I Am Not Alone - Part 1

Bryan Chapell: If Christ is in us, and Christ is at the right hand of God the Father, that means that we are at the right hand of God the Father as well. And the wonder of that is verse 27. Words that just go by so quickly as we see Jesus saying, the Father himself loves you.
Guest (Male): So glad you joined us for today's Unlimited Grace, the audio broadcast ministry of pastor and author Brian Chappell. In today's episode, pastor Brian shares a lesson from John 16. Dr. Chappell highlights the guiding light and presence of the Holy Spirit that brings joy even though we may face trial and persecution. You can find this lesson and many others when you visit unlimitedgrace.com. And while you're there, look for Dr. Chappell's book Grace at Work. In this book, pastor Brian shares how your work is a unique opportunity and calling for displaying God's character and care. Let's hear now from Dr. Brian Chappell as he shares the lesson I am not alone.
Bryan Chapell: I do not know the young woman who wrote these words, but I imagine that I've heard a version of it many times as many of you have. She wrote I was devastated. I had never been fired from anything. But because my doctor turned in a workman's compensation claim because of an injury that I sustained at work, my boss was livid. And he fired me. It was unfair. It was unjust. And I could not imagine what God was doing. She writes as a consequence, I felt I needed Christ to be more real and present than ever before. And so the prayer life that had lapsed, the life patterns carelessly pursued without reflection or repentance, the priorities pursued without a thought of how they related to Christ. All now were examined in my fresh hour of need as I tried to find out anew what it meant to abide in Christ. She wrote it happened. Somehow the Holy Spirit began to minister to me. I began to mend on the inside. I began to find strength in the Savior again. But I still did not know why. In June, there was a strong thunderstorm whose winds knocked down the corn in our garden. And so my husband went out and stood up the stalks and pushed the soil back around the roots. Afterwards, we walked down our little rural road toward the house. The next thing I remember is waking up in the ambulance in excruciating pain. A drunken driver had crossed the yellow line, ran up the ditch behind us, and struck me from behind. I was airlifted to the hospital. Head laceration, cracked sternum, multiple rib fractures, liver laceration, ruptured spleen, vertebrae fractures, pelvic fracture, hip fracture. The doctor originally said no hope. But then the prayer chain started in our church. It was night, but people got up out of their beds to pray. Sustaining my life was touch and go, but God's spirit touched me. And I began to heal. I told the doctors Jesus was taking care of me. Still it was not an easy road. The doctors didn't know if I would ever walk again. And as I recuperated, I I began to see the hand of the Holy Spirit more clearly. First, our children were not with us on the road. Normally they would have been, and they would have been killed instantly. Then God began to have me think more of what Christ might be doing even as his presence became more real in my pain. I recognized that had I not been fired, had I not begun to find strength in Jesus again through that experience, I would not have been ready for this experience. God knew and was preparing me by his Holy Spirit. Now I know the world's skepticism and our own questions have us ask, well, why did she have to go through any of it? I don't know. I know the Jesus that I worship said, in this world, you will face tribulation. He did not pray to take us out of this world. He promised to be with us through the difficulties of it so that his name and purposes would ultimately spread in ways that we cannot fathom. But even in telling us that, he tells us how he will minister to us in the worst of times by his Holy Spirit. What after all will happen as that spirit voice in us, that that inner strength that comes from Christ witnessing to us by his spirit, what does that spirit led life look like? What characterizes it? You can't miss that the first characteristic is simply joy. I mean it's it's mentioned three times in this passage in verse 20 and 22 and 24. But maybe verse 20 expresses the concept the best. In verse 20, Jesus says to his disciples, 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. I know it's simple, but we have to recognize he does not promise a world absent of sorrow. He promises joy beyond sorrow. We have ways of talking about sometimes that are helpful. I recognize sometimes not, but it's an important distinction that that happiness depends on what happens in the world. Joy depends on Jesus, no matter what happens in the world. And the way in which that is made plain here is by Jesus saying to these disciples, you will weep and you will lament, but it will not be a cause for your joy going away. Now the example he gives, we understand, right? It's verse 21. Jesus says, when a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come. But when she is delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish for joy that a human being has been born into the world. I I I get that. Kind of. I mean, you know, I'm I'm of the generation of of fathers who were were invited into the delivery room. I I was told this would be a really wonderful experience by some liar. I mean I mean, whoever thought this was a good idea? I mean, you go, you know, and you watch the person that you love most in the world hurt for hours, right? And and your your great comforter is, honey, would you like a few ice chips? You know, or or breathe with me. You know. Whoever thought this was a good idea? You know. Until the baby comes. And then no matter how manly you are, the tears come too. But now not of anguish, but of profound joy. The anguish has led to do life, to new beginnings, to new purpose. And and I look at my wife, you know, the same one who I thought, you know, is she even going to survive the next 10 minutes? I've been taking thinking that for the last 6 hours, and suddenly the baby is delivered, and my wife, I don't know I know it's not true of my wife is ready for the marathon now. I mean, she is just she's animated, she's excited, she's happy. And I think, what happened to the person who was here 20 minutes ago? Everything's different because the purpose has been revealed and and Jesus is saying the sorrow is not absent of the joy, but the joy will follow the sorrow. It will come. And and to recognize how profound is that, we have to understand the reasons for the anguish that Jesus is describing here. I mean the anguish for the disciples is that Jesus has just said, a little while and I'm going away. They don't know it, but we understand the context of those words. Judas has already left the supper. The soldiers are already on their way to arrest him. And Jesus is speaking about what is about to happen a little while and I am going away and will be scourged and spat upon, and nails will be driven into my hands and feet, thorns in my brow, I'd be hung upon a cross, and I will have a spear thrust through me to show that I have died and I am gone. And you will weep and lament. But that's not the end of the story. Yet a little while and I will come again. And and we know what that's about too. We know that ultimately what Christ is promising is that he will rise the victor over the grave, that that what that means is our sin will be put aside as far as the east is from the west because the penalty of our all of our guilt will be put upon him, and ultimately we will see there is cause for rejoicing. But but you must understand, they did not see that immediately, and we will not always see the cause for joy immediately either. The joy comes after sorrow, not not without sorrow.
