My wife and I raised three kids of our own, have seven grandchildren, and during our four decades of pastoral ministry, cared for many families with little ones. So, we’ve engaged in our share of baby talk. That’s when an adult attempts to communicate with a youngster by simplifying what they want to say and the vocabulary they use so they can better match the child’s maturity level. It can also involve bending down to make eye contact and sometimes even changing their tone of voice to sound more childlike. And something like that is what I see in John 16:28 where Jesus offered the disciples a simplified version of something he’d previously told them more than once but seemed hard for them to understand.
The disciples make an easy target, but I don’t mean to seem condescending. Those poor guys were being invited to comprehend and experience things WAY beyond their frame of reference. Jesus was preparing them to navigate the pivotal moment in human history when the Maker of the Universe clothed in human flesh would sacrifice himself to rescue a fallen race. I mean, come on. I’m prepared to cut them some slack.
But as the Lord wound down his pre-crucifixion instructions, it was essential that they at least grasped the main point. So, with careful and simple language he told them, “I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.” And that seems to have done the trick. I’m paraphrasing now, but in verses 29 and 30, they responded by basically saying, “Thank you. We finally get it, and our faith in who you are is now secure.”
But Jesus knew it wasn’t that simple, and in verses 31 and 32, beginning with a searing rhetorical question – “Do you now believe?” – he prophesied that they would all soon abandon him. And as harsh as that may seem, he didn’t leave them hanging there twisting in the wind. With what I can only imagine as the kind of loving words and warm tones someone would use to reassure a confused child, he went on to comfort them by saying he wouldn’t really be left alone. The Father would be with him.
Then, verse 33 records the Lord’s final two sentences before John’s narrative begins to steamroll toward the cross. They’re filled with rich compassion. He told his disciples that all the things he’d taught them were specifically designed to give them peace through the coming storm. He didn’t sugarcoat the impact of what they were about to experience. He said that in the world, they WOULD have tribulation which can also be translated as affliction or anguish. “But,” he said, “be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.”
What soul-securing words those were for them and are for us!
Have you ever found yourself out of your depth trying to process the minefield of this world’s tribulations and longing for a steadying hand to take hold of yours while calming your anxious heart with confident words of encouragement? These are those words and his is the hand that reaches toward you now as the Lord takes a knee, looks you in the eye, and speaks them with loving, uncluttered simplicity over you as his precious child.