Dec. 14, 2003 John 15:26-16:4, 32-33
“The gift that Jesus gave”
INTRODUCTION
Did you know that there are a multitude of ways to get yourself into trouble at Christmas?
Buying the wrong gift can get you into trouble. Maybe you heard about the guy that bought his wife a beautiful diamond ring for Christmas. A friend of his said, "I thought she wanted one of those sporty 4-Wheel drive vehicles." "She did," he replied. "But where am I gonna find a fake Jeep?"
Another good way to get into trouble is to have a children’s Christmas play. A children’s Sunday school class was putting on a Christmas pageant which included the story of Mary and Joseph coming to the inn. One boy wanted so very much to be Joseph, but when the parts were handed out, a boy he didn’t like was given that part, and he was assigned to be the inn-keeper instead. He was pretty upset about this but he didn’t say anything to the director.
During all the rehearsals he thought what he might do to get even with this rival who got to be Joseph. Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the innkeeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted.
Joseph answered, "We’d like to have a room for the night." Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door open wide and said, "Great, come on in and I’ll give you the best room in the house!"
For a few seconds poor little Joseph didn’t know what to do. Thinking quickly on his feet, he looked inside the door past the inn-keeper and then said, "No wife of mine is going to stay in a dump like this. Come on, Mary, let’s go to the barn." - And once again the play was back on track!
Most of us don’t need the extra activities of Christmas to get us into trouble. We stay in trouble all year long. Sometimes that trouble is because of us, and sometimes that trouble is because of Jesus. Last week, we saw that because of our relationship with Jesus, trouble is going to come into our lives. The world-system that we Christians try to be so much like – especially at Christmas – hates us because of what we stand for and because of who we belong to. But instead of returning hate to the people who are trapped in that world system, we are to love them. That will give us the opportunity to introduce them to the focus of Christmas – Jesus.
This morning, I will ask and answer two more questions concerning the trouble that Jesus said will come to all those who choose to stay in His company. As we deal with these questions, you will have to deal with a question that only you can answer: “Is it worth all the trouble that it will bring into my life for me to choose to stay in the presence of Jesus?”
1. Why did Jesus tell them about the trouble?
It’s not exactly a sound marketing ploy for attracting new disciples or keeping the ones you already have. Maybe Jesus should have fired his marketing team and signed a contract with the people who come up with the ads for Wal-mart, Target or M & M’s. Those marketing firms would highlight all the positive benefits of being a follower of Jesus. They would down-play the down side. They would give Jesus a chocolate coating that doesn’t melt when the heat of trouble is applied. They would have a 50% sale on following Jesus – lower the cost. Or get the first 30 days free of trouble if you sign up with Jesus for just a 2 year commitment. But Jesus didn’t use any of those gimmicks. He was after something different than just making a quick sale.
He wanted them to cling to Him even tighter
“All this I have told you so that you will not go astray.” John 16:1 (NIV)
Jesus told them these things (His departure, Vine and branches, the coming troubles and the coming of the Holy Spirit) so that they would not go astray – leave, quit, get side-tracked and disillusioned.
Trouble in your life will either push you toward Jesus or it will push you away from Him.
We are going through a lot of sickness in our nation right now. It’s that time of year. When do children cling closest to their mothers? It’s when they are sick.
Jesus doesn’t want us to be the kind of people who run away when trouble comes. He wants us to be people who stay as close as we possibly can to the one who will get us through the trouble.
He wanted to warn them
“I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you.” John 16:4 (NIV)
Tammy warned our children – and her husband – not to snoop around the Christmas tree or else the presents might find their way back to the store that they came from. Every year, consumer groups warn parents about certain toys that are dangerous and should not be purchased. Usually you warn somebody in order to get them to choose a different course of action.
Jesus didn’t warn the disciples to get them to change their actions and stop following Him. He warned them so that they would be ready for the trouble when it came. He wanted them to be emotionally and psychologically prepared so that they wouldn’t think something was wrong when the persecution began. “Is this kind of stuff supposed to be happening? Is it normal?” He didn’t want it to catch them off guard.
