Alba 5-4-14 8-21-2022 (Revised)
HOW DO WE FACE TROUBLE IN THIS WORLD?
John 16:32-33
How many of you have a pressure pot? Pressure cooking has been around for a long time. In our basement we have the pressure cooker that my mother used many times, mostly when she was canning something. It would be dangerous to use that now because the seal is old and cracking.
Today the pressure pot has been revived and is used for more than just canning. We have one and Janine uses it to quickly cook meats, make soup and even boil eggs.
Some of you have had pressure all week long, some unique to you and some common to us all. We live in a world that is full of concerns and worries. And all the more so with a weakened economy, a weakened military and a question of leadership. These concerns put pressure on us.
But there are other pressures as well. It may be that you’ve got pressure in your family. Or maybe you’ve got pressure in your checkbook, or you’ve got pressure in your relationships, or health pressures. We face troubles that come from many places.
Well, you shouldn't be surprised. Jesus told even the apostles, recorded in John 16:33 “In the world you will have tribulation.” And these were the ones closest to Jesus.
In the World, in our surroundings, we will have tribulation. The Greek word for tribulation is thlipsis, a word that suggests that tribulation is like being pressed together or receiving pressure.
So that means that we will have afflictions, troubles, anguish, and persecution in this world. Especially if we are Christians.
Just ask a band of untested disciples who would eventually become hated, pursued, persecuted falsely condemned, tortured. That is why Jesus gives them a warning beginning in John chapter 15 and continues into chapter 16. Listen to what Jesus said to them.
John 15:18 “18 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
“20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.”
--Then skip to chapter 16
John 16: 1 “These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. 2 They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. 3 And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. 4 But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them.
--And skip down to verse 16
16 “A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.”
17 Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?” 18 They said therefore, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not know what He is saying.”
19 Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’? 20 Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.
--Now skip to verse 25
25 “These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.
“26 In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; 27 for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God. 28 I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.”
29 His disciples said to Him, “See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech! 30 Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.”
31 Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32 Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.
“33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
In these chapters, Jesus is preparing His disciples for the cross where He would die for our sins. He knows that when He leaves the Earth, they will be they will be left "in the World" surrounded by Satan’s world system.
The World that Jesus refers to here is not the World in the physical sense. He is not talking about the rocks and the trees, the waters and the skies, the seasons and the sun.
No, He is talking about a mean, cruel world that is controlled spiritually by Satan. Remember Jesus tells us "you are IN THE WORLD but not OF the world."
Although He is directly speaking to the Apostles, you and I can share in this word of warning. But He also gives us hope when times of trouble come. Because in spite of the trouble in this world, Jesus can and has overcome it. In His own words He says, “Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Thank God that Jesus has spoken these words of encouragement to us! Because there is power available when Jesus speaks.
He can say “Peace be still”, and winds and waves will take a vacation. He can say “Ephphatha”, which means be opened, and a deaf man will hear and a speech impediment will be taken away.
He can say “Come forth” and a dead man will answer from the grave and turn a funeral after-service into a family reunion. He can say “Come” and the water can become an unusual walkway.
He can say “Somebody touched me” and someone who has reached out to Him will agree with Him that He has so much power that just one touch will turn a life around.
I want to share a story that illustrates this truth. Several years ago, my daughter, Alison, had driven her car to Seneca where she worked accompanying the Junior High and High School Choirs. She went back and forth between the two schools.
She had gone to the Junior High and needed to go back to the High School but her car wouldn't start. Alison sent a text to me telling of the problem. I sent a text back asking her to try some things. Nothing worked.
I was at the Avalon Hospice office and as chaplain was already planning to see patients in the Seneca area, so I sent a text saying I would come.
It took about a half an hour to get there, and sure enough the car would not start. Eventually I took Alison to the High School so she could do her work. And I went to the local O'Reilly Automotive store.
A nice young fellow was behind the counter. The only thing he could think of was that the battery was the problem. I didn't think so because the battery was only two years old, and when trying to start the car, there wasn't the usual chk, chk, chk that you hear when the battery is low.
But with no other way to go, I asked for tools to remove the battery from Alison's car so I could bring it in for them to check. They loaned me the tools.
The car was only about a block and a half from the store. I got the battery out and took it to the store. At that point another man assisted who tested the battery. He said it tested at 65%. That didn't seem that bad, but he offered to charge it. So I thought that wouldn't hurt.
While the battery was being charged I went to make the visits on our Hospice patients. After finishing three visits, I went back to the store. They said it was fully charged.
Borrowing their tools again, I took the battery to Alison's car and tried to hook it back up. But the alarm went off every time I tried to put the positive cable on. By this time Alison was finished with her work so I went to get her and bring her back to her car.
