealing God to you, it's the words from heaven that I am speaking. 00:19:25.860 --> 00:19:29.220 And as I speak and proclaim, I am the Word made flesh. 00:19:29.580 --> 00:19:31.100 You are hearing from God himself. 00:19:31.580 --> 00:19:34.680 You are hearing the full revelation of God's plan. 00:19:35.620 --> 00:19:38.700 And it is God who does his work. 00:19:38.800 --> 00:19:39.040 How? 00:19:39.460 --> 00:19:42.040 Through the words that Jesus is speaking. 00:19:42.039 --> 00:19:53.420 The promise of dwelling with God one day is only possible if it's God working that to save sinners. 00:19:54.139 --> 00:20:02.500 And it's only possible if that same God who speaks out his word and gives you ears to hear and gives you a heart to receive the gospel truth. 00:20:02.500 --> 00:20:11.079 That spirit is the one that then indwells you and prepares your soul for that day when you will enter the glorious presence of God fully and consummately. 00:20:11.079 --> 00:20:13.139 And we long for that great day. 00:20:13.919 --> 00:20:20.779 But there's no way to that dwelling with God unless it's through the words that Christ himself is speaking to you. 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:22.539 You must hear him. 00:20:23.159 --> 00:20:24.220 And you must respond. 00:20:25.679 --> 00:20:27.500 So how do you know God more? 00:20:27.919 --> 00:20:32.519 If comfort for our hearts comes through knowing him, how do we know him more and more and more? 00:20:32.839 --> 00:20:35.319 We know him by hearing his word. 00:20:35.899 --> 00:20:38.399 Jesus says, I am the Word of God. 00:20:38.400 --> 00:20:41.240 And to hear me is to hear from God himself. 00:20:41.940 --> 00:20:46.500 When Jesus preached the gospel, though, as he walked on earth, some believed. 00:20:46.980 --> 00:20:48.019 But it was very limited. 00:20:48.580 --> 00:20:50.680 Isn't that the shocking thing as we read the gospels? 00:20:51.320 --> 00:20:52.200 Some believed. 00:20:52.380 --> 00:20:54.580 But it fell on deaf ears for most. 00:20:55.980 --> 00:21:01.759 Many did not have ears to hear until the Holy Spirit was poured out through the church. 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:05.059 Then Peter, the one who was ashamed to be associated with Jesus. 00:21:05.980 --> 00:21:07.440 Peter preaches in Acts 2. 00:21:09.079 --> 00:21:18.980 The Holy Spirit regenerated and dwelt among that church and gave them hearts to believe in Jesus Christ and to see his work like they had never seen before. 00:21:18.980 --> 00:21:25.319 See, we have nothing unless it's the Spirit ministering in his church. 00:21:25.500 --> 00:21:26.099 We have nothing. 00:21:28.259 --> 00:21:30.400 And we want to see our lives change. 00:21:30.480 --> 00:21:31.519 We want to know God more. 00:21:32.039 --> 00:21:35.660 We see lives that are so damaged and bruised and wounded. 00:21:36.299 --> 00:21:45.079 We need to pray for that powerful ministry of the Holy Spirit applying the Word of God to those like us who need him to speak to us so much. 00:21:45.079 --> 00:21:51.299 Your troubled heart, does it need comfort today? 00:21:53.019 --> 00:21:54.859 Are you burdened by your conscience? 00:21:55.539 --> 00:21:58.599 Do you hesitate to even ask God to see his face? 00:22:00.639 --> 00:22:07.579 Charles Spurgeon says, the knowledge of God is the great hope for sinners like you and like me. 00:22:08.399 --> 00:22:11.220 Oh, if you could know him better, you would fly to him. 00:22:11.480 --> 00:22:14.659 If you understood how gracious he is, you would seek him. 00:22:14.660 --> 00:22:20.800 If you could have any idea of his holiness, you would loathe your self-righteousness. 00:22:21.160 --> 00:22:28.120 If you knew anything of his power, you would not venture to be content with anything less than God himself. 