RESOURCES FOR A TESTED FAITH

JOHN 16:25-33

MAY 19, 1996

 

Life is full of tests.  Tests can come in a multitude of shapes and sizes, but all have the effect of squeezing us to reveal the reality and strength of our faith.

 

For many years, I have enjoyed reading biographies of Christian men and women from all sorts of backgrounds.  I can say, without exception, all of these brothers and sisters have walked through test after test and trial after trial.  When you think of the spiritual giants like Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, and in our own century, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, all of them faced tests and trials of seemingly mammoth proportions.  Yet, the reality of their faith in Christ showed through clearly as they rested in the divine resources for such times.

 

At times we imagine that we are much further along in our faith than is actually true of us.  Tests help to bring us back to reality and to balance in our walks with Christ.  Tests keep us dependent upon the Lord.  The disciples were at this point in their own relationship to Christ.  After Jesus had spoken the first words of our text, the disciples responded as if they really grasped all He was saying.  They professed their belief in Christ as coming from God.  But we see our Lord questioning the depth and stability of their faith in verse 31, "Do you now believe?"  He then points out to them that their faith was not as strong as they thought because all of them would forsake Christ at the point of His passion.  Yet, none of them would ultimately bail out, for the Lord had given the resources for facing the trials of life.  It seems that just when we think our faith is solid, strong, and unbending, we face tests and trials which expose the fault lines, weaknesses, and immaturities.  But we need not despair, for even such times of trials can be launching pads for greater growth in Christ.

 

Our Lord has given us plenty of resources for facing the tests of life.  It is important that we understand these resources and apply them in our daily lives.  What are these resources?

 

I believe our text offers at least eight key resources for the Christian's life, resources that are meant to be applied and enjoyed day by day.  But to understand them, we must get a feel for the context in which our Lord gave them to the disciples.

 

There were two very important realities which the disciples would be facing.  First, Christ was going to depart from this world so that they would no longer behold His face.  We see Christ preparing them for His death, resurrection, and ascension throughout John 13-16.  How would they live without having Jesus walking hand-in-hand with them?  These verses give the answer.  

 

Second, Jesus assures the disciples that "in the world you have tribulation."  There were two spheres in which they lived and in which we live.  We are in Christ or as our text says, "In Me."  This union with Christ is our strength, our life, our everything!  But the other sphere in which we live is "in the world."  Jesus said that in the world we would all have tribulation.  Now we must understand what this means, for if we are to grasp the resources given for believers in tests and trials, we must know what these tribulations are.

 

The world is the sphere of tribulations.  We live in a fallen world, one that is affected by the sinfulness of mankind.  Tribulation implies "pressure, being squeezed, pressure to the breaking point."  It is a word that was used of the squeezing of grapes in a grape vat.  You are squeezed so that what is on the inside comes out.  Tribulations can transpire due to your faith in Christ.  It may be that since you are a Christian you face some kind of persecution or opposition.  But tribulations also occur in all the other realms of life since we are living in a fallen world.  These may be physical, social, financial, emotional, relational.  All of these areas of life are affected by the Fall, so that being in the world necessitates that we will face tribulation.

 

Now if this is true, then how do we deal with it?  This is where our text offers us some solid truth in which we can anchor our lives.

 

1.  Holy Spirit revelation  v. 25

 

The word that Jesus uses for "figurative language" is similar to the idea of "parable" that is so prevalent in the Gospels.  Essentially, it means that He has used figures of speech and word pictures rather than forthright language.  This caused the hearers to think about what Jesus said, but often not understand it.  The gospel of Christ was a mystery to those who heard it until the truth of it was revealed.

 

There is the promise of a time when His words will no longer by mysterious.  The "hour coming" refers to the time after Jesus had completed His atoning work and the Holy Spirit would come.  We know this because of the next verse in which Jesus uses the phrase, "In that day."  We noticed in 14:20 and 16:23 that these are definite references to the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost.  So, what He refers to in verse 25 distinctly points to the work of the Spirit.  We have already seen how Jesus promised that it was advantageous for the Spirit to come, for He would reveal all truth to the disciples.  

