John 14:1-14 “The Cure for Troubled Hearts”

1:00Everything in our house was broken. The toilet that I had fixed not once but twice already. The car had every single light on that dashboard shining. The sprinkler that I had just replaced a couple of months before was backed over by that new internet company. Thank you so much. And although I've lived here for 20 years, Years at this point, and have never ever seen one in the wild. We've had not one but two scorpions in our house in the last two months.

1:43It was Kendra's birthday, and the sermon was terrible. And Cody asked me late in the afternoon, Do you want to go for a walk? I said, I can't go for a walk. The sermon is so bad. And I left that day, and I was so discouraged. I was driving down university, and I was thinking, Lord, I'm so anxious, I'm so stressed out. And then I remembered, as I almost got to the highway, that the first words in today's text are, Let not your hearts be troubled.

2:21I had been expositing those words for nine straight hours, and it never occurred to me to actually believe them and put them into practice. So here we are, friends, this Sunday after that week that I had, and I'm sure that you can relate. You've had many weeks like that yourself, even if you weren't writing a sermon. And my hope and my prayer today is that these words from Jesus at this time where the disciples were so discouraged, so anxious, so troubled, would meet you where you're at today, wherever that is, and lift you up and encourage you and put you in a place where your eyes are fixed once again on. The person of Jesus, because that is what we most need this morning, isn't it? To fix our eyes on Jesus. So, we're going to learn in the text today that trusting Christ is the cure for the troubled heart.

3:16Jesus begins with those words that I just mentioned: let not your hearts be troubled. Well, what was troubling the disciples? I mean, so many things. Jesus had just told them that he was going to be going away. He had been talking recently about being betrayed and crucified. And that was troubling the disciples because this was their teacher, their master, their Lord. They had given up everything to follow him and had followed him for three years of their lives.

3:44They were troubled because Jesus said he was going away. They were troubled because Jesus just told them that one of the disciples would betray him. And every one of them was so stunned that they all asked in succession, is it me? Is it I, Lord? Is it I? They couldn't believe that one of them, Judas included, would betray Jesus. They were very troubled by that. And then Jesus had just told them in the last section that all of them were going to fall away and that Peter himself was going to deny Jesus three times before the rooster crowed.

4:30So, the disciples had a lot going on in their hearts and minds. They had a lot of reasons to be troubled. Jesus' impending departure, Judas' betrayal, them falling away and denying Jesus. And given all those factors, they were feeling anxious, and I think that any of us would have felt anxious in those circumstances. But look at how Jesus encourages them in the first verse: Believe in God, believe also in me. Now, I want you to notice he doesn't say, Let not your hearts be troubled, everything's going to work out in the end.

5:09He doesn't say that. Non-Christians give that counsel regularly. Don't worry, everything's going to work out. And I'm not sure why people give that counsel to each other because it's patently false. Many times, things don't work out the way that we want, they don't work out the way that we hope. And I think, even among Christians, when we go through trials, we often tell ourselves or we often tell each other some version of that same thing: don't worry, everything's going to work out in the end. And sometimes we even use scripture to make that point. We'll point people to Romans 8:28. And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good. Now, don't misunderstand me. Romans 8:28 is absolutely true. God is working all things together for good for those who love him. That is absolutely true. True. The problem, though, is that our definition of what is good, good for this world, good for our country, good for our families, good for us personally, our definition of what is good is not always the same as God's definition of what is good.

6:19So back to the text. What does Jesus say here? Believe in God, believe also in me. We don't put our trust in the future, that things are just going to work out in the end. We don't believe in karma as Christians, that good things will eventually happen to good people. Jesus commands us to put our trust in God, to put our trust in Him. Because from a human standpoint, the future is always uncertain. And that's because we don't know the future and we don't control the future. No human being knows and controls the future, not even those who are most powerful in this world.

7:03But friends, God does. God does know the future and God does control the future. That's why Jesus tells the disciples to trust in God and to trust in Him. Because trust in Christ is the cure for the troubled heart. Friends, nothing is more important than the object of your faith. Every single person on earth exercises faith. Every single day. Every one of us, whether we claim to have faith or not, every person in the world exercises faith every single day. We don't get a choice about whether to exercise faith. We all do it.

