Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled - Part 1 of 2

The Baptist Bible Hour now comes to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. O for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer's praise! The praise of my God and King, the triumph of His grace!

This is LeSaire Bradley, Jr. inviting you to stay tuned for another message of God's sovereign grace. Abide with me as falls deep and high, The darkness deepens, warm with me apart. When other helpers fail and comfort me, Help of the helpless, O abide with me! Swift through its roses, the light's little gain, Her joys grow dim, its glories pass away, Change and decay in all around I see.

O thou who changest not, abide with me! O I need thy presence, every passing hour, Walk what thy praise stand, for love tenders count. Who, like thyself, my guidance they can be, Through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me! O thou thy walls, before my closing eyes, Shine through the blue, and point me to the skies. As morning breaks, embers make shadows gleam, In life, in death, O Lord!

Abide with me! Our address is Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. This is a five Sunday month, which means the need is particularly great. Now, rather than writing, if you would prefer to go to our website, you can go to BaptistBibleHour.org and make a donation there. We'll certainly appreciate your prayers for this ministry as we continue through this new year, bringing the message of God's sovereign grace.

We are thankful for your encouragement and support, and just pray that God will use this effort to the honor of His name. How do you handle trouble? Do you fall apart, become depressed, get angry?

How do you react when trouble comes your way? Listen to Jesus' gentle words, Let not your heart be troubled. I read from the Gospel of John, chapter 14, verses 1 to 3. Let not your heart be troubled.

You believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you, I'd go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto Myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. The first thing we see in this passage is trouble. God's children face troubles.

And we think about these words of Jesus in the context, in the setting in which they were spoken. This was indeed a time of great trouble for the disciples. Back in chapter 13, the 33rd verse, Jesus said, Jesus has informed them He's going away. This is alarming.

They are greatly disturbed. This was not the first time Jesus had passed this information along, but they were a little slow in grasping it. Peter responds at this time, Lord, why can I not go with you?

And says, I'm willing to lay down my life. But even then, Jesus points out that Peter was going to fail. These men had left their families, left their home, left their job, turned their back on everything to follow Jesus. They'd spent their entire time with Him over these three years of His ministry. They had viewed His miracles. They had heard His messages. They had been in close communion and fellowship with Him all these days. He was their leader, their teacher. He was everything to them. They just could not imagine how could we go on.

We've been involved in kingdom work, but if Jesus is not here, what can we do? Their world was suddenly falling apart. They couldn't grasp the thought of a dying Messiah. They believed that He was the Messiah. He was the anointed one sent from God. And there were plenty of Old Testament prophecies that revealed that when the Messiah came, He would die. But they had missed that. So often when people read the Scriptures, they draw from it what they want to see in it.

They have a tendency to pass over those things that are a little unpleasant or difficult. So they wanted to think about Jesus here as the Messiah, as the King who would set up an earthly kingdom. That's what the Jews hoped for. That's the reason they cried when He came into the city. Hosanna, hosanna, they thought He was coming as a king to set up a visible kingdom in which they would prosper as a people and be delivered from the bondage of the Romans. Jesus though didn't come into the city riding upon a horse which was symbolic of war and battle in that day.

He came riding upon the little beast of burden. He came lowly, came in humility because He was going to the cross. Not only had Jesus informed them that He was going away, but in chapter 13 of the 21st verse, He informed them that one was going to betray Him and it soon became evident that it was Judas. When Jesus said that one would betray Him, they didn't all point their finger at Judas and say, We've been suspecting Him. No, Judas had fit in. He had from all outward appearances been like the rest of them. They said, Lord, is it I?

Could I be the one? And you know, if we have the right view of ourselves rather than judging others, we're going to be looking into our own hearts. Lord, if it's possible for somebody to be deceived, it's possible I could be. And I come to the throne of grace and ask for mercy and I want to be faithful in serving You. And then as if that was not enough, in verse 38 of chapter 13, He then says that Peter is going to deny Him. Peter was something of a leader in the group.

He was the most outspoken. And now, Jesus says, I'm going away. Judas is going to betray Me and Peter is going to deny Me. You can understand this was a time of great trouble for these disciples. Well, we live in a fallen world that is full of trouble. It seems that some Christians get a mistaken idea that if they just have enough faith, they will avoid troubles.

