“The Cure for a Troubled Heart”

In the fourteenth chapter of John, Jesus is having a heart-to-heart talk with his disciples in the upper room. Just prior to this we read that Christ had washed their feet, teaching them that by humility and love they were to serve one another. Peter had been piping up all throughout the Lord’s discourse in Chapter thirteen questioning Christ’s words and actions with statements such as, “Lord, why are you washing my feet-you’ll never wash my feet…” Christ corrects him only to have Peter contradict again, “Then not only my feet but all of me…” And our Lord sets Peter right once more.

The Lord then makes a shocking statement to this tight-knit group of men who had closely accompanied him for three years.  One of them would betray him. Peter, Andrew, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew, James, the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite were stunned. They had no clue as to who among them that would be. Christ had taught them so well to love one another they suspected no one! The disciples who were blameless could lift their faces and look directly at one another. There was nothing to hide. Each one of them was innocent. (Interesting this took place during the Lord’s Supper-an excellent precedent for us to follow.) The one who was guilty of betrayal to Christ had seared his own conscience to the place where he had the audacity to face the others as well, with not a shade of blush! Peter gestures to Christ’s beloved disciple, John, who is contentedly leaning upon his adored Master, to ask the Lord who among them would be guilty of such a thing. Jesus gives an answer,

yet the disciples remain perplexed.  The Lord turns to Judas and shares his food with him. (There are many times we see the Lord being characteristically gracious to those he knew were his enemies.  Feeding them, healing them, warning them-and yet, these merciful actions of our Lord hardened the hearts of unbelievers even more!) Judas places the food in his mouth and stands there with the bag. Jesus orders him to carry out his evil plot with haste and he departs.

As Judas disappears into the Judean night, Christ is alone with his own. Flawed men, to be sure-diamonds in the rough-and yet, full of potential under the Lord’s workmanship! The disciples are persuaded that “brother Judas” left to purchase a few supplies for the upcoming feast-or that perhaps he went to distribute some money to the poor. Now Jesus begins to speak to this band of brothers. You can picture the eleven leaning closer to Christ, not wanting to miss a word. Something is happening-something is taking place. The Lord was troubled in his soul and they sensed it.  He continues to speak revealing he will not be with them much longer. That said, he encourages them to love one another-just as he had loved them. Just as he had always shown them love-regardless of their selfish ways at times, or their frequent instances of unbelief.

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

Three times the Lord tells them to love one another. Three is a very special number in the Bible. The number three was used to put a divine stamp of completion or fulfillment on a subject.   

But Peter is distracted. He’s still back on the part where Christ said he is leaving soon.

Can you picture Peter? Maybe he shook his head-looked around and said to himself, “Wait? What!” He questions, “Lord! Where are you going? Knowing Peter so thoroughly our Lord replies that Peter cannot come with him.   However that is not good enough for Peter. “ Why can’t I come with you? I’ll lay down my life for you!” And then, an instance of Christ’s infallible foresight-

“Jesus answered him, “Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake? 

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice.”    Peter is speechless. Taken aback. No more questions. No more outbursts.  

Jesus begins his next discourse with, “Let not your heart be troubled”, for undoubtedly he knew their hearts and understood how what he had recently shared was very unsettling to his followers. “Ye believe in God, believe also in me.” These words were spoken to settle their fears-to keep trouble from their hearts.  The key to that victory? They must believe. The entire world and almost everyone in it may be turned upside down- but you- you who belong to Christ-you who have left all to follow him-let not your heart be troubled. Whatever you do-guard your heart from not trusting Christ. “Take heed, brethren,” the book of Hebrews warns us, “lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.”

Then the Lord began to give promises concerning his children. “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. “

Wonderful, encouraging words.

The Lord continues and speaks of himself and the Father as one. Proving he is God the Son over and over. He knows his earthly ministry is coming to an end-he knows what is before him and thus, he pours out his heart to his disciples in these last few moments… But wait!