 

There is a sense in which all of the resources for facing the trials of life have already been dealt with in John's Gospel, but here they are put together in succinct fashion.  This is especially true about the work of the Spirit.  John 14-16 is the lengthiest portion in Scripture dealing with the Holy Spirit.  (Consider especially John 14:25-27; John 16:12-16, which details this particular truth.)

 

Why is it so important in relationship to trials and tests of life that we understand this revealing work of the Holy Spirit?  You will notice that Jesus refers to telling the disciples "plainly of the Father."  The word used for "plainly" is very strong.  It means something that is clear, something that comes across boldly; it is the kind of speech "that conceals nothing and passes over nothing" (BAG Lexicon, 635).  We derive our direction for facing the trials of life through the clear understanding of the truths of Scripture.  We face tests and tribulations with confidence when we know that we are standing upon sound doctrine.

 

For instance, one of the surest trials of life comes at the hand of the demonic powers which assault believers.  Ephesians 6 clearly explains this attack and how we can stand firm.  The very first thing we are told to do in terms of putting on the whole armor of God is to "Stand therefore, having girded your loins about with truth."  This "truth" refers to doctrinal truth.  It is anchoring your life in the doctrines or teachings of Scripture that give you assurance of forgiveness or assurance of redemption or assurance of the rule of Christ over your life.  How do you know these doctrinal truths?  By the revealing work of the Holy Spirit!

 

My brethren, when those trials come your way, go to the Word of God.  Call upon the Divine Author of Scripture to speak the Word to your mind and heart.  Ask Him to breath the truths of Scripture into your struggling soul.  Let me give you an idea of how this works in our lives.

 

In 1956, five missionaries in Ecuador were slain while trying to carry the gospel to the primitive Auca Indians.  Their names became synonymous with the price that is paid to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth:  Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Pete Fleming, and Roger Youderian.  After receiving no word from the missionaries for some time, a search party launched out into the jungle to find them.  After several heart-wrenching days, word came back that the men had been brutally murdered.  Barbara Youderian, Roger's wife, wrote these words in her diary that January night.

Tonight the Captain told us of his finding four bodies in the river.  One had tee-shirt and blue-jeans.  Roj was the only one who wore them....God gave me this verse two days ago, Psalm 48:14, "For this God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our Guide even unto death."  As I came face to face with the news of Roj's death, my heart was filled with praise.  He was worthy of his homegoing.  Help me, Lord, to be both mummy and daddy [Let the Nations be Glad, John Piper, 92, quoted from E. Elliot, Through Gates of Splendor].


It was the sweetness of the Word, driven home to her heart by the Holy Spirit, that gave Barbara Youderian the strength to face the greatest trial of her life.  The Spirit of God "plainly" speaks the Word of God to our troubled and needy hearts that we might walk through whatever trial we face.

 

2.  Confident prayer  v. 26

 

The idea of asking of the Father in Jesus' Name was new to the disciples.  They were accustomed to Jesus asking on their behalf.  But now, and what a glorious truth this is, the disciples are told to ask in the name of Jesus!  John 16:23-24, "Truly, truly, I say to you, if you shall ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My name.  Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask [present imperative verb], and you will receive, that your joy may be made full."  And in our text we read, "In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will request the Father on your behalf."  Jesus was not suggesting that He would snub them!  He was stating a marvelous truth that they needed to understand:  those who have come to God through Christ can approach God's throne freely and boldly to make request for their needs.

 

Keep in mind the context once again.  Jesus is preparing the disciples for His ascension to heaven and for the tribulations of life.  He is letting them know that they can face such times through confident prayer in Jesus' Name.

 

As we saw when studying 16:23-24, praying in Jesus' Name is not a formula to use as if it gave us the 'magic words' to use in prayer.  Instead, it means to pray in the authority of Christ, to pray on the basis of the finished work of Christ, to pray with the consciousness that Jesus Christ has opened the way to the Father through His atoning work.  It is our praying in accordance to those things that are pleasing to our Lord.  This is not a helter-skelter kind of praying, where you view prayer as a department store catalogue ordering service.  It is a thoughtful, passionate seeking to ask for those things that will glorify Christ, that will glorify His Kingdom, that will enable you as an active citizen of the Kingdom to carry out Kingdom-work.

