From Sorrow to Joy (John 16:16-24)
The other night Becca and I watched the final episode of the NBC drama series, This is Us.
(Don't worry - there won't be any spoilers below).
I'm not sure if you watched this show or not, but it's goal seems to be to make people cry. Every episode. For six seasons.
What was interesting to me about the final episode was how they attempted to bring joy out of sorrow from a secular perspective. They clearly wanted to end on a happy note, while honoring all the grief and loss the characters had gone through. But without God or the hope of the gospel, the end result was a series of trite cliches (well-acted, beautifully shot, and musically enriched, sure, but still cliches) about finding meaning in the little things in the midst of sorrow.
This week at Grace, we're going to look at John 16:15-24, where Jesus promises his disciples that their sorrow would be the root of their future joy in a concrete and real way because of what he would do on the cross.
Hope to see you Sunday at Grace as we explore how the cross in our source of hope and joy in the midst of sorrow, too.
In Christ,
Pastor Bob
PS. If you'd like to know more about what's going on at Grace, I'm trying out a new monthly newsletter with ministry updates on the church called "Inside Grace." You can see the first issue here and let me know what you think or if you'd like to be on the recipients list in the future.
“A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.” So some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” So they were saying, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? 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. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
- John 16:16-24