Sorrow Transformed

Well, good morning, church.

We are excited to be here to worship with you as we continue to move through the Gospel of John in our study, which we've been in for almost a year and a half now.

And so, but it's good.

We're nearing the end.

We don't have too many more months.

But as we are looking at John's Gospel, if you would turn in your copy of God's word to chapter 16 in the Gospel of John.

And let me begin with a reminder, a reminder of John's spirit-filled purpose in writing his gospel account to you.

I think it's important for us to always keep this in mind as we push through the book of John, knowing his purpose.

His purpose is laid out clearly to us in chapter 20, verse 30.

And he says this, now Jesus did many signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book, but these signs are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Amen.

Amen.

What a beautiful picture of God giving us the visible evidence of who he is, so that we may believe and have life in his name.

Now the scripture says this that Jesus did many signs, but John, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, recorded only seven of them.

So the question to us is why only seven?

Why did Jesus only give seven?

There were so many.

Why didn't he keep giving more and more and more so that all would eventually believe?

Well, if you're like me, if you're anything like me, and my wife can testify to this, I tend to over-explain things or give too much information when in my mind I think it's perfectly clear, right?

It's so clear in my mind, it's so clear there that I'm giving such great clarity to the problem, to the situation, to the biblical texts, and then the realization comes when I see the deer in the headlight stare from my wife, and I've realized it's as clear as mud.

Right?

Like we've all been there.

We've all been there.

Whether it's been with uh children, a friend, spouses, at some point you've tried to explain something and you've given so many different examples, and you've realized, well, I've just confused them greatly.

I think this is what Jesus has done in the Gospel of John.

Right?

He's given us some beautiful examples, some clear examples that if you looked at his life and you realized this, what else could he really do?

Right?

He raised a man from the dead, he healed a man who was 20 miles away, he walked on water, he fed 20,000 people with just a few pieces of fish and bread.

Like, what else could Jesus do?

And so he's already proven himself to be the Christ, the Messiah.

But thank God in his sovereign grace and in his mercy towards us in our limited understanding that he gives us exactly what we need so that we may believe.

So John wrote these signs, these seven, so that the readers would believe more or less, right?

More or fewer might either confuse the message or not give enough evidence, need it to open the eyes of the disciples so that they may see Jesus as the Son of God.

And so Jesus speaks to his disciples on the night before his crucifixion, preparing them for grief and sorrow, the grief and the sorrow that they will soon experience.

He doesn't take this time and these few days and these few moments to give more teaching.

He's not trying to cloud them, he's not trying to confuse them.

Instead, he steps back and he encourages them.

His goal in this moment is not to burden them with more things, more information about his death, burial, and resurrection, which he could have easily done.

But he knew that they would not comprehend it without what?

Without the Spirit, which he has already promised them.

He says, when the Spirit comes, we see this in John chapter 14, and this is the graciousness, the compassion of our Savior, the one who knows his sheep, that he he gives this promise that when the Spirit comes, he will reveal all things to them.

John 14 · chapter mention

And so what we have here in this private moment, this private instruction that Jesus is giving to his disciples from chapter 13 all the way to chapter 17, this is the private instruction that he's giving to them right before his arrest.

But here in chapter 16, Jesus emphasizes the coming of the work of the Holy Spirit, the disciples' grief, and then the promise of peace, the promise of hope and joy.

But in our immediate context, he moves from the spirit, the spirit ministry of guiding his disciples, right?

The helper, into this assurance that even though sorrow will come, it will not be the final word.

It will not be the final word.

Instead, their sorrow will be transformed into joy.

Not replaced, but transformed.

Brian Bell says it this way the Lord does not replace our sorrow with joy, yet he transforms it into joy.

It's a beautiful picture of how God uses these circumstances in our life for joy.

He doesn't just get rid of them, but he transforms them into joy.

And so if you would follow along with me.

Starting in verse 16, as we work through verse 24, John writes this, he says, A little while you will see me no longer, and again a little while you will see me.

So 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.

So they were asking, What does he mean by a little while?

We do not know what he is talking about.

Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, This is what you are asking yourselves.

What I mean by saying a little while and you will see me, and again a little while and you will see me again.

Truly, 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.

When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because sh her hour has come, but when she sees deliver when when she delivers the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for the joy that a human being has been born into the world, so also you have sorrow now.

But I see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

For in 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.

Until now you have asked nothing in my name.

Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

And so the first promise we see from Christ in verse sixteen is that the Jesus promises to his disciples that his return will be soon.

That it will be soon.

It won't be delayed, it won't be any longer or any sooner than God has already planned it.

But what he's promising to us that it will be soon.

And so he says this in verse 16.

We see this phrase.

It says a little while.

He uses this two times out of the eight times in John's gospel.

He uses it two times right here in this verse.

And in the original language, what it means is short or shortly.

And so what he's saying is, shortly I will return.

Shortly.

And so now there's been many different uh ways to interpret this over the years and over the times.

But if context is king, which it is for us, context is king.

And so Jesus is speaking of his death and his resurrection here.

Jesus says to his disciples that shortly I will be leaving you, but not very long after I will return.

And so the first little while points to what?

His death and his burial.

Now, this is not a new concept.

If you've been walking through John, would have you've heard this.

You would have heard this idea of a little while.

He said it to them multiple times.

He said it to the Jews first in chapter 7.

He says, in a little while.

And then again in chapter 13, he says it to his disciples in a little while.

And so what he's doing here is he's reaffirming to them that it's to their advantage that he leaves.

He's already said this to them, but he's saying it's necessary for me to leave.

We see it in verse 6, I mean verse 7 of chapter 16, that it's necessary.

It's actually to your advantage that I leave, so that the helper, the spirit of God, will come and he will empower you while I'm with the Father.

I'm not leaving you alone, but I'm giving you my spirit.

And so upon my death, burial, and resurrection, the spirit will come.

And so the second little while points to what?

The promise of his resurrection, his return.

And I love that in the midst of all this confusion, right?

In the midst of what seems to be maybe this type of abandonment from the disciples, like, where are you going, Jesus, what are you doing?

In the midst of this, as the eye, as the eyes of the disciples are on the current situation, Jesus brings comfort to them by his promise.

He says, Look, you may not know, you may not understand, but I will return.

He doesn't compound their confusion with more theology or more doctrine or more or more examples of what's going on.

He's trusting that when the Spirit comes, that it will reveal all things, right?

Verse 14, we I mean, chapter 14, once again, verse 26, if you want to highlight it, this is what Jesus is doing.

He's comforting them, he's saying to them, you will understand.

At some point, the physical sight, what you can see, will be transformed into spiritual sight.

You will understand because the Spirit of God will come and bring an understanding to you by teaching you all things and bringing all things to your remembrance.

And so, church, when sorrow makes the promise that Christ feels distance, because at times it does, right?

It may feel that.

Remember that Jesus never confused, is never confused about the timing and the purpose of his work.

That is, that what's going on in the disciples, or this is what's going on in the hearts of the disciples now, right?

They've heard a little while and they don't fully understand, they can't fully comprehend, but Christ knowing exactly what he's doing in the same way.

We may not understand why the Lord allows certain seasons in our life, certain seasons of grief or waiting or uncertainty.

We don't understand why that's going on, but we can trust that he will return.

We can trust in his return, we can trust in his resurrection, we can trust in his presence, that he has given us his spirit, and his spirit is never delayed.

He's never delayed, though we may feel that way.

So, church, may I encourage you this morning by saying to you, do not measure God's faithfulness by what you can presently see.

Don't do that.

That's the mistake.

When we look into the presence and we see what we can see, what we can tend to understand, don't make that mistake.

Measure it by the finished work of Christ and his promise that he will return for his people.

Meaning, don't decide whether God is faithful based only on what life looks like right now.

Some circumstances look painful, right?

Some circumstances look confusing, some look delayed, some look unfinished.

But God's faithfulness is proven, and it's proven most clearly to us through the cross, through the life of Christ, which he has already done by living, dying, and resurrecting.

And so in Christ's promise, he will return for his people and he will keep his people.

He will keep his people.

One on unknown author says it this way, he says, What I see right now may be painful, but what Christ has finished is certain.

And so we have this promise that Christ will return.

Now, the second promise we see here in verse 17 through 21 is that their sorrow will transform into joy.

It will transform, it will not be taken away.

If you know anything about life, especially let's just take friends.

If you think about the transformation of some deep friendships that you have, you've gone through a lot of stuff, right?

God didn't replace that friend because it's just easier to go find a new friend.

He's given you that friend because he's walked through a lot of life together and you've developed this deep relationship with him.

This is transforming that.

