Stay Calm

John 14:1-3 ¹ “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. ² My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” (NIV)

The backdrop of John 14 is a unique conversation Jesus is having with the eleven disciples at the Passover meal.  Prior to Jesus’ chat with the eleven disciples, he first had a conversation with all twelve of his disciples before Judas Iscariot bolts out the door in John 13.  The conversation had to be a tough one to hear if you were one of the twelve, especially if you were Judas and Peter.  Jesus did not sugarcoat his indictments toward Judas Iscariot whom Jesus said would betray him and Peter whom Jesus said would deny him three times. 

Judas’s response to Jesus’ indictment was in a form of a question in Matthew 26:25, “surely not I, Rabbi?” Jesus said, “Yes, it is you.”  The deceit of Judas Iscariot could not be hidden from Jesus.  Prior to the Passover meal, Judas had already made a deal with the chief priest to hand Jesus over to them for approximately a few hundred dollars in our money today. 

Peter was argumentative with Jesus, saying:  “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.”  Jesus’ responded by saying, “This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown my three times.”  But Peter was adamant about sticking with Jesus through the thick and thin of the entire crisis.  Peter said, “Even if I have to die, I’m in it with you all the way.”

Peter’s strong and demanding rhetoric of “I will die for you” was short lived and Judas’ creed got the best of him.  It appears that the disciples failed to remember that Jesus had the capability of knowing events that are about to happen. 

The conversation now shifts to Jesus’ departure.  Judas Iscariot is now out of the room and getting his plans all in place to hand Jesus over.  Peter is more relaxed now that he has declared his allegiance to Jesus. 

It is one thing for Jesus to indict a couple of his disciples, it is another to have to say goodbye.  I can imagine the room was filled with emotions as Jesus tells them that he is about to leave.  In John 14:1 it appears that Jesus became the nurturer and calms them down.  I can imagine the conversation went something like this: “Hey guys, don’t let this get you down.  Guys, look at me.  Trust.  Trust our Father, but trust me, too.  Look, I’m going away for a bit, but I will be back to get you.  When you see what I will put together you will be amazed.  It is going to be a blast.  Lots of rooms and we will be together again.  This time, it will be forever.”

As reassuring as it was for the eleven disciples to hear about being with Jesus forever, we will get our living spaces in that house, too.  1^st Corinthians 15 paints a beautiful picture of what will happens to believers in preparation for our entrance into heaven.  “But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I’ll probably never fully understand. We’re not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it’s over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we’ll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal.” (The Message)

There are a lot of wonderful views to see on this earth.  Mountains.  Seas.  Deserts. Forests.  Galaxies. Coral Reefs.  And, a plethora of other God amazing sites.  However, Jesus’ house is going to be even more spectacular than the Amazons and the snowcapped Swiss Alps and the sand dunes of the deserts and the Florida everglades.  Heaven will be a place of such wonderment and awe that it is truly indescribable. 

Don’t be troubled.  Trust.  Stay calm.  You’re not alone.  Jesus is aware of you.  Our next house will be so much better than this one.  Hold on.  It is coming.  Trust and keep trusting. 
Remember, Be God Controlled!
Brian