00:22:28.759 --> 00:22:35.800 And if you knew anything of God's grace, you would not hesitate to yield yourself fully unto him. 00:22:35.799 --> 00:22:41.419 Do you know this gracious, glorious God? 00:22:43.019 --> 00:22:45.779 Our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. 00:22:46.180 --> 00:22:54.960 If you receive what Christ revealed, if you believe and listen to his word and receive it with a believing, trusting heart by faith, 00:22:54.960 --> 00:22:58.980 then you have heard from God himself. 00:23:00.140 --> 00:23:05.700 The better you know God, the more your heart will know his everlasting comfort. 00:23:07.039 --> 00:23:11.319 Number four, you can know God only on account of his work. 00:23:12.100 --> 00:23:14.640 You can know God only on account of his work. 00:23:14.720 --> 00:23:15.559 Look at verse 11. 00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:22.720 Jesus says, believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, 00:23:23.059 --> 00:23:26.480 or else believe on account of the works themselves. 00:23:27.859 --> 00:23:32.700 Jesus is holding himself, he's subjecting himself to a very high standard of credibility. 00:23:33.799 --> 00:23:37.859 You need to have multiple witnesses to bear testimony whether something is true. 00:23:37.859 --> 00:23:40.699 He's saying, my Father has spoken that it is true. 00:23:40.839 --> 00:23:47.659 I am telling you it is true, but also God has given me these works to do while I'm on this earth so that you will believe. 00:23:47.839 --> 00:23:50.379 That's why we have this gospel, this fourth gospel. 00:23:51.639 --> 00:23:53.639 The works of Jesus, what were they? 00:23:53.819 --> 00:23:56.139 What were the works of our Lord Jesus Christ? 00:23:57.059 --> 00:24:00.779 Well, everything that our God did in the flesh was his works. 00:24:01.079 --> 00:24:02.899 It was his entire life. 00:24:02.900 --> 00:24:09.160 From the moment he was in the womb until he relinquished his soul on the cross. 00:24:09.720 --> 00:24:13.000 It was his entire active and passive obedience. 00:24:13.800 --> 00:24:20.280 He was subject to God the Father, and he was actively fulfilling the law on behalf of those he came to save. 00:24:21.500 --> 00:24:24.080 That's why the Father sent the Son. 00:24:24.240 --> 00:24:25.680 It's so that you can know God. 00:24:25.680 --> 00:24:33.320 We read at the very end of this gospel in John chapter 20, verse 30, that Jesus also did many other signs. 00:24:34.140 --> 00:24:40.220 But these, we are told, were written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, 00:24:40.560 --> 00:24:43.960 and that by believing you may have life in his name. 00:24:43.960 --> 00:24:53.140 So maybe you have a faith, and the faith says, I believe that Jesus was a historical figure. 00:24:53.380 --> 00:24:55.960 I believe that Jesus walked the earth in Israel. 00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:58.920 And I believe even that he did these miracles. 00:25:00.480 --> 00:25:05.460 The book of James, chapter 2, verse 19, tells us that this is a faith that leads to hell. 00:25:05.980 --> 00:25:07.220 That's not a true faith. 00:25:08.000 --> 00:25:11.140 It says that even the demons believe that much. 00:25:11.140 --> 00:25:16.280 The historical facts that Jesus lived and performed miracles. 00:25:16.420 --> 00:25:18.280 That's not what Jesus exhorts. 00:25:18.600 --> 00:25:23.240 He says, believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is me. 00:25:23.320 --> 00:25:27.300 You must believe that Jesus Christ, that historical man who lived on earth, 00:25:27.600 --> 00:25:30.560 he came to save sinners, being God himself. 00:25:31.420 --> 00:25:32.740 That's what you must believe. 