Some of you are probably avid followers of the news – you
read the paper, watch the news on television and maybe follow it online.
Probably an equal number of you are not avid followers of the news. You get
wind of the major events from time to time, but you don’t stay on top of the
breaking stories throughout the day. Yet, even the casual observer of world
affairs has to notice that we live in the midst of difficult days. There are
things happening today around the world, and particularly here in America , that
many of us would have considered unthinkable just a decade or so ago. The world
is changing before our eyes at a breakneck pace, and I dare say that the
changes are by and large for the worse. The ramifications are far reaching, and
have at least some impact on every single one of us. These are troubling times,
and the idea of finding any peace in this world seems like something from a
fairy tale. And yet, peace in the midst of a troubled world is precisely what Jesus
Christ promised to His followers.
We’ve come at last today to the final verse of what is known
as Jesus’ “Farewell Discourse.” Beginning in Chapter 14, this entire teaching
takes place in the moments and hours following the Last Supper while Jesus was
alone with His disciples. He has been giving them final instructions before the
critical hour comes in which He will be arrested, sentenced, and crucified.
With the verse we have read today, Jesus draws the discourse to a close, having
said all that He needed to say to them. In the next chapter, He will lift His
voice to His Father and pray for Himself, for His followers, and for the world.
Then the betrayer will come to hand Him over to arrest. Jesus knew that all of
this would come to pass. He had announced it in advance. If ever anyone had
reason to be troubled, Jesus did in these moments. And yet, even in these
troubling moments, He can speak of peace – the peace He Himself has, and that He
offers to all who follow Him by faith.
When the New Testament speaks of peace, it means more than
we often think it does. Typically, we assume that the word “peace” means the
absence of warfare or strife, or perhaps a state of tranquility. The biblical
concept of peace, however, goes much deeper than this. The biblical idea of
peace has been well defined as “the sense of complete well-being that
characterizes the life lived in accordance with the design of God.”[1]
So, as we look at this single verse, let’s examine three
aspects of this peace.
I. The Christian’s peace is found in Christ alone.
Many years ago, I paid a visit to a man named Dino. He
welcomed my friend and I into his home, and before long, our pleasant
conversation turned to spiritual matters. Dino was a frequent church attender,
and he had a large Bible prominently displayed on his coffee table, and a cross
hanging on his wall. But as he shared about his personal struggles, it became
evident to us that Dino was deeply troubled about many things. My friend and I
began to share the Gospel with Dino, and he was holding on to every word.
Finally, we asked if he had ever placed his faith in Jesus Christ as his Lord
and Savior, and he confessed that he had not. That evening, we had the
privilege to lead Dino to Jesus and he was gloriously born again there in his
living room. After he had prayed to surrender his life to Jesus, Dino reached
his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small bag and threw it on the coffee
table. He said, “I don’t think I need these anymore.” I asked him what it was,
and he said, “Magic rocks. I have been carrying them around for years to give
me good luck.” I said, “Dino, not only do you no longer need those, you never
did. You carried them around for a long time, but as you shared your story with
us tonight, it was clear that those rocks never brought you any real help.”
He’d been to church, he had a Bible (a great big one at that), and a cross on
his wall, but he did not have peace. He was surrounded by signposts, as it
were, pointing him to the true source of peace, but he had sought peace in a
bag of magic rocks. That night, Dino discovered that the peace that had eluded
him could be found in Jesus Christ, and in Him alone.
Peace is found in the Person of Christ. Jesus said peace is
found “in Me.” For all that has been written about what it means to be “in
Christ,” I suggest it will take eternity to mine the depths of it. It speaks of
our position and union with Him. We are “in Him” as a result of placing saving
faith in Him as Lord and Savior. In that instant, we become inseparably united
to Him. He becomes, as it were, the sphere of our existence. We have something
of a dual citizenship. We are “in the world,” and we are “in Christ.” Our
identity should be rooted in the latter of these citizenships rather than the
former, because though we are in the world, because we are in Christ, we are
not “of the world.” We belong to another realm, and peace is granted to us on
the basis of our union with Him.
Paul points this out often in his letters, but my favorite
place is in 1 Corinthians 1:2. There he identifies this particular local church
as being “at Corinth ,”
but also as being sanctified (or set apart) “in Christ Jesus.” They might be at Corinth ,
but it is more important that they recognize that they are in Christ. That is significant! Corinth epitomized all that we can imagine
about a godless culture, and then some. That’s where these Christians lived.