So now that friendship is joyful.

It's joyful.

He's not just gonna keep replacing it.

And so it's this idea that this transform, this joy or this, I mean this sorrow in your life, whatever you're going through, these circumstances is gonna be transformed.

You're gonna remember what God has done through it, which is gonna ultimately bring you joy.

And so we see this in verse 17.

Now, as we work through this, there's three things that kind of unfold.

Now, the first thing in this chapter seven, uh in verse 17 through 18 is our limited understanding cannot fully grasp God's ordained plan.

Right?

We can't.

We have a limited understanding.

We're trying to.

Now we're pursuing Christ, but we ultimately have to trust.

We can't fully understand this.

Now the disciples are confused by what Jesus words, uh by Jesus' words, and instead of asking him, who's standing right there, by the way, he's in the room.

They're not asking him.

Instead, in verse 18, we see them, and it says they're saying, which is in the imperfect tense, meaning it's over and over.

Like they keep asking over and over to one another, kind of in this group, right?

They're in their little huddle and they're kind of over over to the side and they're looking at Jesus, but they're also like, hey, what's he talking about?

Like, what's going on?

What does he mean in a little while?

And so they're asking this instead of being right there, right?

They're holding their own discussion among themselves, which shows what?

Our limited understanding, right?

This is what's going on.

They don't understand, and so it's showing their human limitations to understand.

And so the disciples, uh, in and of themselves are trying to figure this out.

But look, the disciples, they they love Jesus, right?

It's not that they didn't love Jesus, it's not that they didn't uh see the things that he's done, but they just can't fully understand yet because they're on one side of the cross at this point.

Now we're on the other side of the cross, so sometimes we think, why in the world, right?

How many times have you heard that if I lived with Jesus, I'd I'd run through, you know, whatever for Jesus, I'd do whatever for Jesus.

It's much different on this side of the cross.

And so in this moment, they're still trying to figure out what's going on.

They're standing on the opposite side of the cross that we are today.

And so what seems unclear to them uh was not unclear to Jesus.

It made perfect sense to Jesus.

And so even though they felt confused, God's plan to redeem sinners through Jesus' death and resurrection was still clear in his mind.

I love Isaiah 55.

It reminds of this, it reminds us of this in chapter uh 55, verse 8.

It says, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are the ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

And then again, in Proverbs 3, 5 through 6 says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding, for in all your ways acknowledge Him.

Thank God that God knows more than we do.

I don't want a God that can reason like me.

I want a God who knows the things that I don't know.

He knows how to lead me and direct me for God's glory and for his and for our good.

That's the God that I want.

That's the God that Isaiah speaks of, and the God in our Proverbs and the God of the scriptures.

And so our inability to understand God's plan doesn't mean God's plan is uncertain.

It doesn't mean that.

It means our vision is limited while his purpose is perfect.

That's what it means.

We're limited.

We're limited by what we can see and know, but his is perfect.

And so trust, continue to trust in God, which leads us to our next point.

God's perfect knowledge calls us to trust him who knows all things.

Trust him who knows all things.

Verse 19 through 20.

Right?

Jesus reveals his deity to them again, right?

By his all-knowing, omniscient power, he reveals to them their own thoughts.

Right?

Remember, they're discussing in their own little group, and he and himself with great compassion, he gives them this promise in verse 20 to comfort them in this short season of sorrow.

And it was necessary, right?

It was necessary so that it didn't add to their burden.

And he wanted, instead of teaching them more, he gives them a comfort, right?

He comforts them.

And then verse 20 he says this, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.

He's preparing them for the cross.

The disciples would grieve, right?

They would grieve when Jesus eventually leaves through his death.

There'll be greatly uh grieving, there will be great sorrow in their minds.

They will not understand still completely.

But Jesus is preparing them.

He's preparing them.

He's about to transform their sorrow into joy.

And so there will be greatly.

But at the same time, the unbelieving world will be doing what?

It will be rejoicing.

It will be rejoicing because they think that they have that Jesus has been defeated.

This sense of victory and validation of all that they have done in the Jewish leadership would feel would feel a sense of victory, of like, yes, we've accomplished it.

We remove the threat.

Jesus is gone.

Because they didn't believe he was the promised Messiah.

But the promise is that Jesus will return and he will transform our sorrow into joy.

Look at verse 20.

He says, Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice and you will be sorrowful.

Right?

He's not saying you won't.

