Every thing Jesus was telling the disciples seemed confusing and mysterious to them. The pieces of the puzzle were not coming together like they had expected. We are looking back at what happened, so we tend to forget how those men experienced the entire process.
On the one hand Jesus is doing miracles, healing hundreds of people, feeding thousands with practically nothing, every act pointing to setting up a glorious kingdom on the earth. And on the other hand he keeps talking about being crucified. He tells them they will have great joy because the Father will give them whatever they ask, then he tells them they will have great sorrow and their enemies will rejoice (John 16:19-24).
We also at times experience this disconnect. It is glorious to live with God, walking with him, talking with him, obeying his words. But it is also painful when things are not going the way we fully expected them to turn out.
It is good for us to remember that God is intimately involved in our lives from the moment we are conceived through the moment of our death (Psalm 139:13); Jeremiah 1:5). Life will be confusing if we trust in our own wisdom. It is a relief to trust the one who controls the outcome (Ephesians 1:11).
