1 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
The sure and precious remedy our Lord prescribes here against the old disease of a troubled heart is trust - both in God and in Christ – the faithful Mediator between God and man. “Trust” used here means to be persuaded in the truthfulness of and having total confidence in and reliance upon. Our trust in God and our Lord Jesus turns our troubled hearts into comforted ones, keeping them freed from the stirred agitation that confidence in our own abilities bring.
“Heart-trouble is the commonest thing in the world. No rank, or class, or condition is exempt from it. No bars, or bolts, or locks can keep it out. Partly from inward causes and partly from outward, partly from the body and partly from the mind, partly from what we love and partly from what we fear, the journey of life is full of trouble. Even the best of Christians have many bitter cups to drink between grace and glory. Even the holiest saints find the world a vale of tears.” John Charles Ryle
Yet in the midst of all this we are not to be like the troubled sea when it cannot rest – we are not to be ruffled. Scripture has command us the following which, I might add, is easier stated than done:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:6-7 (NIV)
“The joy of faith is the best remedy against the griefs of the senses.” Matthew Henry
Ever experienced a heart that was stirred with agitation? More than likely, Jesus looked into the faces of His guys and saw this anxiety heavy in their eyes. Our Lord who sees all of our unrevealed sorrows and wounds that bleed inwardly would certainly not have missed the many things troubling His disciples at this point. Our Lord had just told them of His imminent own departure which would occur in a cloud of suffering. He had told them that one of their own would be a traitor and that Peter himself would deny Him three times. He would be leaving them and they could not come. He was their leader – He was the One in Whom they placed their hope - He was the One Who was to deliver Israel – the weight of all these recent revelations must have greatly pressed upon them leaving them downtrodden, depressed and feeling quite deserted and exposed.
“Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.” Thomas V. Moore
The Great Shepherd, always knowing the condition of His flock, sweetly begins to speak in their ears these wonderful words of encouragement – rich in precious Truth. They are certainly just as dear to every believer in Christ since first spoken as they were to His disciples then. He would indeed be going but in His going He would be preparing a place for them (and for us) so that we may always and forever be where He is. If that were not so, He would tells us. Our assurance is built on the veracity of our Lord’s Word as well as the sincere love and affection He has for all who follow Him. Believers would do well to remember that we are but sojourners here – earth is not our home, heaven is – and heaven will make amends for all. That is the promise of Scripture. Heaven is a house – not a tabernacle – the Father’s house – my Father’s house. It is a place of mansions – lasting, eternal and permanent. A place where we will be settled – a place where we are loved for our own sakes – not for our gifts or possessions. A place where we are not forgotten and we are always welcomed. Heaven is a place where Christ is continually present – permeating peace that passes understanding. He will be in our midst forever. Christ is our reason for peace and our power for a calm and steadfast heart. That is the description of perfect peace is it not? Isaiah tells us:
3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)
“The Lord Jesus received is holiness begun, the Lord Jesus cherished is holiness advancing, the Lord Jesus counted upon as never absent would be holiness complete...He is most holy who has most of Christ within, and joys most fully in the finished work. It is defective faith which clogs the feet and causes many a fall.” Hudson Taylor
All true believers are welcome to this happiness. There are rooms there, distinct dwellings, apartments for each. Durable and lasting our estate is not for years rather eternal. He is not preparing our lodgings for them to stand empty; neither are His preparations in vain. As He is preparing the place, He is preparing the servant so that in due time we will be put in possession of it.
“Our duty as Christians is always to keep heaven in our eye and earth under our feet.” Matthew Henry
16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage each other with these words. 1 Thess 4:16-18 (NIV)
“Be still my soul, the Lord is on thy side.” Katharina von Schlegel