The Cure for Heart Trouble

Q: What does the Bible say about heart trouble?

The Bible indicates that heart trouble stems from fear and anxiety, and the remedy is faith in Christ. In John 14:1-6, Jesus addresses the issue of heart trouble, telling His disciples, 'Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in Me.' This passage emphasizes that heart trouble is a common human experience, but the remedy lies in trusting in Christ. Our Lord points to faith as the only solution to the anxieties and fears that plague us. It is through faith that we can find peace in the midst of our troubles, knowing that Christ is our mediator and intercessor before God.

Q: How do we know that faith in Christ is the remedy for heart trouble?

Faith in Christ is the remedy for heart trouble because He assures us that belief in Him leads to peace and eternal security. In the context of John 14, Jesus reassures His disciples that though He is departing, they should not let their hearts be troubled. This is based on His authority and promise that belief in Him, the mediator sent by God, is the source of comfort and assurance. He addresses the disciples' fear of judgment and condemnation, asserting that through faith in Him, they have access to God and peace instead of turmoil. This comfort is crucial, as believers can rest in the fact that Christ has prepared a place for them in heaven, establishing their security in Him.

Q: Why is belief in Jesus important for Christians?

Belief in Jesus is crucial for Christians as it is the foundation of our relationship with God and the means to overcome our troubles. In John 14:1-6, Jesus emphasizes the necessity of belief in Him as the way to the Father. This belief is not just intellectual assent but wholehearted trust and reliance on Him as our mediator. For Christians, this belief provides a relationship with God and binds us to His promises. With Jesus, we have a mediator who intercedes for us, alleviating the fears we have about judgment and condemnation. It is through our faith in Him that we find our true identity, purpose, and solace amid the struggles of life, allowing us to confront heart troubles with confidence.

Q: What does it mean that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life?

Jesus being the way, the truth, and the life means that He is the sole path to God, the embodiment of truth, and the source of eternal life. When Jesus declares, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life' (John 14:6), He asserts that He is the exclusive means to access the Father and the only one who reveals the true nature of God. As 'the way,' He provides direction for our lives, guiding us through the troubles we face. As 'the truth,' He embodies all that is true about God and His promises, serving as our reference point for understanding reality. 'The life' emphasizes that eternal life comes solely through Him. This profound statement assures believers that through faith in Christ, they have a definitive relationship with God, anchored in truth and empowered for eternal life.

