John 14:1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God ; trust also in me.”

After the Passover supper and Judas leaves, Jesus starts teaching His closest disciples in what is called the Upper Room Discourse. There is no comparable passage in the whole Bible, where God is gently, patiently, and clearly explaining spiritual reality. That Jesus is the Son of God is a settled, accepted reality here; there is no “beating around the bush.” The content is things Jesus wanted to communicate before His crucifixion, and this is His last chance for that. In this verse He expresses the necessary foundation for receiving all He has to say. If our hearts are stirred up, our minds aren’t going to be very receptive. Some translations use “trust” here, and some “believe.” I don’t have the Greek here for confirmation, but they are certainly intertwined concepts. Jesus has taught that we aren’t to be anxious all along, famously in Matthew 6 and in various other places as well, but this feels a little different. This isn’t a matter of being worried about supply, but of being uncertain about what is going to happen. The events of the next three days were certainly going to be extremely upsetting to the disciples, and Jesus was trying to prepare them. The thing is, we all face uncertainty, actually even more than we realize, because we cannot control the actions of the people around us, much less weather or geologic activity. Japan is famous for natural disasters, but the Internet is filled with reports of such things from all over the world. Sadly, some parts of America are becoming famous for human disasters, with muggings, drive-by shootings and the like. If we focus on such things and their very real possibility, our hearts will be troubled indeed. Jesus is saying, very plainly and clearly, “Don’t do that.” God has given us the ability to imagine, and it is a good gift, like everything God gives us. (James 1:17) However, like everything else, it can be misused. We are all too adept at letting “what if” scenarios play over in our minds. We need to live by faith, just as Paul said too. (2 Corinthians 5:7) Only then will we avoid the “heart troubles” the devil wants to dump on us.

This is remarkably timely, because I am having some medical symptoms that are disturbing, and I don’t currently have any connection to an appropriate doctor for them. I do, however, have a friend who is retired from that specialty, and I will call him this morning to get his recommendation of where to go. The point for me, however, is to not let my heart be troubled, playing “what if” games, but to trust God and my Lord Jesus, because as He told Jeremiah, His plans for me are to prosper me and not harm me. (Jeremiah 29:11) All sorts of things are changing around me, and in me for that matter, but my God will never change, and I just need to rest in that assurance.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You also for the circumstances that make it so timely. You long ago told me to rest, relax, and rejoice in You, and I’m still learning to do that. Help me keep going through this training session, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!