"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me [Jesus]."
John 14:1
The Bible is full of “good news.” Not only do the scriptures show to us the way of salvation through the Lord Jesus, but also that our Lord cares for us after we are born again as well. Our Lord’s words to His disciples on the night He was betrayed, tried, and then crucified, should be a tremendous source of comfort and blessing to any believer who is hurting.
“Let not your heart be troubled.”
Does your heart ever get troubled? Do the cares of this world weigh you down? You understand the emotional pain one experiences when dealing with a wayward child, ongoing problems at work, or a time of testing that surely seems as though it will break you. David even shared how his sin affected his heart when he said, “I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long,” (Psalm 38:6). Troubles can weigh on us like a load of bricks if we let them!
If there was ever a person who understands trouble it is Jesus. He understands what a troubled heart is. Jesus’ heart melted when the people He loved had burdened hearts. Mary [Martha’s sister], was broken hearted over the death of her brother Lazarus, “When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled,” (John 11:33). Some Christians think that a believer should never have any problems, that troubles should never invade his/her life. But that is not what the Word teaches, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair,” (2 Corinthians 4:8). It is not unusual for us to have distresses, but it would be very unusual not to have any.
So let’s be sure we get this straight, the One who understands troubles better than any other human being, Jesus Himself said, “Let not your heart be troubled.” We need to listen to Him. Do you suppose that the disciples had anything to be troubled about that night? Jesus was heading to the cross the next morning. Jesus will tell them again that night that He will be leaving them (John 16). Their hearts must have felt like cold steel as they realized everything they thought they knew about Jesus was about to change. It must have been a couple of days of sheer panic as dread filled their hearts. But Jesus had said, “Let not your heart be troubled.” How is that possible? When your world is crashing down around you, how is that possible?
He does not tell us to trust ourselves or other people, “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help,” (Psalm 146:3). Jesus answered the question, here’s what to do…
“Ye believe in God, believe also in Me.”
Jesus’ answer is not difficult to understand. Believe. The ancient word used here in this verse defined means, “to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in.”1 Can you see here that my “belief” needs to have a focus—a target? Then, what am I to believe in? Jesus makes this so clear, “have confidence in God, have confidence in Me [Jesus].” When you are in the middle of a trial, put your reliance, your trust, your expectations, in the LORD for your comfort and consolation.
It is the LORD who can help! Pray as David did, “Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man,” (Psalm 108:12).
This truth about trusting in Jesus is so important, look what He told the disciples before they left the upper room that night, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid,” (John 14:27).
1. Thayer’s Greek Definitions, electronic version in eSword.