You Will See Me Again - Pastor David Thorwaldson

God the Father stands as the true pattern for fatherhood, even when earthly fathers and family relationships are mucked up. His relationship with his kids is not broken because of failure on his side, and his honor for fathers still matters, even where relationships need healing.

John 16:16-33 closes out the upper room discourse with Jesus preparing his disciples for what they still do not understand. Jesus says, “A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while, you will see me,” and those words land on confused ears. The disciples had heard Jesus predict his death and resurrection before, but hearing something and watching it happen are not the same thing. Once Jesus rose from the dead, those earlier words became proof that he knew exactly what he was doing.

Jesus gives his disciples something to cling to before their faith is crushed. They will weep and lament while the world rejoices, and their sorrow will be real sorrow. Their Master will be humiliated, their hopes will look dead, and their enemies will seem to have won. But Jesus says their sorrow will be turned to joy, like a woman in labor whose pain gives way to the joy of a child being born.

The labor image shows that the pain is not meaningless, and it is not permanent. The disciples are not told to cling to circumstances or to a preferred outcome. Jesus calls them to cling to him and to the promise that they will see him again. That matters because clinging to an outcome, even a good one, cannot give peace when everything is out of control.

Jesus also opens the way to the Father. Asking in Jesus’ name means coming to the Father through union with the Son, because the price has been paid and the work has been done. The torn veil will show that the barrier is gone, and the throne of grace is now open for mercy and help in time of need.

Jesus does not flatter the disciples’ confidence. They say they believe, but he tells them they will scatter and leave him alone. Their faith will fail before it matures, but their failure will not have the last word. Jesus has overcome the world, and because his victory reaches beyond death, tribulation is temporary, heaven is secure, and God works even painful things for good according to his purpose.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Cling to Jesus, not outcomes [26:30] The believer often clings to the thing desired from God instead of to God himself. A spared home, restored health, or fixed relationship may be a good desire, but no desired outcome can carry the weight of ultimate trust. Peace comes when the heart rests in the Lord’s plan before it knows what that plan will look like. [26:30]
• 2. Sorrow can turn into joy [18:53] Jesus does not pretend the disciples’ grief will be small. He names the weeping, the lamenting, and the world’s ugly rejoicing over what looks like his defeat. The labor pain image shows that Christian sorrow can be intense and still be headed somewhere, because resurrection joy is not denial of pain but God’s answer to it. [18:53]
• 3. Bold access rests in Christ [30:12] The throne of grace is not approached boldly because the believer feels strong or worthy. Boldness comes because Jesus has opened the way by his blood, and the veil has been removed. Prayer in Jesus’ name is not a religious phrase tacked onto the end, but the believer’s whole right of approach to the Father. [30:12]
• 4. Tested faith can still mature [35:05] The disciples truly believed, and yet their faith was about to shake hard enough that they would run. Jesus names that failure before it happens, not to destroy them, but to prepare them for the maturing work still ahead. Faith that collapses under fear can still be rebuilt by the risen Christ into courage that endures. [35:05]
• 5. Victory is bigger than this world [40:15] If victory means getting everything fixed here and now, disappointment is going to be close by. Jesus’ overcoming of the world reaches deeper than comfort, success, or even survival. His resurrection means that death itself cannot keep what belongs to him, and that makes every earthly trial temporary. [40:15]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:23] - God the Father and Broken Relationships
• [02:48] - What the Disciples Knew Later
• [04:07] - The Disciples Were Still Clueless
• [05:25] - Hearing Versus Seeing
• [07:17] - Resurrection Words Remembered Later
• [10:14] - “A Little While” in John 16
• [13:54] - Confusion and the Completed Word
• [18:32] - Sorrow Turned to Joy
• [23:36] - What It Means to Cling to Jesus
• [26:54] - Asking the Father in Jesus’ Name
• [30:12] - Boldness at the Throne of Grace
• [31:18] - The Torn Veil and Open Access
• [34:38] - Faith Tested and Shaken
• [37:48] - Jesus Has Overcome the World

Bible Reading

John 16:16-33
“A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me. So some of his disciples said to one another, What is this that he says to us, A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me; and, Because I am going to the Father? So they were saying, What does he mean by a little while? We do not know what he is talking about. Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me? Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father. His disciples said, Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God. Jesus answered them, Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” [10:14]

Hebrews 4:16
“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” [30:12]

Matthew 27:50-51
“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.” [31:18]

Romans 8:28
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Observation questions

1. In John 16, what kinds of emotions and reactions does Jesus say will happen at his death, both among the disciples and in the world? [18:53]
2. What picture does Jesus use to describe sorrow turning into joy, and what details in that picture help explain the disciples’ coming experience?
3. In John 16:23-27, what repeated phrases show that believers will have access to the Father through Jesus? [26:54]
4. According to John 16:31-33, what does Jesus say the disciples are about to do, and what does he say they can still have in him even though tribulation is coming? [35:05]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus tells the disciples that they will not understand everything yet, but he still gives them promises to hold onto. Why might God give clarity gradually instead of all at once, especially in seasons of fear or grief? [18:32]
2. Jesus says, “your sorrow will turn into joy,” not simply that sorrow will be ignored or denied. How does that shape the way a believer should think about deep pain and long waiting? [18:53]
3. Asking in Jesus’ name is more than adding words to the end of a prayer. What does it mean, in real terms, that access to the Father rests on union with Christ and not on personal worthiness? [27:28]
4. Jesus says the disciples will scatter, yet their failure will not be final. What does that show about the difference between weak faith and false faith, and how can tested faith still mature? [35:05]

Application questions

1. When life feels out of control, what outcome is most tempting to cling to right now: restored health, a repaired relationship, financial relief, a clear answer, or something else? What would it look like to cling to Jesus instead of that result? [26:30]
2. Jesus says his people can be sorrowful now and still be headed toward joy. Is there a grief, disappointment, or fear in life right now that needs to be brought honestly before God instead of covered over? [23:20]
3. The throne of grace is open because Jesus has made the way. When a need rises up, is the first instinct to pray boldly, or to spiral, fix, avoid, or complain? What tends to get in the way of going to the Father first? [30:12]
4. Since prayer in Jesus’ name means approaching the Father through Christ, how might that change the way prayers are offered this week, especially in a hard situation? [26:54]
5. The disciples were sincere, but they still scattered when fear hit them. Where has fear recently exposed shakiness in faith, and what might trusting Christ in that exact place look like now? [34:38]
6. Jesus says, “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Which present trouble most needs to be seen as temporary rather than ultimate? [37:48]
7. Romans 8:28 says God works all things together for good, but that good is not ours to define. Is there a situation where the heart has been demanding a certain kind of “good” from God? What might it look like to surrender that definition to him? [43:24]