7:44The only choice that we get is the object of our faith, what we're going to put our faith in. So, for many people, particularly in our country and particularly these days, their faith is in politicians and political parties. They believe that the only hope for the future is those men and women and those policies that they will hopefully enact. For others, their faith is in their finances and investments. For others, it's diet and exercise. Still, others have faith in themselves or even faith in their faith as though it were the amount of faith that matters rather than the object of our faith.

8:30But Jesus says, believe in God, believe also in me. He tells us to make God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the object of our faith. Because if our faith is in Him, it can be as small as a mustard seed. And Jesus says we can move mountains because it's the object of our faith finally that matters, not how much of it we have. Trusting Christ is the cure for the Troubled heart. Look what he says in verse 2.

9:06In my father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am, you may be also, and you know the way to where I am going. Now, in these verses, Jesus uses an analogy for heaven that he rarely uses, and that is a house with many rooms.

9:36But that comes from the Old Testament, the imagery that we find there. That language was used regularly to refer to the dwelling place of God on earth. First, the tabernacle, and then later on, the temple. Take a look at Psalm 27. This captures it well. One thing have I asked of the Lord, that I will seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.

10:07So the disciples would have been very familiar with this imagery of a house as the dwelling place for God, both in heaven and on earth. And Jesus is saying that yes, he's going to be leaving them, but he's leaving in order to go to prepare a place for them in his father's house. And since that's true, he is certainly going to come. Back to retrieve them and take them to be with him where he is. And if you're familiar with how Jewish weddings were conducted, this language evokes that kind of imagery.

10:46See, in ancient Israel, after a man and woman were betrothed, that is legally bound by Jewish law to be married, then what would happen is the man would go home and he would begin preparing a place for his bride to be. That might take weeks or months or the better part of a year, but once that place was prepared and the wedding day arrived, the bridegroom would be accompanied by his friends and musicians and singers and they would walk to the bride's house. He would receive her father's blessing and then he would take her, escorted by those friends and family members, musicians and singers, back to the place that he had prepared for her, and the wedding would take place.

11:29And throughout the Old Testament, this is significant because God refers to his people as his bride, and he refers to himself as the bridegroom. Then Jesus picks up this language and applies it to himself and his own teaching. And in the book of Revelation, the church is pictured as the bride who has made herself ready for Jesus, the bridegroom who comes back to retrieve his bride, just as he promised, to take her to be with himself forever.

12:01And so, friends, with these promises, Jesus brings to mind this imagery of the bridegroom coming for his bride after he has prepared a place so that they could be together forever. And that is the most important point here. That Jesus is promising to come back for all believers so that we can be with him forever. You notice here in these verses that he does not spend any time describing his father's house or the many rooms. And I don't think that's an accident. We definitely have descriptions of the new heavens and the new earth, far more than most Christians realize. If you'll just go home and study Revelation 21 and 22, you get a very vivid picture of what the new heavens and the new earth are going to be like. It's a beautiful, wonderful place. It's a beautiful, wonderful reality. But Jesus doesn't describe the father's house or the many rooms in any detail because the father's house, the new heavens and the new earth, is incidental. It's secondary to the fact that we're going to be with Jesus forever.

13:11That is the main point here. I mean, what did he say? He says, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am, you may be also. And that's because in a marriage relationship, the house and everything in it. Is secondary. I want you to think of it this way: in a happy and holy and healthy marriage, the couple can live anywhere. A small house, a tiny apartment, a trailer, a tent, and they will be happy together.

13:54Because it's a healthy, holy, happy marriage. Where they live is incidental. But in an unhappy, unhealthy, unholy marriage, the couple could live anywhere. A huge mansion, a beachside villa, a beautiful cabin in the mountains, and they will be miserable because they don't love each other. Where they live is incidental. It's secondary. A beautiful home cannot fix a broken marriage. So here's what I'm saying. If you're a follower of Jesus and you love him and you are looking forward to spending eternity with him, and he says that he's going to prepare a place for you, then you're going to be like, that sounds amazing. I can't wait because it's all about being with Jesus. It's not primarily about the place and what it's going to be like. Your focus is on Jesus, the one with whom you want to spend eternity. But think about the Ways that so many people talk about heaven and the afterlife. They refer to it with language like the big golf course in the sky, or the big fishing lake in the sky, or the big mansion in the sky. There is no mention of Jesus whatsoever.

