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29 Then Jesus’ disciples said, “Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. 30 Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe that you came from God.”
31 “Do you now believe?” Jesus replied. 32 “A time is coming and in fact has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me. 33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” ~ John 16:29-33
The Lord Jesus is in the middle of preparing His disciples for life without Him present physically. He is developing in His disciples a faith that is realistic. A faith that recognizes the value of its boundaries and weaknesses. A faith that makes room for their own mistakes and failures. A faith that is growing in authenticity as it grows in dependence upon the Lord Jesus.
The Lord Jesus wants for His followers a heart that believes. He wants us to know the development of our faith, our heart's ability to see Him, despite the fact that He is physically absent in our lives. He knows we will not get to this place over night. Like Peter, forging ahead with a naive sense of conquering the world will not help in this process. The Lord Jesus wants us to believe, to be humble, and to learn His economy in a world that constantly screams to the contrary.
In v.29-30 the disciples make an interesting observation ... “Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. 30 Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe that you came from God.”
Like us, the disciples think they have finally put all the pieces together. The disciples, like us, actually will never totally get it right this side of heaven. This is the first time that they even claim to “get it.” The problem is they think uncertainty is bad and certainty is good. This is what makes our faith shallow. It is not the coddling of our faith that makes it grow, but the stretching of our faith faith that garners a deeper walk in the kingdom of God.
The disciples had concluded that the Lord Jesus had come from God. This has been one of the key ideas that has come up throughout the entire gospel of John. Over and over again, the Lord Jesus is saying He is “from God.”
In v.31, the Lord Jesus is saying, "You think you know the truth. You have it in your head, but you have not yet got it in your heart. Within an hour, Peter, you are going to be slashing away with your sword in contradistinction to everything I have taught you, and all the rest of you are going to run for home and hide behind locked doors while I am facing my trial all alone. That is how dependable you are."
The final word of the Lord Jesus is found in v.33, which reads, "But take heart! I have overcome the world." Out of weakness is strength put on display. Out of mistakes and failure, He has a way of correcting our mistakes, directing our brokenness, and bringing His will to pass in and through our lives.
The Lord Jesus has to shatter faulty theology in order for our understanding of Him to develop. This process is hard and humbling. When He seems to leave our world to return to the Father, just as He said he would, we are not be so secure in our knowledge and belief.
Our text contains the last interaction between Jesus and his disciples before He faces the cross. This is His goodbye to the disciples. In the next chapter, we will see Jesus praying for His disciples and we will get a fascinating look at His value system for His followers.
It was hard for the disciples to say goodbye to the Lord Jesus, this person for whom they had left everything. And, they found it very difficult to believe in Him when they did not have Him physically present with them. But, His absence was a must for them to be trained to look for Him with their hearts.
This process hurts, but it does not hurt forever. Hope is birthed knowing that there will be great moments of joy to remind us of this truth. The Lord Jesus is most focused on His followers spiritual experience of faith, which is an understanding of who He is based on the clear revelation of the Scripture. His invitation for His follower to learn to trust Him no matter what happens is extended every moment of every day.