 

We need not wait for some trial before we pray!  As a matter of fact, if that is the only time we really pray, then we just don't have much of a prayer life.  I like the statement John Piper made in his book, Let the Nations be Glad!  "Prayer puts God in the place of the all-sufficient Benefactor and puts us in the place of the needy beneficiaries" (p. 56).  Prayer is a constant reminder that every day is the Lord's day, every day is to be lived in absolute dependence upon our Lord and His provisions.  Prayer is the means that God uses to provide for us in the heat of the spiritual battles we face.  We must not see prayer as only an emergency tool.  It must be the practice of our lives each day.  As long as we are in this world, we will face tribulations.  Prayer must accompany us; not just a mindless mumbling as a religious, feel-good exercise, but hearty, passionate prayer in Jesus' Name must be the daily delight and discipline of our lives.

 

I would remind you that prayer is hard work.  It requires time to develop and nurture.  Let me encourage you to set aside time each day in which you seek the Lord.  Use the pattern of the model prayer in Matthew 6 as a guideline.  Let your prayers arise day after day and see that the Lord provides in Jesus' Name!

 

3.  The Father's love  v. 27a

 

Jesus continues to intercede for the saints, according to Hebrews 7:25.  This does not replace our praying, but only encourages us to follow in the pattern of our Lord.  Because He has mediated for us and continues to intercede for us, we can pray with confidence.  But there is another wonderful comfort and truth that our Lord sought to drive home to these struggling disciples.  "The Father Himself loves you."  

 

I remind you that the Father's love precedes any love we have for Him.  "We love because He first loved us," John writes in his first epistle (cf. I John 4:19; 4:10).  Though there are numerous references to God's love for His people in the Old Testament, there are only scant references to the personal title of "Father" and His Fatherly love for His redeemed.  So, what Christ told the disciples stunned them.  This verse calls to mind the greatness of the Father's love for us.  It is not a meritorious love or else it would be something which we justly deserve, which is the opposite of the kind of love which comes from God.  

 

Consider this:  when you are going through a trial or a time of tribulation, God's love for you has not diminished in the least measure.  He sent His Son to suffer for you, so is it any surprise that we who are the recipients of the sacrificial work of Christ are called to suffer too?  The Father shapes us and refashions us during such times.  His love is so strong that Paul assures us in Romans 8:28 that in those times of tribulation in this world, the Father will work even those things for our eternal good and His great glory.

 

The disciples knew that the Father loved the Lord Jesus.  Not only had Jesus told them of this, but they could sense it by being around Christ.  Now Jesus passes along this same kind of confidence, this same deep assurance of Fatherly love.  When you consider that we were enemies of God, but now we are loved by Him as our Father, there is an overwhelming sense of relief!  

 

When someone loves you, that person has a deep affection for you personally and is continually seeking to give to you in order to meet the deepest needs of your life.  When that person is the Father, then His love is of infinite proportions, unmeasured in depth and intensity.  His love continually seeks us.  He does not sit back, waiting for something lovable in us to transpire before giving His love.  He pursues us in His white-hot love!  He gives to us out of the superabundance of His grace and the marvels of His mercies.  He pours out His blessings upon us, even when we cannot see those blessings with our eyes.  (Paul's understanding of this truth can be seen in his prayer for the Ephesian believers--Eph. 3:14-19).

 

Part of the distortion of the love of God in our own century has come at the hands of those who would make you think that the only tangible way God can show love to us is by giving us material things.  Yet, that is such a minor thing in the matter of love.  Sometime the most loving thing we can do for our own children is withholding material things for their good.  Love is seen clearly in the sacrifices a person makes toward another.  Just look at the cross, gaze upon it, think upon its purpose, look at its demands--then rest in the reality of the Father's love for you!  There's security right in the midst of tribulations when you know the reality of the Father's love for you.