“All that will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”
2 Timothy 3:12 (NIV)
“Do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.” 1 Peter 4:12 (NIV)
Jesus was brutally honest with them. No hidden costs. No fine print. No extra charges on your credit card when you get it a month from now. He was very different from the ads on TV that make toys, gadgets and clothing seem much better than they are in reality. They don’t give you all the information you need in order to make a wise decision. Often, when you get the toy, it isn’t what you expected, and you are easily disillusioned.
One of Tammy’s favorite movies is the Christmas classic, “A Christmas Story”, the saga of a little boy named Ralphie Parker growing up in Gary, Indiana of the 1950’s. Ralphie has been drinking Ovaltine for months, saving up box tops so that he could send in a get a Little Orphan Annie Secret Decoder Ring. Finally the Secret Decoder Ring arrives. He listens to Little Orphan Annie on the radio, waiting for the secret code message. He carefully writes down the code and then rushes off to the bathroom to be begin the decoding process. The suspense builds as he decodes the first few letters "Be sure to.." Be sure to what. The fate of the world could rest in his hands. His pencil flies as he feverishly struggles to decode the rest of the message. "Be sure to drink your Ovaltine." A crummy commercial?! Sometimes you just don’t feel like you get what was promised.
With Jesus, you know exactly what you’re getting into. There’s nothing hidden about it. But because Jesus is so honest about the bad things, you can have confidence that He is being honest about all the positive benefits too.
He wanted the timing to be right
“I did not tell you this at first because I was with you.” John 16:4 (NIV)
Timing is everything. If our kids have a favorite parent at Christmas time, it is me. I am usually the one that suggests to the family that we open our presents on Christmas Eve. It makes sense to me. We’ll be going to Ga. the day after Christmas, so opening the gifts a few hours early gives the kids a little bit more time to enjoy them before we leave town. Tammy usually puts a halt on my idea. She would much rather we wait to open until Christmas because that’s when the time is right. I guess between the two of us, Tammy is the one who is more in line with how God does things. Timing is important to Him too. In Gal. 4:4, it says, “...when the right time came, God sent His Son...” (NLT)
Timing was important to Jesus too. He didn’t tell them these things earlier. There was no need. They wouldn’t have listened. He was with them to protect them and explain things as they came along. The disciples had already experienced animosity (from the religious leaders) and attacks (be-heading of John the Baptist). But Jesus had been there to lead them, explain things and keep them focused. Now, He was getting ready to go back to heaven. They were going to have to face the troubles without His physical presence.
This was graduation day for the disciples. They were getting ready to leave the classroom and go out into the real world. The classroom is easy. It’s okay to fail there. The biggest consequence of failure there is the displeasure of your teacher and parents along with some kind of punishment. Failure in the real world has much greater consequences. Now was the time for Jesus to let them know what they were up against.
Just as Jesus was always perfect in His timing for passing along information, so His timing was perfect for meeting the needs of His disciples in the hour of their greatest trouble.
“When you are brought before synagogues...do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.” Luke 12:11,12 (NIV)
Since trouble was coming, and failure was a possibility, that made them open to some new possibilities and a new source of help.
He wanted them to be open to receiving the Holy Spirit
“When the Counselor comes...he will testify about me.” John 15:26 (NIV)
“...Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you...” John 16:7 (NIV)
Jesus tried to change their perspective on the situation. It was a good thing – not a bad thing that He was leaving because it would pave the way for the arrival of the Spirit.
It is because of the name of Jesus that we suffer persecution, but it is also in His name that we receive the Holy Spirit and get answers to prayer.
“If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:13 (NIV)
He wanted their peace to rest in Him
Not in their circumstances
“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.” John 16:33 (NIV)
On the night that the angels announced the birth of Jesus, they said, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:14 (KJV) But that doesn’t mean that Jesus brought peace to everyone or every situation. “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to bring strife and division. From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against – or the other way around. There will be a division between father and son, mother and daughter, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.” Luke 12:51-53 (NLT) A relationship with God is going to create conflict among family members.