I'm going to be speaking to you
today on this subject, the cure for heart trouble. The cure for
heart trouble. And my text is an old familiar
passage of scripture found in John chapter 14, verse 1 through
6. Why don't you take your Bibles
and plan to follow as I read the scripture today and speak
from this passage. John 14. verse 1 through 6. Now, an old preacher said one
time, through life's journeys, we have plenty of troubles and
trials and tribulations. But our greatest problem is heart
trouble. And the only remedy for heart
trouble is faith, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. heart trouble. Our Lord said in this passage
of scripture, let not your heart be troubled. Now, heart trouble
is the most common thing in the world. Everybody has heart trouble. No rank, class, or condition
is exempt from heart trouble. The rich heart is troubled and
so is the poor heart. And the great heart is troubled
and the unknown heart is troubled. And no bolts, no bars, no locks
can keep out heart trouble. It has to be dealt with, has
to be faced, has to be considered and dealt with. And the only
remedy for heart trouble is faith. Now, this heart trouble comes
to us from many causes, partly from inward causes and partly
from outward causes, and partly from what we do and partly from
what we don't do. and partly from what we love,
and partly from what we hate, and partly from those things
in which we delight, and partly from those things that we fear. Two things, a troubled body and
a troubled mind, causes heart trouble. But there's a remedy. There's a cure for heart trouble.
I have right here in my hand the cure for heart trouble. It
is believing the Word of God. There is a remedy, and our Lord
gives it to us here in this text. He says, let not your heart be
troubled. Let not your heart be troubled.
You believe in God, believe also in me. Believe, believe. The
cure for heart trouble is to believe. The remedy for trouble,
fearful, distressed, and broken heart is to believe. To believe
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Your heart trouble? Let it not
be trouble. Believe in me." He's the only
one who can say that. Is your heart trouble? Believe
in me. Now, there's no break if you'll
look here at chapter 13 of the book of John. I know there's
a chapter division there, but really it ought not to be there.
Chapter 13 and 14 go right together. Now, I think I could show you
that In chapter 13, our Lord had supper with His disciples,
and He washed their feet. You remember, you've read it
before. And He began to talk to them about His death and about
His departure. And He told them, after this
supper, that their idea of an earthly kingdom was all wrong.
They had an idea that the Lord was going to set up an earthly
Jewish kingdom here on this earth. and that he would reign, and
that they would be sitting on his right hand and on his left
hand, and they'd be great officials in this kingdom. But he told
them that this idea of an earthly kingdom was all wrong, that his
kingdom was not of this world, that his kingdom was not meat
and drink, but righteousness and godliness, that he must,
by righteousness and blood, redeem his people, that he must leave
them, go to Jerusalem and suffer and die. And he also told them
that they would be offended, all of them. He said, you'll
all be offended because of me this night. One of you will betray
me. And he told Peter that he would
deny him. And he told them that the world would hate them, that
they would be persecuted and cast out of the synagogues, and
people who kill them would think there's doing God a service.
And then in this world they would have great trials and troubles
and tribulations and they were frightened. And they were distressed
and they were troubled in heart. These disciples were greatly
troubled in heart because of what the Lord had told them,
what he had said to them about dying and being buried and leaving
them and how that they would be offended because of him and
even deny him and even betray Him, and they were greatly troubled.
And that's when He said, Let not your heart be troubled. Let not your heart be troubled.
They were troubled, and they were distressed, and they were
fearful. And He said, Let not your heart
be troubled. Now listen. You believe in God. He's not asking them asking these
men if they believed in God, he knew they believed in God.
He said, you do believe in God. Right now your hearts are downcast
and troubled and broken and distressed, but now don't let your heart
be troubled. You believe in God. You do believe
in God. Of course you do. You believe
in God the Father. Then believe in me. Then believe
in me. Now listen carefully to me here.
Listen very carefully. Christ is saying, the Father,
God the Father sent me, and He sent me to deliver you from trouble,
from condemnation, and from the curse, and to bring you to Him,
to justify you, and sanctify you, and redeem you, and make
you righteous. The Father sent me to you to
redeem you, to deliver you. Now, if you believe in Him, You
have no cause to be troubled at thoughts of God, His justice,
or His judgment, or His law, or condemnation, if you believe
in Me. Now, you do believe in God, the
holiness of God, the majesty of God, the greatness of God.
You know, Martin Luther once said this. He said, I want nothing
to do with an absolute God, Elohim. I must have a mediator. I must