 

4.  A settled faith  v. 27b

 

Our love and faith in Christ originates in the love of the Father for us.  The evidence of that great love is seen in our own love and trust in the Son.  Here Jesus gives the assurance of a settled faith in that of His disciples.  "For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from the Father."

 

The verbs used to describe the action of the disciples' love and faith are both perfect tense verbs.  This means that their love for Christ was not fickle or fly-by-night.  They were not like an annual flower that blooms brightly in the summer, then fades forever in the fall.  Their love was permanent.  It was a settled attitude of life for them.  Their faith likewise was not like that of so many that we have seen throughout John's Gospel, who are only temporary in their belief in Christ.  As the hymn writer put it,

 

My faith has found a resting place,

not in device or creed;

I trust the ever living One,

His blood availed for me.

I need no other argument,

I need no other plea;

It is enough that Jesus died,

and that He died for me.

 

We must not take for granted that every professing believer is settled at this point!  So many have faith in themselves or faith in their merit or faith in their religious exercises or faith in faith, without a faith in Christ and His finished work.  When tribulations come, it is not the false faith that gives peace, but the settled faith that keeps your anchor holding through the storm.

 

One book that I have recommended quite often is George Whitefield's Journals.  The Journals chronicle the early ministry of this 18th century preacher of God's Word, as he preached in the British Isles and in the American colonies.  Whitefield knew what it was to go through tribulations.  On one crossing of the Atlantic, the storms raged on for so long that it appeared that the broken ship would never make it back to England.  On plenty of occasions, articles were published against Whitefield in areas where he was preaching.  He was denied pulpits, so he preached in the open fields.  Hecklers would shout at him, beat on tubs, throw things at him while he preached to crowds of thousands.  Physically, he suffered from times of deprivation so that he was easily sick from the strains of his travels.  Preachers would stand in their pulpits, even with Whitefield present, and denounce him and spread scandalous lies about him.  Yet, through it all, he had a place of refuge.  He would go back to the reality of his settled faith in Christ.  Though all the world opposed him, he knew that the saving work of Christ in his life would take him through the whole of life and into eternity.  One excerpt from that horrible crossing of the Atlantic shows how he found refuge in the Lord:  

The mainsail was slit in several pieces, and several of the other sails, and much of the tackling all to tatters.  Not a dry place was to be found in all the ship....In short, all was terror and confusion, men's hearts failing them for fear, and the wind and the sea raging horribly.  But God (for ever be adored His unmerited goodness) was exceeding gracious unto me.  I felt a sweet complacency in my will, in submission to His.  Many particular promises God has made me from His Word, that I should return in peace, flowed in upon my heart; and He enabled me greatly to rejoice....O Lord, let Thy strength be magnified in my weakness, say unto my soul, "It is I, be not afraid," and then let storms and tempests do their worst.  [p. 168]


Do you know the rest of a settled faith in Christ?  Some keep trying desperately to find rest from the tribulations of the world in their many activities and good deeds.  But their hearts do not give them peace, try as they will, it is to no avail.  My friend, it is only when your trust has settled in upon Christ alone, and His sufficient work on the cross as the atonement for your sins, that you can have the confidence to keep going on in your tribulations.

 

5.  Finished work of Christ  v. 28

 

Throughout John's Gospel, we find our Lord using the phrase or something like it,  "I came forth from the Father, and have come into the world; I am leaving the world again, and going to the Father."  This is really the whole work of Christ in a nutshell.  I came forth from the Father points to the Incarnation, that God has come to man as a Redeemer.  What comfort there is for us as we look at our tribulations and realize that the Almighty Himself has come to us to deliver us from this sinful world!

 

The next phrase is not redundant, but emphasizes that the work Jesus began continues on today.  "And have come into the world," contains a perfect tense verb, which is rather odd at this point.  Yet, it shows that what Jesus began He finished.  The presence of Christ lingers in this world.  The evidence of His work continues as you look at the multitude of believers around the globe.  

