“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33 NLT

I wonder if the disciples gave each other the side eye when Jesus told them that here on earth they would have many trials and sorrows. Did they think of the families and jobs they had left to follow Jesus? Did they think of their friend John the Baptist who had been beheaded for his faith? Did they remember the faces of every sick or bleeding or demon-possessed person who had come to Jesus over the last three years seeking healing?

Surely the disciples were as keenly aware of the trials and sorrows of this world as you and I are today. They may not have known words like cancer, coronavirus, terrorism, or depression, but they saw corruption in the temple courts, watched parents grieve the death of children, and knew that some people would rather murder the promised Messiah than surrender their grasp on power. And they probably sensed that things were going to get worse before they got better. Have you had that sinking feeling too?

On the last night before He was crucified, Jesus lingered around a table with His closest friends and poured out His heart. Though they had logged countless hours and miles doing life and ministry side by side, Jesus used this night, known as the Last Supper, to make sure they knew the most important things.

Jesus’s farewell teaching is recorded in John 13–16. His final instructions fall under three main themes:

• Love one another (13:34–35; 15:17).
• If you love God, obey Him and remain in Him to bear fruit (14:15; 15:5–10).
• God will send the Spirit to guide you (14:26; 16:7–14).

It’s at the end of this rich, mind-bending, life-changing, revolutionary teaching that Jesus says, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NLT).

I’m not going to lie. I’d prefer it if Jesus would have said, “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace — because if you simply follow my instructions, life will be fun and easy and pain-free. Hooray!” Please tell me I’m not the only one. I would have liked to save my younger self (and my current self ) from the heartbreak and uncertainty and fear that come from living in a fallen and broken world.

But even as I write this, I know my thinking is flawed. If life was absent of trouble, or if peace and perfection were within our reach, we wouldn’t need a Savior. Jesus didn’t come to teach us how to control life and avoid pain. He came to overcome the world and give us His peace.

The peace of Jesus comes in His fierce with-ness. Do you know what I mean by that? No matter what happens, no matter what storm rages, or what circumstances rock your world, Jesus will be right there with you. Even as Jesus prepared His disciples for His departure, He assured them of His steadfast commitment. “I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you” (John 14:18).

Take a moment and think of a challenging situation or trial. Maybe it’s an issue at work, a conflict with a close friend, or an inner struggle you have never even named. Hold it in your mind. Feel the tension it causes in your body. Let the mental and emotional weight you carry transfer to your physical body. Now add Jesus to your picture. Right in the middle of that family crisis or worrisome visit to the doctor, imagine Jesus is sitting beside you. No matter what happens next, He’s not leaving.

Take a deep breath. Inhale the gift of His presence.

This is the peace of Jesus. Not that your circumstances will instantly change or that the road ahead will be free of painful potholes and disheartening detours, but that God the Son in the person of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit whom He sent go with you.

By Becky Keife from our (in)courage Bible Study, Create in Me a Heart of Peace

 

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