have an intercessor, someone between me and God, someone to
go to God for me and someone to come to me with good news
of reconciliation with God. That's what David said. David
said, Lord, don't bring me into judgment with thee. Don't bring
me naked before your naked throne of justice and righteousness
and judgment. I cannot stand. God said even
to Moses, no man can look on me and live. No man can look
on me and live. Stephen Sharnock, he was a great
writer of probably a century ago. He said this, God, the mighty
God, the holy absolute God, apart from Christ the mediator, apart
from a high priest with a suitable sacrifice, is an angry God. He's an offended God. He's a
holy, holy, holy Sovereign. And unless we can come into His
presence and behold Him and approach Him in and through His chosen
Mediator, unless there's someone between us and God, whom God
sent, with whom God is well pleased, with whom God is satisfied, unless
there's someone between us, sinners, and that offended naked justice,
then Sharnock said the terror of his majesty and holiness and
presence would have to consume us and overwhelm us. This is what Christ is saying
to these disciples. He's pointed out their weakness.
He's pointed out their inability. He's pointed out their frailty.
He knows our frailty. He knows our He knows we're dust. Man at his best state is altogether
vanity. And He has told them that He's
leaving. And He's told them that they
would be offended and they would be, they would betray Him and
deny Him. And they're troubled. He said,
now wait a minute. Don't let your heart be troubled. There's
an answer. There's a remedy. There's a remedy for ruin. There's mercy for the miserable.
There's grace for the guilty. There's salvation for sinners.
But it's not you going to God. It's you going to God through
me. Now, you believe in God. Well, you've got to believe in
me. You've got to put your confidence and your trust in me. You've
got to lean upon me. You've got to look to me. What
is there about God that causes a man's heart to be troubled?
You who understand the true character of God, what is there about God
that causes your heart to be troubled? Well, a lot of things.
First, His very presence. Isaiah saw the Lord. Isaiah said,
in the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord. High and
lifted up in His train filled the temple. And the seraphims,
the creatures in glory, covered their faces in the presence of
God, covered their feet, covered their mouths, and they cry, Holy,
Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty. These are unfallen creatures.
Well, what can we do about that? Well, in Christ we can come boldly
into His presence. That's what the Scripture says.
Seeing we have a great high priest, let us come boldly before the
throne of grace. You believe in God? Believe in
me, the high priest, the intercessor. If any man sin, we have an advocate
with the Father, Jesus Christ. What is there about God for us
to fear? Not only His presence, but His
holiness, His righteousness. Accept your righteousness, exceed
the righteousness of the best man who ever lived. You're in
no wise enter the kingdom of heaven. Well, what are we going
to do for our righteousness? Well, the scripture said, he
who knew no sin was made sin for us, that we might be made
the righteousness of God in him. You believe God? Believe me.
I'm your righteousness. I'm the way into God's presence,
the new and living way. I'm the righteousness. And then,
what about God's law? Have you found anywhere in the
scriptures where God has taken back that commandment, do this
and live? Do this and live. It still holds true. Do this
and live. That's what the law says. Paul
wrote in Romans, What saith the law? Do this and live. The man who would live by the
law must do it. Well, no man is capable. No man has the holiness
or the power. Well, what are we going to do?
Well, by the disobedience of one man, we became sinners. By
the obedience of Christ, we've been made righteous. Believe
in me. Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to everyone that believeth. What about God's
justice? It's appointed unto men once
to die, and after that, judgment. Judgment. What are we going to
do about God's justice and judgment? The soul that's in it shall surely
die. Well, Christ said, you believe
that? You believe God? You believe His presence, His
holiness, His righteousness, His law, His judgment? Believe
in me? I died that you may live. He
died just for the unjust to bring us to God. He bore our sins in
His body on the tree. He was wounded for our transgressions,
bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was laid on Him. By His stripes we're healed.
You believe God? You've got to believe me. If
you believe God and you don't have a mediator, it's just you
and God. And you've got a right to be
troubled. You've got a right to be fearful. You've got a right
to be afraid. And I can't say to you, don't be afraid and don't
be troubled. You have to be afraid. Fear God. But if you believe God and you
believe Christ, you've got a reason to rest. What about our nature? Flesh and blood can't enter the
kingdom of God. Flesh and blood can't inherit
the kingdom of God. Well, how are we going to be
changed? Well, He's able to change us. He's able. to do all that
He promised? Who? Christ. We've been turned