00:25:33.740 --> 00:25:38.259 You must believe that each of these seven signs that we are given in the gospel of John 00:25:38.259 --> 00:25:41.200 point to the finished work of Christ on the cross. 00:25:41.539 --> 00:25:43.960 You must believe the gospel. 00:25:44.819 --> 00:25:46.900 That God is who he says he is. 00:25:47.220 --> 00:25:50.480 That you are before God a sinner in need of a Savior. 00:25:51.500 --> 00:25:55.940 And that only Jesus Christ can be the mediator between sinners and the holy God. 00:25:57.000 --> 00:25:58.579 And not only that those facts are true, 00:25:58.680 --> 00:26:01.279 you must believe that he is your righteousness. 00:26:02.119 --> 00:26:05.420 That he is Jehovah Sikkenu, your Savior. 00:26:05.720 --> 00:26:07.200 That he saved you from your sins. 00:26:07.200 --> 00:26:09.160 That's what you must believe. 00:26:09.640 --> 00:26:10.759 To be in the Father. 00:26:10.900 --> 00:26:14.460 To be counting on that life that is only possible through Christ. 00:26:15.740 --> 00:26:19.700 Well, what were those seven signs and how did they picture the gospel for us? 00:26:22.880 --> 00:26:26.740 Verse 11 tells us that this is why the Father sent the Son. 00:26:28.019 --> 00:26:30.200 The Father sent the Son to turn wine, 00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:31.759 wine, I'm sorry, 00:26:31.840 --> 00:26:35.460 to turn the water of the wedding feast into wine in John chapter 2. 00:26:36.160 --> 00:26:39.500 So that you could know that his blood provides. 00:26:40.160 --> 00:26:45.039 It's the blood of Christ like the wine that provides for his bride's wedding. 00:26:45.039 --> 00:26:49.159 The Father sent the Son to cleanse the temple in John 2. 00:26:49.159 --> 00:26:56.159 So that you could know God is zealous to dwell in you through the finished work of his Son. 00:26:56.259 --> 00:26:57.279 You are his temple. 00:26:58.680 --> 00:27:03.000 The Father sent the Son to cleanse you and to heal you. 00:27:03.940 --> 00:27:08.279 And the Father in John 4 sent the Son to heal the nobleman's son. 00:27:08.279 --> 00:27:11.299 So that you could know the power of God's Word. 00:27:12.379 --> 00:27:14.000 That alone can give you life. 00:27:15.440 --> 00:27:20.420 In John 5 we read how the Father sent the Son to heal that man who was lame. 00:27:20.779 --> 00:27:24.940 So that you can know that God who has the power to heal your body, 00:27:25.779 --> 00:27:28.599 He has power beyond that to forgive sin. 00:27:28.599 --> 00:27:34.059 The Father sent the Son to feed the multitude in John 6. 00:27:34.139 --> 00:27:39.179 So that you could know that Jesus Christ is the bread of life from heaven. 00:27:39.559 --> 00:27:43.359 Given for your nourishment while you sojourn as a pilgrim on this earth. 00:27:44.379 --> 00:27:48.259 The Father sent the Son to heal the blind man in John 9. 00:27:48.359 --> 00:27:53.500 So that you could know that God opens your eyes while you are still blind and in darkness. 00:27:54.079 --> 00:27:55.699 So that you will believe in Him. 00:27:55.700 --> 00:28:02.160 And the Father sent the Son to raise Lazarus from the dead in John 11. 00:28:02.500 --> 00:28:06.440 So that you could know there is a life to come. 00:28:08.100 --> 00:28:13.980 And the only one who has power over death that can promise resurrection when this life is over. 00:28:14.360 --> 00:28:16.620 It is the Son of God Himself. 00:28:16.819 --> 00:28:18.840 He has the keys to life and death. 00:28:18.839 --> 00:28:25.619 Well, as our Lord Jesus tells the disciples, 00:28:25.839 --> 00:28:30.599 If you see me, if you believe me, if you hear me, you receive this gospel truth. 00:28:31.240 --> 00:28:32.859 Then you have eternal life. 00:28:33.539 --> 00:28:35.459 His greatest work was yet to come. 00:28:36.039 --> 00:28:38.059 But it was only hours away. 00:28:38.699 --> 00:28:40.839 It would be the work that He did on the cross. 