“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” — John 16:33 NIV
Our Source of Peace
Regular life is already stressful—relationship conflicts, bills, traffic, juggling kids, work, home responsibilities, and, of course, the constant spiritual assaults of the devil. Then pile on COVID—the constant fear-messaging, the restrictions, mask mandates, school cancelations, workplace changes, and friends and family who have suffered and/or died from the illness—and the daily stress is overwhelming to many.
Now more than ever, we need peace, we need rest, we need comfort and security, and this can be found only in Jesus Christ. In this world, we will have stress—but it is in Jesus that we find peace.
In this sin-sickened world, we cannot avoid moments of stress because stressful events occur. But God has not left us to face the world in our own strength. We can face each and every stressor in union with our infinite God, filled with His Spirit, empowered by His presence, and comforted by His love.
He said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NIV).
An Incredible Eternal Truth
Jesus told His disciples something that was designed to give them peace when they faced the stresses in this world—what did He tell them? An incredible eternal truth. He told them the good news about His Father. He told them that even though He would soon be leaving them and going back to His Father in heaven, the Comforter would come as His representative to comfort them, heal their hearts, and lead them into all truth. Jesus went on to tell them that not only is the Holy Spirit on their side interceding to help them, but also that the Father Himself is already for them and doesn’t need Jesus to pray to Him on their behalf because the Father already loves them. Jesus said, “I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God” (John16:26-27 NIV, emphasis mine)
The apostle Paul expounds on this incredible truth:
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. … What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:28–39 NIV, emphasis mine).
Yes, God is for us! And Jesus is the evidence of God’s infinite love poured out for us.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him (John 3:16-17 NIV, emphasis mine).
Focusing on Jesus
If we want peace in this world of stress, if we want power over the forces of evil, if we want strength to overcome life’s obstacles, then we must “fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV).
It is by beholding Him that we are transformed to be like Him (2 Corinthians 3:18). It is the truth about God’s love that frees us from the fears of this world. It is the presence of Jesus in the person of the Spirit who was sent to us by God that comforts us.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God (2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NIV, emphasis mine).
We must unplug from the messaging and methods of this fallen world and, instead, daily connect with God, meditate upon Jesus, focusing on what He has revealed to us about the Father. We must invite the Spirit into our hearts and then choose to step out in faith by living out God’s methods of truth, love, and liberty in how we treat others.
Life is filled with stressful events. We cannot control what happens around us, but we do have control over whom we trust and where we focus our minds. Don’t let the fear-messaging of this world eclipse the truth and love of God manifest to us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Yes, “In this world you will have trouble,” but Jesus also said, “Take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NIV).
For even more from Dr. Tim Jennings check out his book The God-Shaped Brain,
What you believe about God actually changes your brain.
Brain research in neuroscience has found that our thoughts and beliefs affect our physical, mental, and spiritual health. Mind and body are interrelated, and we are designed for healthy relationships of love and trust. When we understand God as good and loving, we flourish.
Unfortunately, many of us have distorted images of God and mostly think of him in fearful, punitive ways. This leads us into unhealthy patterns of self-defeating behaviors and toxic relationships. But our lives can change when God renews our minds with a truer picture of him.
