Greif Turns to Joy John 16: 16 – 33
16 “A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.” 17 Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” 18 They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” 19 Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’? 20 Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. 21 When a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. 22 So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. 23 On that day you will ask nothing of me.[a] Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.[b] 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
Peace for the Disciples
25 “I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. 26 On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; 27 for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. 28 I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.”
29 His disciples said, “Yes, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech!30 Now we know that you know all things, and do not need to have anyone question you; by this we believe that you came from God.” 31 Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32 The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. 33 I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!”
Jesus is explaining his death and resurrection in a figuratively. Since he is talking in this way, the disciples have a hard time understanding. However, it is true that this remains a mystery.
- The disciples say, ‘What does he mean by saying…’
For the disciples, they didn’t know what kind of death he will encounter. They had no idea that he will resurrect from the dead in three days. They were not aware of him returning to heaven and promising to come back. That is why they had no idea.
It is true for many of us, however, that we still do not get it. Even though we know, it is until we receive the Holy Spirit, who helps us to understand this mystery, we will still wonder what he meant. - In response, Jesus replies in says ‘a little while.’ Did this only mean the three days of death? Yes and No.
Yes, because when Jesus died and descended into hell, it was the darkest time in the entire human history. He told the disciples, “So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” John 16: 19 NIV
But we do have to remember that Jesus’ answer extends to us. He wants to tell us that the mystery of the Resurrection is the source of eternal Joy, but the joy will be complete when we see each other face to face. This day will come ‘Soon and very Soon.’ - He says, “Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.” John 16: 20 NIV The world will throw out curveballs in our lives, and sometimes, it will hit us hard. However, we need to hold onto the hope of the Resurrection and its eternal Joy. We also need to see how God is always with us and see how he helps us to overcome the world.
“I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.” John 16: 33 The Message
Click to subscribe to our Daily Devotion.
You will receive a devotion in your inbox every morning.