A PLACE FOR A TROUBLED HEART

 

John 14:1-6

We don’t have to travel far to see

people with troubled hearts.

 

A troubled heart occurs when it comes to…. 

The possibility of losing your job or income.

Health issues that not only affect you, but those who love you as well.

The death of a loved one

Bills, bills, bills and the rising cost of living in today’s economy.

Divorce and the shattering affect it produces.

The rising crime rate in our country.

The major problems happening in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas.

The intolerant pressures of the Alphabet movement.

The major rise of fornication and porn exposure at such young ages.

Political corruption in our country

The continued killing of innocent life in the womb as a means of health care.

The massive breakdown of the family today.

Fighting amongst genuine Christians in churches over issues that have no eternal value.

The enormous amount of complacency and apathy in the church today

And the list is endless to a troubled heart in any generation.

 

In the book of Job we read "Man who is born of woman is of few days and full of trouble.” Job 14:1. Being born in sin; sin and trouble go together; they go hand in hand; where there is sin there is trouble. Ultimately, the results of man’s sorrow is that sin entered into the world. And there is only one cure for the troubled heart! J C Ryle said “that disease is trouble of heart, That remedy is faith.” Heart trouble is common everywhere around the globe in our generation. The heart is a wonderful creation. It beat an average of 75 beats a minute, 40 million times a year, 21/2 billions time for a person of 70. It pumps enough blood (650,000 gallon a year) to fill more than 82 tank cars with 8,000 gallons each.

 

Many of us in this sanctuary have troubled hearts today! Question is, “What are you doing about? Better yet, who are you turning to when your heart is troubled? It’s no wonder we have so many health problems in our culture today! Studies show according to Harvard Health Publication wrote, “Anxiety has now been implicated in several chronic physical illnesses, including heart disease, chronic respiratory disorders, and gastrointestinal conditions.” A troubled heart can at times play a major factor in our present health. When we constantly worry about everything, we sometimes cause ourselves to worry about things that haven’t happened yet. We sometimes make up worry in our thoughts, and even have the tendency to borrow worry from others. But what did Jesus say about this? "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? "So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear? For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” Matt 6:25-34

In not so many words Jesus is reminding His disciples about this very thing. Now let’s put ourselves in the feet of these men. They have been told that Judas is of the Devil, and betrayer. They have been told that Jesus is leaving them and they cannot follow at this time. They have been told that Peter is going to deny Him in front of the world. Can you imagine how they were feeling at this time in history? It would be like you hearing in one sitting that someone you know deeply is a ruthless trader to you and your family. That someone you love dearly is telling you they are going away for a very, very long time, or they are about to die. And in a few hours, you will speak unsavoury words about someone you love. 

This is would be hard for anyone to endure. Remember the news Job received from his workers. “Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother's house, and there came a messenger to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside them, and the Sabeans fell upon them and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The Chaldeans formed three groups and made a raid on the camels and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother's house, and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” Job 1:13-19

 

His heart was deeply troubled with the shocking news, troubling news that can be too much to bear in one sitting. This is the heart of these men. Their hearts were deeply troubled beyond description and it was in that context Jesus says this. (v1) “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.” “Troubled” means: “uncertain affinity; to stir or agitate” The effects of all that Jesus had told them must have shocked them, and by John 14 they were undoubtedly confused, baffled and filled with anxiety. This was a troubled room filled with men of anxiety, who left everything to follow Jesus. As our Lord looked at these men, He sees things we can’t, He knows what was going on in their minds and hearts. He knew how disturbed and upset they were, and knew what was causing it. Just as He knows what is going on your heart right now.

