Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Look at John, chapter 16 this morning. We've been going through John for some time. And so today we land in chapter 16, verses 16 through 24. So about midway through, just a powerful, powerful passage, what we'll do, we'll just read the passage and then we will jump in and pray and see what God has for us. And then at the tail end of our message today, we'll celebrate communion. So be thinking about that, preparing your heart for that. So John, chapter 16, if you have your Bibles open, whatever you're looking at there, we looked at the earlier portion already last week. We saw that Jesus promised the Holy Spirit to come, says he's going to help you in the time that you go out into the world, and he will guide and direct you. He will comfort you. And then verse 16 starts off, and in my Bible at least it says, your sorrow will turn to what?
[00:00:55] To turn to joy. And if you remember a little bit further back, further ago in the passage, we have Jesus. They're currently sitting around the table. The Last Supper has just happened. They've concluded their meal. A little bit of setting here. They've concluded their meal. Judas has left already. Jesus says, someone's going to betray me. Judas gets up and leaves. The other disciples think maybe he's going to help somebody. We don't know where he's going, but he's gone. And. And then Jesus begins this conversation in chapter 14, so you can flip back in your Bible. He says, I'm the way, the truth and the life. And he begins talking through this very important, really last message that he has for his disciples. And so they're sitting around the table, they've concluded their meal, and they're just talking, or Jesus is talking and they are listening. And Jesus is saying some really, really important things to them. What One of which that they really are still thinking about is Jesus has said, I'm going to leave. And they are all very troubled by this. We see that in the beginning of chapter 14. And then he says, if you stay close to me, I will give you comfort. And by the way, people are going to hate you. People are going to kill you because of your relationship with me. And they're still. What's important for us to know as we walk into this passage. They're still kind of stuck on the whole Jesus, you're leaving.
[00:02:16] That is still very set in their mind because they have walked with Jesus for three years, every day. They have been doing life with Jesus. And then he says, you're. I'm leaving. And this has really gripped their attention. And so that's important to kind of have sitting there in your mind as we read through this, because he says this a few times in this conversation. He's going to say it again right now. So. So let's look together. Verse 16 starts off. He's just talked about the Holy Spirit coming help them, he says. Verse 16. He says, A little while and you will see me no longer. And again, a little while and you will what?
[00:02:54] See me. So some of his disciples said to one another, what is this that he says to us? A little while and you will not see me. In a little while again you will see me. I mean, we can probably all agree that's somewhat confusing if we were sitting, standing in their sandals and because I am going to the Father. Verse 18. So they were saying, what does he mean by a little while?
[00:03:19] We do not know what he is talking about.
[00:03:23] Jesus knew, because he knows everything, knew that they wanted to ask him.
[00:03:28] So he said to them, is this what you are asking yourselves? What do I mean by saying, a little while you will not see me? And again, a little while and you will see me.
[00:03:38] Verse 20. Truly, truly, I say to you. And again, whenever we see Truly, truly Jesus speaking, it means pay attention, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come.
[00:04:00] But when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly again we see this truly, truly phrase.
[00:04:25] I I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my what name he will give to you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
[00:04:42] Dear Lord Jesus, Father in heaven, we come before you because we know that the sacrifice of Jesus was sufficient to cover our sins. And so we can boldly approach you this morning, joyful as we sung about earlier, knowing that you not only see us, but you know us, and that we're able to know you because of what you've done, because of the wonderful work of the cross, how terrible it was, and yet wonderful and good for us. And so this morning we pause and we rejoice in that truth. We are standing here redeemed because of you, because of your work. And we praise you for that. This morning, as we spend time in this passage, Lord, we ask that your spirit would guide and direct us, that he would speak through me, that the things that we see here would move and change our hearts to be more aligned with you and your desire for our life.
[00:05:40] Lord, as we spend time here, we ask that you would teach us, you would work in a way that only you can.
[00:05:48] In Jesus name I pray everyone Zed.
[00:05:54] So growing up, many of us have stories of what your family vacations might have been like. So some of you, maybe your family vacations, you went to visit relatives, presuming that you liked those relatives, and that was a nice vacation.
[00:06:09] Some of you might have gone to Disneyland, some of you might have gone camping. All sorts of vacations for us growing up, our vacations.
[00:06:19] Yeah, my parents aren't here, so I can tell some of these stories.
[00:06:23] So our vacations every year, we just kind of had slotted on the calendar. In the summer, we would go on backpacking trips, not camping trips. What were they?
[00:06:32] Backpacking trips. Very different than camping trips. And my dad loved going on backpacking trips and the rest of us came along with him.
[00:06:43] So we would often.
[00:06:45] You can go to the next slide. We would often go on these trips. And as we would get ready to go, they were not like a couple, like hours on. We would go up and go see a nice cool thing and then come back to the car. We would go for days at a time.
[00:07:01] And that would include packing in, obviously everything that you need, including making sure that because you're going in for days, you're packing in everything and thinking. The primary thing that you're thinking about when you're going on these kinds of backpacking trips is sustenance, because you need energy to get through that many days, but also weight because you have to carry everything. So one of the things that you generally didn't do when you go on backpacking trips like this is you don't carry lots of water with you. You go and you hike to where the water is. So if you get thirsty on the way, hike faster.
