Sermon Notes + 2.25.2024

I Have Overcome the World
John 16:25-33
Dr. Tony Chute, Lead Pastor

Overview: Jesus continues to prepare the disciples for His departure by speaking more plainly about His return to the Father and their immediate future without Him. He assures the disciples that their faith in Him has brought them into a relationship with the Father, such that they are loved by God and can ask anything of Him. As the disciples profess to understand more clearly the plan of redemption, Jesus reminds them of the difficulties they have yet to face. Their fears will overtake them, and they will soon abandon Jesus at His most critical moment. Nevertheless, Jesus’ confidence is not in them but in the Father’s love and care. He warns the disciples of tribulation in the world but encourages them to find their peace in Him because He has overcome the world. Like the disciples of old, we too will face tribulation in the world but can experience peace through the Lord Jesus Christ.

01. We will have tribulation in this world, but Christ has overcome the world. Let us appropriate His victory by confessing Jesus as Lord, continuing to pray in His name, believing the promises of God, and guarding our hearts from loving this world.

02. We may have disappointment with the church, but Christ is Lord of the church. Let us acknowledge His headship by finding our identity in Christ, being patient with our brothers and sisters in Christ, and loving the church instead of this world.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION & DISCOVERY

1. What “figures of speech” do we find in Jesus’ teaching? Why does Jesus speak to His disciples using figures of speech rather than speaking plainly from the beginning? (See Mark 4:10-13). In what ways have you understood more about Jesus and the Bible as you return to God’s Word and grow in Christ?

2. What assurance does Jesus provide the disciples in verse 26? Why is it important for them to know that the Father loves them directly? How would they feel about the Father if there were a permanent distance or barrier preventing them from addressing Him as such? What does this statement from Jesus indicate about the effectiveness of His work on the cross? See 1 John 3:1 for further insight.

3. Note how Jesus sets aside the humiliation of the cross in light of the fact that He is returning to the Father (verse 28). How does our understanding of heaven and being in the presence of God enable us to persevere in troubled times? Is there anything in heaven that can be taken away from us?

4. Are the disciples really able to understand all that Jesus is saying (verse 29), or are they a bit premature in assuming they understand (verses 31-32). Note how patient Jesus is with the disciples. Are you patient with other believers when they speak out of turn or think they have arrived at a point where they know everything? Pray for an understanding heart that is patient with others, just as the Lord is patient with you.

5. In what ways does the world tug at your heart? What are the things in this world that you feel you cannot live without? Is it peace and prosperity, freedom and leisure, family and friends? Ask the Lord to magnify your focus on Him so you can experience the peace that only He can give.

For Further Reading: Joel Beeke, Overcoming the World: Grace to Win the Daily Battle (P&R, 2005