He's telling us, Christians' life, this strenuous life, this hard life, it's not going to be easy.

There will be sorrow, but your sorrow will turn into joy.

It means their sorrow will not simply be removed, but it will be replaced with something unrelated.

Rather, the very uh evidence that causes their sorrow, the death of Christ will become the foundation of their joy once they see him raised from the dead.

And so, church, this is the very foundation of our joy.

This is it.

The fulfillment of the scriptures in his death and his resurrection, that in Christ alone, God defeated Satan's sin and death forever.

And he promises us that our sorrow will not be wasted.

It will not be permanent, it will not be final.

Instead, it will be transformed into joy.

So the point is that the cross first looked like looked like defeat, but through the resurrection, it became the source of our everlasting joy.

So this is God's perfect knowledge that we're called to trust in, even when we can't see, even though we don't know all things.

And then the third thing we see is that our finite minds cannot fully see how sorrow gives way to joy.

In our finite minds, we can't see this.

In verse 21, so he gives us an example, right?

That's what Jesus does.

He gives us an illustration.

He says, when a woman gives birth, is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has not come.

Now we've heard this before, this hour has not come, right?

Jesus' hour is coming.

But when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish for the joy that a uh human being has been born into the world.

This is why Jesus gives us this beautiful illustration, because we don't understand.

We can't understand this purpose.

Now, the New Holman uh Testament commentary helps us with this illustration.

It says this, the grief turning to joy was not like sorrow followed by joy.

For example, illness.

In that case, the absence of the cause of the grief brings about joy, not so with the birth of a baby.

When pregnancy culminates in delivery, the cause of the pain becomes the cause of the joy.

Jesus is saying to his disciples, sorrow over his death will not be like ordinary grief that goes away only when the painful thing is removed.

This is the example of being sick, right?

When we're sick, we just want it to be removed.

We want to take whatever medicine it is, give us the medicine, let it be removed.

I want the sickness to go away, and we get this temporary joy, but at some point we're probably all gonna be sick again, right?

We're gonna be sick again.

We just want it to be removed.

We don't want to remember it.

But in the childbirth, it's different.

The childbirth, there's this pain that is caused in the childbirth that connects to a greater, a greater reason for the joy.

And we see that lived out in the life of a child.

As a parent, we see these things.

And so the pain was not pointless.

It wasn't pointless pain.

That pain brought about a child and life.

And so this is the difference.

It's worth it all, all for us, the pain.

So Jesus is teaching them that in their sorrow it will not merely just remain, but it's going to be transformed into a joy, a joy that would look like it may be lost or it may be not worth it, but in the end, it is worth it.

It produces for us in the joy or the death of Christ, it produced for us salvation, the cross that.

The thing that looked most painful and was the most painful thing.

For Christ ultimately produces joy for those who will believe it gives us salvation.

And so, church, this means that we must not interrupt our sorrow as though Christ has lost control, as he's abandoned us or he's failed us in a promise.

The disciples could not see this yet.

They could not see how the cross would become the grounds of their joy.

But Jesus knew that the resurrection was coming.

And so, in the same way, we may not understand how the Lord is working in our seasons of grief or confusion or disappointment or waiting, but we can trust that the sorrow that Christ has is not pointless.

It's not pointless.

It's not final, and it's not outside his redeeming purpose.

It's for a reason.

So when your sorrow feels unexplained, remember that the disciples who stood there confused right before Jesus stood there confused before the resurrection, then they saw great joy.

Remember, God's promise is not absent, right?

He's not absent.

He hasn't forgotten about us.

And the cross teaches us this.

The cross teaches us that God is doing something in us, a deep work, when we can't see his purpose.

We can't see it.

And so bring your sorrow to Christ, honestly, but do not let your sorrow preach the final word to your heart.

Jesus has already promised that sorrow in him will give way to joy.

The third thing we see here, the third promise is this.

Jesus promises to his disciples that no one will steal their joy.

Verse 20 through 22 through 23.

In verse 22, we find our key verse here where Jesus says, I will see you again.

Verse 20 says, I will see you again.

The disciples' joy rests not in their ability to understand, but in the promise that Christ is saying.

He's pushing them towards something.

He's saying, I will see you again.

And so their sorrow is transformed by the resurrection hope.

Their grief is not merely replaced by a better feeling.

It's turned into secure joy through Christ's death, resurrection, and return to them.