[00:07:32] And if you want to stop because you want to know where camp is going to be, it's going to be at the next lake. You don't just stop somewhere between where you and the lake. You need water in order to camp, to make your food, that sort of thing. And so you always just get to the lake. And so we would. We just had this kind of embedded in us years of doing this. Pack in. Alright, let's go.
[00:07:52] And as we would go, you know, we're 2, 3, not really that young, we're like 10, 11, 12, 13, whatever that may be. We were hiking in. And as time goes on, as you're walking and walking and walking, after a while your legs start to hurt.
[00:08:07] It becomes less and less pleasant. The beautiful trees by you no longer are something that you love to just stand and look at. You're just wondering, when are we going to get to the lake? And many of you may not know this, but we usually start around 9,000ft or so and then go up from there.
[00:08:27] And then by the way, the tree line generally stops at 10,000ft. So we would go past that. So there was no campfires. All those lovely stories, you know, camping with the marshmallows and all of that, that wasn't a thing.
[00:08:38] You would just keep hiking. Cause it's just granite after 10,000ft.
[00:08:42] And so you just can't wait. You finally get to the lake.
[00:08:45] Not to where you're gonna stop after your five day journey, but you finally get to the lake and you're exhausted and you lay down on granite for a nice restful sleep in the freezing cold in your sleeping bag, only to wake up the next morning with your tent covered in dew and you can't leave until it thaws out because it's so cold.
[00:09:06] And you have your oatmeal the next morning and you keep going because we just gotta get to the next, the next lake and we just keep going. And after a while things become less pleasant and more miserable.
[00:09:20] And one of the things that would happen, and I'm getting to my point here, one of the things that would happen is you. We start to realize, I would just like to quit and go back to the car.
[00:09:32] I am done with this. I mean, this started out as a nice vacation for us, but after a while it just became really unpleasant.
[00:09:42] And then you start to ask the question, as most kids do and when they're on a car ride. For us it was on a backpacking trip. Are we, are we there yet? And my dad would dutifully respond as he looked at his map, it's just over the next ridge.
[00:09:57] And so we would hurry along over the switchbacks and get to the top of the ridge, only to see that it was what's called a false summit. And so there's one more ridge in front of you and we would just keep going. Or are we almost there yet? It should just be wrist around this next bend and we would hurry along the bend and it would be around another bend as we consider that, for example. And you kind of overlay this with the realities of our life. Some of us have been in similar places where you start off on the journey we call life, or even your Christian walk, and you think, alright, this is gonna be good, here we go. And then after a while your legs start to hurt a little bit, life begins to get more challenging and you begin to realize, I thought this thing called following Jesus was supposed to be full of roses and daisies. It was gonna be great.
[00:10:52] And you start to think, are we there yet?
[00:10:57] Like, when is the joy supposed to come?
[00:11:01] When is this supposed to be this lovely peace that we sing about, this joy that we declare? When is that part? Get here? Now? What's great on these trips is we do know that the end is coming. Usually it's about 13,000ft and you're exhausted and you can barely breathe. But the end is going to come.
[00:11:20] And for us as Christians, sometimes that journey, and maybe for you, is not climbing a mountain, but it's your marriage.
[00:11:30] And maybe it's a friendship that you have, maybe it's co workers that you're dealing with, maybe it's family members. And you thought it was going to be great, but then it got really, really hard and you started asking a question, is this going to end?
[00:11:49] Is there actually going to be some joy in this?
[00:11:53] I thought parenting was supposed to be fun.
[00:11:57] And at 2 o' clock in the morning you're wondering, I thought, like, where's the joy right now that I would love to feel the big idea here that we're going to look at and we see Jesus really walking his disciples through is this.
[00:12:12] The joy is coming, he promises.
[00:12:15] Here's what he's calling them to do. Don't give up.
[00:12:18] As all of us walking up the mountain, we could say, I would like to have the joy of standing at the top of this peak, this 13,000 foot peak and seeing everything. It's incredibly beautiful when you're up that high. But the journey there is hard.
[00:12:34] And you would like to, many of us would like to just sit on that one last boulder and say, can I just give up now? Can I just stop? And if we did, we would experience relief, but we wouldn't experience the joy that was promised.
[00:12:48] And for many of us, we're in that place. Can I just give up now? I would just like some relief. And God promises, He says the joy is coming. Keep going, Keep going. Proverbs of Psalms, chapter 30 verse 5 says, this something you can maybe hold on to this morning. He says, this weeping may endure for the night, but joy comes in the morning.
[00:13:11] So though there are hard times, which is not something that we want to brush under the rug, we want to hold tightly to the promise that joy is coming. So let's get into this text here. If we get maybe back in our time machine, we go back a couple thousand years, let's walk with the disciples, or at this point in time, sit with the disciples with what they're thinking and what they're feeling right now. Verse 16 of John 16.
[00:13:40] There's this question that I said that the disciples are probably struggling with thinking through right now. And it's this question, it's point one in your outline. The question is this, is Jesus abandoning us?
