Sermon: John 16:16-33: From Sorrow and Fear to Joy and Courage

Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 66:1-14

“Thus says the Lord: ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word. He who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man; he who sacrifices a lamb, like one who breaks a dog’s neck; he who presents a grain offering, like one who offers pig’s blood; he who makes a memorial offering of frankincense, like one who blesses an idol. These have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations; I also will choose harsh treatment for them and bring their fears upon them, because when I called, no one answered, when I spoke, they did not listen; but they did what was evil in my eyes and chose that in which I did not delight.’ Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble at his word: ‘Your brothers who hate you and cast you out for my name’s sake have said, ‘Let the Lord be glorified, that we may see your joy’; but it is they who shall be put to shame. ‘The sound of an uproar from the city! A sound from the temple! The sound of the Lord, rendering recompense to his enemies! Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son. Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment? For as soon as Zion was in labor she brought forth her children. Shall I bring to the point of birth and not cause to bring forth?’ says the Lord; ‘shall I, who cause to bring forth, shut the womb?’ says your God. ‘Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her; that you may nurse and be satisfied from her consoling breast; that you may drink deeply with delight from her glorious abundance.’ For thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream; and you shall nurse, you shall be carried upon her hip, and bounced upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice; your bones shall flourish like the grass; and the hand of the Lord shall be known to his servants, and he shall show his indignation against his enemies.” (Isaiah 66:1–14, ESV)

New Testament Reading: John 16:16-33

“‘A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will 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, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?’ So they were saying, ‘What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.’ Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, ‘Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, 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, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.’ His disciples said, ‘Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.’” (John 16:16–33, ESV)

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” (Isaiah 40:8, ESV)

Introduction

As we read the scriptures I think it is important to try our best to identify with the people originally involved. I’m thinking of the author and the original audience, or the characters in a particular narrative. In John 16 it is important that we identify with Christ and his disciples. We should, if we hope to understand the meaning of a particular passage, put ourselves there to the best of our ability.

Context matters. In fact, context matters in two ways: One, we are to pay attention to the literary context – how one particular passage of scripture fits into the rest of a book, and that book to the rest of scripture – that is the literary context, and we must pay attention to it. But there is also a historical context. There is a setting. Here I am thinking of the life situation of the author and his audience, or the life situation of the characters in a particular story. Context matters both in a literary and historical sense.

And so it is good for us to try, to the best of our ability, to put ourselves in the shoes of the author or audience, or the people in a particular story. Here in John 16 we should try to identify with the disciples of Christ on the night before the crucifixion. When did they live? What had their experience with Christ been like up to this point? What were their hopes and fears? What did they know, and not know? Of course we are limited in our understanding of these things, but the scriptures do give us insights. And so we should try,  to the best of our ability, to identify with these disciples of Christ.

Upon the first reading of this text it can be hard to understand why the disciples were so confused about Jesus’ teaching. To you and I the teaching might seem rather straightforward, but the disciples were utterly baffled by these words of Jesus: “‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” (John 16:17, ESV)

When you hear of their confusion are you not tempted to say, brothers, what is hard to understand about this? Clearly when Jesus says, “A little while, and you will not see me” he is referring to his death and burial! And when he says, “and again a little while, and you will see me”, he is speaking of his resurrection – he will rise from the grave and you will see him again, brothers! And clearly the words, “because I am going to the Father” refer to the ascension. Didn’t you know that Jesus would die, and rise, and then ascend to the Father? This is what we are tempted to say.

But we should remember that hindsight is indeed 20/20. You and I see this teaching as basic and clear, but only because we live after the death, resurrection, and ascension of our Lord.  The original disciples had not yet experienced these things. And for this reason the words of our Lord seemed mysterious to them. Clearly, the work that Jesus would accomplish through his death, burial and resurrection, so exceeded their expectations that they struggled to comprehend what it was that he spoke about as he predicted these things. They did not even have the proper categories to interpret what Jesus was saying to them.

