Take Heart

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"Take heart, for I have overcome the world." This is probably cross-stitched somewhere in someone's great-aunt's house. Yes, it is true and a great comfort—but what does this mean for us? Well, we need to know what comes before this. Christ is having a conversation with His disciples about the trials and hard times that are about to take place as He is about to leave them physically.¹ Now, we know that after Christ died, He rose again,² then ascended into heaven,³ and the Holy Spirit came and dwelt among us.⁴ But to an unbeliever, this should be terrifying. Because if we are not "in Christ" as we see in John 16:33, then that means we are "in the world"—where tribulation is.⁵ Now, by no means am I saying Christians have an easy, trouble-free life. In the midst of writing this, I myself have my own troubles. I would even say some Christians go through the hardest of battles. But what I am saying is that with Christ we can "take heart" and have peace to overcome these things.⁶ But if we are not saved and following His will, there is a separation from Him.⁷ The comfort Christians have is no longer there. For non-believers, that verse reads like this: "In this world there is great tribulation"—the end.⁸ The trials you face are tough, and you don't have a relationship with Christ to help you through. But if we turn away from our sin and confess Him as Lord, and seek a relationship with Christ,⁹ then we can take heart and know that He has overcome the world, and we will be reunited with Him in heaven.¹⁰ Scripture References ¹ John 16:1–4, 33 ² 1 Corinthians 15:3–4 ³ Acts 1:9 ⁴ Acts 2:1–4 ⁵ John 16:33 ⁶ John 16:33 ⁷ Isaiah 59:2 ⁸ John 16:33 ⁹ Romans 10:9–10 ¹⁰ John 14:3

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