[00:13:51] Is Jesus abandoning us? Starting in chapter 13, verse 33 was the first time Jesus says, or at least very clearly at this point in their journey, I am going to leave. I'm leaving. He says, I'm going to the Father. And they have this question, is he going to leave us as orphans? We've been going along in this journey and we thought things were going to be great. They're trekking along, going along, and then it starts to get hard and Jesus says it's going to get harder. Actually, Jesus has already affirmed that he's not going to leave them as orphans, that he's going to send help. They're also going to have to endure lots of persecution because this journey they're going on, this mountain they're climbing, if you will. There's a lot more switchbacks coming. There's a lot more challenges coming their way. So here again we find Jesus saying he's leaving. Verse 16, a little while and you will see me no longer. In a little while again, you will see me.
[00:14:45] But to make it more confusing, we have this phrase a little while. Now maybe you're asking this question. I'm sure the disciples were as well.
[00:14:54] Who defines a little while?
[00:14:57] Who defines that? So this is a confusing announcement of Jesus. This is a confusing announcement. You may be written that in point A there, this confusing announcement, verse 16.
[00:15:08] There's actually three kind of main views of this. I just want to introduce to you for just a moment, this little while. Some interpreters view this in short term actually is only a little while, matter of a few days.
[00:15:20] Some say this little while is a matter of some weeks, and some a matter of many years. And so the three views I just wanna kinda introduce to you and tell you really What Jesus is most likely talking about here on the screen here, these three views of this one, Jesus is talking about how he's going to die and then they're going to see him again. So Jesus, just shortly after this, he's gonna be arrested, the trial's gonna happen. He, he will die. And how many days later does he rise again?
[00:15:49] 3. So Jesus, is he talking about how he's gonna die and then he'll see them again on and off for that 40 day period between when he rises and goes to heaven. Second view is Jesus is saying, I'm going to be gone, but you will see me again. Speaking particularly about the Holy Spirit showing up.
[00:16:05] God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, all working in union with one another. He's just talked about the Holy Spirit. And then there's some that say when he says I'm coming in a little while, they think that he's talking about what his second coming.
[00:16:21] So which of these is he talking about? Because the question again that we're still wrestling with is this, what does he mean by a little while? Which one is it?
[00:16:31] Well, firstly, points one and two hold up pretty well under scrutiny when we consider what Jesus is talking about in the context going on here. We can see that view. Two, Jesus is talking about the Holy Spirit coming. He's just talked about the Holy spirit in verse 23, alludes again to him talking about the Holy Spirit gives us some clarity here that he's talking about the Holy Spirit is going to come and be with you. I will see you again. And also point one is true. In a few days I'm not going to see you and then I will see you.
[00:17:07] Now, as you're reading this, you might also be thinking about what Jesus said in Revelation 22, verse 12. He says to John, behold, I am coming.
[00:17:18] Anybody soon.
[00:17:19] You know, we're still living in that soon.
[00:17:23] And we keep saying that, right? Jesus is coming soon, which is a great encouragement to us. And we might ask ourselves, as many of us do today, who defines soon?
[00:17:33] Because Jesus said soon, like a long time ago, he says, I'm coming soon, which could soon be tomorrow. Could that be the end? It could be. And the early Christians thought he said he's coming soon. So it could be very, very soon.
[00:17:49] And the disciples are wrestling with this same interpretive question. What do you mean by a little while? It doesn't bring them peace. And that's actually Jesus desire. He wants to bring rest to their anxious hearts. Point B on your outline is this. The disciples have Anxious hearts. It's getting kind of the meat of some of the things here that we're going to see. The disciples of ancient times. Look at verses 17. And following here, I underlined some of the points on the screen. Some of them, some of his disciples said to one another, what is this that he says to us? A little while. So I'll just pause there. Little while is one word in the original language. But just imagine with me, remember, where are they right now? Where is this all taking place?
[00:18:36] Anybody where? At the beginning. Where is all this happening, this conversation?
[00:18:40] At the last Supper. So they're all sitting around a table. Jesus is over here most likely, and the rest of the disciples are going to spread around this U shaped table. Jesus is sitting over here and he says, in a little while I'm not going to be here. And then in a little while you will see me again. And then you just imagine as his disciples, maybe you've all done, maybe you've done this. When somebody's talking at the table, you're at the other side, you kind of talk back and forth to each other. What is he talking about? Or why did he say it like that? Imagine the disciples sitting at the table and there's other disciples over here going, what is he talking about? A little, what is that? What is that hood?
[00:19:14] A little while. What does that mean? And then Jesus, by the way, they didn't include Jesus in this conversation. It's just this little side conversation that they're having. Look what it says, a little while. And you will not see me in a little while. You will. What are you talking about? I'm going to the Father. What is he talking about? What does he mean by this? So Jesus, because he knows all things and probably they weren't whispering very loudly, very quietly says, are you, can I help you with this question?
[00:19:42] Can I help you answer this question? He's going to in just a moment. But what I want us to do is look at some vital lessons here. One, maybe write some of these things down. One, consider the authenticity of the disciples. Right now as someone writing the gospels, if I'm writing there, I would like to make myself look out, look to be the best person here. I want to look like I understood exactly what Jesus was talking about. But the authors don't hide the fact that they're confused, that they're troubled. They're willing to tell other people, us here today, 2,000 years later, they're willing to confess to you. I was confused by the Master teacher.
