Finding Unshakeable Peace When Life Falls Apart: Lessons from John 12:36-43
The Christmas season, often celebrated with aspirations for "peace on earth," can paradoxically become a highly stressful time that leads to anxiety and a profound lack of peace. Many individuals create elaborate expectations for this period, but when those expectations go unmet, the result can be significant heartache, stress, and anxiety. We often laugh at characters like Clark in Christmas Vacation when his perfect holiday plans fall apart, but his frustration mirrors the very real disappointment we face when life does not go our way. However, Christians celebrate a truth that overcomes chaotic circumstances: peace is possible because nothing can alter the reality of Jesus's coming to earth and accomplishing what only He could do for humanity.
To discover this lasting peace, we turn to the commentary provided by the Apostle John in John 12:36-43. John, writing approximately 60 years after Christ's death (around 90 to 95 AD), addresses an audience who struggled profoundly with why there was so much unbelief during Jesus's earthly ministry. John himself was stressed and faced disappointment as he witnessed the people’s response to Jesus. In these verses, he gives an explanation for these events, and it is through this explanation that we can find peace, even when our own lives feel out of control.
The Problem of Unbelief: Why Signs Weren't Enough
The events leading up to John 12 were marked by incredible power and glory. Jesus had just raised Lazarus from the dead in the previous chapter, and even Gentiles (specifically Greeks) were showing interest in Him—a very unique occurrence at the time. Jesus declared that He would be "high and lifted up," drawing people to Himself, a reference to the Exodus event where looking upon the snake lifted on a stick brought healing. Yet, the expected widespread positive response did not materialize.
John notes in verse 37 that "though he had done so many signs before them they still did not believe in him". For John, these signs were not mere miraculous events; they were powerful actions intended to point people to Jesus's work and reveal His true identity as God. The Gospel of John carefully highlights seven primary signs that demonstrated Jesus's complete control over life, death, and the physical world:
1. Water into Wine: Transforming water at the wedding in Cana (John 2).
2. Healing the Royal Official’s Son (John 4).
3. Healing the Paralyzed Man: Restoring the man paralyzed for 38 years (John 5).
4. Feeding the 5,000 (John 6).
5. Walking on Water (John 6).
6. Healing the Man Born Blind (John 9).
7. Raising Lazarus from the Dead (John 11).
Despite Jesus proving His power to heal physical ailments, forgive sin, and even command life and death because "He alone is God," many still refused to believe. John addresses the struggle felt by his audience: why were the signs not enough?
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Step 1: Trusting in God’s Sovereign Plan
John finds peace by recognizing that this widespread unbelief was not a rejection that derailed God’s plan; rather, it was the fulfillment of it. The first principle for obtaining peace when things don’t go our way is to trust in God's sovereign plan.
John cites the prophet Isaiah 53:1 in verse 38, declaring that the rejection happened "so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled". Isaiah 53 is the crucial prophecy concerning the coming Messiah as the suffering servant. This prophecy described the Messiah as one who would be crushed for our iniquities and receive stripes for our healing.
John realized that if the entire crowd had adored Jesus, the prophecy of the suffering servant—the one crushed for our sake—could not have been fulfilled. It was necessary for opposition to rise so that Jesus could be brought to the cross. God revealed this plan to Isaiah, stating that there would be people who would not believe, and this unbelief ultimately fulfilled God’s design. Even though the path to the cross was tragic in one sense, it was ultimately for the good of humanity, as only through Jesus's work could a right relationship with God be established.
Understanding that God is in complete control over all situations is a fundamental truth that provides peace. Knowing that a painful situation, such as financial hardship, family conflict, or a health challenge, fits within God's sovereign design can give us a brighter outlook and comfort, even if the circumstance itself does not immediately change.
Practical Ways to Lean into God’s Sovereignty:
When we struggle to find peace, we must intentionally redirect our focus onto God's control:
1. Recall God’s Promises: Look to God’s word, where He has revealed everything we need to know about Himself and life. By reviewing Scripture and reflecting on how God has kept His promises in our past, our trust is strengthened.
