“Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” John 16:20-22
Devotional Thought For The Day
Jesus was speaking about His crucifixion, death, resurrection, and ascension, and the time His dear followers spend in this world waiting for His second coming in glory. The apostles likewise warn us that we will have tribulation and sorrow in this world. The comparison Jesus uses is to childbirth. The apostle Paul uses the same comparison in regard to the whole cosmos [Rom. 8:22] and also to Christians who struggle with suffering in this life as we eagerly await the glory to be revealed in us [Rom. 8:18,23]. So it is for most of us that there is painful grief and sorrow as we go through life in this world. Some of it is caused by our own sin and mistakes; some of it is inflicted upon us by the various sins of others. Some of it has to do with the tragic difficulties that sin has brought into the world – disappointments, disagreements, dissension. Expectations can have a dramatic effect upon how these troubles strike us; if we expect only little or few troubles our difficulties in this world may be overwhelming, but if we are forewarned and prepared we will not be surprised or crushed. The analogy Jesus used – labor and childbirth, indicates the severity of some of our weeping and lamenting.
But the world will not care. In fact, the world will continue on rejoicing, especially in regard to those things which appear to negatively impact Christianity and the will of God. They rejoice in freedom from God’s authority, freedom from the insights and instructions of God’s Word, freedom to engage in immorality, freedom even to destroy the most vulnerable and innocent life, children in the womb, freedom from accountability to God [supposed], freedom from giving thanks to God, freedom from worshiping God, freedom to engage in delusional thinking, freedom from repenting, freedom from God’s love and redemption, and freedom from loving God. And the world actively encourages us to join them, to put other things ahead of God, to rejoice in the pleasures of this world rather than sorrowing over its decadence, erosion, and eventual destruction. The apostle Peter describes all of this and warns us, preparing us for the tension that we are certain to endure: “For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; but they will give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.” [1 Pet. 4:3-5] So we should add this intense conflict to the sorrows we are bound to experience as we live to God and anticipate the glory to come.
But there is also joy to be had and held by Christians. There is the joy of the coming deliverance from all sorrow, likened to maternal joy at the birth of a child. There is joy in the assurance of God’s gracious forgiveness and mercy, His eternal and unconditional love for us from which nothing can separate us [Rom. 8:31-39]. There is joy in the assurance that God remains in control over all things, limiting evil and working all things together for the good of those who love Him, those whom He has brought to faith, new life, and salvation. [Rom. 8:28] There is joy in the assurance of His constant presence, His empowering and enlightening instruction, His intercession for us and that of His Spirit [Mat. 28:20; Rom. 8:26,34; 2 Tim. 3:15-17]. There is also joy in the fellowship of God’s people, a joy which ultimately overcomes all the destructive effects of our sin and provides us with fellowship with one another – by the power of the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ, God’s own Son. [1 John 1:7] But these joys are in contrast to the “joys” of the world around us, and are ours only as we sorrow over what the world rejoices in. And the joys are just as intense as the sorrows – though there are many times when we would prefer to soften both and find some anesthesia. That, however, is part of the joy that we are looking forward to in heaven. [Rev. 21:4]
The sorrows are not going to go away during our time in this life – unless we join in affirming and celebrating what causes the sorrows. That is a dismal and sorrowful thought in itself, that some do so! So we should spend a good deal of time in the joy that Jesus provides for us, in His love and steadfastness [2 Thess. 3:5], to counterbalance the sorrows and to keep us from despair, and from wandering over into the “joys” of the unbelieving and wicked. This is what we are to receive within the life and fellowship of the church, as we gather for worship, for Bible Study, for Christian fellowship and friendship, and for Christian service. If we are focused on this it will not insulate us from the sorrows but it will keep us joyful and steadfast even in the midst of the worst sorrows, for we are certain that Christ Himself is with us in all our afflictions, and sharing in our griefs and sorrows. [Is. 63:7-9] This is perhaps the deepest fellowship that we can have with God. So let us not shrink back from the intensity but strive to embrace it, both in sorrow and in joy. It may feel like it is tearing us apart, but as Jesus encourages: “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] And so He has!
Prayer For The Day
Dear Lord Jesus, help us to endure and to embrace the contradictions and paradox that sin has brought into the world. Help us to grow more accustomed to the intense sorrows and joys of being a child of God. Help us to cast all of our cares upon You, knowing Your power and Your love for us, and Your ultimate victory over all evil. Keep us from all temptations and compromise, firm always in faith and in love. Amen.