[00:20:22] I was confused, I had Been walking with him for three years, and I was confused.
[00:20:26] So take heart. We can be confused sometimes by what Jesus says.
[00:20:33] Secondly, we ask this question, why would they have anxious hearts? Jesus just promised them that he was going to send a comforter. Why are they anxious?
[00:20:45] Zoom back into their life. Jesus calls them to follow him. He fulfills prophecy about the Messiah. He says he's the Lamb of God. He heals the hurting. He raises the dead. He stands up to the religious system. He speaks about his coming kingdom. He. His disciples are like, we're gonna do this. This is gonna be great. And then what happens? He says, I'm going to die. I'm going to leave you. So, like, how do you do both? You're gonna die. You're gonna leave us, you're gonna go to the Father. This doesn't make sense. He also says, you're not gonna be able to follow me, but then one day you are gonna follow me. You are gonna be with me. And then he says that you can pray in my name and I'll answer you. But then he's like, but I thought you died.
[00:21:26] How does this work? And then you're going to the Father, but you're going to send someone. But you died. How are you doing that?
[00:21:35] And then you're going to say that our friends and our family is going to disown us, but it's going to be okay because you're going to be with us still. But you died. But you left. Are you with me here? This is like, I'm trying to wrap my head around all these things that you've just said.
[00:21:50] And then now you're saying, which you already said, you're leaving, but you're going to the Father and you're gonna die. People are gonna hate us. You're gonna send a helper. And now you're saying you're gonna leave us for a little bit, but then you're gonna come back.
[00:22:01] Are you confused with me?
[00:22:03] Because they're also confused.
[00:22:07] Why are they confused?
[00:22:09] Because they're trying to piece all of this together. And Jesus knew they were gonna be confused, didn't he? He knew what he said was going to be confusing to them. What's also interesting is we haven't seen the disciples speak up. Since Judas has left, there's been one other question, but since then, they've been silent. It's like Jesus is trying to get them to start talking a little bit, start engaging, make sure that they're still awake as he's saying some very important things.
[00:22:37] So they're anxious about what's going to happen. Look at verse 19.
[00:22:41] Jesus says this. He's like, I do you want me to help you?
[00:22:45] Do you want me to help? He knows that they want to ask, but they don't. He knows their hearts. Does Jesus know your heart?
[00:22:53] Does Jesus know that you're anxious about things sometimes? Does he know that you're confused? Does he know that you want to have an answer to something?
[00:23:01] And Jesus, he inserts himself. He's like, would you like me to help you with this confusion that you have? I want to help you because I don't want you to sit there anxious right now.
[00:23:12] So he's going to answer that verse. Well, the following verse before we get there. Some quick takeaways here. One that kind of actually are almost backwards. Notice what the disciples do. They want to know. Go back one slide. They want to know in verses 17 and 18 what Jesus is talking about. Notice what they do. Here's Jesus. He talks to them all. And what they don't do is talk directly back to him. They say, jesus, can you help explain what you just meant? What they do is they talk to one another about it. What do you think he meant? What do you think he meant? Rather than just considering all of the things that he has said. Don't we do this sometimes? We look at the Bible and we have this dangerous question that we ask even in Bible study. So just be mindful of this. You read a verse and you're like, oh, okay. And maybe the Bible study leader asked this question. What do you think Jesus means by that?
[00:24:03] Now, sometimes that's a really good question.
[00:24:05] Other times it's a really dangerous question because Jesus might already tell you what you should think about that in another part of the Bible.
[00:24:15] So when you ask a question like, what do you. What does that mean to you?
[00:24:19] Can be a great question. It can also be a very dangerous question because if the disciples were to ask that question, you know, Bartholomew leans over to Andrew, says, what does that mean to you?
[00:24:30] Andrew's like, I don't know. What do you think it means? Bartholomew, he's like, well, I think a little while means. And Jesus is like, I'm over here. Like, I can answer that question for you.
[00:24:41] But they're talking amongst themselves. So first thing to be concerned about, take away from that quick interaction. But a second positive thing. So a negative thing and a positive thing. The positive thing is this. When you're confused, don't sit in confusion, in isolation.
[00:24:55] Ask other people.
[00:24:57] So in that regard, that's a good thing they reached outside of themselves. And so as you and I at times are going to experience confusion or hardship, it's important that we're willing to lean on one another in the midst of that.
[00:25:12] We also Third point here before we go on to point two is this. We also must believe this, that Jesus knows what we're going through and will step in at the right time.
[00:25:25] Jesus let them try to sort things out by themselves for a little while and then he stepped in and said, would you like some help? Doesn't he do that to us sometimes he lets us wrestle with it for a while and then he's like, I'm here, I'm willing to help, but I would like you to turn and look at me and ask.
[00:25:46] And so for us, consider that Jesus hasn't abandoned you in your confusion or, or in your hardship or in your marriage or in your parenting or with your co worker or with your emotions or with your anxiety, whatever that is. You might be over there struggling and Jesus hasn't actually left. Even though it feels like he's not helping.
[00:26:06] He says, I'm ready, I'm willing to help the disciples troubled hearts spoken of. Even John 14 Jesus says, Do not let your hearts be troubled. They haven't calmed.