2. Pray with Surrender: Pray genuinely, but also with a willing heart, ready to surrender entirely to God’s plan.
3. Reject Isolation: We must avoid the stress and anxiety that comes from trying to solve problems alone. God established the church to be a community where believers support one another and bear one another's burdens. We are a family in Christ who will never abandon one another.
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Step 2: Beholding the Glory of Christ
The second strategy for cultivating peace is to behold the glory of Christ. John points out that Isaiah spoke these things because he saw Jesus's pre-incarnate glory. John references Isaiah 6:1-5, describing the prophet’s magnificent vision:
Isaiah saw the Lord "sitting on a throne high and lifted up," with the train of His robe filling the temple. Above Him stood the Seraphim, who covered their faces and feet and proclaimed: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory".
This vision vividly portrays the bigness and holiness of God. When Isaiah witnessed this infinite glory, his focus instantly shifted away from his current problems or worldly anxieties. Instead, he was overwhelmed by his own lack of purity, crying out, "Woe is me, for I am lost; I am a man of unclean lips". Isaiah, whose entire purpose was to speak on behalf of God, felt that the very instrument of his calling—his lips—were unclean in the presence of God's holiness.
Contemplating the doctrine of God and His glory—meditating on statements such as, "the God who cannot change is the only God who can save"—provides peace because it reminds us that God is in ultimate and complete control. When we recognize how big God is, our problems diminish in comparison.
The Steadiness of God:
God’s inherent stability serves as the source of our safety and peace. He is infinitely more stable than any earthly object.
Consider a hiker who set out to climb a mountain. Though the day started clear, a violent storm quickly enveloped the trail—winds groaned, dark clouds rolled in, and thunder shook the ground. The hiker felt exposed, vulnerable, and overcome by fear. Yet, looking up, the hiker observed that the mountain did not move. It stood steady, not trembling, not shrinking back from the rain, and not eroded by fear or confusion. When the storm passed, the mountain remained unchanged.
When our circumstances bring fear and anxiety, God is not moved, panicked, or overwhelmed. Unlike us, who react to the storm, God stands firm. His steadiness is our peace, providing an unmoved foundation regardless of the chaos raging around us.
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Step 3: Living for God’s Approval, Not Man’s
The final step toward peace and wholeness involves making a crucial choice regarding loyalty: live for God's approval, not man's.
John reveals a troubling situation among the Jewish leaders: "many even of the authorities believed in him but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it so that they would not be put out of the synagogue". The Pharisees, the powerful religious leaders, had issued a decree threatening excommunication (being kicked out of the synagogue) for anyone who publicly followed or believed in Jesus.
These authorities valued their reputation and the glory that comes from men more than the glory that comes from God. They prioritized how their actions would look to other people rather than considering how their behavior appeared to God. While Christians today face severe persecution in many parts of the world—risking family, job, jail, or even life—the temptation to hide one’s faith remains widespread.
John’s observation does not excuse this fear; he reveals that hiding their faith stemmed from loving the glory of man above the glory of God. Jesus confirmed this principle, stating that whoever denies Him before men will be denied before the Father in heaven.
These secret believers were living a divided life: they believed in Christ internally but acted publicly as if they did not. Living this way robs a person of peace, as one cannot maintain peace when divided against oneself. To maintain true peace, one must achieve integrity and wholeness—being authentic and living publicly for the glory and approval of God alone.
To experience peace in our lives, we must stop trying to appease people more than we appease God. We are called to live as a new creation in Christ, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, in accordance with God’s plan. Living for the approval of God, the one who died on the cross as payment for our sin, ensures that our lives are whole and free from the anxiety that comes from constantly chasing human glory.
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Conclusion: Stability in an Unstable World
John’s commentary provides a framework for lasting peace. By recognizing that God is working His plan through all circumstances, no matter how disappointing, we gain a stable perspective. We can find peace when things don't go our way by consistently engaging in these three practices:
1. Trusting in God's sovereign plan.
2. Beholding the glory of Christ.
3. Living for God's approval instead of man's.
This reliance on the steady, immovable character of God—the one who left heaven, took on human flesh, lived perfectly, and died on the cross for our forgiveness—is the only way to establish a right relationship with Him and secure unshakeable peace.