And so considering the historical context – the life situation of the disciples on this dark and gloomy night – helps us to understand their confusion.

Not only should we attempt to undersigned their confusion, but also their fear and sorrow.  These brothers were confused by the words of Jesus because they lived before the cross of Christ, and before the resurrection. And they were also overrun by fear and sorrow, and for much the same reason. Why did they fear? Why were they sorrowful? Well, they were human. The future was uncertain to them. The words of Christ were rather disturbing to them.  The circumstances of life were dark and gloomy.  And as a result they were overrun by fear and given to despair.

This you can certainly identify with, I’m quite sure. You know what it is to be fearful concerning the future, and to have sorrow in the heart. You say, how do you know this, Joe? Well, for one, I am your Pastor. I have the privilege of knowing you well, and I know something about your struggles. Two, I know that you have battled with fear and sorrow due to the simple fact that you are human. We are all touched by sorrow. We’re all affected by fear. We present ourselves to others as if it were not so, but this is only posture and pretense. In reality, we know what it is to fear and to be given to despair, and so it is not hard to relate to the disciples of Christ in this regard. They were human and so are we.

We are given to fear for a number of reasons. First of all, we are frail, and we know it. We like to think of ourselves as big and strong and indestructible, but deep down we know this not to be the case. We are quite frail. Secondly, we live, not in the garden paradise of God, but in a fallen world which continually threatens us.  The truth of he matter is that there are reasons to fear. Thirdly, we fear because we do not know what the future holds. We can remember the past, and we can act in the present, but the future is a mystery to us. These things combined lead us to fear.

God does not fear, mind you. He is not frail. He is not threatened by anyone nor anything. And the future is no mystery to him. He sees the future as clearly as the past and the present. God does not fear. He is not human, but divine.

Sorrow also comes upon us for the same reasons mentioned above, but it sets in when we loose hope. A person is consumed by sorrow and despair when they begin to see and believe that the future is only dark and gloomy. There is no light – no glimmer of hope.

The disciples of Christ were beginning to give in to fear and sorrow. They were being swallowed by it. Darkness was pressing in and had begun to envelop them as they they thought  about their frailty, the threats which threatened, and the uncertainty of the future. Sorrow filled their hearts as the fear set in and hope began to flee.

Of course, I say all of this, not so that we might merely understand the disciples in order to sympathize with them, but so that we might see ourselves in them. That is the point of it all. I want you to see yourselves represented by these men. And I want for you to see that their struggles were common struggles. More than that I want for you to notice Christ’s words to them. And now that you have identified with them in their struggle, I want for you to also be encouraged by the words of Christ, just as they were.

Jesus provides a remedy to our fear and sorrow. He opens the way so that we might live with joy and peace and courage in this world.

Christ desires that his people live with joy, peace, and courage in this world. 

Notice, first of all, that Christ desires for his people live with joy, peace, and courage in this world.

In verse 20 Jesus speaks to his troubled men, saying,  “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.” (John 16:20, ESV)

In verse 22 he says it again: “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.” (John 16:22, ESV)

In verse 24 Jesus says, “Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:24, ESV)

And in verse 33 hear Jesus say, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, ESV)

It is understandable that the disciples of Christ were tempted to fear. And it is understandable, given their human frailty, that they wrestled with hopelessness and despair. But notice that Christ is not willing to leave them there. He spoke to them. He gave them his word. He revealed truth to them so that they might have joy and peace and courage in this world.

Notice three things:

One, Jesus did not say that they would have joy and peace and courage because things would go well for them in the world. Quite the opposite! “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world”, he says.