00:28:40.839 --> 00:28:44.740 And it's on the cross that we know God most fully. 00:28:45.319 --> 00:28:47.039 We know His glory and His justice. 00:28:47.740 --> 00:28:49.399 We know His glory and His grace. 00:28:50.079 --> 00:28:52.659 And those two are pictured perfectly on the cross. 00:28:52.959 --> 00:28:56.079 Where the Father's own Son gives up His life. 00:28:56.379 --> 00:28:58.819 Bearing your sins so that you can have life in Him. 00:29:00.099 --> 00:29:02.459 1 Corinthians 2 verse 2 says, 00:29:02.460 --> 00:29:12.460 Do you want to know God? 00:29:13.360 --> 00:29:17.319 Then you need to know Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 00:29:18.019 --> 00:29:22.900 The cross is what pulls you into this intimacy of knowing the Son as your Savior. 00:29:23.759 --> 00:29:28.180 It's at the foot of the cross that you see God in His glory on greatest display. 00:29:28.180 --> 00:29:35.560 If you want the Lord to minister through you, to work through your life with whatever He brings to you, 00:29:36.320 --> 00:29:37.500 we need to be like Paul. 00:29:37.600 --> 00:29:42.140 We need to decide to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 00:29:42.900 --> 00:29:44.940 God does not work through know-it-alls. 00:29:45.720 --> 00:29:47.700 God works through those who know Him. 00:29:48.580 --> 00:29:50.000 And who know Him crucified. 00:29:50.860 --> 00:29:54.539 And that's to identify with Him in His suffering, in His crucifixion. 00:29:54.539 --> 00:30:00.059 It's to take up our cross daily as a reminder that we don't live for this life. 00:30:00.180 --> 00:30:02.500 We live through union to Christ. 00:30:04.159 --> 00:30:06.299 Do you know Christ and Him crucified? 00:30:07.940 --> 00:30:11.079 Do you know His path, the way of the cross? 00:30:12.819 --> 00:30:17.899 It's only if you lay down your life in repentance that you can have life in Him. 00:30:19.159 --> 00:30:23.000 And that's how our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart. 00:30:23.000 --> 00:30:27.880 You believe on account of the work that Christ did. 00:30:28.839 --> 00:30:30.519 And you have life in Him. 00:30:32.380 --> 00:30:40.180 The better you know the everlasting God, the more you have everlasting comfort for your heart, even in this life. 00:30:41.200 --> 00:30:47.079 Number five, you can know God only through the work that the Holy Spirit will do through you. 00:30:47.079 --> 00:30:50.159 That's what He says to the disciples in verse 12. 00:30:50.160 --> 00:30:55.640 Truly, truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do. 00:30:55.779 --> 00:30:58.080 And greater works than these will he do. 00:30:58.700 --> 00:31:01.080 Because I am going to the Father. 00:31:02.540 --> 00:31:11.019 On one level, these are special words to the apostles who are going to be sent out with the Holy Spirit working wonders as we read in the book of Acts. 00:31:11.019 --> 00:31:21.879 On another level, it's true that with the indwelling Holy Spirit, every true believer knows this glorious work of God in a personal, intimate, powerful way. 00:31:23.319 --> 00:31:26.879 And in this moment, Jesus had not yet atoned for their sins. 00:31:26.960 --> 00:31:31.960 But the Holy Spirit was going to minister that comfort to those of us who need to rest in Him. 00:31:31.960 --> 00:31:34.519 Charles Spurgeon says, 00:31:34.519 --> 00:31:44.620 The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever engage the attention of a child of God is this. 00:31:45.019 --> 00:31:55.259 It is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God, whom He calls His Father. 00:31:55.259 --> 00:32:07.980 There is nothing greater we can set our minds on than God Himself and God on display through the works He has done through Christ, worked out by His Spirit into His people. 