[00:26:18] Even though Jesus, with just a few words, calm a storm, the storm inside of the disciples hearts, Jesus is not calming this moment. Right now they're thinking, Jesus, you keep talking and our hearts aren't getting calm, they're getting more restless. You calm the storm with just two words, be still. But for us, you keep talking and I'm feeling more and more and more restless right now. Aren't you going to help us in this?
[00:26:47] Here's the question again. Will the promise of joy that Jesus speaks about actually ever come? He says he wants peace for us. He's already said that. He says peace be upon you. He says that he wants joy for them. It's like when we're backpacking and my dad says the peak's gonna be out there, it's there, it's gonna be great, the view's gonna be wonderful. And we're trudging through switchback after switchback and we look back and say seriously? And is it really coming?
[00:27:15] Cause I have been working for a long time. You said it's going to be great. I'm not feeling great right now.
[00:27:21] The disciples feeling the same thing. And so we look back to Jesus and we say, are you sure there's joy out there? Are you sure? Because so far everything I've experienced so far has not been pleasant. It's been hard.
[00:27:36] So the question we sit with again, will joy ever come? That's the question. Point two on your outline, you can write that in. Will joy ever come? Verses 20 and 24. Speak to this.
[00:27:49] Speak to this. What I love about this next few verses is the reality that we see between the with the emotions of Jesus disciples and the promise of big emotions that they're going to have.
[00:28:04] Six times joy is used in just verses 20 through 24. And seven times there's words like weep, lament, sorrow, sorrowful, and anguish.
[00:28:16] These few verses are packed with some really, really big emotions. Look with me here, expect a change of emotions. Verses 20 and 22, you can write that in. Expect a change of emotions. Look what it says. Verse 20. Truly, truly, I say to you. This is Jesus speaking. He's kind of calling them out. He's at the table right with them. He's calling them out of their confusion. He's calling them out of this whispering that's going on right here. He says, truly, truly. And they're like, well, pay attention. Jesus is going to say something important.
[00:28:45] You will weep. Well, that's a good start, isn't it?
[00:28:49] Maybe the next thing he says will be better and lament. Nope, not better.
[00:28:55] The word weep is the idea of crying out loud to be heard, that is heard by others. It's not an inward sorrow, but an outward crying. He says lament. That word is the formal weeping that happens like at a funeral procession. In that time, they might even hire people that are formal weepers or lamenters. Their job is to follow the or actually lead in the midst of the funeral procession and to be crying quietly, very loudly so that everyone can hear. This person was very loved and they have died. That's what Jesus says. You will weep and lament.
[00:29:33] Wow, thanks Jesus. This is not better so far, but the world will rejoice. Still not better.
[00:29:42] Like, wait a minute, I thought this was supposed to be good news. We are trekking with you so far you said it's going to be joy. And, and then he says, after you've been confused, you're gonna weep, you're gonna lament, and other people will be happy, but not you.
[00:29:57] There's few things worse than being sad, one of which is being sad knowing that other people are happy around you.
[00:30:07] You will be sorrowful again. That word we see sadness, this grieving. But. And here's finally the but we've been waiting for. But your sorrow will turn to thank you, Jesus. Right, thank you.
[00:30:22] So you will also have sorrow. This is verse 22. We're skipping verse 21. We'll come back to it in the next line.
[00:30:28] So you will also have sorrow. Now, that is for the moment. But I will see you again. There's that phrase again. You'll see me again and your hearts will rejoice. There's another joy word. And no one will take your joy from you.
[00:30:45] What an incredible promise.
[00:30:47] What an incredible promise. But the disciples, we get this, and this is maybe take away something for us. Disciples were not stoics, and Jesus does not assume that they should be. He knows that they will be afraid, that they'll be anxious, they'll be sad, they'll be confused, and then they will have great joy. He does not expect his followers to be void of emotions.
[00:31:09] Jesus knows that full well. It's not a badge of honor as super spiritual people, because I just don't get emotional. I'm just all put together because I'm a really, really spiritual person. And so I just don't feel that's not a sign of healthy growth in your relationship with Jesus. Because even Jesus expects plans for his close followers who have walked with him for a long time to cry loudly, to have great sorrow for a time because of what they're going through. Here's what this tells us, friends, is it's okay to have those big sad feelings when something hard is going on.
[00:31:49] Jesus doesn't say, all right, you might try to feel sad, you might feel sad for a while, but shove those emotions away and just feel joy because you're my disciple. He doesn't say that.
[00:31:59] He says, you will feel sadness, weeping, lamenting sorrow, grieving. That will be a part of your life.
[00:32:10] He doesn't tell us to dismiss those hard emotions because we're supposed to be super spiritual or Jesus is coming one day. So I just don't have those feelings. Are you with me here?
[00:32:20] And so even for us as Christians, friends, we need to be mindful of this is even when a brother or sister comes alongside us and says, I'm hurting or I'm grieving or I'm. Or I'm sad, it's not super helpful spiritual of us to come alongside. Like, well, you know, Jesus is coming again, he'll wipe away all the tears.
[00:32:37] You're not the super spiritual person there. That's not you being really mature and helpful.