This is the promise being fulfilled.

Our joy comes not from seeing Christ again, but also from his promise to preserve his people.

He says, also so that your sorrow now, but I see you again, your hearts will be rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

No one will take his joy from you.

This gives believers, I hope it gives you and I a deep hope in God's sovereign, preserving grace and security for all those who are united in Christ.

You have been secured.

The NASB gives us a kind of a better understanding of the second part.

Now, but we got to slow down just for a moment, right?

We got to slow down because don't overlook the first part of verse 22, of verse 23 as we move into verse from verse 22.

This first part, if we slow it down, it says, in that day, right?

This is going to give meaning to the second part of verse 23.

So slow down, don't rush through it.

It says, in that day after Jesus has risen and ascended, and the Holy Spirit has been sent.

He says, You will no longer ask me anything.

That's interesting, right?

It's like, well, what do you mean by that, right?

Well, now the NSAB gives us this better understanding of Jesus' promise while pushing us forward into proper prayer.

Listen to verse 23 again.

It says, And on that day, the resurrection, you will not question me about anything.

And this means, in the original language, to make a request to God's plan.

They're saying to the disciples, you won't request anything.

You won't be confused.

You won't wonder what am I doing?

Because I'm doing something that you cannot see.

And you will have a greater understanding and trust of what God is working in your life, even though you can't understand the sorrows, the pain, and the suffering.

And so it gives us this picture pushing into the proper way to pray.

And we see this in Luke 22.

Jesus gives us the supreme example of a prayerful trust in the Father.

And he shows us this promise, he shows us the promise at the end of verse 23 in his, in Luke 22, he says this in verse 41, and he withdrew from them about a stone throw, and he knelt down and prayed.

This is Jesus, and he says, Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me.

And then this next word, he says, Nevertheless, nevertheless, not my will, but your will be done.

Your will be done.

Nevertheless, this is what verse 23 is saying.

On that day, in verse 23, on that day on the resurrection, I won't make a request to change my situation.

Right?

There won't be this.

I won't be questioning what you are doing.

But instead, I'm going to trust.

I'm going to trust you.

Now, this doesn't mean that we never bring our request to God.

This is not what's going on.

This doesn't mean we don't ever bring our request to the Father.

Rather, like Jesus, we submit our request to his will, trusting that his will brings him glory and brings us good.

That's what we do.

We trust that.

That's what Jesus did.

He brought his request, but knowing that his father's will trumped because it was for his glory and for his good.

And this is what it means to pray in Jesus' name.

We don't just tag it on.

It's not just a slogan.

It's not something we just tag at the end of it.

What we're doing is that to pray in Jesus' name is to pray under his authority.

And it's based on his merit.

So when we look at his life, when we look at his life, we see how he prayed and we pray like him to the Father.

And we ask for the Father's will to be done above all things.

Even though I've made a request, it doesn't matter.

My request doesn't matter.

What matters most is that your will be done.

And this is how Jesus prayed.

And so when this happens, verse 23, what does it say in verse 23?

When we pray like this, when when it's God's will above all things, it says this.

He will give it to you.

He will give all things to you.

He will give you what is necessary for his glory and your good.

That's where we get confused.

We think, well, if I ask in Jesus' name, I get whatever I want.

It's not like that.

But when we ask when our heart has the right motive, when we're asking through the lens of Christ and His life and His character and the way that He went to the Father with His petitions, then it says here, this is a promise.

He says, if you ask like that, He will give it to you.

He will give it to you.

It's a beautiful promise.

He's going to give us what is necessary.

Now, this is not theoretical or abstract to Christ.

He understood this.

He understood it.

Because sometimes we think, well, he's Jesus.

He's perfect.

He knows how to pray.

He doesn't understand us.

He's God.

Well, let me point you to Hebrews chapter 2.

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 16, it shows us that Jesus, the high priest we have, understands our suffering.

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

Verse 2 uh chapter 2, verse 16, it says, For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham.

Therefore, he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, he, Jesus, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God to make propitiation for the sins of the people, for because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Christ understands your situation.

We have a high priest that understands our situation.

And he promises that if we ask, if we ask in his will, he will give it to us.

Listen to me, church.

No one, if no one can take the joy that Christ has given to us, as it says here in the scripture, then we must stop handing over our joy to our circumstances.

That's what we do.

We hand it over.