00:32:09.019 --> 00:32:11.759 The Holy Spirit causes you to hear the gospel. 00:32:12.740 --> 00:32:15.019 The Holy Spirit heals your blind eyes. 00:32:15.140 --> 00:32:16.379 He opens your deaf ears. 00:32:16.539 --> 00:32:18.599 He replaces your hard heart. 00:32:19.440 --> 00:32:22.940 It's the Holy Spirit who calls you, regenerates you, converts you. 00:32:25.259 --> 00:32:30.140 Through the work of the Holy Spirit, Christ presents you to the Father, and you are declared righteous. 00:32:30.559 --> 00:32:31.480 You are justified. 00:32:32.900 --> 00:32:37.059 Then the Holy Spirit gives you that seal of assurance, I am adopted. 00:32:37.180 --> 00:32:39.299 I can cry out to the Lord as my Father. 00:32:40.640 --> 00:32:41.700 He sanctifies you. 00:32:41.759 --> 00:32:42.740 He preserves you. 00:32:43.220 --> 00:32:46.640 And that Holy Spirit working in you, He will glorify you one day. 00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:51.900 Your union to Christ now, it will be on glory when you're joined with Him in heaven. 00:32:51.900 --> 00:32:53.240 Your body will be resurrected. 00:32:53.240 --> 00:32:59.140 And you'll be displaying that union that you've enjoyed with Christ spiritually now fully and consummately. 00:32:59.900 --> 00:33:06.539 And in preparation to that, it's the Holy Spirit that bears the fruit of Christ's righteousness in you. 00:33:07.099 --> 00:33:12.519 He tells you the good news that you belong to Christ in life and in death. 00:33:12.940 --> 00:33:13.960 He is your only hope. 00:33:13.960 --> 00:33:19.920 And as He leads you all the way, when people look at you, they don't see you anymore. 00:33:20.019 --> 00:33:24.779 They start to see Christ who is dwelling through the Spirit inside of you. 00:33:24.860 --> 00:33:28.519 It's His righteousness that's working into you, transforming you. 00:33:29.900 --> 00:33:34.880 So our Lord Jesus Christ comforts your troubled heart by this ongoing ministry of the Holy Spirit, 00:33:35.600 --> 00:33:38.680 applying this finished work of Christ into your life. 00:33:38.680 --> 00:33:45.500 If we look back on these disciples, the words they were hearing, 00:33:46.580 --> 00:33:48.539 they died as martyrs. 00:33:49.980 --> 00:33:51.380 Their lives they gave up. 00:33:51.539 --> 00:33:53.220 They found that way of the cross. 00:33:53.980 --> 00:33:55.539 But their lives were like the seeds. 00:33:56.460 --> 00:33:58.279 And from that foundation of the church, 00:33:58.420 --> 00:34:00.820 the Holy Spirit has continued to move and grow 00:34:00.820 --> 00:34:04.519 and draw more sons and daughters into this growing family of God. 00:34:04.519 --> 00:34:07.500 Look at the church now around the world, 00:34:07.619 --> 00:34:10.380 the work that God is doing in so many different parts. 00:34:10.599 --> 00:34:14.300 We have comfort that the Holy Spirit is powerfully at work. 00:34:14.960 --> 00:34:18.039 And when I'm troubled by the concerns of work and life and pressures 00:34:18.039 --> 00:34:20.219 and my fear of man and fear of failure, 00:34:20.619 --> 00:34:22.380 that gives us comfort, doesn't it? 00:34:22.639 --> 00:34:24.420 God is at work around the world. 00:34:24.519 --> 00:34:25.659 He is saving souls. 00:34:26.579 --> 00:34:28.840 He is the one mending families, 00:34:29.380 --> 00:34:32.119 healing those places where we're wounded and hurt. 00:34:32.119 --> 00:34:35.880 And it's the Holy Spirit that's taking forth the glorious name of King Jesus. 00:34:36.460 --> 00:34:38.880 And those who are rebelling and running away from Him 00:34:38.880 --> 00:34:40.259 are now running to the cross 00:34:40.259 --> 00:34:43.299 and declaring how great He is, their Savior. 