That all sicknesses will be healed and all troubles will be quickly resolved. But the fact is, we are fallen sinners living in a world that's under the curse and condemnation of sin. And trouble is to be expected. Job said in Job 14, 1, Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble.

No doubt many of you today can testify to the truth of that text. You've had a lot of troubles in life. Sometimes I talk to people and say, well, I feel like I've had more than my fair share of trouble.

Well, be that as it may, you can expect as long as you're in this world that there will be trouble to be faced. The prophet Jeremiah said in his prophecy, chapter 20 of the 18th verse, Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labor and sorrow that my days should be consumed with shame. Questioning, why am I even here?

Why was I even born? Came out of my mother's womb and all I see is labor and sorrow. All the days of my life were consumed with shame or trouble. That man carried a heavy burden. He was often frustrated because he was delivering a message to people who would not receive it. So he faced trouble.

Jesus made mention of it in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 6 verse 34. He said, Take therefore no thought for the moral. For the moral shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof or the trouble thereof. In other words, there's enough trouble today that you don't have to start anticipating, I wonder what my troubles will be tomorrow.

Some people work at that extensively. They're always trying to think ahead. Just can't imagine what may happen this next week.

This past week was bad enough, but the way it's going, this next week will probably be worse. Now he says, No, I don't want you to be giving thought to the troubles of the future. You've got enough trouble to deal with today. Well, not only then are there troubles in this world, all the inhabitants of the world no matter who they are, where they are, are going to encounter some kind of trouble. But God's children face some unique troubles. There are things that are encountered by those who are believers in Jesus Christ and are a part of His heavenly kingdom that others will know nothing about.

Jesus made reference to that in John chapter 16 and the 33rd verse. These things I have spoken unto you that in me you might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. These are the words of Jesus.

You can mark it down. It's going to be this way. In the world you will have tribulation. But this is not a depressing message. There's a word of cheer.

There's a word of comfort. I have overcome the world and therefore you're not going to be destroyed in the midst of your troubles. In Acts chapter 14 verse 22 Paul and Barnabas were confirming the souls of the disciples and exhorting them to continue in the faith and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. It is through tribulation, through trouble, through trials that we enter into the kingdom of God.

Some would paint a picture as though you come to Christ by faith. All your troubles are ended. Certainly there is a burden that is lifted. There is a joy that is found. There is a peace within that passeth understanding. But there are some things that begin at the time that the person has an experience of grace. There are now conflicts they have never known before. The Holy Spirit abiding in that individual convicts them of sin, their own faults, their own failings. There's a struggle between the old nature and the new. And then there's going to be opposition from those without who do not appreciate your testimony and the way you live.

In fact, Peter talked about the fact that they'll think it's strange that you're not running with them as you did in times past. And then in 2 Timothy 3 verse 12 it says, Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. We know nothing in this country at the present time of persecution to the degree in which multitudes of Christians around the world are presently experiencing it. But as resentment against Christianity continues to grow, as there is so much criticism, so little respect showed for it that once was shown even to those who didn't embrace it, but at least considered it with respect, you can find that there will be a variety of ways in which you as a believer may be persecuted. We frequently hear of people who have encountered difficulties in the workplace because of their Christian testimony. We hear of the way young people are treated sometimes in the schools of public education by those who are unbelievers. If you live righteously, if you're a true follower of Jesus Christ, you will experience some kind of opposition, some kind of persecution. Think of how the apostle Paul suffered.

From the standpoint of human reasoning we might imagine since this man had such a unique experience. He was a persecutor of the church, but the Lord called him a name on the road to Damascus, transformed his life, and made him the greatest of the apostles and the most powerful preacher of his day. Surely the Lord will build a hedge about him and protect him and he'll not have physical problems and he'll not have some of the sufferings that would obstruct his efforts. But look at 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verse 24, This great servant of God knew what it was to face trouble. But he obviously found strength within because of his faith in Jesus Christ to press on. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheth me, he said. When I'm weak then I'm strong because when I see my weakness then I find my strength in Jesus Christ. After trouble the second thing we see in this passage of John 14 is faith.

You believe in God, believe also in me. The fact that God's people in that day trusted him, they believed in him. Psalm 22 verse 4, Our fathers trusted in thee, they trusted and thou didst deliver them. There are many accounts as to how the Lord delivered his people when they were in a minority. When it appeared that there was no way that they could overcome their enemies and God nevertheless delivered them.

Why? Because they trusted in him as Jehoshaphat who came before the Lord and said, We have no plan and we have no might but we're trusting thee and God gave him the victory over the invading forces. Psalm 25 verses 1 and 2, Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee.

Where do you trust today? Too many times a person will give lip service to trusting in God but in reality they're trusting in the plans, schemes and ingenuity that they invoke to try to bring about a solution to their problems. They lean upon the arm of the flesh which the Scriptures tell us will surely fail us. Psalm 40 verse 4, Blessed is the man that maketh the Lord his trust and respecteth not the proud nor such as turn aside to lies. And then this one that I've shared with you frequently which has become a favorite of mine, Psalm 56 verse 3, What time I am afraid I will trust in thee. Here's David, a mighty warrior, admitting, There are times I'm afraid.

Men are sometimes a little reluctant to admit that but the reality is men have their fears just as women have theirs. There are many challenging troubles and circumstances that we encounter in life, many times that we're perplexed about what we should do next and how we can best honor God. What time I'm afraid I will trust in thee. And then Isaiah writes in his prophecy chapter 12 and verse 2, Behold God is my salvation. I will trust and not be afraid for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song. He also has become my salvation. Jesus says, Believe in God. Do you believe in him today?

Do you trust him? And then God gives comfort. Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. Believe in God because he's the source of the comfort that we so desperately need. Psalm 119 verse 50, This is my comfort in my affliction for thy word hath quickened me. Same Psalm verse 76, Let I pray thee thy merciful kindness be for my comfort according to thy word unto thy servant. Comfort comes through the word of God, believing the word of God. If you go to the inspired word, you read the promise of God and you say, Well, I know that's what it says but somehow I just don't think it applies in this case.

I don't know that that's really for me. Or you go on doubting and questioning. Certainly you're not going to find comfort. But if you believe what God says, you may read it and say, I know it's true. Emotionally, I'm not able to rejoice at the moment. But I'm going to rejoice in the truth of what God says because I know when God says something, he means it. When God makes a promise, he keeps it and I'm trusting him. 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 3, Blessed be the God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. Isn't that a wonderful expression? You need help in your trouble, you need comfort.

Where are you going to get it? He's the God of all comfort. You want words that mean something? Not just some of the trite expressions that people will give you from time to time? How meaningless it is when somebody comes to you and they detect that you're cast down. They say, Oh, now cheer up there. Couldn't be that bad. You think that's what you think. If you just knew all the details, you'd know it's very bad. Well, things are going to be better. They don't know what's going to be better.

It may get worse. All of these frivolous little expressions mean nothing. But you go to the God of comfort and it's through his grace, his strength, his mercy that there is indeed comfort. Who comforteth us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble. No matter what the trouble is, to be able to comfort them by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

That's one of the reasons it's so important for Christians not to become enamored with the philosophies of men. Listening to some of the self-help programs. Say, Well, I worked through it. I guess I'm of pretty tough stock. I tell you, I just dug my heels in and said, It's not going to get the best of me. You want to tell somebody that? Is that going to comfort?

No. And it's not going to honor God. But if you, in the darkest times of the night, the deepest troubles that you could ever experience, find hope in God's promise. You turn to him. He's the God of all comfort. Lord, I desperately need comfort and I'm looking to you as the source of it.

What a difference. You can comfort others with the same comfort wherewith you've been comforted. The Lord, my precious Sheperdly, is I and his little sheep. He leads me to his pastures green, besides still waters deep. In righteous paths he leadeth me, lest I should go astray. Restores my soul and makes me glad. I praise him day by day.

The disciples were in great distress because Jesus said he was going away. But what comforting words he gives, Let not your heart be troubled. He promised them that someday they would be with him again. And that's a great promise we have if we're believers in Jesus Christ, that someday we will be where he is. Therefore, we can say today, Let not your heart be troubled. I hope you will write us and until next week at the same time, may the Lord richly bless you all. Goodness and mercy follow me, Their joys I cannot tell. They comfort me and give me hope, That in this house I'll dwell. I want to praise him while I live, Because he loved me so, And rising to that glory ground, A perfect praise I'll know.