15:18And so, if you don't love and long for Jesus now, there is no reason to think that you're going to enjoy being with Jesus for eternity when that is the main feature of the new heavens and the new earth, beautiful and wonderful as they may be otherwise. There's a reason God uses the picture of marriage to illustrate his relationship with his people. And so, ask yourself the question: Am I looking forward to being with a person for eternity, or just being in a place that I think would satisfy me?

16:05Now, look again at the end of verse 4. Jesus says he's going to prepare a place for them, and then he says, And you know the way to where I am going. Verse 5. Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way? At one level, it's regrettable that the disciples didn't understand Jesus very often. But one of the things that we can be so thankful for is that all of their questions meant that Jesus had an opportunity to teach, and it gave these gospel writers the opportunity to write down his answers for all generations so that we could benefit from them. Thomas says, we don't know where you're going. How can we know the way? Look at what Jesus says in reply, verse 6.

17:00Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on, you do know him and have seen him. Thomas said that they didn't know where Jesus was going or the way to get there. But again, notice that Jesus doesn't even address the question of where he is going. He doesn't answer that part because the destination is not the most important thing. The relationship is the most important thing.

17:38Now, Jesus' answer to Thomas's question is one of the most clear, powerful statements in all of Scripture. He says, I am. He takes the very name of God for himself. If you go back and look at Exodus 3, when God reveals himself to Moses, he says, What is your name? What should I tell the people? He says, I am. Who I am. I am is the name of God. Jesus takes it for himself all the time. He says, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

18:15Jesus does not say, I am a way, a truth, and a life, and some people come to the Father through me. No, he says he's the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except through him. I want you to think about each of these phrases for just a moment. First, I am the way. If you think about other religions for a moment, even think about the popular series, The Mandalorian, this is the way.

18:52How does every other religion talk about the path to eternal life? They refer to it as a way in many cases, but what is the way? The way is a set of beliefs. It is a set of practices. It is a way that you have to live your life morally, ethically, and otherwise, religiously, in order to earn your way into the afterlife. That is the way for every other religion. It's a set of beliefs and practices that you have to do well enough in order to earn. Earn your way to the afterlife. But what does Jesus say? He says, I am the way. I am the way.

19:42The good news of the gospel is that Jesus came to fulfill the law for us. It's not that there's not a set of beliefs and practices associated with Judaism and then Christianity. There are. It's called the Law of Moses. It's very detailed. If you've ever read Leviticus, you know that. It's not that there's not a way, it's that we didn't keep the way. And no amount of second and third and fourth chances was going to be enough for us to keep the way. So Jesus said when he arrived and began his ministry, don't think that I came to abolish the law. I didn't come to get rid of any of that. I came to fulfill it. He came to obey every single part of the law in our place for us because we couldn't do it. It was impossible. And he did it perfectly and without sin. So now Jesus is the way. So when Christians ask you or others in your circle, do we still have to keep the Old Testament law? That's a question that stumps a lot of Christians. The answer is no, because Jesus fulfilled it for us. He came and kept it perfectly.

21:00He did everything that was required, and what is required of us now is to trust in him who is the way. So he says he's the way. He also says, I am the truth. And when John began his gospel, he wrote that Jesus, the only Son from the Father, came full of grace and truth. He came full of grace and truth. God's word is truth, and Jesus is the word made flesh. He came to reveal truth to us through his life and ministry. He is the truth.

21:40And then he says, I am the life. Again, at the beginning of the gospel, in John chapter 1, John wrote that Jesus had life in himself. In him was life. And he has the authority to give life to whom he will. So if you think back a few chapters to when he raised Lazarus from the dead, what did he tell Mary and Martha? He said, I am the resurrection and the life. I am the resurrection and the life. If you want eternal life, it comes through me. Jesus is the author and sustainer of life. He's powerful enough even to raise the dead, not just physically, but spiritually to eternal, abundant life.

22:28And friends, because Jesus is... The way, the truth, and the life, it follows logically that no one comes to the Father except through him. That must be true if the previous statements are true. There cannot be any other ways to the Father. And if that seems narrow and exclusive, then just consider for a second that in every other realm of life, all truth is narrow and exclusive. We have no problem agreeing with the fact that there is one right answer in math, in science, in history. We accept that. Truth is narrow and exclusive. But when it comes to religion, people throw logic out the window and they start to think that there can be multiple mutually exclusive paths to the same God.