00:34:44.279 --> 00:34:46.500 What a comfort to us that we can know God 00:34:46.500 --> 00:34:50.299 through the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit through His church. 00:34:52.579 --> 00:34:55.519 Well, number six, the last one is that you can know God only 00:34:55.519 --> 00:34:59.460 if you trust, personally trust, 00:35:00.139 --> 00:35:03.300 in the righteousness of His glorified Son. 00:35:04.639 --> 00:35:06.380 In verse 13, Jesus says, 00:35:06.519 --> 00:35:09.699 whatever you ask in my name, 00:35:10.480 --> 00:35:11.460 trusting in Christ, 00:35:12.000 --> 00:35:13.139 this I will do, 00:35:13.239 --> 00:35:15.320 that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 00:35:15.699 --> 00:35:18.259 If you ask me anything in my name, 00:35:18.460 --> 00:35:19.380 I will do it. 00:35:19.380 --> 00:35:25.480 As the apostles went out with the early church, 00:35:26.260 --> 00:35:29.700 God put His magnificent power on display. 00:35:30.240 --> 00:35:32.280 And for all those questioning the authority 00:35:32.280 --> 00:35:34.820 of these ministers that Christ had sent out, 00:35:34.920 --> 00:35:37.079 they could look at the miraculous feats 00:35:37.079 --> 00:35:38.660 that God was doing through His church. 00:35:38.960 --> 00:35:40.559 And this was another witness from heaven 00:35:40.559 --> 00:35:42.320 that this gospel is true. 00:35:42.680 --> 00:35:45.000 This is not a different religion from the Old Testament. 00:35:45.000 --> 00:35:48.280 This is the fulfillment of all that God has promised. 00:35:50.059 --> 00:35:51.840 And whenever God is working now, 00:35:51.920 --> 00:35:53.740 whenever He stirs your heart to pray 00:35:53.740 --> 00:35:55.119 and to ask in His name, 00:35:55.579 --> 00:35:58.320 it's because He lives to intercede for His people. 00:35:58.619 --> 00:35:59.840 He is praying first. 00:36:00.240 --> 00:36:02.579 And when He puts a burden or a desire to pray 00:36:02.579 --> 00:36:03.740 in His name now, 00:36:03.960 --> 00:36:05.820 He's asking you to join your prayers 00:36:05.820 --> 00:36:07.619 to what He is already praying for. 00:36:08.460 --> 00:36:10.800 How much comfort and strength does that give us? 00:36:11.180 --> 00:36:13.480 We know we are praying because God is calling us 00:36:13.480 --> 00:36:15.660 to pray for what's on His heart. 00:36:15.659 --> 00:36:20.440 This also raises difficult questions for us. 00:36:20.579 --> 00:36:24.399 Like, I prayed for God to keep my family safe, 00:36:24.980 --> 00:36:27.379 and God did not answer that prayer. 00:36:30.519 --> 00:36:32.219 Notice how in verse 13, 00:36:33.219 --> 00:36:34.099 He says, 00:36:34.099 --> 00:36:43.739 Whatever we ask, 00:36:43.880 --> 00:36:45.000 it's in the name of Christ 00:36:45.000 --> 00:36:47.940 for the ultimate goal of the Son being glorified. 00:36:49.299 --> 00:36:50.639 Jerry Bridges helped me a lot 00:36:50.639 --> 00:36:52.539 with this difficult question 00:36:52.539 --> 00:36:54.699 of when it feels like we asked in God's name 00:36:54.699 --> 00:36:55.420 something good, 00:36:55.519 --> 00:36:56.639 and yet it didn't happen. 00:36:58.039 --> 00:36:58.880 Bridges commented, 00:36:58.880 --> 00:37:01.440 God never pursues His own glory 00:37:01.440 --> 00:37:03.599 at the expense of the good of His people, 00:37:03.700 --> 00:37:05.619 nor does He ever seek our good 00:37:05.619 --> 00:37:08.220 at the expense of His glory. 00:37:09.300 --> 00:37:10.539 There are times when it feels like 00:37:10.539 --> 00:37:11.599 it's not for our good, 00:37:11.640 --> 00:37:13.200 and we don't see His glory in it. 00:37:14.220 --> 00:37:15.960 So how was God glorified? 