Beloved,
have you ever had one of those days when everything goes wrong?
It doesn’t make any difference how hard you try,
it just seems that everything backfires on you?
The harder you try, the worse it gets.
I’m convinced that all of us have had days like that.
ILL.
I heard a story that illustrates this point very well.
It’s about a lady at the airport who bought
a Snickers candy bar to eat while she was waiting for her plane.
In the crowded waiting area she saw an empty seat
at the end of a row.
She walked very fast to get it,
she quickly propped her over sized hand bag against
the end of the row, sat down, and placed her purse and
several small items on the table between her and a rather
large man seated there, and then turned back to straighten
her over sized hand bag.
With everything finally in order, she was now ready to eat her
Snickers candy bar.
But to her surprise, as she started to reach for it,
she saw the man in the next seat unwrapping her Snickers candy bar,
and she watched in utter amazement as he broke off a section and ate it.
She thought to herself, "Well, my goodness, I’ve never seen such audacity."
She stared at him, and he looked at her, but no words were exchanged.
She was so furious at what he had done that she decided that if he was going
to be that bold about it, she could be bold, too. So she reached over to him,
broke off a piece and ate it herself. Then he broke off another piece and ate it.
It became almost a duel between the two of them to see who would get the most.
Quickly the candy bar was consumed, and she sat there just steaming
that someone would be so rude and so presumptuous as to eat half of her candy bar.
Well, after a few minutes of silence, the man got up and left and then came back with another
Snickers candy bar. He unwrapped it, broke off a piece and started eating.
She thought to herself, "Well, since he ate half of mine, I’m going to eat half of his."
So she reached over and broke off another piece and ate it.
Once again,the same scenario was repeated until the whole candy bar was gone.
She sat there thinking, "This is the most ridiculous thing that has happened to me in my whole life."
She continued to stare at him, and he looked at her, with neither one saying a word.
Just then, over the intercom came the announcement that her plane was ready for boarding.
So she opened her purse to get her boarding pass and, to her utter embarrassment,
there was her Snickers candy bar.
She had eaten half of 2 of his candy bars, and her candy bar was still in her purse!!!
APPL.
Beloved,
there are times, when things really start to go wrong.
Your whole world seems to be crumbling around you and you wonder what is going on.
B.
That’s probably about the way the apostles are feeling as we come to the 14th chapter of John.
Their week had begun gloriously with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem,
and people waving palm branches & shouting, "Hosanna!!!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!!! Blessed is the King of Israel!"
Even the Pharisees & the chief priests who had been plotting against Jesus had cried out in despair,
Saying,"See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after Him!" (John 12:19)
But Jesus had not come to establish an earthly kingdom, & He refused the crown.
Disappointed & dissatisfied in their dreams of a Jewish kingdom with Jesus as their miracle working king,
the unpredictable crowd began to change. And soon the priests were once again seeking
someone to betray Jesus
into their hands.
C.
So as the 14th chapter of John opens,
we see Jesus & His apostles
in the upper room where they
have eaten the Passover meal together.
Jesus knew exactly what the next few hours would bring.
He knew Judas would betray Him.
He knew about the illegal trials
of the night,
& how troubled the apostles would be.
He knew of the cross & the borrowed tomb.
And He tried to prepare the apostles
for all that.
So He begins to comfort them.
APPL.
Is there anyone out there
that is listening to this podcast
who needs comfort here this morning?
I know that there are.
We lose loved ones.
People lose jobs.
Some have physical problems.
Others are lonely & depressed.
We experience all kinds of troubles.
PROP.
But Jesus says that part of the solution
to a troubled heart is trust,
and He tells His apostles to trust in 3 things.
The "First” trust is,
trust in My presence.
The” Secondly” trust is,
trust in My promises.
And the “Third” trust is,
simply trust in Me.
Now,
let’s look at these thee trust
a little deeper.
I. TRUST IN MY PRESENCE
Saints of God
First of all,
Jesus tells them,
“You can trust in My presence.”
In Vs. 1
Jesus begins by saying,
"Do not let your hearts be troubled.
Trust in God,
trust also in me."
A.
What is Jesus saying there? Is He saying,
"You trust in God,
now it’s time to trust also in me?"
Or is He saying,
"I know you trust in God,
& you also trust in me.
Now remember,
when you can no longer see me,
don’t stop trusting in me."
You see Beloved,
we have always found it easier to trust
in things that we can see & touch.
