Watch

Listen

Click here to listen to the episode on our website

Read

When Fear and Anxiety Rule: What To Do?

There is a kind of generic hopelessness running wild through our culture right now. Everything just feels different — darker. The billboards, the vibe, the way people interact with each other. And it has a way of getting to you.

Even those of us walking faithfully with Christ can find ourselves journeying for hours or days with a troubled heart. We forget the things we know to be true. We lose our grip on the promises we have been given.

But there is help for the troubled heart. And it is found in one of the most remarkable passages in all of scripture — John chapter 14.

Setting the Scene: What Led to These Words

Before we can feel the full weight of what Jesus says in chapter 14, we have to go back to chapter 13 and understand what just happened.

Jesus and his disciples had just finished observing the Passover together. It was a very pleasant time — something the Jewish people looked forward to every year. After the meal, Jesus took on a towel and washed his disciples' feet. In that culture, that represented the lowest form of servanthood. Entry-level servants did that job at gatherings.

And then Jesus drops a major bombshell on his disciples.

He tells them he will be betrayed by one of their own number (John 13:21-30). He tells them he is going away (John 13:31-33). And then comes the horrific news — that their leader Peter will deny him (John 13:36-38).

The Savior's words would have broken their hearts at that point. Shattered their confidence. Left them devastated.

That is exactly why we have the precious words that come next.

"Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In 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."

Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?"

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

— John 14:1-6

We need to remember this passage when the tough times come our way. Trials and tribulations are slated for all of God's children. Jesus himself said it plainly:

"I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."

— John 16:33

You will have tribulation. Not might. Not may. You will.

All throughout scripture it reminds us that trials are part of the human existence. Many people are called upon to face their worst nightmares in this life. The simple truth is this — hard times will come. However, in the midst of our difficulties, we can have peace.

There are three things to consider as we look deeper at John 14 — three points that can help you get your gaze above your circumstances and find real help for a troubled heart.

Point 1 — We Have Fears to Escape

Fear not. Fear not. Fear not. We see it all over in the scriptures. So why do we still fear?

The honest answer is that it never goes completely away this side of eternity. But it does become less and less as we mature and as we keep going back to Jesus — daily. That is the deal.

The word let in John 14:1 is actually a call for you and me to be involved in the troublesome times of our lives. We don't just sit back and do nothing. There is an activity that happens — but it comes from a complete trust in the sovereignty of God. We are not called to sit idly by while our lives are destroyed before our eyes.

We have a recourse in the times of trouble. It is Bible truth. It is Bible promises.

Here are some of them.

Our Recourse: Bible Promises for Troubled Hearts

Philippians 4:4-7

"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."

Matthew 11:28-30

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

1 Peter 5:7

"Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you."

That word casting — that does not mean just tossing it gently out at the foot of the cross. No. You are throwing the ball as deep as you possibly can. You are at the combine showing how far you can throw a football. That is the word casting here. You are throwing all of your anxieties on the Lord, because he cares for you.

The Old Testament doubles down on this in Psalm 55:22:

"Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved."

And 2 Timothy 1:7 reminds us:

"For God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control."

Scraping Off the Barnacles

Along the shoreline in certain west coast ocean towns, it is a common sight to see whales stopping along the rocks as they migrate from Alaska to Mexico — scraping off barnacles. In our lifetime, we will also pick up a collection of personal barnacles that attach themselves like parasites, sapping the life out of us. They must be scraped off.

Consider Job — a man the Bible describes as blameless, upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. He had seven sons and three daughters. A beautiful family. He was considered the greatest of all men of the east.

And he lost it all in the snap of a finger.

His health. His wealth. His family. This man hurt — and he hurt bad. He was knocked down. But he was not knocked out. And in the middle of all of it, he said this:

"Though he slay me, I will hope in him."

— Job 13:15

How could he say that after undergoing so much pain?

Through faith. Real faith. Authentic faith — not the conjured-up counterfeit being sold across America by the next heretic and the next charlatan. Real faith is the only thing that can heal the hurts. The scars remain — but life gets put back together. Strong belief in God as our sovereign is the medicine.

This passage in John stands as the great rock in the scriptures. If you have accumulated some barnacles along the way that are sapping your spiritual life, stealing your joy, and causing you pain — this passage, if believed and received, is able to scrape them all away and restore your joy and peace.

The best plan of escape for our fears is to run safely into the presence of Jesus. You are never safer than when you are in his presence.

And consider this: 95% of all that we fret about either is not real or never comes about. Don't let fear and worry ruin your life. Instead, bring your fears to Jesus, and he will give you peace in the place of fear.

Point 2 — We Have a Faith to Hold On

The word believe is a life-altering word.

It means to think something to be true. To be persuaded of it. To have confidence in it. Literally — to exercise faith in someone or something.

John 14:1 speaks of two kinds of faith: sustaining faith and saving faith.

