Take Heart

John 16:33

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.

The Lord spoke to His disciples at length on their last evening together before He was taken to be crucified. He had so much that He wanted to explain to them; they had been with Him for 3 years and yet they still didn’t seem to grasp the reality of why He was there and the events that would unfold.

I have said these things to you… that one of them would betray Him and that Peter would deny Him. He spoke of going to prepare a place for them and that He was the Way that they should follow. He tried to reassure them with the promise of the Holy Spirit to be with them after he would go.

In the world you will have tribulation… can you imagine sitting there that night and hearing that the world will hate you, that they will persecute you, put you out of the synagogues and possibly kill you? Just as you are trying to get your head around all that, the Lord reminds you that He is leaving. How would you be feeling about now? Verse 6 says, “because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.” The disciples were really struggling mentally with what they heard and although the Lord had many more things to say, He held back because “[they could not] bear them now” (v12).

But take heart… their downcast heads lift slightly as they anticipate a flicker of hope.

I have overcome the world… Yes, Lord! Amen!

We will have troubles, that we can be sure of, but in the midst of it all, remembering who we serve, His sacrifice and the Holy Spirit within us, we can be certain His promise is true, …that in me you may have peace.