We have a little bit of Thomas in us,
don’t we?
Remember, Thomas said,
"Unless I see the nail marks in His hands
& put my finger where the nails were,
& put my hand into His side,
I will not believe it" (John 20:25).
So Jesus shows him & he believes.
“Then Jesus told him,
"Thomas,
because you have seen me,
you have believed;
blessed are those who have not seen
& yet have believed" (John 20:29).
B.
The Bible teaches us that
the things we can see are only temporary.
The automobile you drive
is temporary.
CHOF Ministry StudioONE,
the pews you set on in your church,
are all temporary.
All are subject to decay.
ILL.
As you all know
I have a story to share with you,
from time to time.
Today happens to be a morning that I had two to share with you.
Here’s the second one:
This story is told about a busy mother
who put her two boys to bed.
After tucking them in & listening
to their prayers,
she told them “good night”
& breath a sigh of relief saying,
"Now I can have some time to myself."
So she went into the bathroom,
took a nice warm shower,
& washed her hair.
Stepping out of the shower,
she put on her old robe,
wrapped her head in a towel,
applied a thick layer of white moisturizer
to her face,
& then headed for the den.
But just then
she heard sounds of a pillow fight
going on in the boy’s bedroom.
Irritated,
she threw open their door, & said,
"You kids get right back in bed
& don’t make another sound."
Then she turned off the light
& slammed the door.
The two boys turned to each other
& said,
"Who was that?"
You see beloved,
we look in the mirror
& see our aging bodies,
& realize that they are temporary, too.
All the things you can see & touch a
re only here for a little while
& then are gone.
But the things you can’t see last forever.
SUM:
This is a hard lesson for us to learn,
isn’t it?
Yet it’s an important lesson,
because when we face troubles
& difficulties in life,
we need to remember
as Christians that Jesus has promised,
"I will be with you always.
I will never leave you nor forsake you.
“Trust in My presence."
II.
The Secondis:
TRUST IN MY PROMISES
Now we find that Jesus tells them,
“You can trust in My promises.”
In vs’s 2 & 3 Jesus says,
"In My Father’s house are many rooms;
if it were not so,
I would have told you.
I am going there to prepare a place for you.
And if I go & prepare a place for you,
I will come back & take you
to be with me
that you also may be where I am."
A.
Beloved,
God gave many promises
both in the Old & New Testaments.
He promised the children of Israel
a land where there would be milk & honey.
It took a while for the promise
to be fulfilled,
but finally it was fulfilled.
He promised a Messiah,
& that took a long time.
But it, too, was fulfilled.
Jesus the Savior was born.
NowGod promises
that He is coming back for us.
Someday we’ll be with Him
forever & ever.
Sometimes we grow impatient,
but the scripture says,
"You can trust the promises of God.
This promise will be fulfilled, too."
B.
Saints of God,
the Bible uses a lot of different words
to describe heaven.
In one place it’s called "a country"
indicating the immensity of heaven.
In another it’s called "a city"
indicating a large number of occupants.
It’s called "a kingdom"
indicating that there is a Constitutional Administrative Executive Structure in place.
It is called "paradise"
indicating its beauty & desirability.
But here it is called, "My Father’s house,"
& that is another way of saying,
"It is home."
Beloved,
home
is a place where you
can be yourself.
Home
is where you can
take off
your necktie & kick off your shoes.
Home
is where you can say
what you are thinking.
Home
is where you’re
always accepted & loved.
You’re not just a guest.
You are a resident.
You live there.
That is home.
Jesus is saying,
"I’m going to take you to My Father’s house,
& it will be your home, too.
You’ll be a part of the family.
You’ll be home where you belong."
C.
He says,
"In My Father’s house are many rooms." The KJ version says, "many mansions."
We like that word.
But "mansion"
is not the best translation
of the Greek word Jesus used.
Probably the best is
"dwelling place" or "rooms."
You see,
the word that Jesus used
comes from the eastern custom
that when a son grows up
& gets married,
he brings his bride back home again.
And the father adds another room
onto His house for them.
Then when another son grows up
& gets married,
they add another room.
The house just keeps getting
bigger & bigger,
as the family stays together.
D.
"In My Father’s house,"
Jesus said,
"are many rooms…
I am going there to prepare
a place for you…
I will come back and take you
to be with me…."
We’re almost there, people.
Don’t become discouraged or fainthearted.