Sustaining Faith — "Believe in God."

This is the kind of faith that will bring you through the valleys. This kind of faith believes that God exists and that he is in absolute control of all things — what we call God's sovereignty.

"Without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."

— Hebrews 11:6

The greatest reward is that peace that passes all understanding, wrapped up in the joy of where you are headed. Here are a few mic-drop verses to back this up.

Romans 8:28

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

You might be thinking — you are telling me stage four is going to work out for good? You are telling me I lost my job, she left, he left, everything is rotten — that is going to be good? No. But God will work it out for good for those he called and saved. For his purposes. We always want to make it about us. But everything that comes into the life of a believer that you did not instigate, he can work for good. Why? Because he has the power.

Ephesians 3:20

"Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us."

He is able, and he has the power to do all — and to do it abundantly.

Psalm 37:23

"The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way."

Notice what that says — and what it does not say. It does not say your steps are established by the Lord just because. It says they are established when you delight in his way.

If you can ever get to the place where you trust God completely — without reservation — then you have the very instrument you need to loosen the grip of fear on your life. As soon as you come to the place where you know God will do as he has promised, and you leave life up to him and his will, then you are free. And that is a great place to be.

Saving Faith — "Believe also in me."

Is it enough to just believe there is a God? No. Devils believe that and they are not saved.

To be saved, a person must believe the gospel message. The gospel is a simple message — it is about the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But do not stop at merely believing these were actual historical events. Even though the historical accuracy cannot be denied by anyone with an honest, open heart — that Jesus lived, died on a cross, and was seen raised again by over 500 people — the question is whether you embrace it by faith and are then saved by the grace of God.

After Thomas asked his question in our text, Jesus said it plainly:

"I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

— John 14:6

To illustrate the simplicity of the gospel, you only need a few verses from the New Testament. Know these.

John 3:16

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."

John 6:47

"Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life."

Romans 10:9-10

"If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved."

Acts 16:31

"Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household."

Romans 10:13

"For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

Embrace Jesus Christ by faith. Rest easy. Put your future in his capable hands.

Point 3 — We Have a Future to Envision

Really focus on verses two and three of our text. We have a future to envision — and it includes three things.

A Precious Place — "In my Father's house are many rooms."

We need to remember that we are not home yet. While the troubles and trials we face are part of this earthly existence, they will not follow us to where we are headed.

The burdens of this life are temporary at best. We are just pilgrims and strangers passing through enemy territory. It will be far better when we finally get home. The best is yet to come.

If you are redeemed in Christ, there is a place for you in the Father's house. One day, you will be going home.

2 Corinthians 5:1-8 speaks directly into this:

"For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling... so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord."

What is mortal is going to get swallowed up by life. Do not let mortal thoughts distort what heaven is supposed to be.

And here is something worth sitting with: the point of heaven is not the amenities. Not the reunion with loved ones, as wonderful as that will be. Not running and not growing weary. Those are byproduct benefits. The reality — the thing that makes heaven heaven — is being in the presence of Jesus. Everything will be about being in his presence. And it is going to be so incredible that that is all we will want to be about.

A Prepared Place — "I go to prepare a place for you."

This world and all of its wonders was made by the hand of God — and scripture tells us the Lord did it in just six days. How glorious and wonderful heaven must be. After all, he has had over 2,000 years to work on it. It will be far greater than our feeble human minds can comprehend.

"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."

— Revelation 21:4

They have passed away — because of the power and the love of Jesus Christ himself. That is why we want to be where he is.

And from our text, verse three:

"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."

— John 14:3

Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people. Are you prepared for that place?

A Powerful Promise — "I will come again."

Every day, you and I live with one of the greatest promises the world has ever known as our support. We have a Savior's promise that he will personally return to receive his people to himself.

"For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words."

— 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18

Therefore encourage one another with these words.

That is where our joy comes from. That is how you can stay jacked in the middle of bad circumstances — because he is still your sovereign, and he is coming to get you, and he is going to bring you home one day.

In fact, he wanted his people to know what he meant so badly that he restated his intentions in the very last chapter of the very last book of the Bible. The second-to-last verse in your Bible says this:

"Surely I am coming soon. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus."

— Revelation 22:20

Three Questions to Close With

1. What are you afraid of today? If you come to him, the Lord can replace your fear with incredible peace.

2. What are you trusting to take you to heaven? Everybody believes in something. Have you ever truly trusted Jesus as your personal savior — not as a familiar phrase you have heard your whole life, but really trusted him? If not, you can. You can come to him by faith today.

3. Are you able to get your eyes above your trials and see the gates of your prepared home? Can you see above this earth and see what Jesus has prepared for you?

If the burdens of life have gotten you down, come to the Lord today and let him help you get your gaze above your circumstances. There is help and hope in him. Regardless of what you need today, you will find your answer in him.