 

But He also knows the remedy for it, as well. (v1-v6) First thing Jesus says is, "Let not." This means that the disciples could do nothing to solve their problem. There is truly only one remedy for a troubled and sinful heart. The Lord Jesus and the promise He brings. It would be fitting of me to say that this passage is speaks volumes to certain individuals this morning, but I would be wrong in saying that. This passage speaks to all our hearts, because everyone of us in this sanctuary is facing different situations, or circumstances, that effect our individual hearts. This passage is one the most comforting passages in all of scripture! We are told that F.B. Myers of England, had a Bible that had been passed through many generations. He said, “Many of the pages were clean just like the day it came from the printing press. But the pages of John 14 worn, spotted with tears of the people who had read it and found the comfort of God.”

That is so true for everyone of us

sitting here today.

 

We can find great comfort throughout the Scriptures; but many do, and will find a greater comfort here in this passage of John’s letter.

 

This is why Jesus says what He says in this opening verse. Don’t let this world and the coming days worry or trouble you to forget the promises of God. It may seem or look like the world is falling apart, and all is lost and darkness is going top engulf you, but don’t let your heart be shuddered. Don’t let this world and the coming days cloud your vison to not trust in God. Our afflictions, and troubled news, in this life, is for us to see and trust in Christ alone. See the problem isn’t with God, when we are troubled; its in our sin nature, of disbelief. We tend to think of the worst; we tend to get ourselves worked up when we’re faced with challenges, disappointments, and confrontations. We tend to shut down and curl up in the fetal position waiting for things to pass. We even tend to borrow trouble from others when we have none. We tend to explode in the midst of trouble, like a child does when they don’t get what they want in Walmart. In reality its sin as John MacArthur said, “The Worrier Strikes Out at God, The Worrier Disbelieves Scripture, The Worrier Is Mastered by Circumstances, The Worrier Distrusts God, Worry Is Unwise Because of Our Future”……He went on to say “Worrying paralyzes you, making you too upset to accomplish anything productive. It will seek to do that to you by taking you mentally into tomorrow until you find something to worry about. Refuse to go along for the ride. The Lord says you have enough to deal with today. Apply today's resources to today's needs or you will lose today's joy.”

 

You turn to the Psalms as we did last Sunday, we do it to find encouragement and hope because the Psalms are about climbing the Mt Everest of God’s grace and promises. The Psalmist wrote “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.” Psalm 55:22

Peter has first hand experience at troubled heart but he tells us to never enter it alone. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:6-8. In other words, our worry leads us astray and allows Satan a foothold into our lives. Since “sin” is, at its core, “missing the mark” that God has set for us; so worrying is sin because we are not living up to God’s standard.

 

Jesus comforts His disciples with the promise in (v2-v3). “Dwelling” this word draws attention to the idea of a suite in a expense hotel. I remember staying at the Pillar & The Post Hotel in Niagara on the Lake. This is the hotel the Queen of England stayed at in 1973. And it just so happened I got that exact room because they were over booked. It was quite the hotel room for sure, amazing, it was fit for a King or Queen. The dwelling place that Jesus, is speaking about here, is not some monk’s cell, a Janitor’s closet, Jesus is preparing for you a royal suite in My Father’s house. This suite is absolutely guaranteed, He will not be over booked, or your reservation go missing or cancelled. It is held by the One who owns the Mansion. There are many dwelling places; there are many beds for you in my house. What is Jesus is saying? Jesus says “I go to prepare” a bed for you and me, His called-out ones, a place that John describes in Revelation 21-22 as absolutely AWESOME!

A place that……… 

Is filled with the glory of God.

A place that has no more tears.

Has no more death.

Has no more sorrow, trouble.

Has no more pain.

No more memory of my sin and shame.

We will never thirst again physically or spiritually.

God illuminates His glorious Light for all eternity.

Christ sitting on the throne in His entire supreme splendor.

That has your name in a book, if you are truly His child.