ILL.
a great singer by the name of
Marian Anderson
who was one of the most celebrated singers
of the twentieth century,
was once asked,
"What is the most memorable
moment of your life?"
When she answered,
she didn’t mention
the time she sang
before the president.
She didn’t mention
the time that she was invited to sing
before the king & queen of England.
She didn’t mention
when she sang before 76,000
people on Easter morning in Washington, D.C.
She said,
"The most memorable moment
of my life was when I came home
to my mother & said,
`Mama,
you don’t have to take
in laundry anymore.’
That’s the most memorable moment of my life."
Beloved,
Stop & think about heaven.
much of me is already there.
My name is written there.
My citizenship is there.
My God is there.
My Savior is there.
My heritance is there.
I have relatives there.
So much of me
is already there.
Soon His promise will be fulfilled,
& we’ll be in our Father’s house.
We’ll get new bodies,
& we won’t have to worry about
getting old & sick
& all the other things
that plague us here.
He says
"Trust My promises".
III.
And the Third Trust is
TRUST IN ME!!!
Beloved,
Jesus is saying,
“Trust in Me.
In vs’s 4-6 Jesus says,
“You know the way to the place
where I am going.’
Thomas said to Him,
`Lord,
we don’t know where you are going,
so how can we know the way?’
Jesus answered,
`I am the way & the truth & the life.
No one comes to the Father
except through Me.’"
What a wonderful promise!!!
What Jesus is saying here is:
"I’m not just going to show you the way,
or tell you the way,
or write out the instructions
on how to get there.
I’m going to come
& take you by the hand
to My Father’s house.
Then you’ll be home."
Hallelujah!!!!
CONCL.
As I get ready to close:
Allow me to sak you a few questions:
Beloved,
do you have burdens this morning
that you think you cannot bear?
Are you troubled?
Are you worried or anxious?
Do you feel empty inside?
Do you feel lonely?
Do you feel lost or Confused?
ILL.
A few years ago a writer told of a soldier who returned from war.
His parents were socialites,
very well off.
It was near Christmas,
and they were getting ready to go out
to the first group of of parties
of the Christmas season.
Just then the phone rang,
& it was their son on the phone.
"Mom," he said,
"I’m back in the States."
She said,
"That’s wonderful!!!
Where are you?
Will you be home for Christmas?
Can you get here in time f
or the parties?
Everybody will just love to see you."
He answered, "Yes,
I can be home for Christmas,
but I want to ask you something first."
"What is it?" she asked.
"Well,
I have a friend with me from the war.
Can he come?"
"Oh, of course," she answered.
"Bring him along.
He’ll enjoy the parties, too."
"Wait a moment, mom," he said,
"I need to explain something about him.
He was terribly wounded,
& lost both legs & one arm.
His face is disfigured, also."
There was silence on the phone for awhile.
Then the mother said,
"That’s all right.
Bring him home for a few days."
"No, mom, you don’t understand.
He has nowhere to live.
He has no one else.
I want to bring him home
& to let our home be his home."
The mother was quiet again.
Then she said,
"Son,
that just wouldn’t do.
What you’re asking would be very
unfair to us.
that
would disrupt all our lives.
I’m sure there are government agencies
that would be more than glad
to take charge of him.
Look,
just you hurry home for Christmas now,
& then maybe you can visit him
once in a while."
"Son, I’m sorry,
but we’ve got to rush
or we’ll be late for the party.
Call us again as soon as you know
when you’ll be home.
Goodbye."
When the parents returned home
from the party that night,
there was an urgent message
from the California police asking
them to call.
They telephoned,
& the officer said,
"I’m very sorry to have to call you,
but we have just found a young soldier
dead in a motel room.
His face is disfigured,
& he has lost both legs & one arm.
From the documents on him
it would appear that he is your son."
CONCL.
Beloved,
Whatever your burdens are this morning,
the solution to a troubled heart is still the same, to trust,
to trust in His presence.
"I’ll never leave you," He said.
"I’ll always be beside you.
Don’t forget My presence."
Secondly,
"Trust My promises.
When everything seems dark & gloomy,
when everything seems
to be falling apart,
remember My promises."
"Then trust in Me.
You won’t get lost.
You won’t go astray.
I’m the way,
& I’ll take you by the hand
& lead you
to My Father’s house."
Friends this morning
Jesus invites us.
& He waiting for you to respond
to His invitation.