00:37:16.820 --> 00:37:17.539 Bridges comment, 00:37:17.640 --> 00:37:18.019 he says, 00:37:18.420 --> 00:37:20.539 God knows before He initiates 00:37:20.539 --> 00:37:22.059 or permits the adversity 00:37:22.059 --> 00:37:23.240 that you go through, 00:37:23.559 --> 00:37:26.400 He knows exactly how He will use it 00:37:26.400 --> 00:37:28.140 for your ultimate good. 00:37:28.880 --> 00:37:29.519 One day. 00:37:30.240 --> 00:37:32.039 The good that God works in our lives 00:37:32.039 --> 00:37:33.640 is in conformity 00:37:33.640 --> 00:37:36.200 to the likeness of His Son. 00:37:37.500 --> 00:37:38.780 So when you go through a trial 00:37:38.780 --> 00:37:39.960 and it feels like there was a prayer 00:37:39.960 --> 00:37:40.880 that wasn't answered, 00:37:41.500 --> 00:37:43.160 it still can be for your good 00:37:43.160 --> 00:37:44.760 if it's being used by God 00:37:44.760 --> 00:37:45.960 to conform you 00:37:45.960 --> 00:37:47.860 into the likeness of the Son, 00:37:47.900 --> 00:37:49.260 even if that means teaching you 00:37:49.260 --> 00:37:50.440 the way of suffering 00:37:50.440 --> 00:37:51.860 and the way of the cross. 00:37:52.860 --> 00:37:54.640 It is not necessary, Bridges said, 00:37:55.119 --> 00:37:57.400 it's not necessarily comfort or happiness, 00:37:57.400 --> 00:37:59.619 but conformity to Christ 00:37:59.619 --> 00:38:02.240 in an ever-increasing measure. 00:38:03.460 --> 00:38:04.480 It's God's glory, 00:38:04.840 --> 00:38:05.800 it's our good, 00:38:06.460 --> 00:38:08.400 never one at the expense of the other, 00:38:08.500 --> 00:38:09.940 but trusting God is wise 00:38:09.940 --> 00:38:12.619 to know what is our ultimate good, 00:38:12.940 --> 00:38:14.900 what is His ultimate glory, 00:38:15.400 --> 00:38:17.059 and we trust in His wisdom. 00:38:17.059 --> 00:38:20.420 So when we pray in Christ's name 00:38:20.420 --> 00:38:21.420 and for Christ's sake, 00:38:21.820 --> 00:38:24.679 we are praying for the glory of Christ's name 00:38:24.679 --> 00:38:26.940 with whatever we're going to ask, 00:38:27.279 --> 00:38:27.940 and we say, 00:38:28.279 --> 00:38:29.579 according to the Lord's will, 00:38:30.420 --> 00:38:31.759 we defer to Him. 00:38:33.059 --> 00:38:34.980 2 Corinthians 8, 9 says, 00:38:34.980 --> 00:38:36.440 We are to know the grace 00:38:36.440 --> 00:38:37.920 of our Lord Jesus Christ 00:38:37.920 --> 00:38:41.960 through which He has shown His rich mercy, 00:38:42.099 --> 00:38:43.099 yet for your sake, 00:38:43.880 --> 00:38:44.960 out of the glory of heaven, 00:38:45.039 --> 00:38:45.860 He became poor 00:38:45.860 --> 00:38:46.639 so that you, 00:38:47.019 --> 00:38:47.920 by His poverty, 00:38:48.380 --> 00:38:49.780 might become rich. 00:38:50.780 --> 00:38:52.539 When we're praying in the name of Christ, 00:38:52.699 --> 00:38:54.460 we're asking that He be exalted, 00:38:54.699 --> 00:38:56.059 even if it means our suffering, 00:38:57.139 --> 00:38:58.579 because He who was rich 00:38:58.579 --> 00:38:59.699 became poor. 00:39:00.559 --> 00:39:02.579 He who had all comfort in heaven, 00:39:02.579 --> 00:39:04.739 He became under trial, 00:39:05.039 --> 00:39:05.599 unpoverty, 00:39:06.039 --> 00:39:08.019 so that you could receive the blessing, 00:39:08.400 --> 00:39:11.019 and He took the curse in your place. 00:39:11.559 --> 00:39:12.840 And that's why we can trust 00:39:12.840 --> 00:39:14.199 our Lord Jesus Christ 00:39:14.199 --> 00:39:15.960 every time we pray 00:39:15.960 --> 00:39:17.819 that whoever believes 00:39:17.819 --> 00:39:20.400 and asks in His name for His glory, 00:39:21.099 --> 00:39:23.500 we will see the hand of God 00:39:23.500 --> 00:39:24.940 bringing that ultimate good 00:39:24.940 --> 00:39:26.539 out of any circumstance, 00:39:26.779 --> 00:39:28.739 whatever it is that comes to pass. 00:39:28.900 --> 00:39:29.599 We trust Him, 00:39:29.960 --> 00:39:31.759 and we ask His Spirit