 

I had the opportunity to speak to several combined classes at the elementary school behind our church this week.  They asked me to tell about my trip to France and show slides of it.  When I had finished I spoke with one of the teachers and an administrator about the country of France.  The administrator is getting ready to travel to France this summer for the first time and made the comment, 'I heard that the French people are arrogant'.  I responded that the typical Frenchman is indeed arrogant, but that those who are Christians are distinctly different.  I then quoted a portion of II Corinthians 5:17 and pointed out that 'the Scripture is really true, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creature.  Those French people who have come to know Christ are distinctly different from the rest of the country'.  That, my brethren, is Christ remaining in this world!  His Person and work can be mightily evident in the redeemed!

 

The phrase, "I am leaving the world again," points to the work of the cross and resurrection.  This was a victorious statement, for our Lord knew that He would accomplish the purpose for which He came, which was to satisfy God's justice for sinners so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (II Cor. 5:21).  We cannot properly think of Christ without considering the cross and resurrection.  Paul sought to know nothing among the Corinthians except Jesus Christ and Him crucified (I Cor. 2:2).  To the Galatians he wrote, "But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ..."(Gal. 6:14).

 

Jesus ascended with His work finished.  He stated that He was "going to the Father."  He ascends as King of kings and Lord of lords, seated at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us as our Great High Priest!  He reigns forever as Lord of all!  The fact that He was "going to the Father" meant, Mission Accomplished!  There is nothing more that can be added to our salvation.  You cannot in any respect add to the work of Christ.  You cannot atone for your sins by worthwhile activity.  It is finished!  

 

Now, think through on all of this truth!  Think of how Christ has come to redeem you and that He finished His work so that you might dwell with Him for eternity in the righteousness of God.  Can your tribulations in life still 'hold a candle' to the glorious truth that Christ has finished the work and that you are one of His redeemed?

 

I am thoroughly convinced that one of the reasons that so many Christians stay in the doldrums most of the time is that they do not understand these glorious doctrines which I've just briefly mentioned.  This is why I try to stress over and over for us to know doctrine.  If we do not know doctrine, then we do not profit from the richness of it.  I know quite a few people who naturally have a tendency to crumble under the weight of their tribulations.  But once they began to understand these wonderful truths in the Word, they found new courage and new strength to keep pressing on!  They still face tribulations as do all of us.  But they have shifted the focus of their minds upon the finished work of Christ instead of the transitory nature of tribulations.  There is great consolation and delight, even in the midst of trials, in understanding what Christ Himself has done for you.

 

6.  Abiding Presence  v. 32

 

The conversation between Christ and the disciples continues in verses 29-31.  They point out their belief in Him, though I would hasten to add that their understanding of Christ at this point is quite limited.  They begin to think that they have progressed a little further along than is true of them.  So, Jesus asks a pointed question, "Do you now believe?"  Though they believed, their belief was defective at numerous points.  They did not understand the nature of our Lord's suffering.  They had good intentions, but weak belief.

 

Christ then sets the example for them.  He points out that the hour of trial was coming upon them in which they would all be scattered and they would even forsake Christ.  The phrase, "leave Me alone," is actually much stronger and better translated, "forsake Me."  This was a time of falling; not ultimately, but for the present trial of the arrest of Christ in the Garden.  Jesus would be alone.  Yet, He would not be totally alone!  While the disciples would all scatter and forsake Him in this hour of trial, the Father would be with Christ.

 

We must learn something from our Lord at this point.  Those times come in which we may be found alone in the trials of life.  We may be forsaken by friends or we may be in some situation where no other believer happens to be present.  My friend, you are not alone!  "And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me."  Do you think that Jesus would rather have had all eleven of the disciples with Him or the Father?  The guess is easy:  the Father.  He alone knows how to comfort us in the depth of our need.  He alone is not affected by any of the pain or pressures of trials in life.  He alone has the wisdom in every case to handle life's tribulations.