She had the key. The only way to stop the alarm was to have the key and put it in the ignition, which worked. So finally, I was able to complete hooking up the battery. Then Alison tried starting it again. Nothing! Absolutely nothing!
I took the tools back to the store and explained my plight. The guy there asked if the car had an alarm system. By this time I knew full well that it did, and said yes. He asked what kind of car it was. Well, it's the car I used to drive, so I told him that it was a '96 Lexus.
He said “Oh.” He wasn't sure how do deal with that. But just then a customer who looked like he was a mechanic came up to the counter. The store guy asked this other fellow how to reset the alarm on a Lexus.
He said, “Oh, well, its going to take 30 minutes.” He explained that we needed to put the key in and turn it on for 10 minutes, turn it off for just a bit and then repeat that two more times.
Without any other options, Alison and I went back to her car and sat in the car for 30 minutes as I tried this latest remedy.
Finally the 30 minutes were over. When the on and off thing had been done three times, with anticipation I turned the key to start the car. …..Nothing! Not even a chk, chk, chk.
What now? I knew that I could take Alison home, but then what about tomorrow? She would need to get to work. And there would be her car 25 miles away that wasn't working. What now?
We were just sitting in that car and in a quandary. I pulled the key out of the ignition. This key had a remote button on its side to lock and unlock the doors. It had a little battery inside of it of course.
Much of the time it didn't work. Even when I was driving that car, I had to get right next to the car door to make it unlock the door. One time I was going to replace the battery.
I don't think it had been replaced since the car was new. But the part that should come off so that you can get to the battery was stuck like glue. So I gave up.
Still, sitting in that car that wouldn't start, I aimlessly pushed at the button. Of course nothing was happening. At least not the first several times I pushed it. Then all of a sudden there was a noise that made me jump. The car doors locked!
Well then I thought I would see if it would unlock the car. Push, push, push, nothing. Then, again, a noise, and the doors unlocked. With nothing more to do than to try again, I put the key in the ignition, and tried to start the car again.
It started! It actually started! After all the other things I had tried, all I needed to do was use that button to lock and unlock the doors.
I'll tell you, that night I made sure that I got that cover off to replace the battery in that key. They had one to fit at Walmart. I didn't want this to happen again, and not have a key that would solve the problem.
Was it wrong to try all the other things we did to try to get the car started? No, not at all. We had a problem, the car wouldn't start.
So was it wrong to check the battery? No, that was a good thing. Was it wrong to charge the battery that was low? No, that was a good thing.
Was it wrong to take the advice of the mechanic and turn the key on and off for 30 minutes? No, it didn't work, but it seemed worth trying.
What worked? Pushing the one button that would lock and unlock the doors. The key had the answer to our problem.
In this world we face so many problems, and we look for answers to solve the problems. In this world there are many things that offer themselves as the solution to the problems we face.
Some of those things are not bad in and of themselves. The trouble is, the problems remain after all that the world may offer. In fact, the so called solutions the world offers just complicate our lives. More often than not, we end up in worse shape than when we began.
The only thing that worked for the car to start was to use the key and push that button. In the same way, if you want to know victory over the troubles this world throws at you, there is only one key that works.
It is Jesus. Jesus alone is the Way, the Truth and Life. And He has power to overcome even in times of trouble and tribulation.
When the pressure is on I John 5:4-5 proclaims, This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
Look again at the text for today, John 16:33. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Do you think that there is any trouble that touches your life that God doesn’t know about? Do you think there is any trouble that touches your life that God cannot handle?
Do you think that there is any trouble that touches your life that doesn’t have a purpose? Do you think that there is any trouble that touches your life that isn't able to teach you something God wants you to know?
When the world's problems come at you, there is One who knows that you might have given up a long time ago, but you had a word – His word – to keep you going:
He says I have spoken unto you these things, these words of warning, but also words of encouragement, that in these times of trouble, in me you might have peace.
CONCLUSION:
THE TROUBLE TREE
The carpenter I hired to help me restore an old farmhouse had just finished a rough first day on the job. A flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit, and now his ancient pickup truck refused to start. While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence.
On arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands.
When opening the door he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss. Afterward he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier.
"Oh, that’s my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can’t help having troubles on the job, but one thing’s for sure, troubles don’t belong in the house with my wife and the children. So I just hang them on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up again."
He paused. "Funny thing is," he smiled, "When I come out in the morning to pick ’em up, there ain’t nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before."
Mikey’s Funnies. www.MikeysFunnies.com!
Cast your care upon Jesus, for He cares for you!
