Don't let your Heart be Troubled - Simon Potter

Jesus said in John 14:1,27: “Do not let your HEART be TROUBLED; believe in God, believe also in Me ... Peace I leave with you, My Peace I give to you... Do not let your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” *(I) The TROUBLED HEART: “Do not let your HEART be TROUBLED” (John 14:1a). The Greek verb used here for ‘troubled’ is tarassō: to stir up, agitate or roil, as of the sea (Matthew 2:3). It is used x3 of Jesus in John 11:33, 12:27, 13:21, before He said in John 14:1: “Let not your HEART be TROUBLED; believe (trust) in God, believe (trust) also in Me.” Jesus tells us to not allow the core of our being to be moved from its centre in God. Proverbs 4:23: “GUARD your HEART with all diligence, for out of it (your heart) spring (flow) the issues of life.” *(II) The TRUSTING HEART: John 14:1: “Let not your heart be troubled; BELIEVE (trust) in God, BELIEVE (trust) also in Me.” Having commanded us not to have a troubled heart, He then tells us what to do instead: BELIEVE! Instead of being TROUBLED, let us TRUST in Him. This is not talking about a vague belief in God, but Jesus commands us to TRUST in Him, to have a trusting heart. We can TRUST Him in times of TROUBLE, because He has given us certain PROMISES in John 14. These promises are like anchors for us, when we are tempted to have a troubled heart. *PROMISE (1): “In My Father’s House (Heaven) are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to PREPARE a PLACE for YOU (in Heaven). And if I go and PREPARE a PLACE for YOU, I will COME again and RECEIVE you to MYSELF; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go (Heaven) you know, and the way you know” (John 14:2-4). *PROMISE (2): “Whatever you ASK in My NAME, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ASK anything in My NAME, I will do it” (John 14:13-14). *PROMISE (3): “I will not leave you orphans; I will COME to YOU (through the Holy Spirit)” (John 14:18). “I will pray the Father, and He will give you another HELPER, that He may abide with you forever, the SPIRIT of TRUTH, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He DWELLS with you and will be IN YOU” (John 14:16-17). See also 1John 4:4. Jesus says: “BELIEVE in ME, when I say I am going away to prepare a place for you and will come again to receive you to Myself” (John 14:1-3). Jesus says: “BELIEVE in ME, when I say I am leaving you My NAME, and you can ask whatever you need, and I will do it” (John 14:1,13-14). Jesus says: “BELIEVE in ME, when I say I will not leave you on your own, but I will give you the Presence of the HOLY SPIRIT, to live inside you and be available to help, strengthen and lead you” (John 14:1,16-18). Proverbs 3:5: “TRUST in the Lord with all your HEART, and lean not on your own understanding.” This trust in Jesus, centred and fixed on Him, brings us to a place of peace in the middle of trouble. Isaiah 26:3: “You will keep him in PERFECT PEACE, whose mind is stayed (fixed, leaning, resting) on You, because he TRUSTS in You.” *(III) The TOWERING HEART: After He promised to us the PRESENCE and HELP of the HOLY SPIRIT, Jesus also promised to give us His PEACE: “the HELPER, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the Father will send in My Name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. PEACE, I leave with you, MY PEACE I give to you” (John 14:26-27). Jesus has left the HOLY SPIRIT with us, who is the GOD of PEACE (Philippians 4:9). In Judges 6:24, God reveals Himself to Gideon as Jehovah SHALOM - the Lord is our PEACE. PEACE is not just the ABSENCE of conflict, but God’s PRESENCE in our heart in the midst of turmoil. John 14:27: ”PEACE, I leave with you, MY PEACE I give to you (in your heart), not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not LET your HEART be TROUBLED (John 14:1), neither let it be afraid (don’t be cowardly)." Philippians 4:7: “The PEACE of God, which passes all understanding, will GUARD (protect) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” His PEACE is like the WALLS of a castle, towering around our hearts. Romans 5:1: “We have PEACE with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”, because: “Jesus is our PEACE” (Ephesians 2:14). He has given us His PEACE. That PEACE is already ours, because of His Sacrifice on the Cross. For this reason, instead of having a TROUBLED HEART, we can have a TRUSTING HEART. Moreover, we can have a TOWERING HEART, that towers over and above the trouble, by abiding in His PEACE. Proverbs 18:10: “The NAME of the LORD (Jehovah Shalom) is a STRONG TOWER; the righteous run into it and they are SAFE.” We can TRUST in JESUS and stand in the STRONG TOWER of His PEACE, no matter what’s going on in the world around us. He is our JEHOVAH SHALOM - the LORD our PEACE (Judges 6:24).