 

I just read this week about the great missionary from England, Henry Martyn, who joined William Carey in his work in India.  Martyn was from an affluent family and achieved great marks academically, so that he had a career ahead of him in the academic community.  But the Lord called him out to the work of missions.  In 1806, he arrived in Calcutta, India and found William Carey.  He labored arduously in the work of translation, so that within just two years he had accomplished major work in providing Scriptures and Christian literature in the language of Hindostanee.  While translating the New Testament into Persian his health broke down and he decided to return to England for a time of recovery.

 

Martyn had left England alone.  He was planning on marrying Lydia Grenfell, but felt that he needed to get established first then send for her.  His plans were crushed as Lydia's mother objected to her going to India.  The two of them continued corresponding for the years he was in India, waiting 15 months in between letters.  His love for her never dimmed and he longed for the day that they would be joined in marriage.

 

Five years after arriving in India, Martyn made his way back toward England, but he never made it.  He was so sick that it was difficult for him to continue.  At the age of 31, among strangers in the city of Tocat in Asiatic Turkey, Henry Martyn died alone.  Yet, he was not alone!  Just a few months before his death he wrote to his beloved Lydia these words:

...Shall I pain your heart by adding, that I am in such a state of sickness and pain, that I can hardly write to you?  Let me rather observe, to obviate the gloomy apprehension my letters to Mr. Grant and Mr. Simeon may excite, that I am likely soon to be delivered from my fever.  Whether I shall gain strength enough to go on, rests on our Heavenly Father, in whose hands are all my times.  Oh, his precious grace!  His eternal, unchanging love in Christ to my soul, never appeared more clear, more sweet, more strong.  [The Life and Letters of Henry Martyn by John Sargent, 460, also biographical summary in Piper, Let the Nations be Glad, 71-74]


Whatever the trial, the Father's presence abiding with you as His child is stronger.  Rest in His great presence!

 

7.  Real peace  v. 33a

 

Jesus demonstrates that He had not given up on the disciples, nor would they ultimately fail.  "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace."  The question is, 'What are the "these things" which our Lord mentions?'  I think when you consider the context, it is the whole of what He had spoken in the Upper Room Discourse, John 13-16.  Time would fail us to recap all of this, but let us consider just a few things.

 

Christ had spoken to the disciples of the great promise of eternal dwellings prepared for believers in heaven.  That gives peace in the midst of the temporal trials of life.

 

He told the disciples that if they had seen Him they had seen the Father.  He then assures them that the Father would be glorified in them by the works of greater magnitude which they would accomplish for His glory.  There is comfort in knowing this.

 

Then He begins to unfold for the disciples the promise of the Holy Spirit coming to indwell them permanently, to teach them all truths which they needed to know, to assure them of their salvation, to comfort them in trials, to glorify Christ in them, to do the convicting work necessary to bring sinners to salvation.  That assurance gave them great peace.

 

Then the section on the Vine and the branches comes in John 15.  What a marvelous truth that is in seeing the constant wonder of the abiding life of Christ and our relationship to Him.  In Him we have fruitfulness, joy, love, and prove to be His disciples as we obey Him.  That brings peace.

 

The assurance that they are chosen in Christ and by Christ--the truth of the unconditional electing grace of God--brings great peace and assurance to them and to us.

 

We can go on, but I think you get the point.  Real peace comes through knowing Christ and enjoying the delights of our relationship to Him.  The text emphasizes that peace is "in Me," i.e., in Christ.  Paul picks up this same theme in so many of his epistles where over and over he uses that phrase, 'in Christ' or 'in Him'.  It is the strength of our relationship to Jesus Christ that gives us peace in the midst of life's storms.

 

Peace is something that is positive in New Testament thought.  It is not the absence of trouble or trials or even hostility.  It is the tranquility of heart and soul in the midst of these things that is peace.  Leon Morris paints a good picture of what peace is by telling of a painting which he saw.

 

I have read of an artist who wanted to paint a picture of peace.  He chose, of all things, a storm beating against a rocky coast and depicted the waves, mountains high, crashing against the mighty rocks.  He put a shipwreck in his picture, with a great ship driven up against the rocks and in the process of breaking up.  In the water nearby there is the body of a drowned sailor.  He has made it obvious that there is a wild storm beating against the coast and that this storm means danger and even death to people caught up in it.  But in the foreground he has a mighty rock with a crack in it, and in the crack a dove has built her nest and is sitting on it, secure.  Underneath the artist has written the one word: "Peace."

