Reading… and Thinking

“These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

— John 16:33 (NKJV)

Now my first thought would be that, if I’m in the middle of anything called “tribulation”, that’s got to be the opposite of peace. To me, peace means no pressures, no worries. I look up tribulation and find it means “grievous trouble, severe trial or suffering”. Aren’t peace and tribulation opposites? That’s not the way Jesus looked at it, so maybe I need to adjust my thinking.

Jesus says: Sure you’ll have trouble – buckets of it. But I’ve given you this wonderful message, so that you can be at peace anyway. You look around at the world, and it’s full of trouble. But you can actually be cheerful, because I’m greater than the world. I beat it, and therefore the trouble can’t beat you!

Easier said than done, right? It’s really, really hard to be cheerful, even about the Lord Jesus, when you are suffering.

Or maybe we just make it hard for ourselves. We’ve all heard about people (maybe you’ve known some) who maintain a wonderful, positive attitude through the most terrible trials. There are those who really live the old saying, “Let go and let God”. They determine not to worry, to leave it to God. Dumping the worry is a big part of getting to a positive outlook. And they’re certain, as Paul was, that “this slight momentary affliction” is not to be compared with “the eternal weight of glory”. (2 Corinthians 4:17) They can see themselves in God’s Kingdom: free from suffering, free from tribulation. Because they know Jesus overcame the world, and will (soon!) overcome it in a very visible and final way.

And with that knowledge, they have peace.