to teach us that. 00:39:32.579 --> 00:39:35.440 Well, I hope that 00:39:35.440 --> 00:39:36.699 if you're like me 00:39:36.699 --> 00:39:37.900 with the sleepless nights 00:39:37.900 --> 00:39:39.239 and the stress, 00:39:39.539 --> 00:39:40.940 and I can tell 00:39:40.940 --> 00:39:42.960 when I have the fear of man creeping in, 00:39:43.000 --> 00:39:44.219 I don't breathe very deeply, 00:39:44.840 --> 00:39:47.159 I hope that you're encouraged like me 00:39:47.159 --> 00:39:49.000 that the better we get to know 00:39:49.000 --> 00:39:50.860 our everlasting God 00:39:50.860 --> 00:39:51.779 through His Son, 00:39:52.759 --> 00:39:55.119 the more our hearts will enjoy 00:39:55.119 --> 00:39:57.039 His everlasting comfort 00:39:57.039 --> 00:39:58.039 through that union. 00:39:59.239 --> 00:40:00.319 Would you pray with me? 00:40:00.320 --> 00:40:04.600 from 2 Corinthians 2, 3. 00:40:04.599 --> 00:40:09.219 O Lord, may You be blessed. 00:40:09.380 --> 00:40:10.779 You are the God and Father 00:40:10.779 --> 00:40:12.139 of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:40:12.739 --> 00:40:14.519 You are the Father of mercies 00:40:14.519 --> 00:40:16.639 and the God of all comfort. 00:40:17.380 --> 00:40:19.079 We praise You that You are the one 00:40:19.079 --> 00:40:21.079 who comforts us in our affliction. 00:40:21.900 --> 00:40:24.420 You are the one who ministers to us 00:40:24.420 --> 00:40:26.000 that we may be able to then turn 00:40:26.000 --> 00:40:28.799 and comfort those who are in affliction 00:40:28.800 --> 00:40:30.640 with the comfort 00:40:30.640 --> 00:40:31.940 with which we ourselves 00:40:31.940 --> 00:40:34.340 have been comforted by God. 00:40:34.680 --> 00:40:36.380 Thank You for this glorious ministry 00:40:36.380 --> 00:40:37.680 of Jesus Christ 00:40:37.680 --> 00:40:39.320 so that we can know You. 00:40:40.160 --> 00:40:41.720 We ask this in Christ's name 00:40:41.720 --> 00:40:42.960 and for His sake alone. 00:40:43.460 --> 00:40:43.760 Amen. 00:40:43.760 --> 00:40:43.880 Amen. 00:40:43.880 --> 00:40:44.160 Amen. 00:40:44.160 --> 00:40:44.400 Amen. 00:40:44.400 --> 00:40:44.760 Amen. 00:40:44.760 --> 00:40:45.180 Amen. 00:40:45.640 --> 00:40:45.700 Amen. 00:40:45.760 --> 00:40:45.780 Amen. 00:40:45.780 --> 00:40:45.960 Amen. 00:40:46.079 --> 00:40:46.460 Amen. 00:40:46.539 --> 00:40:46.640 Amen. 00:40:46.640 --> 00:40:46.740 Amen. 00:40:47.660 --> 00:40:48.059 Amen. 00:40:48.059 --> 00:40:48.320 Amen. 00:40:48.559 --> 00:40:48.980 Amen. 00:40:49.280 --> 00:40:49.640 Amen. 00:40:49.840 --> 00:40:50.019 Amen. 00:40:50.079 --> 00:40:50.340 Amen. 00:40:50.340 --> 00:40:50.900 Amen. 00:40:51.059 --> 00:40:51.700 Amen. 00:40:51.700 --> 00:40:51.940 Amen. 00:40:51.940 --> 00:40:52.039 Amen. 00:40:52.039 --> 00:40:52.220 Bye. 00:40:52.220 --> 00:40:52.400 Amen. 00:40:52.400 --> 00:40:52.920 Amen. 00:40:52.960 --> 00:40:54.039 Amen. 00:40:54.059 --> 00:40:54.220 Amen. 00:40:54.220 --> 00:40:54.599 Never. 00:40:54.599 --> 00:40:54.880 Amen. 00:40:54.980 --> 00:40:55.180 Amen. 00:40:55.240 --> 00:40:55.740 Amen. 00:40:55.740 --> 00:40:56.000 Amen. 00:40:56.140 --> 00:40:56.900 Amen. 00:40:56.900 --> 00:40:58.079 Amen. 00:40:58.099 --> 00:40:59.160 Amen. 00:40:59.160 --> 00:41:00.619 Amen. 00:41:00.920 --> 00:41:01.920 Amen. 00:41:02.119 --> 00:41:02.920 Amen. 00:41:02.920 --> 00:41:03.019 Amen. 00:41:03.019 --> 00:41:04.200 Amen. 00:41:04.940 --> 00:41:05.160 Amen. 00:41:05.160 --> 00:41:05.780 Amen. 00:41:06.000 --> 00:41:07.039 Amen. 00:41:07.039 --> 00:41:08.019 Amen. 00:41:08.019 --> 00:41:09.480 Amen. 00:41:09.539 --> 00:41:09.660 Amen. 00:41:09.700 --> 00:41:09.940 Amen. 00:41:09.940 --> 00:41:10.000 Amen. 00:41:10.000 --> 00:41:10.019 Amen. 00:41:10.019 --> 00:41:10.619 Amen. 00:41:10.660 --> 00:41:13.760 Amen.