Consoling the Heart

When a Chicago policeman started to ticked a double-parked car, a man hurried up and explained that he always double-parks when he visits his dentist. He likes to have something to worry about to keep his mind off the pain.

Sounds funny, huh? How many of us do such proverbial things when things are not going well. Worry is all around us right now, and is perhaps beginning to eat at you a little bit also. With the Corona virus still ruling the day, and the media with all its propaganda and hype is not making this entire ordeal any easier. It has been politicized to the point where everyone’s pointing the finger at our president as if all this is his doing.

Our text this morning brings us to the interlude between the last supper and Jesus’ betrayal in the Garden of Gethsemane. Judas has already been excused from the dinner with Jesus telling him, “What you are going to do, do quickly” (13:27b). The disciples are given a new commandment, to love each other as Jesus has loved them. Then He tells them for the last time of His imminent betrayal, arrest and crucifixion, and He tells Peter that before the cock crows Peter would have denied Him three times.

And so now, we come to the beginning of our text. “Let not your hearts be troubled.” (v. 1a). His disciples are beginning to grieve. They are finally understanding what must take place, and, that very soon, Jesus would be with them no more. Wow, that is a heavy blow. Up to this time the disciples had always felt secure, assured and unafraid because of Christ’s personal presence. They had witnessed the miracles, the healings, the raising of the dead; they had listened to His sermons and His teachings. “Therefore,” as Luther puts it, “the apostles went their way free of care and fear, though they were poor and insignificant people, assuming rather that the others had reason to be afraid of them. They reasoned: ‘So long as this Man lives, we have no cause for worry; for He can easily protect and save us.’” (LW, vol. 24).

So, let me ask you this question: “What exactly is worry?” Worry has been defined as “a small trickle of fear that meanders through the mind until it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained.” And boy, are these disciples worried. All their thoughts of security and safety have been dashed. Sure, they could wrap their minds around the crucifixion, but for some reason, not the resurrection. All that was going through their minds right at this moment was that Jesus was going to die and leave them behind. They would be all alone.This troubled them greatly.

Sad part about all this is they are finally accepting His departure. For the Disciples, this meant that things were going to permanently change for the disciples and for everyone after the crucifixion and resurrection. They were so used to being protected by Him. Now they would have to live by faith.

This sort of thing happens all too often. A parent dies and leaves a spouse and small children. Life will never be the same. Or, you’ve made it to retirement, you have been waiting for this all your life. So you plan a great adventure with your spouse. As time draws nearer, you have a sever heart attack, and now all those plans are dashed. God has a way of humbling the believer. Sort of reminds me of the parable of the farmer who had a bumper crop year, and says to himself, “I have no place to store all my crops, so I will tear down my barns and build larger ones.” and later that night the Lord took the farmer and all that bumper crop, he didn’t need to worry about that anymore.

Worry, to some extent is sinful. It focuses our attention on ourselves and off of God. It says that what is going on right now in your life is harder that you can bear, and you cannot see any hope of resolution. Instead of doing what the Psalmist says in Psalm 55:22, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.” Sometimes our worry can get the best of us. It can get to a point, however, when it becomes toxic to ourselves and others around us. Perhaps we can compare this with Thomas’ query regarding how to get to where the Lord is going, as he, nor the rest of the disciples could grasp such a thing.

Here is where Jesus gets straight to the point. “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (v 6). One must follow Jesus to the end, at which is death, which also brings up its own terrors and worries. I have only begun to start to think on these things, and yes, it can be frightening. What am I going to experience? How much pain is involved, both physically and emotionally? Am I faithful enough to God for Him to accept me? Do I even have faith now?

The assurance that Christ gives to His disciples is beautiful. “In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (vv 2-3). And yet, what the disciples would experience would not bring them any comfort or hope at all. When Christ had gone, after being executed so disgracefully, pitifully, and wickedly, all that consolation from Jesus just days before, had forsake them. In fear they shut themselves up and hid, nor did they venture out into the open.

This Christ that had once frightened and terrified all the counsilors and priests in Jerusalem, had now become so feeble and so deserted as to fall into the hands of His enemies, who treated Him most terribly and most shamefully put Him to death. This was no longer the Christ who raised the dead, chased the buyers and the sellers out of the temple, and performed miracles that startled everyone. Now He is as weak and despised as the most wretched and miserable man on earth. Everyone treads Him underfoot, and the lowliest spit on Him. This was a far cry from the Christ they came to know and respect.

