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Let There Be Joy! John
16:16-33
Our text for today finishes the hardest section of the gospel of John.
The Upper Room Discourse as it is called is very seldom preached or
discussed in great detail because Jesus is primarily dealing with the
emotions of the disciples. They were upset, they were confused about
some of Jesus' teaching, and they were afraid.
I have always been encouraged that the disci¬ples were real men with
real problems, and yet the Lord was able to use them. We some¬times get
the false impression that these men were different from us, especially
endowed with spiritual knowledge and courage; but as I hope you have
seen so far in our study that was not the case. They were human!
One of the recurring themes in our text for today is joy. The Eleven
were certainly not experiencing much joy that night! But what Jesus said
to them eventually made a difference in their lives, just as it can make
a difference in our lives today. Tenderly and patiently, our Lord
explained how His people can have joy in their lives.
There Is a Principle to Grasp John 16:16-22
16“A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little
while, and you will see me.” 17So some of his disciples said to one
another, “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 am going to the Father’?” 18So they were saying, “What does
he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.”
19Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Is this
what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while
and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’?
20Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world
will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.
21When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has
come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the
anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22So
also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again and your hearts will
rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.
The principle Jesus is teaching is simply this: God brings joy to our
lives, not by substitution, but by trans¬formation. That’s why his
illustration of the woman giving birth is so brilliant. The same baby
that caused the pain also caused the joy. In birth, God does not
substitute some¬thing else to relieve the mother's pain. In¬stead, He
uses what is there already but transforms it.
Every parent knows what it is like to have an unhappy child because a
toy is broken or because there is no one to play with. Parents have two
choices in that moment or trans¬form the situation into a new experience
for the unhappy child.
If I always get a new toy for the boys every time a toy is bro¬ken, they
will grow up expecting every problem to be solved by substitution.
If Trista calls for Carson to come over every time there is no one to
play with Trafton will grow up expect¬ing people to come to his rescue
whenever there is a crisis.
The result either way is a spoiled child who will not be able to cope
with reality.
The way of substitution for solving prob¬lems is the way of immaturity.
The way of transformation is the way of faith and maturi¬ty. We cannot
mature emotionally or spiritual¬ly if somebody is always replacing our
broken toys.
Jesus did not say that the mother's sorrow (pain) was replaced by joy,
but that the sor¬row was transformed into joy. The same baby that caused
the pain also caused the joy! And so it is in the Christian life: God
takes seem¬ingly impossible situations, adds the miracle of His grace,
and transforms trial into triumph and sorrow into joy.
Deuteronomy 23:5 says “Instead the LORD your God turned the curse into a
blessing for you, because the LORD your God loved you.”
Joseph's brothers sold him as a slave, and Potiphar put him into prison
as a criminal; but God transformed that hopeless situation of de¬feat
into victory.
Egypt's persecution of Israel only caused them to multiply and prosper
the more.
King Saul's murderous pursuit of David only made him more a man of God
and helped produce the psalms that encourage our hearts today.
Even Jesus took the cross, a symbol of defeat and shame, and transformed
it into a symbol of victory and glory.
If we can understand that biblical principle, we can better understand
the problems and ques¬tions of the disciples.
In John 16:16, Jesus announced that in a little while, they would not
see Him; then, in a little while, they would see Him. John will later
tell us that Jesus was speaking in riddles on purpose.
Once again I am encouraged that the disciples did not understand. So
when I am studying my bible and wrestling with understanding a hard
passage I am reminded that even the dis¬ciples had their hours of
spiritual ignorance!
So what did Jesus mean?
He could have been talking about the soon-to-occur events in con¬nection
with His death and resurrection. After His burial, they would not see
Him for a little while; but then He would rise from the dead and they
would see Him again. This is not the first time that He has made
reference to the fact that He would rise from the dead after three days,
but His words did not sink into their minds and hearts.
However, I think that Jesus was probably talking about His return to the
Father. This would be in line with what He said in John 16:10 "Because I
go to My Father, and ye see Me no more."
Now while the disci¬ples did not live long enough to see the return of
Christ, they did die and see Him when they ar¬rived in glory. In
comparison to eternity, the time that the church has been awaiting the
Lord's return has really been but "a little while". This is the same way
that the phrase "a little while" is used in Hebrews 10:37- "For yet a
little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry."
To the mother experiencing birth pains, ev¬ery minute may seem an hour.
Our concept of time changes with our feelings. Thirty minutes in the
dentist chair may seem like hours, while hours fishing or watching a
good football game may seem like minutes.
The mother feels as though the birth is taking a long time, when really
it may be only "a little while." When the baby has been born, pain is
forgotten as joy fills her heart.
While at first this would bring sadness and pain to the hearts of the
disciples, the ultimate application is joy to all of God's peo¬ple as
they await the coming of Jesus Christ.
There Is a Promise to Believe John 16:23-28
23In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you,
whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.
24Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will
receive, that your joy may be full. 25“I have said these things to you
in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to
you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father.
26In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I
will ask the Father on your behalf; 27for the Father himself loves you,
because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.£ 28I
came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving
the world and going to the Father.”
The central thought of this passage is prayer:
"Ask, and ye shall receive " in verse 24 is not the first time that
Jesus has used these words. But the meaning here is a bit different.
Once again because of the limits of the English language we don’t fully
understand what is being said here.
The word used in verses 19, first part of 23, and 26 is er-o-tah'-o and
means to request.
The word translat¬ed "ask" in the last part of 23, 24, and 26 is
ahee-teh'-o and means to ask, beg of a superior, or desire."
Jesus never uses ahee-teh'-o in His prayer life because He is equal to
the Father. But we come as inferiors to God, asking for His blessing.
