Experiencing Life
Jesus, and the comfort of being where He is
John 13:36-14:31
One of the certain things in life is that we will go through hills and valleys. When we are in the valleys, we often find ourselves feeling lost and confused, often trying to work through the situations on our own. The disciples found themselves in one of those struggles when Jesus told them that he was leaving them, but he taught them some valuable lessons in order that they might find divine comfort, and they certainly apply to us today.
1. THERE IS COMFORT THAT COMES FROM WHO JESUS IS. (13:36-14:12)
a) He Knows - Jesus Knows the State of Our Heart and What We Need (13:36-14:1)
- Inherently, the disciples were fully aware that the closer they were to Jesus, the better off they were.
- Jesus was the only one qualified to go to the cross in our place.
- The disciples did not qualify – but they were going to be able to “follow later” and be reunited.
- There is great comfort in being known.
b) He Prepares - There is a place that is waiting with Jesus. (14:2-14:5)
- Jesus is going somewhere that they cannot yet follow – BUT they are going to be reunited with him and it is going to be fantastic.
- Wanting heaven doesn’t get you there – Jesus does.
- His return was as certain as his departure.
- There is no greater comfort than being in the presence of God (Rev. 21:3;22:4).
c) He Is Absolute – He is the ONLY way (14:6)
- Truth is NOT subjective – it is not dependent on opinion.
- There is comfort to be found as we stand in truth.
d) He Reveals - The Father in Heaven Has Been Revealed (14:7-12)
- “So perfect was the correspondence between the life of Jesus and the will of God that to know Jesus was to know the Father too.” - Mounce
- Miracles don’t bring about faith, but they do support the faith we have – our testimonies are so valuable.
- Comfort comes from knowing that God is fully involved.
2. THERE IS COMFORT FROM BEING IN CHRIST. (14:13-31)
a) He Hears Us - Our Prayers Never Fall on Deaf Ears. (14:13-14)
- We find comfort knowing that the God of the universe wants to interact with us.
- For our benefit – we are made into his image
- For his glory – as we rejoice in his answering of prayer.
b) He Indwells Us – Through the Holy Spirit (14:15-20)
- Jesus is the truth, and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth – the Holy Spirit completely and perfectly conveys the truth.
- Promise #1 - They were about to go and take on a critical mission once Jesus left, but he was going to be with them through it all (Mt 28:20).
- Promise #2 – He will come to them, living inside through the Holy Spirit. (Col.1:27)
- We have comfort knowing that God himself is residing inside each believer as a counsellor.
c) He Empowers Us - We are loved (14:21-26)
- There is a continued connection between obedience and love – God’s commands yield a very unique kind of comfort that comes from obeying him.
- The reality of God’s presence in the daily experience of the believer cannot be understated.
- There is comfort knowing that obedience is evidence of a transformed life and that we belong to him.
d) He Restores Us - We have his peace (14:27-31)
- The peace Jesus gives is the peace of sins forgiven and of reconciliation to God that guards our hearts and minds. (Phil 4:7)
- We find comfort in the peace we receive as we look ahead to what is to come.
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