But they were positioned in Christ. And the thrust of Paul’s letter to them is
an exhortation for them to define themselves by their position in Christ rather
than their location in Corinth .
You might live in this world, in this nation with all of its societal ills, but
you are in Christ if you have been born again, and your identity in Him has to
be what defines your life. Because you are in Him, you have a certain
birthright and certain privileges of citizenship, and one of those is that you
can know peace – real and lasting peace. He has it in Himself, and is able to
extend it to all who trust in Him. It is found only in His Person.
Then notice that this peace is based on Christ’s promises. He
says here, “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace.” Now, when He says, “These
things,” He is referring to everything that He has said to the disciples during
this farewell discourse. Now, just to remind you, over the course of this
extended discourse, Jesus has spoken of:
·
The promise of eternal life (Jn 14:1-6)
·
His oneness with the Father (14:7-11)
·
The future ministry that the disciples will have
(14:12; 15:1-8; 15:27)
·
Prayer (14:13-14; 16:23-28)
·
The coming of the Holy Spirit (14:16-21; 15:26;
16:5-15)
·
The inspiration of the Word of God (14:25-26)
·
The assurance of His love (15:10; 12-17)
·
The promise of joy (15:11; 16:22)
·
Future sufferings for the sake of Christ
(15:18ff; 16:1-4)
·
His resurrection and second coming (16:16-22)
Jesus says that all of these things were spoken in order
that the disciples may have peace in Him. They will only experience that peace
as they remember and reflect on the truths He has shared with them. And the
same is true for us. We will only comprehend and experience His peace as His
word abides in us. So if we would have peace, we must make a regular discipline
of reading, studying, and meditating on His Word. Everything in this world is
at war with our peace, so we must constantly be reminded afresh of the promises
Jesus has spoken to us.
So, how are we to have peace in this troubled world? The
answer is that we can only have peace in Jesus Christ and in Him alone. By
faith in Him, we are united to Him in a covenant relationship that can never be
dissolved. We are inseparably “in Christ,” and have access to His peace which
He freely bestows to all who call upon His name in saving faith. And this peace
is realized in our lives as we meditate continually upon the precious promises
of His Word. Now, the second aspect of our peace flows from this reality.
Because the Christian’s peace is anchored in the person and promises of Christ
…
II. The Christian’s peace transcends the troubles of this
world.
Jesus said that all of His promises serve to produce peace
in His followers. But, there are some promises that seem a little “less
peaceful” than others at first glance. One of them occurs right here in verse
33. He says, and it is a promise, “In the world you have tribulation.” Wait,
what? How is that supposed to help me have peace? How can Jesus say, on the one
hand that we can have peace, and then almost without taking a breath, that we
will have trouble? It is because our peace is not dependent on our
circumstances in this world. It transcends these troubles.
We have to understand that this world is broken because it
has been corrupted by human sinfulness. That sinfulness has infected the world
with all manner of suffering and no one is immune to it. But for the Christian,
there is a measure of suffering above and beyond what is common to others.
Because of sin and its consequences, we are subject to the evils and sufferings
of this fallen world. Moral evil and suffering is obviously when we are the
victims of the wrongdoings of others. But there is also physical suffering, by
which we deal almost incessantly with the illnesses and maladies to which we
are prone because our bodies are decaying from birth. Sin has corrupted our
bodies and so they are always breaking down. And of course there is natural
suffering – the kind of thing we see taking place where floods and hurricanes,
earthquakes and tsunamis, and things like this have occurred. These things are
an outworking of the curse of sin in the world. Sin has produced atmospheric
and geological upheaval in the world, as evidenced for example, in the flood of
Noah. Now, it is not that, when these tragedies occur, they are an express
judgment of God upon the people affected by them but the world is susceptible
to these tragedies because of how the curse in the fall of humanity into sin
has affected the world. And as Christians, we are all subject to these kinds of
sufferings, just as everyone else in the world is.
But there is a unique category of suffering for a Christian
that the rest of the world does not have to endure. In addition to these
categories of suffering that everyone is subject to, the Christian is also
susceptible to suffering for the sake of righteousness, that is, for the sake
of Christ. Jesus has spoken much about this throughout the discourse. Paul said
that all those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2 Tim 3:12 ). That is as much a
promise as the one Jesus gives here: “In the world you have tribulation.” And
the reason we endure such suffering in the world is because the world is at
enmity with God, and therefore at enmity with Christ and with all who represent
Him in the world.