over to Christ. And He's able to do all that
He promised. He's able to save to the uttermost them that come
to God by Him. Don't come to God by the church.
Don't come to God by your sacraments. Don't come to God, try to come
to God by your religious works. Don't try to come to God by your
baptism or your church membership. Let not your heart be troubled.
You believe God? Believe me, Christ said. Believe
me, He's able to keep us from falling. He's able to present
us faultless before His presence with exceeding glory, and He's
able to raise our vile bodies and make them like His glorious
body. He's able. You believe God? You have some understanding of
the majesty of God, of the holiness of God, of the justice of God,
of the righteousness of God, do you? Of the judgment of God? Then He said, You've got to believe
Me. There's one God and one Mediator between God and men. Between.
Thank God He's between God and men. Thank God He's between us. God sent His Son into the world.
Not to condemn the world. It was already condemned. But
the world through Him might be saved. Through Him. Now listen
to it. Verse 2. Don't let your heart
be troubled. You believe God? Believe me.
That's your only rest. That's your only hope. Believe
me. Only mediator. One. All right. He said, In my Father's house.
That's my Father's house. It's my Father's family. It's
my Father's kingdom. It's my Father's heaven. In my
Father's house. He rules it. He reigns over it.
It's His house. There are many dwelling places.
That word mansions. is dwelling places. There are
many of them. Sufficient room for all. There's
room for all. There's plenty of room. No vacancies,
but plenty of room. Heaven will be populated by people
like Christ. There's plenty of room. Many,
many dwelling places. There's where we'll forever abide.
We're not going to be guests. We're not going to pass through
and keep going. Not visitors. We're going to
dwell there. David said Surely goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell
in the house of the Lord forever. In my Father's house are many
dwelling places." Places. Places. What's a place? It's
a real place. It's real. And heaven's a real
place. There's a new heaven and a new
earth wherein abideth righteousness. Now listen to him. In my Father's
house. My Father's house. You believe
God? Don't be troubled if you believe
me. For in my Father's house are many dwelling places, and
if it were not so, I would have told you. And I go, listen carefully
now, listen carefully, I go to prepare a place for you. I've heard preachers say things
like this. It makes awful entertaining preaching, but not much truth
to it. I've heard preachers say, The Lord created heaven in six
days, and He's been up there in heaven 2,000 years preparing
heaven. Oh, what a place that must be.
Well, that's just not so. Just not so. What our Lord is
saying here, He prepared, He created heaven and earth in six
days, earth in six, that's true. But here's what He's saying,
I go to prepare a place for you. You see, you and I have no right
to heaven. You got no right to heaven. What
claim do you have on heaven or me? Sinners, son of Adam, sons
of Adam, daughters of Adam, fallen creatures. We don't have any
right to heaven. These wicked, we've ruined our world. Let alone,
God's not going to let you ruin heaven like we've ruined this
world. This would be a wonderful world if you take people out
of it. Just get rid of all the people and this world would be
a wonderful place. Sin, people. You and I don't
belong in heaven. You and I are fallen creatures.
We've fallen from a heavenly nature. If you and I are received
into heaven, the Lord Jesus has got to prepare us for heaven
and heaven for us. He's got to go to heaven and
prepare for us a place. We don't belong there. We don't
own anything there. I hear people say, Heaven's my
home. Since when? It's not by your works. It's
not by your deeds. You didn't buy anything up there.
How come you got a claim on heaven? You don't. He establishes a claim
for you. He, our forerunner, has entered
in within the veil and He has staked the claim. It's like when
our old forefathers moved west. They came out here on land and
they staked the claim. This is my land. They staked
the claim. You're going to stake a claim
up there? No, sir. But if He, the perfect righteousness, perfect
Redeemer, perfect Lord, perfect substitute, sacrifice, representative,
holy man, the God-man, can go up there representing you, and
on His authority, on His works, based on His holiness, if God
will accept Him in your place, He can go up there and establish
a claim. prepare a place for you, establish
a place for you, and guarantee you that place in God's heaven.
You have any guarantees of heaven? Any assurance? There's only one
guarantee, and that's Christ. If God accepted Him in your place,
if God the Father will accept His righteousness, His obedience,
and His death and His blood in your place, He can get you in,
but you'll have to go in in Him. And when He said, I go to prepare
a place for you, He's saying He went to Jerusalem and was
tried in our place. He went to the cross and died
in our place, paid the sin debt. He went to the tomb as our scapegoat
in our place. He ascended to heaven, the Lord
of hosts, and He appeared in the presence of God for us, for
us. in our stead and we're complete