Guest (Male): You're listening to Unlimited Grace, the audio broadcast ministry of pastor and author Brian Chappell. Sometimes your job can feel merely like the daily grind that's needed to provide for family or pay the bills. Yet you can worship God by your work, rising above drudgery, duty, or self-interest with the understanding that your job is a unique calling for displaying God's character and care. Your work becomes worship when you see the glory beyond the grind, the mission in the mundane, and the grace at work. This is the focus of pastor Brian Chappell's book Grace at Work. As a thank you for supporting our ministry here at Unlimited Grace, we would like to send you a copy of this book to encourage you and help you understand how your work fulfills God's purposes, even if he calls you to labor in difficult places or for difficult people. You can request your copy of Grace at Work when you donate online at unlimitedgrace.com or by calling 844-41- Grace. That's 844-414-7223. And now more from Brian Chappell on today's Unlimited Grace.
Bryan Chapell: You will weep and lament, and the world will think it's got the victory. We won. Christ's purposes have been put down. The the righteous have been defeated. The world thinks this is the good thing. And and our agony is that there are people actually rejoicing for our pain and the pain of the purposes of God. And we have to endure it, recognizing that God is saying ultimately there will be good that comes out of this. There will be joy in the morning. And the reason the joy will come in the morning is because not only that Christ will rise, but he says I go to be with the Father. What good is that? Know that that Jesus goes to be with the Father in our behalf, that that after that resurrection, he will ascend, that he will be with the Father, and he will be with the Father in our behalf. Already we have learned here in John 14 and John 16 that that the Father is in Jesus, and Jesus is in us by his spirit. And that means if Jesus is with the Father, we are with him too. That there is not just joy being promised by Christ, but by the ministry of the Holy Spirit, nearness to God. If Christ is in us, and Christ is at the right hand of God the Father, that means that we are at the right hand of God the Father as well. And the wonder of that is verse 27. Words that just go by so quickly as we see Jesus saying, the Father himself loves you. Why do I need to know that? Because of words that may disturb us here as we are being told that by the work of Jesus Christ, we not only have joy but nearness to God. There are words here that disturb us a bit, verse 23. Jesus says, in that day of his returning and then going to the Father, you will ask nothing of me. Truly I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Now there are a number of things that trouble us here. First, Jesus says, in that day that's to come when I'm with the Father, you'll ask nothing of me. And many of us have been taught that actually it's Jesus' job to be interceding at the right hand of God the Father on our behalf. But there's a wrong way of thinking about that. It's sometimes endorsed by other faiths and other religions. It's the idea of kind of an an impassive, uncaring God of the universe who must be approached by a tender, sensitive Jesus in our behalf. And Jesus says, no, listen, in that day that I'm in you and you are in me and I'm beside the Father, the Father will love you. So much so that you won't have to ask me, you can ask the Father directly. Now Jesus is still interceding. He's still our mediator. He's still the one who has taken our sin upon himself so that we can boldly approach the throne of grace. But but I recognize at that point I am approaching the Father as one deeply and profoundly loved. And that 's what he says in verse 27, the Father loves you. That's why you can go directly to him, having been made right by the work of Jesus Christ. It is after all how Jesus taught us to pray, right? How did Jesus teach us to pray? The first words of the Lord's prayer are what? Our our Father. We can go directly to the Father who loves us. And knowing that means that we have direct access to the power as well as the love of God. Now there's a problem there too because if you look at verse 23 carefully, it's a little dismaying to us. Verse 23 of chapter 16, in that day Jesus says, you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father, no matter how evil or selfish or wrong it is, he will give it to you. Is that what it says? Now you know there's a qualification, right? The Bible never says you ask whatever you want and no matter how selfish or evil or wrong it is, God's got to give it to you. No, there's a qualification there. What was the qualification? Whatever you ask what in my name. Now now what does that mean? Is that some sort of abracadabra in Jesus' name? We you know, we we do the magic incantation that makes it work. Now Jesus has already told us what it meant to pray in his name. And I'm going to ask that you back up a couple of chapters and remember that this is one long dinner conversation. And if you go to John 14 and verse 13, you will discover what it means to pray in the name of another. John 14 and verse 13. The subject of prayer is again on the table. And in John 14:13, Jesus says, whatever you ask in my name, this I will do that the Father may be glorified in the Son. What you ask in the name of another is what brings glory to the other. It's for the purposes, the honor, the sake of the other. That 's why Jesus says in verse 24 of chapter 16, back there again. Chapter 16 and verse 24, speaking to these disciples, until now you have asked nothing in my name. Which means of course that they have been asking amiss. They have been asking for themselves. They've been