How often I have heard people say, if only my circumstances would change, then I would have joy and peace! Two things need to be said in response to this: One, you will find that “better circumstances” will not bring true joy and lasting peace. Two, why wait for joy and peace? You can have it now, brother; you can have it now, sister, if you would only learn that joy and peace come, not from favorable circumstances, but from a heart that trusts in God, and a mind that knows his truth. Joy and peace are not connected to circumstances in the way that you might think. There are some who “have it all” and yet do not have true joy and lasting peace. And there are some who “have nothing” and yet their hearts are alive –  their souls full – with the joy of the Lord. It’s not about the circumstances. It about the heart and the mind. Jesus’ words here make that abundantly clear:  “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world”

Two, notice that Jesus did not rebuke his disciples for their fear and sorrow. This is probably a pastoral, or a methodological observation more than anything. But notice how patient Jesus is with his disciples. I’m sure that after walking with them for over three years Jesus would have hoped that his disciples would have been stronger in the end. But they were not strong. They were quite weak, in fact. And yet Jesus was patient with them. He instructed and encouraged them in their weakness. And he is the same way with you and I. Were our faith in God strong, we would never fear. If our hearts and minds were fixed squarely upon God and his truth, we would never be given to despair. But our faith is not always strong. And we do not alway set our gaze squarely upon God, fixing our minds upon his truth. We are frail creatures – prone to wander and prone to leave the God we love. Our Lord is patient with us.

But notice, thirdly, that Jesus is not willing to leave us in our fear and in our sorrow. He calls us out of it.  If we are indeed children of the King then we ought to have joy. There ought to reside within the heart of Christians a deep and true and lasting happiness. And there ought to be peace too! The soul of a Christian should have a quietness to it. The Christian should walk with courage and confidence and firmness in this world – like a bold lion, and not like skittish lamb.

Brothers and sisters, I am not saying that this joy and peace and courage is an automatic thing. Far from it! It must be cultivated. But it is ours in Christ Jesus! We are to fight for joy and peace and courage. This is why Christ commands his disciples to “take heart” (16:33). It is something that they must decide to do.

Christ encourages us towards this end with the reminder that suffering will lead to life. 

But notice that Christ does not command his disciples to do something without first providing them with the resources necessary to accomplish it. He commands them to “take heart” – that we have seen – but he first of all gives them the information that they need to, in fact, take heart. This is how our God works. His commands are always based upon truth. The imperatives of scripture are based upon indicatives. It is never do this… period, or just because. But do this, because, or for, or given that. And the same is true here. The command is to take heart. The expectation is that there would be joy and peace in the heart of the believer. But notice that the reason for it is also given, and it centers upon the reality of the resurrection. The resurrection of Christ is the hinge upon which it all turns. It is the resurrection that turns sorrow into joy, and fear into courage.

Notice how Jesus encourages us towards joy and peace and courage by reminding us that suffering will indeed lead to life.

I do not mean to say that all suffering will lead to life (suffering is not redemptive, or life-producing, in and of itself). But Christ’s suffering certainly lead to life.

Remember that Jesus said “a little while, and you will see me no longer”. This was a reference to his death. It was his death that caused the world to rejoice and the disciples to weep and lament. Christ would suffer. His disciples would suffer. The world would rejoice.

But remember also Christ’s words, “again a little while, and you will see me.” When they saw him again their “sorrow [would] turn into joy.“

Notice that the resurrection is not mentioned explicitly in this passage, but it is the hidden event – it is the unstated phenomenon which changes everything. The disciples would not see him, but after the resurrection they would see him. They would be filled with sorrow because of the his suffering and death, but they would soon rejoice and have courage and peace.

What I am trying to communicate here is that the disciples of Christ would have joy and peace and courage, in the world, not simply because they would be reunited to an old friend whom they had been separated from for two days, but because their friend – through his suffering and death and resurrection – had laid ahold of life – resurrection life! This is why they would rejoice. Death was defeated when Christ rose! This is why no one would be able to take their joy from them. They, through Christ’s resurrection, had access to resurrection life and hope that transcends the grave. It is the resurrection that enables all who have faith in Christ to say, “‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:55–57, ESV)

The illustration that Jesus provides of a woman in labor is helpful, isn’t it? I’ll give it to you ladies – the whole childbirth thing is rather impressive. What’s more impressive is that you’re actually interested in going though the experience more than once! But why is that? It is because all of the pain and suffering leads to life. The suffering produces life. It’s amazing how a woman can experience agonizing labor for hours, but when the child is born, and is lain upon the chest of the mother, the memory of the pain and suffering fades away. Sorrow turns to joy because suffering has given way to life.

