Today, we are going to be talking
about what Christ is saying in John 14:15-31
But first, let me share this story
with you.
When I was a kid, there was a show on
television which featured all different types of animals and it told stories,
like documentaries of their lives.
This one story covered the life of a
baby bear. He had a sister who died shortly after birth and his mother died protecting
her son only a few weeks later. This left the remaining little cub to be on his
own and to fend for himself.
An orphaned cub in this type of
condition is like a walking buffet for his predators. And of course the camera
immediately showed a hungry-looking mountain lion walking, stalking, and
hunting.
One day the orphan cub encountered a
giant male bear. The little cub cowered at the massiveness of the huge bear.
The larger bear peered around and seemed to realize that the mother bear wasn't
anywhere to be found. He gave the little cub a friendly nudge.
The camera then showed the little
bear happily trailing along after his new papa. It was if the adoption papers
were signed, sealed and registered at the county seat in that one nudge.
The Papa bear proceeded to show the
cub how to grub for insects and how to catch fish and how to scratch
his back against a tree.
One day the two bears became
separated. The cub began to cry and looked frantically for his new father, but
couldn't find him anywhere.
The cub approached a stream where
he'd learned to fish and something caught his attention. He looked up to see a
mountain lion ready to pounce. That same mountain lion had stalked the cub for
the entire show. There was no way that mountain lion would've gone for that cub
with Papa bear around, but now....
The camera zoomed in on the cub. He
automatically mimicked the posture of his adopted father when threatened. He
stood on his hind legs and bared his teeth. Then, in the exactly the same way
his new father would have done, this cub let loose a mighty growl that should
have reverberated throughout the forest. But, only a tiny bear cub squeak came
out.
Well, we all knew what was coming.
But, to everyone’s astonishment the mountain lion lowered his head and ran off like
he was hit with a pellet in the opposite direction.
The camera panned back to the proud
little cub still standing tall on his hind legs.
And then all the viewers saw what
that little cub Could Not:
Just a few yards behind him, at
full, ferocious height, his sharp, white teeth bared in a snarl, stood Daddy bear.
He may not have made a sound, but he was there.
And even though the cub couldn't see
his father, his father stood guard, protecting his young.
The little cub had power available
greater than anything he could produce on his own.
There
was a Huge Greater Power watching over him.
We find SUPER GREAT POWER that is watching over us in what Jesus
said in John 14:15-31
(NIV)
15"If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to
be with you forever-- 17the Spirit of truth.
The world cannot
accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him.
But you know him,
for he lives with you and will be in you.
18I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
19Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me.
Because I live, you
also will live.
20On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in
me, and I am in you.
21Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.
He who loves me will
be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
22Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, "But, Lord, why do
you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?"
23Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.
My Father will love
him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
24He who does not love me will not obey my teaching.
These words you hear
are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
25"All this I have spoken while still with you.
26But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my
name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said
to you.
27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.
I do not give to you
as the world gives.
Do not let your
hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
28"You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to
you.'
If you loved me, you
would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.
29I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen
you will believe.
30I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world
is coming.
He has no hold on
me, 31but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do
exactly what my Father has commanded me.
"Come now; let
us leave.
+++++++
Let’s go back and take another look
at verse 27.
27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
There
is a defining, a crucial, and an essential phrase made
within that statement of Jesus which makes all the difference.
It
is the one which tells us what kind of peace it is that Christ is
giving to us.
Listen
to it again.
Can
you pick it out?
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
The defining phrase is: “Not as the world gives.”
Do you see how that defines God’s
peace?
The world promises peace
through the Rules of Laws.
Law and order is the only way for a
society and a people to experience peace and law and order must be
kept by the aggressive use of force.
That’s the only way that the world
can bring about peace.
But here is how Jesus will give you peace.
If you obey his word He and the Father will come to
you and make a home with you.
Right in your heart.
Not by force but by choice.
They will abide, and live
in your heart bringing peace.
The world’s peace is peace through strength.
The Lord’s peace is peace through surrender.
We have all been asked:
if
you could have any wish what would it be?
And I think the most common answer
given is ‘world peace’.
Peace is important.
Jesus makes a point to tell his
disciples that he is
going to leave them with peace.
Peace is a vital part of our faith.
Let’s look a little closer at what
Jesus means by peace:
I. First there is the Peace the World
Gives.
Jesus recognized this kind of peace.
What kind of peace is this?
What did he have in mind?