23:22But that can't be true. All truth is narrow. All truth is exclusive. According to Jesus, there cannot be any other way because he is the way, the truth, and the life. So he adds this in verse 7. If you, and he's responding to Thomas, but this word in the Greek is plural. All of the you're in plural. So if y'all had known me, y'all would have known my father also. From now on, y'all do know him and have seen him.

23:57So he's not just talking to Thomas, he's talking to all of us. Them. Verse 8. Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us. Jesus said to him, Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, Show us the Father? Now, why does Philip make this request? He wants to see God. Sure, Moses did. You do, I do. We all want to see God.

24:40But I think there's more going on here than that. I want you to think about the flow of this conversation and how they got to this point. Their hearts are troubled, and so Jesus tells them to believe in God and believe also in him. He says he's going to prepare a place for them and that they knew the way. Thomas said that they didn't know the way, and so Jesus said that he is the way to the Father.

25:05So now Philip is essentially saying, but Jesus, how can we know for sure? You said that you're the way to the Father and we believe you, but it would be a lot easier to believe if you would just show us the Father, if you would just give us that evidence. But this is the whole reason that Jesus came. Reveal the Father, the invisible God. John began his gospel by saying that no one had ever seen God the Father, but God the Son had made him known.

25:42Jesus said in John 6 that no one had seen the Father except the Son, and he came to reveal him. Take a look at Hebrews chapter 1 on the screen. Jesus is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature. And he upholds the universe by the word of his power. Look at those words, the radiance of his glory, the exact imprint of his nature. Jesus is the visible, tangible image of the invisible God who is spirit.

26:23But friends, seeing the Father requires trusting Jesus, which is why Jesus explains the way he does in verses 10 and 11. Look at verse 10. Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you, I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

27:02So, Jesus, as you can see from the emphasis I'm placing on that word belief, he keeps taking it back to this issue of faith. That's where he started this whole conversation: believe in God, believe also in me. He's calling them to faith over and over again. Well, friends, the question that should arise in our minds is: why should we believe something? Why should we believe something? Is it because somebody told us that we should? Is it because that's what people have always believed?

27:34What's the reason that we should believe something? Well, hopefully, all of our beliefs are based on evidence. We believe what we believe because we've seen evidence that has convinced us that it's true. Hopefully, that's why we believe what we believe. But for many people, that's not true. Many people have absolutely no evidence whatsoever for the things that they believe. But our beliefs should be based on evidence. And so, Jesus points us to two pieces of evidence: His words and His works. First, He points the disciples back to His words. He claimed throughout His ministry that He wasn't speaking on His own authority, but that He spoke God the Father's words. And this was something that the crowds always picked up on. Take a look at Mark chapter 1.

28:28And they were all amazed. So that they questioned among themselves, saying, What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him. And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. Jesus spoke like no one else in human history, both in terms of what he said and how he said it. He spoke truth with absolute authority, almost like he wrote it himself. Almost like that. That's what impressed the crowds so much.

29:11So he says, believe my words. You've heard me speak. You've heard all these things that I've said. But if that's not enough, second, he points them to his works. He says, either believe my words or else believe on account of the works themselves. Now remember, all throughout John's gospel, what has John been referring to Jesus' miracles as? Signs. Signs. He uses that word again and again. A sign is something that's pointing to something else. And in this case, the signs of Jesus' miracles are pointing to his true identity as the Son of God, the one and only Son of God. So how do we know that Jesus is in the Father and the Father is in him?

29:58Jesus says the words of the Father. And then backs up those words with his miraculous works, which point to the fact that he is the Son. So we should believe his words, but at the very least we should believe because of the works, especially his resurrection from the dead. That is all the evidence that we should require to believe in him. Okay, so Jesus is going to prepare a place for his disciples who know that he is the way to the Father and the Father is in him. We are called to trust Jesus' word on this, which is backed up with all of his miraculous works. But remember, he is still going away, and that means that the disciples are still troubled. So I want you to see how Jesus encourages them and us with these final words. Let's pick up in verse 12: Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do, and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.

31:12Now, that is a spectacular promise that whoever believes in Jesus will do the works that he did, and even greater works because he's going to the Father. Now, I think any honest reader here has to pause and say, really? Really? Greater works than healing the sick, casting out demons, raising the dead? I mean, that cannot be what Jesus means, can it? Well, what do we find in the book of Acts, the historical account of the early church?