[00:32:42] It's, let's cry together.
[00:32:45] Because I'm called to weep with those who are weeping and to rejoice with those who are rejoicing. Jesus is preparing them for. For some really hard things. And he's not telling them to cover up the hard emotions and just act happy. He's saying, it's okay to cry. It's okay to be sad.
[00:33:08] And then he says, in the midst of this sadness, other people will also be sad.
[00:33:14] The world will be rejoicing.
[00:33:18] Matthew chapter 27 maybe most pointedly shows us this.
[00:33:24] Jesus hanging on the cross.
[00:33:28] The disciples are grieving somewhere else because only John is at the foot of the cross.
[00:33:34] They're scared. And here's what's going on at the foot of the cross.
[00:33:38] Those who passed by the foot of the cross, they derided him. They wagged their heads. It says in Matthew 27. And saying this to Jesus, you who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself. If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.
[00:33:55] So also the chief priests with the scribes and elders, they mocked him, saying, he saved others.
[00:34:01] He can't save himself. He's the king of Israel. Let him come down from the cross and we will believe in him. They are mockingly just throwing their faces, throwing their hands up at Jesus, saying, look at him. He can't do anything. This is what Jesus is talking about.
[00:34:16] He trusting God, let God deliver him if he desires him. For he said, I am the Son of God.
[00:34:23] And even the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in this way.
[00:34:28] Jesus knew this would happen, didn't he?
[00:34:31] He knew what these disciples would be feeling.
[00:34:36] And then he says, something better is coming.
[00:34:39] You will get to the other side of this. This joy, we must realize, is found in Jesus, not in our circumstances.
[00:34:51] And that's what he wants us to understand here today.
[00:34:55] The joy they will have. Do you see it there? He says this, so you will have sorrow now, but you will see me again. The joy that you're going to have is not in the situation that you're in, but. But because you have a relationship with me.
[00:35:07] The relationship is what brings joy, not the circumstances.
[00:35:11] And sandwiched between verse 20 and verse 22 is a helpful example for us because we all need examples, don't we? We all need examples. And Jesus knows that. He's the master teacher. He gives them an example.
[00:35:23] And if you're a mom here today, you might resonate with this example a little bit more than others.
[00:35:28] Here's what Jesus says in this helpful example. You can write that in point B on your outline. A helpful example. Verse 21. He says, A woman is giving when A woman is giving birth. She has sorrow because her hour has come or her time has come. But when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish.
[00:35:47] Is that true?
[00:35:51] Looking for some nodding mom's heads or something? Right? I can't. I'm not speaking from experience. I'm just asking. Right. So you. Yes. Is that generally yes.
[00:36:01] And then. Well, I'll finish the verse for the joy that a human being is born into the world. That's where for joy that a human being has entered into the world. And I just blown away as, like, considering all of that.
[00:36:15] And then I would assume, like, as a.
[00:36:18] Gonna be very different distant here as a guy. This is my own opinion as a guy. I would imagine going through that, I'm like, let's not ever do that again.
[00:36:26] Right? Any guys would agree with that. Like, let's not do. I mean, I was just standing there holding her hand. Let's not do that ever again.
[00:36:34] And then the mom's like, yeah, let's do that again.
[00:36:39] Jesus knows what he's talking about in this story, in this example here.
[00:36:45] And the guys, the husbands are still scratching their heads going, what?
[00:36:48] Again?
[00:36:50] All right, what's Jesus point? It's gonna be hard, but the joy that comes, comes through the pain.
[00:36:59] It doesn't come from giving up.
[00:37:02] And it's just like the nurses there, I mean, that stand there and say, nope, baby's not here yet. Keep pushing, right? Keep pushing. Keep. Right, Amber, Keep. Keep pushing. Keep going. Because if you stop, there's problems.
[00:37:18] Just like if you're like, I hear my example at the beginning and we're hiking up this mountain. If I decide I just want to be done, I never get the joy of getting to the peak. I never experience the joy. And Jesus point is this. The joy that you experience is not because you stopped trying. It's because you pressed through.
[00:37:34] And even true in the midst of hardship, for example, in marriage or in parenting, it's not, I'm just going to give up because my kids are so frustrating right now. You don't have the joy of parenting later on.
[00:37:45] My marriage is so, so hard right now. I just want to give up. And Jesus says, joy is coming if you press on, if you push through this pain and you hold tightly to me, I promise you joy is coming. Because God, the God that we worship, is a God who turns trials into triumph. The God that we worship is one who makes from ashes beauty. The God that we worship is God who turns despair into joy. The God that we worship is one who Changes the pain that we experience into praise that we can bring to Him. Deuteronomy 23. Nehemiah 13 says this. Our God can turn a curse into a blessing.
[00:38:30] The God that we worship can turn what is very hard for us into something beautiful, can grow us through the hardships that we walk through. That's what Jesus is teaching his disciples. Here is it will be very hard.
[00:38:46] And press on, press on, press on, because there is joy coming. And the joy that's coming is a joy that nobody can take away from you.
