“Your grief will turn to joy”

May 17, 2021

15:18 – 16:33 Sent into the world, just as Jesus was sent

Read John 16:16-20

Throughout that evening, Jesus had kept reminding the disciples that he was about to leave them, and this recurring emphasis caused the disciples much anxiety and grief (13:33,36; 14:3-5; 14:28; 16:6). The news shouldn’t have come as a surprise to them, for even in his public ministry Jesus had made this clear: “I am with you for only a little time, and then I go to the one who sent me” (7:33-34). But it was an unwelcome truth which the disciples chose not to hear. With his death now very close, it could be ignored no longer.

Having concluded the teaching about the Spirit who will come as a consequence of his departure, Jesus then told them explicitly, “In a little while you will see me no more” (16a). This resulted in an outburst of questioning and confusion, summed up by “We don’t understand” (17-18). So, Jesus addressed their questions and told them emphatically (“very truly”) that in “a little while” they will “weep and mourn while the world rejoices” (20). This is a clear reference to his death the following day, and to the deep sorrow that that will cause them.

But his death would not be the end, for after a further “little while” (16b,19) they will see him again and their “grief will turn to joy” (19-20). It makes the most sense to see this as a promise that he will be raised from the dead and appear to them. His resurrection did indeed dispel the grief of his death – on Easter Day, the disciples “were overjoyed when they saw the Lord” (20:20). The resurrection means for all of us that we can face the sorrows of this world in the assurance that the story does not end there. “Weeping may remain for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5).