asking for selfish purposes. They have not asked for the purposes of God, and he's reminding them of that. It's the same message that Jesus' brother James will speak of later in James 4 when he will say, you have not because you do not ask. And when you do ask, you ask amiss that you may consume your prayers on your own passions. You you you're just after you instead of after the name and purposes of Christ. Now having said that we are to be asking in the name of Jesus, that does not mean that we just dispense of of any desire that we might have. As a matter of fact, what Jesus is doing is he is saying here, how do you pray in a way that actually is honoring his name? Let me remind you that Jesus in Ephesians 2 will actually say that Paul the apostle will say in Ephesians 2 what Jesus means. He says, in Jesus, you who are once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. Through Jesus, we both, those who were once near and those who were once far, have both been brought near by the spirit to have access to the Father. We pray in Jesus' name that is for the purposes of God, recognizing that ultimately what we're doing is we're asking for the spirit to control our prayers, to to be the one who takes the wheel as it were even for our prayer life. I'm asking for the work of the Holy Spirit. After all, it's what Jesus said. The Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth. Now I need to bring these threads together by seeing even how the apostle Paul does it. How do we pray in such a way that we are asking for the sake of Christ's glory, what the spirit will bring into existence? And for that reason, I'm going to ask that you look one more place in your Bible because the apostle Paul is the one who takes these words and then puts them into an understanding for us that we can grasp. Romans 8 Romans chapter 8 verses 26 and following. If this sounds familiar, it's because pastor Carrie led you in these words in the response of reading that we did earlier. If you're looking for Romans 8 in your Grace Bible, that's page 944. And these are precious, important words if we're thinking about how do we pray in a way that the Holy Spirit is helping us to actually pray in the name of for the sake of the glory and purposes of Christ. In Romans 8:26, we read these words. Likewise, the spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought. Aren't you glad? And apostle said that. Even an apostle said what? We do not know what to pray for. Now if some of you are like me, we were kind of raised in settings where people said, God will always answer your prayers as long as you pray in accord with God's will. Great. One little problem here. I want to know what? What is God's will? I I mean, he's the king of the universe. He knows the end from the beginning. I'm I'm just this human being. I don't even know if I will walk out of the sanctuary alive. How would I who am I to stand up to God and say, I know how you should run the universe? So so so how do I pray? And and and even the apostle says, we don't know how to pray. So what happens? Again, Romans 8:26, we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but what happens? The spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words, verse 27. And he who searches hearts knows what is in the mind of the spirit because the spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with what? The will of God. Now this is amazing. Jesus is encouraging us to pray according to what pleases, glorifies, brings honor to his name. And I say, I don't always know how to do that. I mean I'm just I'm just praying for the job. I I I'm I'm just praying for my wife to get better. I how do I pray in accordance with the will of God? And Jesus is saying, I I I know it's may sound silly. The spirit takes the wheel. The Holy Spirit will take our prayers and conform them to the will of God with groanings too deep to utter with with conviction and yearning that's even beyond my ability to form the words. It's not that I don't say what I desire, but but even as Jesus said, Lord, not my will, but your will be done. We are praying, God, this is what I think, but but you by your spirit must take control. And I yield to that. I I I think of it this way. I spent last week with my mom and again had the opportunity to remember, you know, what she did when she decorated cakes, how she would take that icing syringe or that piping funnel, you know, and she would just kind of glop in the icing, right? Just glop it in one end. And and and and the other end of the syringe, there's that that wonderful decorator tip. And what I think is I think our prayers are like the glop. And the Holy Spirit is the decorator tip that is taking our prayers, and as we offer them to God, is conforming them to God's will so that his purposes are coming forward. And what are those purposes? Don't forget Romans 8:28. That's the end of those great verses on prayer. And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good for those who are called according to his purpose.
Guest (Male): That's pastor Brian Chappell, and you've been listening to Unlimited Grace. If this message has been an encouragement to you, you can find a collection of more valuable resources at unlimitedgrace.com. When you visit, you will find today's message and many others from pastor Brian. Also, be sure to request a copy of Dr. Chappell's book Grace at Work. We'll send you this book right away as our way of saying thank you for your most generous financial support. Please be sure to join us next time as once again we endeavor to put Christ at the center of our efforts so that lives might be transformed by his unlimited grace. This ministry is brought to you by Unlimited Grace media and continues to be made possible with your generous financial support.