 

It is the positive blessings of God given to us right in the midst of the storms of life that is peace.  It is knowing that He is our 'hiding place', our 'rock of refuge', our 'shelter in times of storm' that explains this mysterious thing of peace.  Look to the Lord who alone can give peace in the storms.

 

8.  Strong assurance  v. 33b

 

The final words of our text ring with a sense of assurance.  "In the world you have tribulation," that is one thing we are assured of!  But the text continues with a second assurance, "but take courage; I have overcome the world."  

 

When we begin to think of the power of suffering and sin in this world it can overwhelm us.  To imagine that the world will deliver adversity of all sorts at our doorstep can cause us to shudder.  But the promise of Christ comforts us in the face of the world.  He has overcome the world!

 

In the sphere of the world we will face constant tribulation.  But we also, as Christians, live in the sphere of relationship to Jesus Christ.  In Him, we participate in His victory over the world.  We rest in His conquering power.  Nothing the world can throw at us can ultimately defeat those who belong to Jesus Christ.  Think on this!  Nothing...no power, no force, no news, no nation, no law, no oppression, no sickness, no pain, no criticism, no persecution...nothing can ultimately defeat those who are in union with the conquering Lord!

 

The word our Lord uses is another one of those perfect tense verbs.  It means that His victory is abiding or lasting.  No situation we face reverses the conquering power of Christ.  Does that mean we will not suffer or be afflicted?  Oh no, not at all.  But it does mean that in Christ, regardless of what we face in life, we are 'more than conquerors through Him who loves us'.

 

Charles Haddon Spurgeon knew about the adversities of life.  Though he was the most famous preacher of his day, he also suffered as few have suffered.  He faced opposition from his fellow pastors, even being censured by his beloved Baptist Union.  He watched as the world heckled and made fun of him.  His wife even kept a thick scrapbook of articles written against him. He had several physical illnesses that caused him unbearable pain.  He faced depression which probably arose from the stress of life he was under.  Yet, in all of it, Spurgeon found refuge in the victory of Christ.  A couple of years before his death, he addressed a group of pastors, exhorting them to go on in adversity.  Here are his words to them.

You never met an old salt, down by the sea, who was in trouble because the tide had been ebbing out for hours.  No!  He waits confidently for the turn of the tide, and it comes in due time.  Yonder rock has been uncovered during the last half-hour, and if the sea continues to ebb out for weeks, there will be no water in the English Channel, and the French will walk over from Cherbourg.  Nobody talks in that childish way, for such an ebb will never come.  Nor will we speak as though the gospel would be routed, and eternal truth driven out of the land.  We serve an almighty Master....If our Lord does but stamp His foot, He can win for Himself all the nations of the earth against heathenism, and Mohammedanism, and Agnosticism, and Modern-thought, and every other foul error.  Who is he that can harm us if we follow Jesus?  How can His cause be defeated?  At His will, converts will flock to His truth as numerous as the sands of the sea....Wherefore be of good courage, and go on your way singing [and preaching!]:

The winds of hell have blown

The world its hate hath shown,

Yet it is not o'erthrown.

Hallelujah for the Cross!

It shall never suffer loss!



The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge [Founders Journal, Winter 96, p. 21, article by John Piper, Charles Spurgeon: Preaching through Adversity]


Conclusion

 

Rest in the strong assurance that Jesus Christ has conquered on our behalf!  Yes, we will face tribulations in this world, that is a promise.  But God has given us the resources to face it.

 

Let's use these God-given, grace-endowed resources to live by each day.  The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge!

Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. For web posting, a link to this document on our website is preferred. Any exceptions to the above must be explicitly approved by South Woods Baptist Church.

Please include the following statement on any distributed copy:

Copyright South Woods Baptist Church. Website: www.southwoodsbc.org. Used by permission as granted on web site. Questions, comments, and suggestions about our site can be sent here.