Jesus says, “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.” It is so important to see that this joy is not the result of a simple reunion of friends, but it is an ever abiding joy which springs from the reality of the resurrection. Christ defeated sin and death and Satan through the cross and by his resurrection from the dead. This is the reason why the disciples of Christ have joy in the world despite the trouble that we experience in it.

We have hope. We have hope in Christ. We have hope in the resurrection of Christ. Gloom and darkness, desperation and despair may press in upon us, but the hope remains. Like a beam of light cutting through the darkness, the reality of the resurrection cuts through all of the troubles of this life leading us, not to sorrow, but to peace and joy and courage in the Lord.

Suffering leads to life. It was through Christ’s suffering that life was earned. And for those who are united to him by faith, the suffering that we experience in this world is not the final word – we have hope in him which can never be taken away. Here is one reason for our joy and peace and courage.

Christ encourages us towards this end with the reminder that suffering will lead to the Father.

Also, see that Christ encourages us to have joy, peace and courage with the reminder that suffering will lead to the Father.

Again, not all suffering leads to the Father (suffering is not redemptive in and of itself). But Christ’s suffering certainty did! It was through his death and resurrection that a way to God was made. He is the door. He is the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through him. Christ’s suffering provided a way to the Father.  And also our suffering, if we are united to Christ by faith, also leads to the Father. We have access to him now, in Jesus name. And we will be with him for all eternity if we have been cleansed by Christ’s atoning blood. This certainly is a reason to have joy and peace and courage in the world.

It is this reality – our love for God, and the love of the Father for us in Christ – which lead Paul to reason in this way:

“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:31–39, ESV)

Listen to Jesus’ words:

16:23: “In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:23–24, ESV)

The meaning is this: In that day – in the age after the resurrection, which is the the age in which we live now – we will not ask Jesus for things (as the disciples did when Jesus was with them on earth), but we will the Father! We will have direct access to the Father in Christ’s name.  Jesus Christ is our mediator. We go through him to the Father.

16:25 “I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father.” (John 16:25, ESV)

Things were still mysterious to the disciples as they lived in the hours leading up to the crucifixion, and in the days before the resurrection. But after the resurrection Jesus would speak plainly about the Father. Things would become clear. I think here of the road to Emmaus passage in Luke 24 where the Jesus, after his resurrection, teaches the scriptures to his disciples, and shows how the law and prophets and Psalms point to him – and they got it! Things became clear in light of the resurrection. They could not see it before, but in the light the resurrection things became vivid.

16:26 “In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” (John 16:26–27, ESV)

Notice again that Christ is our mediator. He is the middleman between God and man. But that does not mean that we go to him, and he goes to the Father for us. Instead it means that he has opened up for us access to the Father. If you are trusting in Christ – if you have true faith in Christ – “the Father himself loves you”.

16:28: “I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”” (John 16:28, ESV)

“His disciples said, ‘Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.’” (John 16:29–33, ESV)

Conclusion 

“Take heart; I have overcome the world”, Jesus says. This is a command. The fact that it is a command tells me two things. First of all, we will probably struggle from time to time, lacking joy and peace and courage. But if we are in Christ, we are not to remain there. We are take heart. And we are to take heart by fixing our minds and hearts upon the truths of God. In Christ Jesus there is life eternal. The resurrection proves it. And in Christ Jesus – through faith in him – there is the love of God the Father. Lay ahold of it if you do not have it. Repent and believe. And if you do have it, then cling to it. “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.’”