This one verse contains three commands. All of them are doable for Christians.
1 Do not allow your heart to be troubled.
2 Believe in God.
3 Also believe in Jesus.
We have to do these three things if we love God.
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments." John 14:15
So, really, there is little choice. If we love God, we must not allow our hearts to be troubled with worry and doubt. A command needs action. Troubling thoughts must be actively resisted and replaced with the decision to believe God, and also Jesus. For all beginners and for those whom Satan is actively assaulting, this is a conscious act. Jesus realized that keeping His commandments wouldn't always be a piece of cake, so in the next line He said:
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. John 14:16, 17
You cannot have your heart turned in on worldly, fleshly things and receive help from the Spirit of truth.
"The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him." John 14:21
See that? If you keep the commands, Jesus promises to reveal Himself! One of the disciples asked how Jesus could reveal Himself to His disciples but not to the world…
Jesus answered, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. The one who doesn't love Me will not keep My words. (…) But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. John 14:23, 24, 26
In context, the fourteenth chapter of John takes place shortly before Jesus' crucifixion. He knows His earthly ministry is coming to term and He is hitting the high points of his teaching as a review. This one point in particular is so important that it is repeated in verse 27:
"Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.It is very important to control our thoughts, and in particular, it is very important to not allow troubling thoughts into our heart. His peace is supposed to fill the space that the troubling thoughts want to occupy; that would solve the first command of John 14:1, "do not allow your heart to be troubled." But it is not a fait accompli without applying the work of faith to the other two commands, believe God and believe also in Jesus.
Here is the answer on how to do that:
Rejoice in the Lord always! Philippians 4:4. Be anxious for nothing. Philippians 4:6. As Keith Moore said, "Fear is contraband for the believer."¹ In other words, fear, doubt, and troubling thoughts are prohibited under God's covenant with believers. We would not have panic attacks if we kept this covenant, if we believed the word of God fully.
One thing I have consistently prayed for Joe since his babyhood is found in Isaiah 54:14, In righteousness you will be established; You will be far from oppression, for you will not fear; And from terror, for it will not come near you. This comes three verses before the often quoted "no weapon formed against you shall prosper" phrase and forms part of the foundation for it. As a man, Joe's spirit processes troubling thoughts differently than the average storm-tossed Christian. Because of the 30+ years of tiny faith-steps that I have invested in this, our "normal" is different than what is normal for many people we associate with. I am so used to Joe's solid foundation that I was surprised when Gwen told me that KatieLyn was hysterical. Why would she do that, especially when no one was threatening her?
I guess that is one of the lifestyle differences that KatieLyn said she could not live with. She grew up around worrywarts who would freak out over such differences, so when Joe was cooler and more collected in his thoughts, she must have believed that he didn't care. Seeing the peace of God (on someone else) often presents as "not caring" to those people who are dominated by worldly beliefs who do not understand the nature of the peace that is the fruit of the Spirit.
In truth, there is a big, although outwardly subtle, distinction between the two kinds of "not caring." And that distinction is made in the spirit/heart, not in the soul/emotions; which explains why it can be difficult to judge which one someone else is exhibiting. One lack-of-concern is rooted in the emotion of not giving a flying fig, but the other lack-of-concern comes from having the heart fixed on Jesus. Inside they are very different. Outside they look like twins.
The Lesson
We are given a command: Do not let your heart be troubled. Worry is not a sign that something is important to us; it is a sign that we don't trust God and are not keeping His command. Lack of worry is not a sign that we are callous or disinterested; worry will be lacking when we obey and have peace in the Lord.
¹Careful for Nothing sermon series, 11/20/15, 'Safe in Him,' 4:45. http://www.moorelife.org/listseries.php?xml=rss/CarefulForNothing.xml
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