But, our Lord uttered these words knowing a little something about the human heart, with its frailties and fickleness. After all, he is its author. Knowing our tendency to over think, to be anxious, to lose our cool, to become frightened and discouraged, our Lord commands us still: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”
It was on the night before his own death that he spoke these words to his apostles gathered for the Passover meal under some pretty strange circumstances. Jesus had already predicted that he would be killed because of his teachings and preaching of the Gospel. The apostles had already detected Jesus’ enemies conspiring against him. They knew that his mission would have consequences for him and for them, his closest followers. But now he spoke on the very night of his arrest, when he would be dragged before the high priest like the temple lamb being led to its slaughter.
They could no doubt sense something in the air. Perhaps they would be arrested like him, perhaps they would suffer like him, perhaps they would be put to death, as he predicted he would be. “Do not let your hearts be troubled” when you face the unknowable, the unthinkable. Do not let your hearts be trouble as you witness horror, when you see your world collapse, when those seemingly invincible earthly institutions begin to crumble, when security and health and mortality are threatened. “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” Ever. Custody of the heart is to be kept always.
Not an easy task. When your world begins spiraling out of control, when death takes a loved one, when you lose your job. When it just doesn’t seem like there is anything you can do, there is always at least one thing. There is a choice we can make when we face the great chaos. A choice, an act of the will, a decision. We can keep our hearts from being troubled. Our Lord wouldn’t have made this command if it were impossible. And all things are possible with God, including this.
What is this trouble, the Lord is talking about? In St. John’s Greek…this word for trouble is the Greek word tarasso, which means physically agitated, disturbing the inner works of a thing by shaking it. When we are experiencing chaos, doesn’t it feel just like that, like our inner world is quaking and shaking apart. Our plans for the future, our understanding of how the world should work begins to fall apart?
The latin translation of this word also is interesting. St. Jerome used the word turbetur, which connotes an angry mob rioting. And the Lord is saying keep your heart from becoming like an angry, irrational mob, smashing what it does not understand. Keep your heart from shaking apart. Keep your heart from disquiet and dread, distress and doubt.
That the Lord assumes that we even have this power within us, is kind of surprising. But he knows we do, because again, he made us.
So how can we keep our hearts from trouble? What does this mean? This choice, this decision it doesn’t mean we ignore our troubles, ignore the chaos or injustice or the divisions in our church or in our families. Ignoring our problems is not the key to peace. Nor, does this mean playing some sort of psychological game of just looking on the bright side of things like naïve Pollyanna, hiding behind some invincible optimism or a pair of rose-colored glasses.
Nor does true inner peace come from imposing control on things outside ourselves. When we feel our life going out of control, sometimes we seek to impose control on others—nagging our family members—or giving in to addictions, things that we feel we can control, at least for a time.
Rather, to keep our hearts from trouble, or Lord says, have faith. Choose to have faith. “You have faith in God, have faith in me.” The Lord said.
Commenting on this passage, Augustine writes “Our Lord consoles His disciples, who, as men, would be naturally alarmed and troubled at the idea of His death, by assuring them of His divinity.” Faith that Jesus Christ is God, Chrysostom writes, “is more powerful than anything that shall come upon you; and can prevail in spite of all difficulties.”
Have faith, engage your faith, live your faith that Jesus is God. No matter what you are going through, put Jesus Christ, True God at the center of it. “For I am convinced,” writes St. Paul, “that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Faith that Jesus is God can conquer demons. This faith can move mountains. It grants us boldness and zeal when called upon to preach, it grants us fortitude when faced with temptation, it grants eternal perspective when faced with earthly ordeals. When you have true faith, when you have made Christ your cornerstone, your life becomes charged and changed by his presence. It grants the conviction that God’s plan is greater, and runs deeper, than our narrow perspectives.
So when you begin to experience any sort of trouble of heart, any temptation, dread or despair, recall that Jesus Christ is God—that He is victor over all sin and evil and death. And then consider what that truth impels you to do. I guarantee it never includes sitting around and worrying or overeating or numbing yourself with drugs or lashing out at a neighbor or conspiring against him.
May we exercise true faith today and all days, faith which keeps our hearts from all trouble, faith which impels us to work for the spread of the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
No comments:
Post a Comment