SUNDAY 16th
John 14:1-7
NIV (v1) – ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.’
ESV (v1) – ‘Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.’
One of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the fear that it has caused some individuals, the fear of catching the virus, the fear of financial security, the fear even of what will the future hold. Here in John 14, Jesus’ disciples were beginning to understand something of the events that were about to happen and that Jesus was going to be leaving them and it caused them to be troubled in their present situation, troubled in their hearts, but Jesus spoke and said, ‘Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.’ There is a sense in that believing in Jesus was believing in God, because that was who he was, but at that moment in the disciples experience it was all about letting them know that just as they believed in God, so they also could believe in or trust in Jesus. As they knew the God of the Old Testament Scripture was trustworthy, reliable and faithful, so also they needed to know that the one whom they had committed themselves to following over the last three years was also trustworthy, reliable and faithful.
We also have chosen to believe and commit ourselves to following the Lord Jesus Christ, and just as we have believed in him by faith for salvation, so we also need to believe in him by faith for all the circumstances of our lives. We do not know what tomorrow may bring, let alone a week or a month’s time, but he knows! He has the future sketched out for each one of us and he simply wants us to trust him to lead us and take us through whatever our tomorrows may bring.
At the time of the dialogue that Jesus had with the disciples here in John 14 they were about to face so much uncertainty as far as human understanding was concerned, they would see him taken and killed, they would feel abandoned and lonely, they would lock themselves in the upper room for fear of the Jews but by trusting in Jesus, they were able to get through it and come through the other side with a cry of victory.
So we in this time of uncertainty, as we face tomorrow, or next week or next month with perhaps some having a fear of the unknown, we can trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, we believe that he will not abandon us, but will safely take us through to a place of victory.
We remind ourselves of the song we have used a few times during this pandemic:
Because he lives, I can face tomorrow
Because he lives, all fear is gone
Because I know he holds the future
And life is worth the living, just because he lives