[00:38:59] No one can. And that reminds. I mean, you may have heard stories of our brothers and sisters in different parts of the world who are being persecuted, who say things even to their persecutor. You know, if you continue to persecute me, if you leave me alive, I will continue to tell you about Jesus and the joy that I have in him. And by the way, if you kill me because you're tired of hearing about it, I get to go be with Jesus and I have more joy. Like there's no way that I can lose here because I stay with you. I preach the gospel, I go with Jesus. That's gain for me.
[00:39:31] That's what Jesus is talking about, the joy that we can have from pressing on.
[00:39:39] He unpacks this even more or lays this out, I should say even more. In the last point for us here, it's this. We will encounter joy from God.
[00:39:48] We will encounter joy from God.
[00:39:52] Or I think on the screen here, they can engage directly with God, but we can encounter joy from God as well because of that, because of our relationship in that day. Verse 23. And we're talking again. Remember those three views that we saw as Jesus talking about a few days from now when they see him alive, and also most likely when Pentecost comes, when the Holy Spirit comes in that day, you will ask or pray directly to me, or ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask and you will what receive that your can you say joy together?
[00:40:31] Joy. That's the whole point. That your joy may be full. The purpose of why I'm laying this before you, Jesus says, is because joy is what I want from you. I want joy for you.
[00:40:42] Praying in Jesus name is this abiding relationship that we can have with him. He says earlier on, he says, if you abide with me, if you obey my commands, your joy will be full.
[00:40:52] John 14, 13 and 14 speak about this. And then he says, you are to pray in my what Right? Which we often close our prayers with in Jesus name. Which is where we get this concept from. But what that doesn't mean is praying in Jesus name is not like a magic formula to get what you want answered.
[00:41:11] Just because you said in Jesus name at the end doesn't mean, all right, well, look at this. Look what it says. Pray in my name. Ask and you will receive. So thus, if I say in Jesus name, I get what I want. I mean, you and I know that from experience, right? I mean, how many of us have prayed for something you said in Jesus name and then it didn't happen?
[00:41:27] What we're saying, when we say in Jesus name, it means a few things. One, it means that I am primarily. Perhaps the most important thing for us to know is this. When I say I'm praying, when I pray in Jesus name, I'm recognizing that I have the ability to approach God the Father, not of my own merit, but on the merit of Jesus Christ.
[00:41:47] That is why I'm approaching you. And how I'm approaching you is because Jesus said that I could. I'm not coming to you, Father, because of my own authority or because of my own goodness or my own works over here, but because Jesus alone, that's how I'm able to approach you. So that's firstly, secondly, I'm approaching you realizing that I want to ask these things in alignment with the heart of Jesus.
[00:42:10] It's not my own heart that says, I want it, so I should have it, but rather I. I've looked through scripture and this is not opposed to what Jesus already teaches.
[00:42:21] You can ask for things that Jesus says you shouldn't ask for. That's not in line with the heart of God. And God's going to be like, nope, that's not in accord with me, my character. Now, how do you know that you're always praying in accord with Jesus name?
[00:42:36] How do you know? Can you know?
[00:42:41] No, not all the time, but if those things come to be, you can be assured. Yep, this is what God wanted.
[00:42:50] This is what God wanted. Let's close with a couple things here.
[00:42:55] Jesus says here. Lastly, the way that we're able to have joy is because of our relationship with God.
[00:43:03] Without that, everything else falls apart. And so if you're here today and you're struggling with, as I said, the marriage is hard, the parenting is hard, the co workers are hard, the friendship's hard, the other things, whatever it is you're trekking through, maybe it's just internally for you, this is hard. And you feel yourself plodding along one step after the next step after the next step. And you're wondering, is this ever going to be done? Jesus says this joy, yes, is coming, but also the. The way you and I experience joy today is by being able to be held closely with our Father in heaven.
[00:43:38] So the harder life is. Here's the takeaway. The harder life is, the more you should pray, the harder life is, the more you run back to God.
[00:43:49] And at times you will realize that even though I'm doing this, I'm going back to God. He's not always fixing the problem over here. But my anxious heart, it's a little less than it was before, man. Life is hard. Hit your knees again.
[00:44:03] Life is still hard. Hit your knees again and again and again.
[00:44:09] If you're going through whatever that might be, encourage you to realize that Jesus says this is going to happen. Hardship is going to happen. A woman, as he gave that analogy, must endure much pain in order to see a child. A farmer must work hard and sweet in order to receive a plentiful crop. A runner must work hard in order to win the prize. A surgeon must press through many hours and hours of surgery in order to bring healing to a patient. A soldier must bleed and experience hardship in order to win a battle. You and I, who are we to think that we're going to be void of hardship in order to experience the great joys of following Jesus? Jesus also demonstrated this too.
[00:44:51] Jesus must die for there to be a gospel to be preached, hardship in order for there to be joy for the joy that was set before him. He what endured, he pressed on because he knew there's joy out there. And I'm going to press through something that is not joyful at all, because I know that the other side of this is going to be beautiful. It's going to be wonderful.
[00:45:16] With that in mind, we're going to transition and consider the sacrifice of Jesus in communion.
[00:45:23] Jesus, who endured something more challenging than we could even imagine.
[00:45:31] He says, I did that because I find God finds. Let this sit with you for a moment. God finds great joy in being in relationship with you. Did you know that?