Jesus starts this passage with the phrase "in that day", what does that
mean?
Some think that it is a Pre- Millennial reference to the time after
Jesus calls up the saved and the lost are going through the tribulation
here on earth. But since the Bible does not teach that doctrine that
cannot be what he is referring to.
Some say that “in that day” is a reference to heaven. But we cannot find
scripture that says that we will pray after we get to heaven.
So that leaves us with option three, which I believe is the right one
and that is the time after the coming of the Spirit which he promised
them in verse 22.
Jesus knew that they wanted to ask Him a question and he assured them
that a day would soon come when they would not ask Him questions.
Instead, they would pray to the Father and He would meet their needs.
This was the promise that they desperately needed to believe: that the
Father loved them and would hear their requests and meet their needs.
While Jesus was on earth, He met all the needs of His disciples. Now He
would return to the Father, but the Father would meet their needs. Here
is the wonderful promise and privilege of prayer.
Our Lord had mentioned prayer many times in His ministry, and He had set
the example for prayer in His own life. He was indeed a man of prayer.
In His Upper Room message, Jesus spends some more time emphasizing
prayer. He made it clear that believing prayer is one of the secrets of
a fruitful Christian life.
Jesus explained that there would be a new situation because of His
res¬urrection and ascension, and because of the coming of the Holy
Spirit. He would no longer speak to them in terms that demanded
spiritu¬al insight for their understanding. He would speak to them
plainly and reveal the Father to them.
There in the Upper Room, He had used a number of symbolic images to get
His mes¬sage across: the washing of their feet, the "Father's house,"
the vine and branches, and the birth of a baby. In the days that
followed, these images would become clearer to the dis¬ciples as they
would be taught by the Spirit of God.
The purpose of Bible study is not simply to understand profound truths,
but to get to know the Father better. If our reading and Bible study
falls short of this, it does more harm than good.
When you read the Book of Acts, you dis¬cover that the early church
depended on prayer. They believed the promises of God and asked God for
what they needed. It would do all of God's people good if they reviewed
regularly what Jesus taught about prayer in the Upper Room. There is
indeed joy in praying and in receiving answers to prayer. There is joy
in meeting the conditions Jesus has laid down for successful praying.
George Milller said that True prayer was not overcoming God's
reluctance, but overcoming God's willingness.
There is joy in prayer, and there is joy in realizing the principle of
transformation. Jesus shared a third kind of joy, the joy of sharing His
victory over the world.
There Is a Position to Claim John 16:29-33
29His disciples said, “Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using
figurative speech! 30Now we know that you know all things and do not
need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from
God.” 31Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32Behold, the hour is
coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own
home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is
with me. 33I have said these things to you, that in me you may have
peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have
overcome the world.”
The disciples suddenly moved out of their spiritual stupor and made a
tremendous affirmation of faith.
First, they claimed to understand what He had been teaching them, though
this claim was probably rash. They seemed unable to grasp the meaning of
His promised resurrection. They were confused even after His
resurrection as to the future of Israel. I am not criticizing them,
because we have just as many blind spots when it comes to under¬standing
His Word. All I am suggesting is that their affirmation was a bit
presumptuous.
They not only affirmed their understanding, but secondly, they also
affirmed their faith and assur¬ance. "Now we are sure ... by this we
be¬lieve."
It was quite a statement of faith, and I believe the Lord accepted it.
But it is possible to have faith, understand¬ing, and assurance and
still fail the Lord. Un¬less we practice that faith, apply that
understanding, and rest on that assurance, we will fail when the time of
testing comes. That is what happened to the disciples, and Jesus warned
them that it would happen.
He had already warned Peter that he would deny Him, but now He warned
the entire band of disciples that they would all forsake Him. John does
not quote the Old Testament prophecy found in Zechariah 13:7 but Matthew
does in Mat¬thew 26:31. I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the
flock will be scattered.’
John 16:33 is the Summary and climax of the Upper Room message. I have
said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world
you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Why did He give this message? So that the disciples might have peace in
a world of tribulation.
Note the contrast between "in Me" and "in the world." In Christ there is
peace; in the world there is tribulation. This is the position we need
to claim: we are in Christ, and therefore we can overcome the world and
all of its hatred.
George Morrison defined peace as "the possession of adequate resources."
In Jesus Christ, we have all the resources that we need. But peace
depends also on appropriate relationships. "In Me" is the key. In
ourselves, we have nothing; but "in Christ" we have all that we need.
Every believer is either overcome or an overcomer. The world wants to
overcome us; this is why Satan uses the world to persecute and pressure
believers. The world wants us to conform; it does not want us to be
different.
When we yield ourselves to Christ and trust Him, He enables us to be
overcomers. We must claim our spiritual position in Christ and believe
Him for victory.
"Be of good cheer!" is one of our Lord's repeated statements of
encouragement. Liter¬ally it means, "Cheer up!" Here, He announces the
"good cheer" of His victory over the world. We are overcomers because He
has first overcome for us.
As we make application of this difficult passage today, we can see how
these three explanations our Lord gave all fit together.
He revealed a wonderful principle¬ God transforms sorrow into joy.
But this prin¬ciple will not work in our lives unless we be¬lieve His
promise and pray. God has ordained that His work is accomplished through
believ¬ing prayer.
But we will not be able to pray effectively if we do not claim our
position as conquerors in Jesus Christ.
But John 16:33 is also a preface to His great High Priestly Prayer we
will look at next time. He had taught them the Word; now He would pray
for them. The Word and prayer must always go together.
There is joy when we permit God to trans¬form sorrow into joy.
There is joy when God answers prayer.
There is joy when we over¬come the world.
Let there be joy!
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