Jesus Christ is God
o
and
God is all knowing
o
so I
know that Christ understood the history of man.
o
Not only
the history leading up and through his lifetime on earth but also well past and
even in our own time here on earth and well, well beyond.
Christ understands that the world offers peace to
those who are in power.
And you remained in power as long as
you have something other people desired.
And you have worldly peace if you comply with that power.
Outside of that, you are at war with the
world in one form or another.
“Peace,” Jesus
said, “I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not
give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not
be afraid.”
And - if you just allow those
words to soak in some, you will begin to understand what Jesus meant within
His Words.
·
This
new covenant is not a covenant of land;
o
It is
a covenant of the Lord’s blood.
·
It is
not a covenant of nation building;
o
But
rather it is a covenant of relation building.
He is telling his disciples:
·
You no
longer live on land - you live on love.
·
You no
longer work for nation - you work for neighbor.
·
You no
longer are under the Law - you are under grace.
·
You no
longer act out of fear - you serve out of joy.
The world is lost in
trying to be the controller of peace.
This is why Jesus offers something
which is different.
·
He
has to change their relationship to God.
·
He
has to reshape their lives into something other than countrymen.
·
He has
to make them Christian men.
·
Their
theology is no longer tied to the (Jewish) nation but tied to Christ,
through Christ to the Father.
·
And
it is RIGHT HERE. We to,
often fail right here. For
some reason we feel that the theology has to be tied in directly with what Trinity
Believing Religion we are following and it is in ONLY that religion alone where
God is found.
o
This
is a big mistake.
·
We
are tied to Jesus CHRIST, and through Christ, to God the
Father.
So the world not only tries to offer
us a political peace but it also tries to offer us personal peace.
You know, that very deep and special,
personal peace that we all long for.
Do you remember the column in the newspaper
called ‘Ann Landers’?
She received something like 10,000
letters a month. That is 340 different letters a day!
When asked what the most common
topic was, she answered that most people seem to be afraid of something.
They are afraid of losing:
·
Their
health,
·
Their
job,
·
Or
their family.
·
They
are afraid of upsetting their neighbor,
·
Or
alienating a friend.
·
Many
were even afraid when there is no reason to be afraid at all.
·
And
then she would wrap it up by saying: Ours is a world of fearful people.
Worldly peace, whether political or
personnel, is hard to come by.
I am not saying it doesn’t exist but we all know every time we get
up in the morning, watch the news, hear from family members, or talk to our
friends.
We know that this kind of peace is temporary at
best.
2. But there is an alternative.
A better type of peace.
We all know of it.
But
the question is, do we accept it?
I am talking about the peace which the Lord Gives.
There is a story of a little girl
and her first train ride.
Now this story occurred back in the
day when trains were the way to get around and it so happened that this was
this little girl’s first train ride across the country and she was traveling
with her parents.
As night descended on the train, the
mother took the girl, who was clearly quite anxious, and placed her on the
upper bunk of the sleeper. She told her little one that up there she would be
nearer to God and that God would watch over her.
As silence enveloped the young lady
she became afraid and called softly, "Mommy, are you there?"
"Yes dear," came the
response.
A little later, in a louder voice,
the child called, "Daddy, are you there, too?"
"Yes dear," was the reply.
After this had been repeated several
times one of the other passengers who was sharing their sleeper car finally
lost his patience and shouted loudly, "Yes, we're all here, your father,
your mother, your brother, and all your aunts and cousins; now settle down and
go to sleep!"
There was a moment of silence and
then, in hushed tones a little voice asked, "Mommy, was that God?"
·
You
may be that someone who has lived
life with no doubt about God's presence within your life.
·
You
may be that someone who has always
felt that special comfort from God Himself.
·
You
may be well acquainted with God’s Peace.
·
If
you are one of these people, you are one of the few, for most people - FEAR.
·
They
fear the Night,
·
They
fear the day,
·
They
fear people,
·
The
light,
·
The
dark
·
The
law,
·
The
lawless
·
Family,
·
Friends,
·
Strangers
·
Enemies,
·
Of Life,
·
And
death itself.
You name it. FEAR is all around us.
So Jesus made it clear to his
disciples that
o
He
wanted them - to have peace
o
And
that He would - leave that peace with them.
3. How do we receive this peace?
·
Jesus
is straightforward with this.
·
It is
through our obedience.
·
Those
who do not, are without.
·
Those
who obey His Word will
receive his peace.
·
Obedience
is what we GIVE in order
that we might RECIEVE the Peace that Jesus gives.
A gripping story is told in the book
“The
Little Flowers of St. Francis.”
