COMFORT FOR TRYING TIMES

INTRODUCTION

Today, I want to talk to you about separation - specifically the anticipated separation of the Lord as He was going to the cross. His disciples understood Him to be leaving. I’m sure fear was entering their hearts and minds; and questions - many questions.

Every one of us should be able to relate. If you haven’t known any Believers to have passed, stay tuned; you will. We all have questions. What is heaven like? How will I be able to carry on without you? And so the flood of worry, concern, even grief begins. Separation is painful, fearful, and downright uncomfortable.

Our Lord is compassionate - with a capital “C.” He looks on these hearty men who have walked with him for the last three years, seen His miracles, depended upon Him for everything, and trusted His teachings, His ways, and His nature. How will they face life without Him? Jesus compassionately answers with words of comfort. And these words should comfort every one of us here today.

[Read Passage. Pray.]

Today’s passage comforts us and challenges us at the same time. The comfort is given to help us with the challenge. We are told about the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit who would indwell all who trust and obey the Lord. Those who are His are comforted with promises of a certain, but future reunion. They are comforted with the promise of eternal life and union with the Father and Son alike. And He insists that those who obey Him will see Him and understand Him!

The Challenge - Obey His Commandments

To some, this might sound like legalism. Salvation is not by works, but by faith alone in the work of Jesus Christ. But for those who are saved, the work of obedience to the Living Savior begins. That obedience is essential. Consider James: “Faith without works is dead.” Jesus says, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” So, today I say this: “to disobey is to be in rebellion. To obey is to be in cooperation.” Obedience is an act of living cooperation based on a relationship born of faith.

How’s your cooperation with the Lord lately? I might be stepping on some toes, but I’ll bet that several of us here today have some room for growth in the “Obedience to the Lord” department. That’s not true. It’s not just some of us, it’s all of us!

The First Comfort: Christ’s Prayer for Believers

We often overlook the importance of this. The Father will hear our prayers. And we should be thankful of that. But we should be even more grateful that He hears the perfect prayers of His Son on our behalf. You can count on Jesus’ prayers to be spot on, and to be answered - because the Father and the Son have the same values, untainted with sins of selfishness or anything of the sort. Jesus’ prayers are always aligned with the will of the Father. And these are JUST the sort of prayers we need to be answered.

If we hope to obey the Lord’s commandments, then we’ll need the help of the Father’s answers to the Son’s prayers.

The Second Comfort: Christ’s Holy Spirit

This is another great comfort that should never be overlooked. The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is even BETTER than the living person of Jesus Christ. Consider this: the disciples would occasionally have to leave His side to shop for food (see the Woman at the Well). With the Holy Spirit living within, we have a constant companion who is ALWAYS with us, guiding us, correcting us, instructing us, and encouraging us! Those who want to obey Christ need Him! He will tell us what we need to know. He will bring to mind the things we’ve forgotten. And He will give us the words to say when we need them. His purpose is to always glorify the Son. The Spirit is the means by which we worship (in spirit and truth). We worship the Father through the Son, by the Holy Spirit! It’s a mind-blowing arrangement, for sure.

The world cannot see Him, and the world does not know Him. But we do because He lives within us. When people say things like, “Christ in me” - they are referring to His Holy Spirit indwelling us. He gives us strength of body, of resolve, and of purpose. We’d be helpless without Him.

Let us, therefore, not fear obeying the Lord in a world that seeks to silence and sideline us for doing so.

The Third Comfort: Christ’s Return

Jesus promises to return for His own. We are not left out to dry. We will not be orphaned in a world that disowns us. Christians have a hope that is based on Truth, not mere wishing. Jesus promises to be back for us. Most find His return for them when we pass away. But there will be a generation that will meet Him in the air. There is great comfort in trusting this promise. There is a reward for our faith - seeing it happen just as He promised!

The Fourth Comfort: Christ’s Nature - Eternal Life

So, Jesus is returning. That’s great. But the fact is, we will be with Him forever. There will be no further parting. We will live forever because He lives forever!

This demands that we understand the transformation that takes place when we are saved - we are made new! We may have flesh that is dying, but we are made to live forever when we trust the finished work of Christ enough to obey Him and receive His Spirit. He gives us His eternal nature so we can live eternally with Him. Let that sink in.

The Fifth Comfort: Christ’s Revelation

People just don’t know Jesus. But those who follow Him in obedience by faith will see Him. We will see His loving kindness, not His wrath and judgment. We will see His goodness and righteousness, not His justice and power to be used against us. He will welcome us with open arms. He will show us what He thinks, what He is about, and this is the most intimate detail of our relationship with Him.

Conclusion

The world knows nothing of any of these things. They don’t understand because they are not regenerated by faith in Christ Jesus. They have not been indwelt by His Holy Spirit, and they have no promise of eternal life because they are living in rebellion against God and Christ. The world seeks its own, while Christ seeks to redeem the world from sin.

Have you been redeemed?