This is the time of year when you want peace in the family. Some of you dread spending time with certain of your family members because you have different value systems and invariably there is going to be conflict. Maybe they drink, and you don’t. Maybe they use profanity, and you really have no desire to be around them. The thought of being with them tears you up inside. But Jesus says that our peace is not supposed to be determined by our circumstances. Rather, our peace rests in Him. So regardless of what kind of storm is raging around me, I can have peace because Jesus is with me.
TRAN: Jesus told His disciples and He tells us that when we choose to follow Him, it’s going to bring trouble. Along with that piece of news, He also provided us with some promises to carry us through the trouble.
2. What did Jesus give them to carry them through?
The promise of His power
“...take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 (NIV)
“...greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4 (NIV)
Jesus was telling them something like this: "In the next [few] hours, the world is going to throw everything they can on top of me. You’re going to see me encounter the worst that the world has to offer. I want you to understand that when I encounter the worst that the world has to offer, I’m going to be victorious. Cheer up, because I’m going to overcome the world. You’re going to see me taken away. You’re going to see me in a mock trial. You’re going to see me die on a cross... But if you’ll hang around, on the third day, you’ll see me resurrect from the dead." And He said, "I want you to understand that because I was victorious over the storm of death, you’ll be victorious over every storm you encounter in life." That’s what it’s all about. Cheer up. He said, "I have overcome the world." – John Maxwell in a sermon recorded on sermoncentral.com
The promise of His protection
“Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name...” John 17:11 (NIV)
“While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe...None has been lost...” John 17:11-12 (NIV)
What if my desire is to be taken out of the world instead of being protected in the world?
“My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.” John 17:15 (NIV)
We still have a mission in the world. It is to take the gift that Jesus has given us and pass it along to other people. As we do that, we’re going to encounter some opposition.
“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith...” 1 Peter 5:8,9
“...do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. ...Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell.” Luke 12:4,5 (NIV)
The promise of His presence
Disciples: “That’s just great! Just as trouble is coming, Jesus is leaving! We need Him now more than ever.” The disciples could handle trouble if Jesus was around. Peter boldly declares that he will fight to the death at Jesus’ side. (i.e. stilling the storm, feeding 5000, healing the sick) Trouble makes you feel like you are all alone. (i.e. Elijah felt all alone when Jezebel threatened his life)
They were all upset that He would be leaving them. They were feeling alone. Jesus said that trouble was coming to Him soon [He would experience it before they were faced with it], and they would be the ones who left Him all alone. Jesus said that He would not be alone because the Father would be with Him.
“...a time is coming, and has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.” John 16:32 (NIV)
Our loneliness in trouble can be overcome through our realization that the Father is with us even when all others leave.
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:20 (NIV)
“...your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you...” 1 Corinthians 6:19
CONCLUSION
It is being in the presence of Jesus that gets you into trouble, but it is the presence of Jesus that keeps you safe and secure in the middle of trouble.
INVITATION
“Maybe it would be better for me just to stay away from Jesus. That way, I can avoid the trouble all together.” My friend, we live in a world of trouble. You cannot get away from it.
It was a few days before Christmas on the Oregon coast. Two men whose families lived next door opted to go sailing while their wives went Christmas shopping. An unexpected storm surprised the weekend sailors. Before long, the sea became angry, and the two had a difficult time keeping the sailboat under control. While heading toward the harbor, the craft hit a sandbar and grounded. Both men jumped overboard into the icy water and began to push and shove in an attempt to get the sailboat into deeper water. Knee-deep in mud and repeatedly bounced against the hull by unfriendly waves, the one said to the other, “This is bad. ... But it sure beats Christmas shopping!”
You are going to have trouble in your life. The difference with the trouble that comes with Jesus is that it has a purpose, meaning and value to it, and you will NEVER go through it alone. How will you answer that question that I posed to you at the beginning? Knowing that being in the presence of Jesus is going to bring trouble, are you going to turn back and stop following Him, or are you going to decide it’s worth the cost and cling to Him with every ounce of strength that you have?
