Jesus warns the disciples of the battles to come so they don’t abandon the faith. John 16:1 I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. [1] The Greek word translated “abandon” here is skandalizo. Its primary meaning is to be offended. Strong’s Lexicon defines it as to cause a person to begin to distrust and desert one whom he ought to trust and obey. This happens when one is offended or sees in another what they disapprove of, hindering them from acknowledging the other’s authority. [2]
Thus, Jesus didn’t want the disciples to be offended with God when persecution happened. They had observed opposition from the Jewish leadership increase as Jesus ministered. Now, in less than twenty-four hours, the Jewish leaders will request that Jesus be crucified.
Unmet Expectations
The Jewish leaders were well acquainted with the Messianic prophesies. In fact, they would have memorized them. They had interpreted these prophecies and believed the Messiah would come as a political leader like King David. The Jewish leadership did not anticipate the Messiah coming twice, nor that the first time He would overcome the sin problem. As a result, Jesus was not the Messiah they expected. These unmet expectations led them to have Jesus put to death.
God had called Jeremiah to be a prophet. As Jeremiah began his ministry, he expected others to listen to and follow his messages. Unfortunately, most ignored his messages and persecuted him. This wasn’t what he anticipated, and he blamed God. Jeremiah 20: 7 O Lord, you misled me, and I allowed myself to be misled. You are stronger than I am, and you overpowered me. [3] Unlike the Jewish leaders, as Jeremiah prayed through his offense, he realized God was with him and would overcome. Jeremiah 20: 11 But the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior. Before him my persecutors will stumble. [4]
Forewarned is Forearmed
Jesus knew that His followers would face severe persecution. He did not want them to have unrealistic expectations for their faith journey, so he warned them about the persecution to come. That way they wouldn’t be offended with God and leave the faith. Jesus would be their model as they faced the same problems.
This teaching still holds for us today. Some preachers promise that God will make you wealthy and healthy if you follow Him. While we certainly receive many blessings for this world and the next as we follow and trust Jesus, it is not always easy. We have an enemy that hates us and doesn’t want us to follow Jesus. He will try to do anything to make us walk away from the faith.
One of his favorite schemes is to tell us we should be offended by the way God treats us. We must be like Jeremiah and pray through confusing times. Jesus promises to always be with us. We have the power of the Holy Spirit living within us. God can redeem what the enemy means for evil and turn it for our good. Don’t abandon the faith; allow the tough times to strengthen it. To learn more, listen here:
[1,3,4] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Jn 16:1). Tyndale House Publishers.
[2]G4624, Strong, J. (1995). In Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship.