Sermon Tone Analysis

That you may Believe and have Life #40

John 14:13-31

 

Well, we continue walking where Jesus walks … Remember that we are in the night before Christ was crucified and he is teaching his disciples.

Knowing the questions they will ask, the anxiety that will arise not just when he dies, but after he ascends to the Father, he gives them the greatest comfort, we looked at it last week, the fact that He is coming back.

The greatest comfort is knowing we can trust him when he says he is coming back and that he will have something for us, a place, his presence, and it is for you personally.

There is no argument that we are encouraged knowing that Jesus is coming for us.

However, if you are normal and human, you can’t help but wonder, sometimes, “but what about in the meantime?”

Well, Jesus answered that question for his disciples beginning in verse 13 … so let’s begin reading

READ 14:13-31

 

What gives us comfort in the meantime?

1.

Promise – v13

>Anything in my Name

 

This promise will come up again next week and we’ll spend a little time on it next week, so I won’t spend a long time here today … but … it IS a comforting promise so let’s spend just a minute talking about what it means and what it doesn’t mean.

This verse is used and abused by immature or misinformed Christians, as well as charlatans.

What’s a charlatan?

If you look it up in the dictionary the first definition is a “quack” … then it says “one making showy pretenses to knowledge or ability, a fraud or a faker.”

Jesus said part of my comfort for you in the meantime is /I will do whatever you ask in my name … and I will do it/

 

  A.

Ask in My Name

    1.

asking is a simple but critical part of the promise.

a.

There are so many things that we unfortunately do for ourselves, often failing, or worse yet, can’t do for ourselves, and we fail to ask so Jesus does not provide it for us

      b.

“ask and it will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.”

c.

James 4:2 says you “do not have, because you do not ask God” and then verse 3 says “you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives,”

    2.

you don’t get often because you for it for yourself not IN HIS NAME –

      a.

asking in his name starts with a faith that believes that Jesus has authority and believes that Jesus has ability to fulfill the request

      b.

this does not mean that if we tack “in Jesus’ name” on the end of our prayers we get whatever we want

      c.

but asking according to his name means that we have an understanding of his nature and of his will – Jesus cannot give you something outside of his nature and he is not bound to give you something outside of his will

/1 John 5:14-15 (NIV) \\ 14 //This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.//

//15 //And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him./

B.

bring glory to the Father

    1.

what we ask must be in the name of Jesus, that is within his nature and his will

    2.

and it fulfill the purpose of the Son and that is bringing glory to the Father

    3.

as we read the prayer of Jesus in chapter 17 you will see that everything Jesus does is for the purpose of glorifying the Father … and so must be our requests and when they do … he says

 

  C.

I will Do it

    1.

Jesus gives us comfort by responding to our prayers in action

    2.

When I think of the “comfort in the meantime” that this brings I am reminded of the parable that Jesus told about the Good Samaritan.

Jesus was teaching about ministering to those in need and about who is our neighbor but I think there is a picture of what Christ has done for us as well

That man was robbed and beaten by thieves - as sin ~/ satan stolen and beaten us and left for dead

The priest and Levite didn’t help him – as the law could not help us

Then the Samaritan came along and had compassion on him, treated his wounds, put him on his donkey and took him to an inn.

– As Christ has come to us had compassion on us and healed our wounds …

But then the Samaritan had to leave for business, but he left behind enough money to care for all of his needs while he was gone.

But he said, I’ll return and make good on anything else he needs.

– Well our Lord has left to take care of business, preparing a place for us, defeating all our enemies, restoring things they way they were intended to be, but he has left behind all that we need for this life. 

2 Peter 1:3 – /his divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness/

 

So we have a promise to give us comfort in the meantime but also we have …

 

2.

Parental Comfort – v18

We are Not orphans

We are not resident of this world hoping to be accepted by a unknown, untouchable, or distant sovereign of a foreign world …

No … we are children of a loving Father who happen to currently be residing in a foreign land

But we aren’t out there on our own.

We are being cared for while we are foreigners.

It reminds me of when I’ve been overseas in Brazil, Mexico, Czech Republic, Romania, Guatemala, El Salvador.

In all of those places, I’ve been past or at least known that each place had a U.S. Embassy.

Most recently I’ve driven past the massive embassy complex in San Salvador.

I told Bryan as we drove by, “that Son is the United States.”

“You are out of the Country, but that is U.S. soil, you are not out here alone and unprotected.”

Those embassies remind me that while I am overseas, I am STILL a Son of the United States of America, which means I am cared for and protected.

Jesus said, “You are not fatherless.”

“You are alone”

“You are not unprotected”

“You are not uncared for”

Do you understand, you have all of the Father’s love, protection, resources, and authority at your disposal?

\\ \\

Paul said we have a /“you received a Spirit of sonship.

And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father’”/

 

He did not “Leave us AS Orphans” …

You’ve heard of the term a “Golf Widow” or “Football widow” … it means the husband is around but he’s so concerned with other things that it is as if the wife is a widow, he has not presence or impact.

Well the same can be true of SOME Fathers with their children

We DO NOT have a Father like that.

The comfort in the meantime is that we still have the Father he did not leave us that way

  A.

I will not LEAVE –

    1.

/aphiemi ~/af-ee-ay-mee~/ - depart, divorce, let go, let alone, disregard, neglect/

    2. he may be gone but he has not divorced us, disregarded, or neglected us

  B.

AS Orphans /– orphanos/

    1.

/those bereft of a father, teacher, guide, guardian/

    2.

we don’t use the word bereft, but it means to be deprived or robbed of the possession or use of something; lacking something needed, wanted, or expected

 

Please understand that while we are waiting for the Return of Christ, which we KNOW is certain …

In the Meantime, our Father has NOT left us Lacking because he is a loving Parent …

 

If you are lacking a parent, by death or neglect, let the Father, Father you … pray to him, lean on him, press in to him, cry out to him …

 

Christ is coming back but our Comfort in the meantime is found in the promise of provision, the parental comfort of our Father and our …

 

3.

Position – v20

I am in the Father, you are in me, I am in you

 

  A.

Relationship

    1.

a loving relationship

V21 He who loves me, will be loved b

    2.

a family relationship

    3.

an obedient relationship

    4.

covenant relationship – which means he has made promises to us in our relationship and is bound to keep them. 

    5.

those who are “of the world” are his creation, but are his children, the sheep of his pasture, we are the bride of Christ.