There are two key points Jesus made in this verse.
- Jesus taught what He did in the last days so we would know we could have true peace in Him.
- We will face hardship even as a follower of Christ.
This hardship to which Jesus is talking about is not your everyday trouble such as job, relationship, peers, etc… the hardship to which Jesus speaks to here is real anguish, distress, tribulation, or persecution and comes from the Greek word “Thlipsis” (2347) It is a kin to the afflictions like Christ had to endure.
So Jesus is saying simply and clearly that each of us will face a time in our lives when our faith will experience some real distress beyond anything we could ever imagine or think would ever happening to us.
Jesus says when that time happens, we can know and find real peace in Him.
The peace, which Jesus is talking about, is the tranquility found only in the assurance of a salvation of the soul.
Jesus told us that that was why He had taught us the things he had been teaching in the last days. All we have to do is go back to chapter 14, 15 and 16 of John and see what these teachings of hope are.
Let us see what a few of those teachings are that help a Christian have tranquility in Jesus:
John 14:1-3 (Jesus will come and take us to Heaven)
John 14:15-17 (Will send the Holy Spirit)
John 15:1-11 (Bear fruit – stay in the vine)
John 15:14-17 (Friend of Jesus – Love each other)
John 16:16 (Jesus came back from the grave and over came death)
John 16:27 (God loves us because we love Jesus)
Guy Lewis
Payson, Arizona: May 9, 2011
Searching for Truth 