[00:45:42] He finds great joy in that. He doesn't look at us and say, oh, wow, I regret that.
[00:45:51] But he looks at us and says, I find joy in being in relationship with him, and I want them to find great joy in being in relationship with me. But he knew, as you and I do today, that there's this problem of sin. That divides us.
[00:46:09] And so for many years, there was animal sacrifice after sacrifice because God said that in order for them to be cleansed, in order for them to experience joy, remember the Garden of Eden as they're walking and enjoying life with God, There was no sin. But then sin happened.
[00:46:24] Says the only way for them to experience joy again with me, relationship again with me is if there is shedding of blood.
[00:46:33] Life, life must be taken. And so for many years, the blood of, as it says in Hebrews 9, the blood of bulls and goats and there was sprinkled on the people, but it was good enough to purify their flesh for a time.
[00:46:51] How much more will the blood of Christ, who, through the eternal spirit of God offered for us, will purify our conscience so that we can serve a living God? Animals can do it for a little while. Jesus could do it forever. Amen. Ushers, if you're preparing for communion, you can get ready.
[00:47:10] If you've never trusted in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, here's what he promises. My sacrifice is enough.
[00:47:18] I went through hardship so that you could experience joy.
[00:47:23] I want you to experience joy. But if you're holding out, if you're sitting over there in the distance, sitting, I think I'm gonna trek up this mountain by myself. I'm gonna do my life by myself. I think I'm strong enough. You can't.
[00:47:36] And he says it's gonna be hard. Come, follow me. Take up your cross. Follow me. It's gonna be hard. But I can promise you something. There is joy that you can experience that you'll never be able to experience apart from me. Listen to Hebrews chapter 10.
[00:47:51] And then we'll distribute the elements in just a moment. Listen to what it says.
[00:47:55] For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin. Therefore, brothers, that's you and I, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, that is, to approach the presence of God by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain that is his flesh, that is his body, was broken, was torn for us.
[00:48:19] Let us draw near with a true heart full of assurance. Here's what we're called to do. Here is check your hearts right now as the elements are passed, even right now as I'm speaking. Ask the Lord. Is my heart right with you?
[00:48:34] Is my heart right with you? Have I confessed what I need to confess? Have I even trusted in you as my Savior? Here's what goes on in verse 22, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience. That's who we were before Christ. And our bodies washed pure with pure water. Let us hold. Here's the instruction. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering. For he who promised is faithful. Here's the instruction. Friends, no matter what you've done, Jesus says he's faithful and he can cleanse you of whatever sin, whatever problems it is.
[00:49:10] Sit with that joy. Isn't that joyful? Isn't that wonderful? No matter what it is, no matter what hardship, no matter what mistakes, no matter what sin, he says, I have covered you so that you can experience joy. That shame that you're sitting with, I've taken it to the cross. I've taken it and I died. So let it die with me. Let it die with me.
[00:49:35] I'm gonna distribute the elements. After I do, I would encourage you. As the plates passed, I want to encourage you to be thinking through Jesus. Am I right with you?
[00:49:47] Am I rejoicing knowing that I am right with you after I've confessed that? Am I right with other people?
[00:49:55] Because you died for my brothers and sisters as well.
[00:50:19] In your hands you have a wafer representing the bread.
[00:50:24] Remember that as we were talking earlier, Jesus having the last supper. There.
[00:50:30] This represents the body of Jesus that was broken for us.
[00:50:35] If you've never trusted in Jesus, maybe you haven't even. You didn't even take these as they were passing by. Maybe you did. But if you haven't trusted in Jesus, just leave these next to you. This is for those who have trusted in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. And by us taking and eating and drinking together, what we're saying is this.
[00:50:54] I have applied the work of Jesus.
[00:50:57] Jesus has applied it to me because of my faith, because of his grace.
[00:51:02] First Corinthians says this for I received from the Lord. This is Paul speaking, out of which I delivered to you. That is. This is important. This is from God calling us to do this. The Lord Jesus, in the night that he was betrayed, we just were speaking about this. When he had given thanks, he broke the bread, saying, this is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me. Let's eat together.
[00:51:32] Isaiah 53 says out of verse 11, says, out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. Here's what that's saying.
[00:51:50] Out of the anguish of Jesus, he shed blood so that you and I could experience righteousness not by your blood, but by Christ's First Corinthians. Continues in the same way, he took the cup after supper, saying, this cup is the new covenant in my blood. No longer are you needing to sacrifice animals any longer. Now the promise is between me and you. Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread which we just did and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death with joy. Until he comes. Let's drink together.
[00:52:31] Lord Jesus, we are grateful today that you have stepped into our world to offer a sacrifice that we could not do ourselves.
[00:52:41] Everything that we could do of our own efforts was always insufficient, was never enough to get us in a right relationship with you. But you, because of the great love with which you loved us, offered yourself as a sacrifice, humbled yourself, became a servant. Death, even death on a cross, so that we could again be reconciled to you. And so here we are, Lord, today, your people, redeemed by you, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.
[00:53:14] And we look to you this morning, seeking you for joy, for peace, for direction, even in the midst of hardship. We look to you knowing that it is in you alone that we can find true joy. In Jesus name, amen.