When life doesn't seem like it is, we're all pouty or we just we're mumping around.

This is not what we're called to be as the church.

I'm not saying it's not hard.

I'm not saying, but there's a deep joy knowing that God is working in us for our good and for his glory.

And so we take our circumstances and we find joy in them.

We find joy over our fears.

We find joy over our disappointments.

We find joy over the opinions of others and what they may think about us.

And so the truth is the world may be troubled, the world may trouble us, people may disappoint us, and sorrows may weigh heavily on us, but none of these things have the authority to steal what Christ has secured for us in the resurrection.

It's a beautiful picture.

So when sorrow presses in, do not run to self.

That's what happens.

I testify myself.

When it sets in, when things aren't understand, I try to run to myself.

I try to fix it myself.

I try to, I try to do the things.

Don't do that.

Don't run to that.

Don't run to that.

Instead, instead, push into the fact that God run to the Father, trust in him, that he is doing something for your good.

This means Christian joy is not this fragile optimism, right?

It's the resurrection confidence.

We have confidence because Christ has risen.

If you believe that, you should have confidence.

And so rest on the risen Christ who sees his people, who preserves his people, who teaches his people to pray according to his father's will.

Therefore, hold your grief honestly before the Lord, but do not let grief define what is true.

Christ has promised a joy that cannot be taken, and his promise is stronger than your present sorrow.

Amen.

Fourth thing we see here is this Jesus promises to his disciples that in him their joy will be enduring.

It will be.

It will be.

Think of Job, you may strip everything from me today.

But my joy lies in the fact that I will be with you in eternity.

Blessed be the name of the Lord, right?

So Job says, Blessed be the name of the Lord.

And so we see here in verse 24.

It says, Until now you have asked nothing in my name.

Ask and you will receive that your joy may be full.

And he says, Until now, the disciples have just asked Jesus directly for what whatever need there was, right?

But Jesus, knowing he's about to depart, the helper is coming, instructs his disciples to ask the Father in His name, right?

They've asked Jesus directly.

Like they've always said, Jesus, this is it.

So along the way they've asked Jesus.

But now he's directing them, don't ask, don't ask me anymore, but ask in my name to the Father through the power of the Spirit.

Once again, this thing, this will become something they will understand on the other side of the cross.

For us, we understand this that we ask in Jesus' name in his will, which we just talked about.

And so praying in Jesus' name is what he's trying to teach them.

Now Jesus is saying, When I am gone, when I'm gone, I will leave you.

Um you will have full access to my Father through the Spirit.

Therefore, ask according to what I have taught you.

And if you ask in that way, verse 24, it says, You will receive your prayer, when your prayers, when our prayers align with the Father's will, you will know the joy and the encouragement of pursuing Christ on this side of heaven.

So what is one purpose of answered prayer?

So what is one the purpose, what is one's purpose of answered prayers?

Well, that they would receive joy to the max, right?

This is the purpose of prayer.

Our answered prayer is that we may receive.

It's not always like, Lord, I'm happy because you gave me what I asked for, right?

It's not necessarily that.

It's that that my life will be filled with joy no matter what comes, because I've seen you actively working in the life, in my life of prayer according to your will.

That's a much different perspective than just me going, Lord, give me this.

I got it.

Awesome.

Right?

Because that's not a full joy, that's a momentary joy.

And so what we see here is that God's trying to, or Jesus is trying to tell the disciples, if he prays his name, if he prays according to the way that he prayed, that our joy may be full.

And that word full here in the original language means enduring.

That your your joy will endure the sorrows of this life.

If you're just looking for a moment of fulfillment, then what you're really looking at is happiness that doesn't last.

You're going like, man, this made me happy, but then you're disappointed again later.

You're wondering, God, what's going on?

Versus going, This is tough, Lord.

And I know it's tough, but I know there's great joy down the road.

And I'm going to endure this circumstance because I know that my joy may be full, knowing and trusting your will and not my will.

And so this gives joy or gives a better, um, a better picture of this strenuous life that we can endure it versus just going, well, give me joy now, replace that joy, right?

No, transform that joy into something that's much greater.

And so, church, if fullness of joy is found in Christ, then we must stop looking for lasting joy in our circumstances that constantly change.

Jesus does not promise a life without sorrow.

Never once, never once in Scripture did Jesus ever promise a life without sorrow.

But he does promise access to the Father, help from the Spirit, and joy that endures because it is rooted in Christ.