Walking one day in the bitter cold
with Brother Leo, St Francis began to teach him about perfect joy and perfect
peace.
·
He
called to Brother Leo, who was walking on before him, and said to him:
o
“If
we monks were great holy men who edified all those around us this would not be
perfect joy.”
·
A
little further St. Francis called to Brother Leo again:
o
“O
Brother Leo, if we monks were to:
§ make the lame to walk,
§ if we should make straight the
crooked,
§ chase away demons,
§ give sight to the blind,
§ hearing to the deaf,
§ speech to the dumb,
§ and, what is even a far greater
work, if we should raise the dead after four days, write that this would
not be perfect joy.”
·
After
proceeding a few steps farther, and still bitterly cold, he cried out again
with a loud voice:
o
“O
Brother Leo, you little lamb of God!
§ If we monks could speak with the
tongues of angels;
§ if we could explain the course of
the stars;
§ if we knew the secrets of all the
plants;
§ if all the treasures of the earth
were revealed to us;
§ if we were acquainted with the
various qualities of all birds, of all fish, of all animals,
of men, of trees, of stones, of roots, and of
waters –
§ write that this would not be perfect
joy.
·
After
some two miles of this Brother Leo finally spoke up and said:
o
Father
Francis, I pray you teach me where then is perfect joy.
·
Francis
then teaches him this:
·
If,
when we shall arrive at St Mary of the Angels, all drenched with rain
and trembling with cold, all covered with mud and exhausted
from hunger;
·
If when
we knock at the convent-gate, the porter should come angrily and ask us who we
are;
·
If,
after we have told him, ‘We are two of the brethren’, he should answer angrily,
o
‘What
we say is not the truth;
o
we
are but two impostors going about to deceive the world,
o
and
take away the offerings of the poor;
o
be
gone I say’;
o
if
then he refuse to open to us,
o
and leaves
us outside,
o
exposed
to the snow and rain,
o
suffering
from cold and hunger
till nightfall –
o
then,
if we accept such injustice,
o
such
cruelty
o
and such
contempt with patience,
§ without being ruffled
§ and without murmuring,
§ believing with humility
§ and charity that the porter
really knows us,
§ and that it is God who made him
speak against us, write down, O Brother Leo, that this is perfect joy.
·
And
if we knock again,
·
And
the porter come out in anger to drive us away with words and blows, as if we were
vile impostors, saying,
o
‘Be gone,
miserable robbers!
o
To
the hospital, for here you shall neither eat nor sleep!’ –
o
and
if we accept all this
§ with patience,
§ with joy,
§ and with charity,
§ O Brother Leo, write that this
indeed is perfect joy.
·
And
if, urged by the cold and hunger, we knock again,
o
calling
to the porter and pleading to him with many tears so that he would open
to us and give us shelter,
o
for
the love of God,
o
and
if he come out more angry than before, exclaiming, ‘
o
We
are annoying rascals,
o
I
will deal with you as you deserve’;
o
and
taking a knotted stick,
o
he seize
us by the hood,
o
throwing
us on the ground,
o
rolling
us in the snow,
o
and he
would beat and hurt us with the knots in the stick –
o
if we
bear all these injuries
§ with patience
§ and joy,
§ thinking of the sufferings of our Blessed Lord,
§ which we would share out of love
for him,
§ write, O Brother Leo, that here,
finally, is perfect joy.
And now, brother, listen to the
conclusion.
o
Above
all the graces and all the gifts of the Holy Spirit which Christ
grants to his friends,
o
is
the grace of overcoming oneself,
o
and accepting
willingly,
o
out of
love for Christ,
o
all
suffering,
o
injury,
o
discomfort
o
and
contempt;
o
for in
all other gifts of God we cannot glory,
o
seeing
they proceed not
from ourselves but from God,
o
according
to the words of the Apostle Paul, (1 Corinthians 4:7 NIV)
§ ‘For who makes you different from anyone else?
§ What do you have that you did not receive?
§ And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did
not?
o
But
in the cross of tribulation and affliction we may glory,
because, as the Apostle says again, (Galatians 6:14 NIV)
§ ‘May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.’ Amen.”
I believe that what St Francis was
saying to Brother Leo was that:
o
The Peace
of Christ comes through our acts of obedience.
o
Especially
obedience in times of
suffering.
We will do well if we remember that
True
Peace is the
assurance
That one
day our Lord Jesus will return to take us back, back to our Father’s
house.
So, do not let your hearts be
troubled neither let them be afraid. Amen.1