Here we have a word from someone else. Another disciple has a word to say. Now, we are accustomed to hearing from Peter all throughout the gospels. And we are used to hearing from James and John, the Sons of Thunder. But wait- halfway through the last gospel-we are going to hear from Philip? We have barely heard a peep out of Philip throughout the gospels yet now he asks such an unseemly question:

“Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?

Jesus has been with them for three years. Philip has witnessed every miracle. He saw a dead man named Lazarus walk out of the tomb at Christ’s command!  He saw others raised to life as well.  Philip watched as Jesus walked right on top of the water. He heard the words Christ spoke to the raging winds and the violent sea-“Peace, be still”-and witnessed the elements’ immediate obedience to their Creator. Philip was among the disciples when Christ multiplied a little boy’s lunch satisfying thousands of hungry men, women and children who had come to listen to the words of Jesus. Philip saw lepers cleansed and witnessed first-hand the indescribable joy of a blind man who saw the world around him for the first time. And as if those astounding events and occurrences were not enough, imagine each staggering word of profound wisdom and knowledge our Lord imparted to his disciples during those years! Why the unbelief, Philip?

But can you and I not relate to this? We’ve been saved for years-or even months-have seen the miracles-have watched what the Lord has done and is doing-and yet, in our unbelief when we come up against something so difficult, so challenging it is as if we tell the Lord, “I know what you did all those other times-I know what you’ve done for me before-but I just don’t know about this time…”

This is unbelief.

Have we not received an abundance of kindnesses and blessings at the hand of the Lord? Have we not seen God’s miracles in the lives of other believers and rejoiced with them? Have we not seen the faithfulness of God? Why the troubled heart then? Has our relationship with Christ been so surface? In what regard has he  disappointed us? Jesus Christ would calm our troubled heart if we would allow Him to by casting every care upon him.

For those who sincerely struggle with unbelief at times, there is comfort, peace, and victory in Christ. Consider these Biblical steps to higher ground:

• Face your unbelief-Remember in Mark chapter nine, where a desperate father brought his demon possessed son to the Lord for healing? Christ said he would heal the boy if the man would believe he would do it. Immediately the broken father tearfully cried out and confessed his sin of unbelief to the Lord; “Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief.”

That was enough for Jesus. That this despairing man was trying with all his heart to focus on Christ and not the awful and overwhelming circumstance in which he found himself. Jesus cast out the foul spirit, and the boy was healed from that moment. Confession of struggle, acknowledgement of sin is needed for victory. When you are confronted with any kind of problem in life the first thing you have to do is face it-admit it-that is half the battle.

• Focus your faith– Fix your eyes on Christ and take him at his word. Ask for grace in the trial, for strength. There have been times I have had to ask the Lord for grace and strength about as often as I took each breath. Some situations are so ponderous! But great grace, which comes through faith and prayer equips us to do something far greater than just survive overwhelming doubts and fears-those graces teach us to surrender to whatever the Lord’s will may be in any trial. To go lower. It truly seems to be a paradox in the Christian life-but when we go lower in humility-Christ raises us up. It is not always that things go the way we hoped, but we learn in the process, that even when they don’t, the Lord is in control and he has an even greater plan. Consider also-the words Jesus used to describe faith in the Scriptures were simple words. Childlike faith. Faith the size of a grain of mustard seed. Surely, you can have that much faith.
• Feelings do not revoke facts. Feeling do not overrule, outweigh, or overthrow facts. “For we walk by faith and not by sight” This is the entire Christian life. We are told, “The just shall live by faith”. We walk by faith-we trust God is always with us-you never have to ask the Lord to be with you. This is unnecessary. Ask for guidance, certainly. Ask him to deliver  you if it be his will-absolutely.  Ask for grace and strength and wisdom- only every day of your life!  But you never, never have to ask Christ to be with you-he lives within you.

Take heart, dear friend. The Christian life is a life of surrender and conquest. Surrender to Christ and conquest over self. In the immortal words of John Newton, the author of Amazing Grace: “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am. I am a great sinner, but Christ is a great Saviour.” Amen.

Thanks so much for reading! Liz