It's rooted in Christ.

This means prayer is not the way that we bend God's will towards our desires, but is the way that God strengthens our hearts to trust his will in Christ.

And as we trust him, our joy is not merely momentarily relief, but it's enduring confidence in the risen Savior.

And so here's the main idea.

This is it.

We can, as believers, as we continue to trust in God, we know that his timing is perfect, that he has preserved the saints, and we can rest in that.

We don't have to try to do any more or less.

But but follow Christ.

And this gives us great rest.

And then we pray, Father, your will be done, because we know that his will will be done.

We have confidence in his enduring purpose in our life.

And so let me give you some final thoughts.

Final thoughts to this church.

Sorrow is real, right?

It's not, we're not trying to stand up and say it's not.

Sorrow is real, but it's not final.

Jesus does not deny the gift, I mean the grief of his disciples, and he does not deny ours.

Instead, he points us to something stronger than sorrow, the certainty of his death, his resurrection, his presence, his promise, right?

The same cross that first looked like defeat became the foundation of everlasting joy.

And the same Christ that rose from the grave, who invites his people to come to his father in his name.

So don't let our present sorrow become the loudest voice in our heart.

Let the truth that Christ is risen have the final word.

He knows what you cannot see, he knows the future, right?

He preserves what you cannot keep, salvation, and he gives joy that the world did not create and cannot take away.

So the challenge this morning is not to pretend that sorrow doesn't hurt or doesn't exist, but it's to bring that sorrow honestly to Christ and trust him more deeply with your circumstance.

Trust him, follow him when the timing feels confusing, rest in him when joy feels fragile, and pray to the Father in his name when your heart feels weak.

And believe in in Christ, that your sorrow will not be wasted, that your joy will not be stolen, and that the promise will not fail.

And so, as the band comes up, I have a few questions I want you to consider.

Honestly, consider in your heart as you respond this morning to the power of the Spirit in your life.

Here's a few questions.

Closing out, where are you tempted to measure God's faithfulness by what you can see right now rather than by what Christ has already finished?

Where are you tempted?

Ask yourself, are you tempted to think that God's not faithful because of whatever circumstance you're in?

And the challenge is to look at the cross, look at what he's promised us, look at what Christ has already done, what he's already finished.

What sorrow, disappointment, or uncertainty do you need to bring honestly before the Father in Jesus' name?

Are you letting grief, fear, circumstance, or the opinions of others speak louder than the promise of Christ?

Do your prayers reveal a heart of trying to bend God's will towards your desires?

Or a heart learning to trust the Father's will in Christ?

And if no one can take your joy that Christ gives, what are you still handing your joy over to?

What are you still giving it over to?

What do you find yourself disappointed when this doesn't happen or when this doesn't go your way?

What are you giving it over to?

And then last, how is Christ calling you to follow Him more deeply?

Not after sorrow disappears, but in the midst of it being transformed.

How is God calling you to follow him more deeply?

Church, follow Christ with confidence, knowing the sorrow you carry is not the end of the story.

Because the risen Savior turns sorrow into joy that cannot be taken away.

Let us pray, Father.

Father, we know that difficulty and sorrow and grief in our life has this, has this ability to try and overshadow what Christ has done.

Father, may you give us eyes, may you give us the heart and the mind to remember the things that you have done, the things that you've done in the past in your scripture and your holy word, the things that you have promised to us, the things we can hold to, and not only that, the things that we've seen in our prayer life, as we have asked in your name, if we said, Laura, if this is what I must go through for your glory and for my good, then Father, let's do it.

So, Father, recall to us those moments, those testimonies of our story where you've been faithful.

So that in our current grief, in our current sorrows, we may still press on, Father, as Paul has pressed on, that we may press on towards the prize, knowing Christ and being with Christ forever.

Give us that strength, Father.

And then, Father, allow us to be honest about where our heart truly lies.

What are the things that bring the most joy to our life?

Father, say, remove that from me.

Remove those things, Father.

Not that they aren't good and can be enjoyable, but Father, they're not our ultimate joy.

Because they're gonna go wrong.

But your plan is never wrong.

Show us how to push those beneath what you have for us.

And then we can more enjoy those because we're enjoying human fellowship with you first and foremost.

Show us how to do that.

Empower us by your spirit that we may be a people for your possession, for your glory, and for our good.

For it's in your name we pray.

Amen.