31:49I see Peter healing a lame man, healing a man paralyzed from birth, raising a woman from the dead. I see Stephen performing great wonders and signs. Philip casting out demons and unclean spirits, healing the lame and the paralyzed. I see Paul healing a crippled man, driving the demon out of a little girl, and raising a boy from the dead. Here's a great summary statement in Acts chapter 5. Look at this and listen to these words. Now, many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. You may have forgotten this from when you last read Acts, but there are passages in the book of Acts that say that people were laying their sick in the streets so that Peter's shadow would fall on them.

32:49There are passages in the book of Acts that said people were going around and picking up the hankies that Paul used because people were being miraculously healed by touching his handkerchief. I mean, that is amazing. Those sound like the works that Jesus was doing. But he says that his followers would do even greater works than these because he was going to the Father. Well, what does he mean? What could be greater than raising someone from the dead?

33:22Well, how about raising someone who is spiritually dead to eternal life? When we think back to Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, that's an amazing miracle. But the reality is, Lazarus was going to die again. Sin and the curse would make sure of that. Lazarus' physical resurrection was temporary. And that's why Jesus shares the better news with his sisters. I want you to look on the screen again at John 11. Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?

34:21Do you believe this? That's a question for you this morning, not just for Martha. Do you believe this? See, healing people are drawing. Driving out demons or raising the dead, those are incredible works. But raising someone from spiritual death to eternal and abundant life is even more amazing. It is even more amazing than that. Those are the greater works that Jesus is talking about. And they are made possible because He's going back to the Father so that He can send the Holy Spirit to convict the world according to sin and righteousness and judgment. He is coming to send the Holy Spirit so that we can do those greater works of proclaiming the gospel and seeing people healed, not just temporarily, but permanently through faith in Christ.

35:12So, friends, remember that whatever good works God may call you and empower you to carry out as a Christian, there is no greater work than proclaiming the good news of Jesus. All physical healings are temporary, but spiritual resurrection is forever. So, we should devote ourselves to doing good works, but especially to the work of making disciples, because that's the greatest work that we can do. Now, look at verse 13 and 14, and these verses make a lot more sense with the context of verse 12 that we just talked about.

35:49Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. Now, the key words in this promise are in my name. Whatever we ask in Jesus' name, he will do. So, what does that mean? We can just tack in Jesus' name to the end of anything and get it? No, what Jesus is saying, to pray in his name is to pray according to his character and his will.

36:24Jesus doesn't just sign off on anything that people ask him for. And when you think about that concept of signing off on something, when you sign your name to something, when you sign a document, a contract, whatever it would be, you are saying that I am willing to put my name on this. I'm willing to have my character, my reputation, everything that I am associated with this. And so, the question is, would Jesus sign off on this thing that I'm asking for?

36:57What's the context of this promise? It's doing the works that Jesus did and greater things than those. And then he adds this promise, if you ask anything in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Well, again, let's go back to the book of Acts. What do we find there? We find the name of Jesus, the works of Jesus, and the greater work of gospel proclamation resulting in new life tied together over and over again.

37:30Look at Acts chapter 3. But Peter said, I have no silver and gold, but what I do have, I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. And after this, he's able to preach the gospel to that crowd. Look at Acts chapter 9. Peter said to him, Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Rise and make your bed. And immediately he rose, and all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

38:04Look at Acts chapter 16. This demon-possessed girl is following Paul and Barnabas around as they're preaching the gospel. And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the Spirit, I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And it came out that very hour. Many people in Philippi turned to the Lord as a result of this happening. So Jesus just said that his ultimate goal is that the Father would be glorified in him. And that happens when people pass from spiritual death to spiritual life through faith in him. And that happens through gospel proclamation. So friends, you might be wondering, you know, what does this have to do with us today? Are we to go around healing people in the name of Jesus? Are we to go around casting out demons in the name of Jesus, even raising the dead in the name of Jesus?

39:01Maybe so. There are reports of believers seeing those great miracles throughout the world today. The problem is, we never know if it's the will of the Lord for those things to happen. That's up to Him and not to us, right? But here's what we do know: God has made His will known to us very clearly all throughout Scripture. We don't have to wonder about praying certain things in Jesus' name because we're actually commanded to do it. We are told that His will for us is things like sanctification. Look at 1 Thessalonians 4.