The word “world” occurs 78 times in John’s Gospel, 20 in the
farewell discourse alone. In all but two of those 20 instances, it refers to
the hostile forces of lost humanity who are at war with Christ. The world is
said to:
- Be unable to receive the Spirit of truth (14:17)
- Be blind to the revelation of Jesus Christ (14:22)
- Not experience the peace of Jesus Christ (14:27)
- Be under the rule of Satan (14:30)
- Hate and persecute Christians (15:18) because Christians are not of the world (15:19)
- Be under the conviction of the Holy Spirit (16:8)
- Rejoice over the death of Jesus (16:20)[2]
It is hard to see how this could lead to anything but
trouble for disciples of Jesus Christ. The world, and all of the corrupted
forces at work in it, have arrayed themselves for battle against God-in-Christ,
and all who follow in His steps by faith. So Jesus promises us that trouble
awaits us in the world. But, the question is, “How does this promise lead us to
peace?” I have three answers to that question.
First, this promise leads us to peace because it prepares us
for the hardships we must endure. Jesus has taught us to expect it. When we
endure hardships and sufferings, even those that occur for the sake of Christ
and His righteousness, this promise teaches us that we are not encountering
anything unusual or out of the ordinary. Sometimes, when things are not going
well for us, we may be tempted to believe that we have fallen out of God’s
favor, or that He has removed His hand of blessing from our lives. It is
comforting for us to know that our suffering in the world may actually prove
the opposite – we are enduring it precisely because we belong to Him. It would
be very disconcerting if Jesus had promised us a primrose path, and then we
become pricked by the thorns. But Jesus promised us a hard road in this world,
and we must expect nothing less. Peter wrote to suffering Christians in 1 Peter 4:12 , “Beloved, do not
be surprised at the fiery ordeal
among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing
were happening to you.” Expect it.
Second, this promise leads us to peace because it reminds us
how radically Jesus has transformed us. Of all people, Christians should have a
special understanding of the world’s war against God, because we have been
delivered from the thick of the battle. We too were once at enmity with God
until we were rescued by His saving kindness. In Ephesians 2 , Paul reminds the
Christians in Ephesus
of what their lives used to be like, and how God had radically transformed them
by His grace in Christ Jesus:
[Y]ou
were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked
according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of
the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among
them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the
rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He
loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together
with Christ ( by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and
seated us with Him in the heavenly places
in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing
riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:1-7 ).
Prior to knowing Christ, we ourselves were bound in sin,
enslaved to Satan and to the carnal desires of our flesh and the patterns of
this world’s thinking, provoking the wrath of God upon ourselves in our
rebellion to Him. In Titus, Paul says it this way:
For
we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various
lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one
another. But when the kindness
of God our Savior and His love
for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done
in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration
and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through
Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made
heirs according to the hope of
eternal life (Titus 3:3-7 ).
So the promise of trouble in the world reminds us that,
once, we were walking with the world in its disobedience and rebellion. Our
lives were characterized by the same strife and calamity that we see on display
in our society. But God, in His kindness, has rescued us from that way of
living – not on the basis of anything we have done, but solely by His sovereign
grace and mercy – and He has reconciled us to Himself. That means, friends,
that though we will endure much suffering in this fallen world, there is a
deadline to it. The closest that we will ever come to hell is life in this
world, and when it is over, the trouble ends with it. We will enter into the
sin-free and suffering-free environment of heaven for eternity. Knowing that
these light and momentary afflictions are producing for us a weight of glory
beyond all comparison (2 Cor
4:17 ) enables to endure these sufferings with a peace that passes
all understanding.
Third, this promise leads us to peace because it assures us
that our peace transcends the troubles of this world. Jesus’ promise of peace
is made to those who are yet in this
trouble-filled world. He did not say, “Once you leave this trouble-filled world,
you will have peace.” He said, “In the world, you have tribulation,” but “in
Me, you have peace.” And the peace we have in Him transcends all of the trouble
of this world and can be experienced even in the midst of all this world’s
troubles. To understand why that is so, we have to move to the third and final
aspect of our peace here in this verse.