in Him. Can you get a hold of that? Heart trouble. Heart trouble. Distress. I've sinned against
God. I'm not worthy to be called thy
son. I have no claim on heaven. I have no right. I have no home
there. You believe in God? I do. And
I know what I am by nature. I've got to have a mediator."
Well, he said, you believe in me. In my father's house. Whose father? My father, he said.
And I'll go and I'll prepare a place for you. Now, listen. Verse 3, the certainty of his
word. If I go, if I go and prepare a place for you, if I do, then
I'll come again and get you. Because I don't fail. When I
set out to do something, I don't fail. If I go, suppose back when
our old forefathers were coming west, you know, and established
land, some father leaves home, tells his wife and children,
I'm going out to Kentucky or out to Illinois or out to Kansas,
and I'm going to get us some land and build us a place, and
I'll be back to get you. Because where I am, there you're
going to be. Well, my father gave his son
a people, made Christ their surety from all eternity, turned their
justification and righteousness and sanctification and lives
over to him. And he came into this world and
purchased us the right to glory. And he went back to glory and
he said, I go to a prepared place. If I go, if I go to a prepared
place for you, for you, I guarantee you I'll come again and receive
you unto myself, that where I am, there's where you're going to
be." He prayed that in John 17. He said, Father, I will that
those whom thou hast given me be with me where I am. And they will. Not a one of them
will be lost. All that my Father giveth me will come to me. And
him that cometh to me I'll in no wise cast out. I came down
from heaven, not to do my will, but the will of him that sent
me. And this is the will of him that sent me. that of all which
he hath given me, I'll lose nothing, but I'll raise it up at the last
day. This is the will of him that sent me. He that seeth the
Son, and believeth on him, hath life, and I'll raise him up at
the last day. I will." Now, I know we spend
all our time talking about the second coming of Christ, and
He's coming again, no doubt about it. The angel said when He went
away, this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven,
shall so come and like matters you've seen Him go. But He's
talking about here. when He comes for you, whether
it's death or whether it's the second coming. Whenever it is,
He said, I love you. I'm your mediator. Father sent
me to redeem you, and I guarantee you I'm going to do it. And I'm
going to prepare a place for you. I'm going to the Father,
my Father and your Father. And I'm going to sit at His right
hand. I'm going to enter within the veil, and I'll be back for
you. I'll be back for you. I'm coming
back for you. that where I am, there you may
be also. And I guarantee it. I guarantee
it. Guarantee it. Now, in verse 4,
He said to all, He said, Now you know. Now you know. You know the way I go, you know
where I go, and you know the way I go. Now, here we are. And
I've preached this. This is as plain as I can make
it. This is as plain as I can make it. In plain old West Virginia
talk and Kentucky talk and Ohio talk, That's plain I can make
it. You believe in God? Believe in me? I'm your only
hope, Christ said. I'm your only Redeemer. There's
just one Mediator. Now believe in me. Rest in me.
Trust in me. Look to me. Now, you understand?
I'm going to prepare a place for you and I'll be back for
you. And they said to him, so you know the way. And Thomas
looked at him and he said, Lord, we don't know where you're going.
We don't know where you're going. How can we know the way? I just
told you, he said. Thomas, I just told you. I'll
tell you again. Thomas, I'm the way. I'm the
way. I'm the truth. I'm the life.
No man comes to the Father. That's where I'm going. I go
to my Father. I go to my Father. And no man
comes to the Father but by me. You see, when Adam fell in the
Garden of Eden, he lost the truth. He lost life and he lost the
way to God. Christ came to restore it. The
second Adam. I'm the way, I'm the truth, and
I'm the life. So, let not your heart be troubled. This is the cure, the remedy
for all heart trouble. Believe in me. Believe in me. Rest. Now, if you want this tape,
I'll mail it to you. It'll have a message on the other
side that I'll bring next week. But here's the title of the message
again, The Cure for Heart Trouble. And you write for that message,
John 14, 1 through 6. The address will be given to
you on the screen. Send $2. We'll mail the tape
to you. The Cure for Heart Trouble. Till
next Sunday at this same time, I bid you a very pleasant good
day.

The Cure for Heart Trouble

What does the Bible say about heart trouble?

How do we know that faith in Christ is the remedy for heart trouble?

Why is belief in Jesus important for Christians?

What does it mean that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life?

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About Henry Mahan

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The Cure for Heart Trouble

What does the Bible say about heart trouble?

How do we know that faith in Christ is the remedy for heart trouble?

Why is belief in Jesus important for Christians?

What does it mean that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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