John 14 - Jesus is the Way!
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God[a]; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
I use these verses probably 90% of the time when I do a funeral. Why? Because these are some of the most comforting words in all of scripture. Jesus is preparing to go to the cross, and he knows the disciples will betray him and will be left discouraged and saddened by his death on the cross.
Jesus tells them that when he goes back to the Father there will be many rooms in His Father's house. God wants his mansion full. Jesus was going there to prepare a room with their name on it. I think they may have been confused by this, but later it probably made a lot more sense. To be sure he asked them a rhetorical question,
"You know the way to the place where I am going".
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know[b] my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Thomas perhaps voices what the other disciples are thinking. Thomas wants to know the way to where Jesus is going. Jesus says,
I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
We have talked about the importance of Jesus' "I am" statements in the gospel of John. This takes the cake. Jesus is the way. He is the way to the Father. His death on the cross opened up the way for us to come to the Father, having been cleansed of our sins. Jesus is the way to heaven and eternal life.
Jesus is the truth. Everything Jesus said was truth. Jesus revealed the truth of the Father's love when he loved even the least and the lost. Jesus loved people who were cast off by society. The lepers, the blind, the lame, the prostitutes, the beggars, and the tax collectors. Jesus exposed the Pharisees and others as false shepherd. Jesus revealed the truth about our sinful nature, but also the truth about God's love when he willingly went to the cross.
Jesus is the life. Jesus came to give us an abundant life on earth leading to eternal life in heaven. Jesus satisfies our deepest longing for meaning and purpose in this life. Jesus taught us how to "really" live. He gives us the "life we've always wanted".
Finally, Jesus says no one can come to the Father except through him. Some see this as very exclusive. I mean who is Jesus to say he is the only way to the Father. If Jesus wasn't God himself this would be troublesome statement, but since Jesus is the Word made flesh, it makes sense that He would be the Way to the Father. If there was another way to the Father through another person other than Jesus, that person would be the way, the truth, and the life.
Jesus' way is a wide way. It is wide open to anyone who would seek Him and trust in His words. The only people who are excluded from Jesus' way are those who reject who He is as the Son of God. God desires all people to be saved, which is why He sent Jesus in the first place. Jesus is the most inclusive person who ever lived.
Most importantly is Jesus the way for you? Is Jesus Your Lord and Savior? Or, are you still trying to reach God in Your OWN WAY.
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” 9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
It is hard to believe Philip asks Jesus this question. I mean what has Jesus doing the past three years but showing the world the Father's love and power. Philip, like many others, could not wrap his hands around that Jesus was "fully God" and "fully human". Though he did and said everything God would say and do, they still didn't get it.
If Philip doesn't believe Jesus' words, at least he could realize the powerful works and miracles as proof he was from the Father. Then Jesus makes an incredible promise to his disciples and by application to us Jesus says,
"Whoever believes in me will do the works and I am doing and even greater things because I am going back to the Father."
Did you hear that? As Jesus' disciples filled with the Holy Spirit, we can do the works he did.
We have to be careful not to confuse this with the "health and wealth" gospel, where we can ask God for material things and trust he wants us to have them. This verse is in the context of the things Jesus has been doing to show us the Father. Therefore, it would make sense is that our prayers would be in alignment with these same activities not pursuing selfish gain.
Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be[c] in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
If we are going to do the things Jesus did, we are going to need the same power He had. Jesus promises to send the disciples the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will not only be with them, but He will be IN THEM! This fulfilled the promises of the Old Testament. For instance in Joel 2:8 God promised to pour out His Spirit on all people. In Jeremiah, he wrote the Law would now be written on human hearts through the Holy Spirit. Paul confirms this when he says, "Our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit".
The Holy Spirit gives us assurance of our salvation. William Lane Craig, theologian and philosopher, says this in Lee Strobel's book, "The Case for Faith".
Ultimately the way a Christian knows that Christianity is true is through the self- authenticating witness of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit whispers to our spirit that we belong to God. Other evidence only confirms this!” - Craig
22 Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” 23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
Judas asked why Jesus had revealed himself so clearly to them and not the world. Jesus countered by saying that anyone who will obey his teaching will see him and experience him. If you live your life studying Jesus' life and then doing everything Jesus would do if he were you, you will know Jesus. You will experience the way, the truth, and the life.
Jesus says if we obey His teaching, He and the Father will make their home with us. Literally this means to "tabernacle with us". The tabernacle was the tent where God dwelt by his Spirit with the Israelites in the wilderness.
This reminds us that it is not enough to know about Jesus, but to know him personally. Knowledge of Jesus comes through experiencing the truth He taught which sets us free. As we obey Jesus, we will know him more and more and become more like him.
25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Once again Jesus points to Holy Spirit He will be sending to them. The Holy Spirit will be our "Advocate". This word can also mean, "encourager", "counselor", or the "one who comes alongside of us". The Holy Spirit will not only give us the assurance of our salvation but will also remind us of Jesus' teaching. As we read the bible the Holy Spirit helps us to understand how we are to apply it in our lives. When we are going about our every day lives or in conversations, the Holy Spirit will often give us a word from the bible. When we pray the Holy Spirit helps us to pray giving us words sometimes we don't even understand.
Importantly the Holy Spirit gives us peace. A peace which surpasses all understanding, as the apostle Paul tells us in Philippians 4:4-6. This is a peace that is different than the world, because the world's peace is dependent on circumstances. God's peace is within us, so no matter what happens to us we can cling to God's peace. Sometimes I have been in situations where I couldn't believe I had such peace and calmness. It was the Holy Spirit in me.
In the morning I pray, "Come Holy Spirit! Come and fill me and Your church!"
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