39:37For this is the will of God, your sanctification. You never need to wonder if you should pray in Jesus' name for you and other Christians to become holier people. That is God's will, every time. God's will for us is thankfulness. 1 Thessalonians 5. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. You don't have to wonder if God's will is for you to be thankful. It is. You can pray for that in Jesus' name every time.

40:13His will for us is good works. Look at 1 Peter 2. For this is the will of God, that by doing good, you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. So, friends, it may or may not be the will of God to heal someone or something. To raise someone from the dead, that is up to his infinite wisdom and purposes. But things like sanctification and thankfulness and doing good are always his will because those are ways that he not only gains glory for himself from your life, but it is ways that he points other people to the resurrected Christ who makes us holy, thankful people, who devote our lives to doing good, even at cost to ourselves, so that other people can flourish. Those are things that make people say, What is so different about you? What is so different about the way that you live your life? Why do you live the way that you do? That is always God's will. His will is that the Father would be glorified in the Son, whose gospel we proclaim with our lips, and whose resurrected life we display in our lives. We just have to have the faith to ask in Jesus' name for the very things that He commands us to pray for because they are His will.

41:33Well, friends, we can only imagine how encouraging these words were to these disciples who were troubled about so many things. And I have no doubt that many of you this morning are troubled in heart. Life in this fallen world is hard, and sometimes we make it harder through our own foolishness and sinful choices. I just want to ask, what is it that's troubling you today? What's troubling you today? Is it a relationship? Is it your health or the health of somebody that you love?

42:17Is it your finances? Your career? Your education? A friend's lost soul? Your future? What is it that's troubling you today? Let me remind you of Paul's words to the Philippians, which I think complement Jesus' words so well. This is in Philippians 4. Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

43:12Brothers and sisters, do not let your hearts be troubled. You have a Savior who cares for you. The Word of God tells us, cast your anxieties on him because he cares. For you. I think sometimes we forget that. We forget that the God of the universe cares. He cares about the little details of our jobs and that broken toilet and the broken sprinkler and the relationship that's just not right and the things that you're worried about with your school or your job or your family. He cares about all of those things. And much more besides, do not let your hearts be troubled. Instead, believe these promises.

44:03That if we go to Him in prayer, that we will receive from Him a peace that passes all understanding. Not because all of a sudden the future is going to work out and everything's going to be okay, but because we know the Savior who will walk through it with us every step of the way. That is a better promise than the false promise that everything is just going to work out in the end. And so I just want to encourage you to go to Christ. Trusting Christ is the cure for the troubled heart.

44:42And if you're not yet a Christian, perhaps you've felt lost for some time. Maybe you've been looking for a way, a way to make sense of life, a way to find identity, a way to find purpose. Meaning, perhaps you suspect that God is out there somewhere, but you have no idea how to find Him. Well, my friend, it is no accident that you are here today. God has brought you to a place filled with people who know the way, the truth, and the life.

45:22That is no accident. We know the way, the truth, and the life, and His name is Jesus of Nazareth. He claimed and proved to be the only Son of God. He came to live a sinless and perfect life on your behalf, to die in your place for your sins, and to raise from the dead, not so that you could have a second chance to try harder, to do better, to earn your way to heaven, but so that He Himself could become the way for you.

45:55That's why He came. So, if you've been looking for a way, know that Jesus has been looking for you. He came to seek and to save the lost, every person who is enslaved to sin and scared and unsure about the future. So, what do you need to do? Jesus told you this morning: believe in God, believe also in me. Turn from whatever you're putting your trust and your hope in, and put your hope and trust in Jesus Christ instead, who is the way. The truth and the life. Your future and your present is secure with Him.

46:39Let's pray. Father, we thank you that we are no longer searching for a way. We're thankful that although the way had been revealed to us in your law, keep the law and you will live. That you have sent Jesus Christ to be the way, the truth, and the life for us. That we could be reconciled to you through him. I pray that all of us would learn to trust Jesus, to cast our cares on him because he cares for us, and to not let our hearts be troubled. And I pray for all those whose hearts are troubled this morning spiritually because they've been looking for a way. I pray that you would reveal your Yourself to them in the person and work of Christ, and that they would place their faith in Jesus this morning. Thank you, God, for your word to us. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

48:16Thank you for listening to the sermon audio from New Life Baptist Church in College Station, Texas. For more information or to support our ministry, visit us online at newlifecs.net.