III. The Christian’s peace is secured by Jesus’ victory.
When I was a kid, you could find me just about any night of
the week at the old Winston-Salem Coliseum watching the Carolina Thunderbirds
hockey games. I distinctly remember, one night, it was announced late in the
game that our star goalie was being removed from the game and being replaced by a sportswriter for the Winston-Salem Journal. What was he
doing on the ice? We discovered later that he had always dreamed of playing in
a professional hockey game. With six minutes to go in the game, his dream came
true. And he wasn’t half-bad. He didn’t let in a single goal. But, the only
reason he got to live out his dream was that the Thunderbirds were winning by
so large a margin, that even if he had let several goals in, it would not have
changed the outcome of the game. He got to enjoy his six-minutes on the ice
because the victory was already in-hand.
Friends, in an infinitely more significant way, we can have
peace in a trouble-filled world because Jesus has already secured victory over
the world. The battle may still be raging, but the war is over, and Christ has
conquered. He says, “I have overcome the world.” The original wording here is a
military term that is used to describe triumph over one’s enemies. Jesus won
this victory in His death and resurrection. By His death, He defeated sin and
death and rendered the prince of this world powerless. The world did all it
could to Him – opposing Him, betraying Him, apprehending Him, torturing Him, and
ultimately murdering Him. But He conquered all that the world threw at Him by
overcoming death with His indestructible life. Satan, and all those who follow
Him, together with the condemnation of sin and the threat of death, were
decisively defeated through His cross and empty tomb.
Yet, Jesus’ victory over sin, death, and Satan was not
merely a personal one. It is a victory that He shares with those who are “in
Him.” We have His peace in the midst of this troubled world because we share in
His victory. And because we do, we do not have to be intimidated by the
troubles and threats of this world. Jesus said we can “take courage.” It might
be better translated with a more forcible command: “Be courageous!” What can
this world do to us? The world, along with its ruler the devil, is a defeated
foe! It is not that we have overcome it, but Christ has overcome it on our
behalf and extends His victory to us. Would the world hate us or seek to
oppress us? Would it seek to persecute us or even kill us? Jesus said that,
because of the peace we have through His victory, we can be courageous even in
the face of such threats.
The men who were with Jesus when He spoke these words had
the opportunity to see this promise come to pass within their own lifetimes.
Soon after Jesus had ascended into heaven, and they had been filled with the
Holy Spirit, they began to experience the world’s animosity. When the
authorities commanded them to no longer speak in the name of Jesus, they
responded from this posture of courageous victory. They said to the rulers of
their day, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather
than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have
seen and heard” (Ac 4:19-20 ).
And then they went to the Lord in prayer and said, “And now, Lord, take note of
their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all
confidence” (4:29).
Friends, this is especially instructive for us today. The disciples
responded to the troubles of a hostile word with a bold confidence that was
rooted in the peace and victory that they had in Jesus Christ. Like them, we
too hear from seemingly all sides that we must either compromise our
convictions or else be silent about them. We are compelled, directly and indirectly,
overtly and subtly, that we must surrender ground to the winds of this world’s
opinions that are contrary to the Word of God. But, because we have peace in
Christ and stand in His victory, like those early disciples, we can heed Jesus’
admonition and take courage in the face of these threats. We stand in the
victory of Christ, who has overcome the world, so we must not fear what this
defeated foe can do to us. We can be confident and courageous, and stand in His
peace and His victory!
In the words of John Calvin, “Although we ourselves are
almost overwhelmed, if we look at that magnificent glory to which [Christ] has
been exalted, we may boldly despise all the evils which hang over us. If we
want to be Christians, we must not seek to be free from the cross, but must be
content with the fact that while we fight under Christ’s banner we are out of
danger even in the midst of the battle.” [3]
We have peace in Christ, and in Him alone. He has secured it
in His triumph over the world, and His promises anchor that peace in our soul.
Our peace is not contingent upon the troubles we must endure in this world. It
transcends them, because our peace and our victory are in Jesus. We can have
peace in this troubled world, and we can be courageous so long as we do not
mind a little suffering.
[1] Robert Mounce,
“John” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (rev. ed.; Vol. 10;Grand Rapids : Zondervan,
2005), 596.
[2] L. Scott
Kellum, Preaching the Farewell Discourse (Nashville : Broadman and
Holman, 2014), 193.
[3] John
Calvin, John (Crossway Classic
Commentaries; Wheaton , Ill.
[4] H.C.G.
Moule, Charles Simeon: Pastor of a
Generation (Fearn, Scotland: Christian Focus, 1997), 167.
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