Last Will & Testament: The Last Apostle | John 16Shembull

With the last of his final words, Jesus sets up a dichotomy. Now and later. Grief and joy. It’s easy to get myopic. It’s easy to focus on the here and now. It’s easy in the struggle to only see the struggle. It’s easy in grief to see only the grief. If we only see “now,” we can miss the bigger picture of what God is doing. If we only see “now,” we can easily collapse under the weight of a present worry or struggle. So Jesus shows us “later.” He shows us what’s to come. He shows us why it’s worth it. Jesus calls it “eternal life,” or “the life of the age to come.” When we see “later,” we can face “now.”

Keep your eyes fixed on the end game. Jesus’s glory will be yours too. You will suffer now, but the glory that awaits is better by far. Your grief will turn to joy. You’ll stumble in this (John 16:32), but know in Christ there’s peace. You will have trouble, but Jesus has overcome the world (16:33).