Exactly! This was the part that rocked all Israel. Jesus came not to be served but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. (Mk. 10.46) Most everyone expected a Messiah that would redeem them from the oppression of this world. They looked for a great military leader and King like David. One who liberated Israel from the Philistines and the oppression of foreign rule and control. They looked for their utopia here on this planet, here in this life. Even the disciples fell into this commonly held notion of the Messiah.

It is no wonder why John sent his disciples to question Jesus regarding Him being the one or was there another to who was to come. Jesus’ ministry looked nothing like what everyone expected. Instead of nuking Rome off the face of the planet, Jesus loved. Instead of calling down fire from heaven to wipe out unbelieving Samaria, Jesus reached out to a community lost in its own ideas and sins. The woman may have been on her 6th relationship with a man, but Jesus doesn’t condemn her. The woman caught in adultery brought to Jesus by the religious leadership ready to stone her, instead was forgiven and charged not to sin again.

The Kingdom of God is a very interesting place, where things that are shouldn’t seem so. are. Jesus taking sinners and eating and fellowshiping with them. Instead of destroying His enemies, He laments over them and tries to lead them to the light, but they would have it not. He taught that instead of retaliation over your enemy, we should be lovingly praying for them. And the weirdest thing ever, this Messiah, this Christ, would die to redeem His people. No one saw that coming, except Jesus and the Father. On the cross, Jesus took all our worry, all our sorrow, all our doubt and all our failings on Himself, and there those sins died, right along with Jesus. Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead. On Him are no more of our sins, all those have been paid for. In His resurrection we are given God’s stamp of approval for completing the will of the Father, and now we are given permission to enter His kingdom through baptism and faith.

I am certain, as we can all be, that this didn’t look like any great revolution or having anything positive associated at all. Jesus was dead. Some great victory. But what the world doesn’ know and what you do, is that Jesus death on the cross has paid for and covered all your sin. And though the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, Jesus’ righteousness is now credited to us as our own righteousness; for we were baptized into His death and raised together with Him to a new life (Rom. 6).

Yes, life gets messy. Right now we are seeing a real messy life. Stay at home orders force us to isolate, become disconnected and spiritually unfed and starving. There may be a few of us who feel there is no hope though this COVID-19 virus effecting the entire planet, not only human beings but also animals who are part of our food chain. Yes, dearest family, the times are not looking real good right now.

So what should we do when things are not looking real good right now? We start that battle every morning on our knees, seeking the Lord, while He may be found. we cry out to him from the depths of our soul like David in the Psalms did over and over. We may find ourselves beginning to read and study the Psalms, and making them our voice when we don’t have one anymore. We praise Him because He has already won the battle for us through cross and empty tomb. We praise Him for His Holy Spirit that helps us through times of tragedy and craziness.

Therefore, Jesus turns our worry into hope. “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe i God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” (vv1-4).

Regardless what happens in this life, we have a Redeemer, who has gone on before us. He lived a totally perfect life in thought, word and deed. So that His righteousness might become ours. And then on the cross He caused the great reversal. All our sins and worries He bore, and what He gives us in exchange is forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. Even when our sins get the best of us, we can still have hope, because even though Christ is not physically with us in person every day. we know through faith that He is with us, and that He has already overcome our sin and worry. He mediates on our behalf with the Father who is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. When we are faithless, He is faithful, forgiving, loving and treats us not how our sins deserve, but with abundant grace and mercy. Why? Because, Jesus is THE WAY…there is no other way to paradise and our loving Father except through Him. Jesus is THE TRUTH…God has never lied to us, He has always kept His promises, and His Word never changes, therefore we have a sure and certain hope. And Jesus is THE LIFE. Outside of Jesus we have nothing, except the empty platitudes the world can offer and no hope of a life without worry and fear.

Jesus came to His disciples many times preparing them for what was about to take place; namely His betrayal, crucifixion and resurrection. Jesus offers them hope of what is unseen. We, two-thousand plus years after these events have the historical narrative of Jesus, we have seen His life, His death and resurrection. The Holy Spirit enkindled in us faith that looks at the impossible and accepts it as real, not just for those worrying disciples that day but for each and every disciple who has been called to the faith and who has died in that faith. All the disciples needed, all you or I need is Jesus only consoling the troubled heart.

In His name and for His eternal glory. Amen.