 

This is a place called Heaven, a place that we cannot fathom in our finite minds to how beautiful it is; and glorious it will be, for you, and me, when we spend eternity with Christ. Heaven is so overwhelming of a place, that it caused the Apostle Paul to pen these words! “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. For I am hard-pressed [it’s like a tug of war at my heart strings] between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.” Phil 1:21-23

Jesus knew the importance of this place! Otherwise, He wouldn’t’ have told us as we face obstacles or troubled hearts! In this life you will have trouble, but be of good cheer, I’ve overcome them! Shortly Jesus will comfort His disciples with these words. “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." John 16:33. See, this is a promise that cannot be taken away from the elect, those who are truly His through the gospel confession. And what’s more amazing is that Jesus, uses four words of comfort to settle His troubled children’s hearts. (v3) “I will come again” let those words soak in personally this morning. Doesn’t that give you comfort this morning, despite what your enduring right now? The King of Kings, the Alpha & Omega, the Beginning and the End, comforts His disciples with the promise that He is coming back, but not only to come back to judge but to “receive” us back to Himself. To receive us, and He will take you up with Him to Heaven; I will receive you into glory where He is seated, and always will be.

 

But obviously this didn’t settle the disciple’s hearts because Thomas asks Jesus a question! (v5) A question that we would ask as well if we were there. But again, Jesus gives them another confirmation, another word of comfort, so that it would close any doubt they might have. Look what Jesus said in (v6) This is what we would call a dogmatic statement! There is no compromising on a statement like this, there is no grey area of interpretation. Jesus is the only one who can grant such a promise to sinners like you and me. To troubled hearts that rest in His grace. I came across a quote by Joni Eareckson Tada that speaks volumes to our troubles and sometimes unanswered prayer. “God is good not because He gives us answers but because He gives us Himself.” Let’s examine for a moment what Jesus is saying by breaking down this bold dogmatic statement that is intolerant in any generation.

 

Jesus says, “He is the Way" There is no other way to find rest in the midst of trouble then in Him alone. The Father’s house in Heaven, is only reached through Jesus Christ and His perfecting and atoning work on the cross. Paul affirms this truth when he wrote, “For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,” Eph 2:18-19

Jesus says, “He is the Truth” The root of all knowledge is to know, and savor, this truth in Christ. All truth in the Old Testament and into the New Testament all point to Christ. The only truth that the soul needs is Him, what Jesus is saying is that He isn’t some form of truth, or a truth to equal with whatever you call truth. He is truth itself, there is no other! John has already expressed that earlier in his gospel letter. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.' "And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” John 1:14-17 

Jesus said, “He is the Life” He is the root, the source and the foundation of all life. He is not a life, but life itself, just as He is truth. He is the giver and taker of life; He is the giver of eternal life to whomever He chooses. “Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?" John 11:25-26

  

There is no other way of escape to find rest for a weary,

and troubled heart, other than promises of Jesus Christ.

 

He is the only way we can find true healing in this life, and

the ability to endure sorrow and hardship.

 

This is what he promised the disciples and this is what He promises to us for those you put their trust in Christ alone. “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12

Your troubled heart needs to remember that Jesus is everything. Trials are part of life, but Christ, always says to us in the darkness “Do not let your heart be troubled” Do you remember what Job did when he was told all the terrible news? “Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.” Job 1:20-22. Hudson Talyor a missionary to Japan said this as a reminder when we are filled with doubt and trouble. “There are three stages to every great work of God; first it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done.” The deepest question the world asks is the question found in the oldest book of the Bible. “If a man dies, shall he live again?” Job 14:14. Its here we get the answer to that question with the comforting words of Jesus, “Believe in God; believe also in Me. I go to prepare a place for you! He will come again, to bring us home, so that we can be where He is. These are words of comfort for troubled souls for any season, this includes great affliction, pain and suffering. Its here we understand that we are never to fear death, but to rest in Him alone. Though we many experience the pangs of terror as we consider the prospect of dying, death itself holds no fear for us. Why? Because it is our entrance to that suite that Jesus has prepared for us in Heaven. A suite in the house where He Himself dwells. This is the place for a troubled heart.