A regular question that gets asked in our house now that we have two teenage drivers, and two more in the pipeline, is "Where are you going?" The moment we hear keys jingle or the sound of the front door opening, my wife and I instinctively ask that question.
Without exception, I think we all prefer knowing where we're going. I'm grateful that we live in the era of GPS. In some ways, it makes the previous skill of reading a map seem obsolete.
I still remember when I was a new driver. I got my driver's license in early December, and my mother asked me if I'd be willing to go and get my grandmother and my aunt, and bring them to our house on Christmas Eve. I was happy to do so, but they lived an hour away, and I was very new to the process of navigating the highways of Pennsylvania.
Growing up, I took trips to their home many times as a passenger, but roads look different when you're behind the wheel. When I was almost a full hour into my drive, and I started seeing signs for New Jersey, I realized that I was nowhere near Wilkes-Barre, PA. So I stopped and asked for directions, got back on the highway, and showed up at their house much later than expected. Everyone was terrified. They were fearful that I had been involved in a horrible accident, but relieved when I showed up. Immediately upon my arrival, my grandmother called my mother to let her know I was there.
In John 14, Jesus speaks about direction with His disciples. At the time He was speaking these words, they were growing nervous and concerned about what was coming next, but Jesus said to them, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life." In doing so, He was assuring them, and all of His future followers, that we can trust Him and the direction He gives.
I. Jesus assures us that our hearts don't need to be troubled. (John 14:1)
““Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” ”
If you take a few moments to read the conversations that were taking place just prior to these verses, you can see that Jesus told His disciples several things that clearly troubled them. At the Last Supper, Jesus washed their feet, and in some ways, I think this act of humility from their leader seemed embarrassing and disturbing to them. Then, during the meal, Jesus revealed that one of them was about to betray Him. Soon after, Jesus also made it clear to Peter that Peter would deny Him. He also made it clear that He was going somewhere, and they wouldn't be able to come with Him.
If you were the disciples, how do you think these actions and statements would have struck you? If the person you considered your leader, teacher, and greatest mentor said, "I'm actually about to leave you guys, and one of you will betray me, while another will deny even knowing me," how would you have responded? Would you have been more disturbed that He was about to leave, or would you have been troubled by the fact that some of those who were with you were going to treat Jesus so poorly?
Jesus could see, and instinctively knew, that His disciples were troubled by His statements. So He took this opportunity to teach them something they needed to know, (and believers of all generations need to know as well.) Jesus told them that their hearts didn't need to be troubled. As they trusted the Father, they could trust Him as well since He and the Father are one.
When was the last time something truly troubled you? Some people make that very obvious and easy to figure out. You can tell when they're troubled just by looking at them. Others tend to keep their emotions hidden. They disguise how they're feeling with a polite smile and shallow laughter, but inside, they're in pain.
What do you do when you're troubled? You realize that can be a very dangerous time in your life, right? When we're troubled, we're more likely to make unwise and destructive decisions in an attempt to ease our pain. For some people, that's when addictions begin. For other people, that when they start employing self-protective strategies and closing themselves off to others in a defensive way. It's all an attempt to protect ourselves from feeling pain.
But our unhealthy addictions and protective strategies can't heal our troubled hearts. Those approaches aren't the right way to ease our pain. In John 14:1, Jesus teaches us that He brings peace to a troubled heart. When we fully trust in Him, and hand the burden of our pain over to Him, we find healing. When we trust a drug, food, or walling ourselves off from others to bring us comfort, we only end up in more pain. Jesus assures us that if we trust in Him, our hearts don't need to be troubled.
II. Jesus will bring those who trust Him into His presence forever. (John 14:2-3)
“In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. ”
When I was growing up, we moved many times, and most of the places we lived weren't very nice. Various issues that were present in our family kept perpetuating and complicating that cycle. So at the time, I used to pacify myself with thoughts about living in a nice home someday. And if I'm really honest, I think part of my fascination with real estate and home improvements comes back to the longing I had as a child for a place that felt like home.
Jesus speaks about a house in this passage that belongs to His Father, and He tells His disciples that He was going there to prepare a place for them, but that He would come back again for them and take them to live with Him forever. These words of Jesus have been a source of fascination for believers ever since He first spoke them.
When I read these words, I can't help but imagine what this will all look like. I wonder how it will feel and how it will smell. I wonder if my familiarity with earthly architecture clouds my ability to truly appreciate what Jesus is telling us here.
It's easy to focus on what we imagine heavenly dwelling places looking like, and then miss the greater point of what Jesus was communicating. Jesus wasn't just telling us that we'll live in a nice heavenly abode, He was comforting His disciples with the knowledge that they would see Him again, and get to live with Him forever. He matters more than our earthly concept of a residence. Jesus will graciously allow those who trust in Him to live in His presence eternally.
III. Jesus opens our eyes to know "the way" (John 14:4-5)
““And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” ”
The other day, I was staring at a picture of a bookcase. I'm a big fan of reading, so the sight of this bookcase was automatically interesting to me. The shelves were completely filled with books of every color and size. Some books were tall and bright. Others were wide and dark. But as I looked at the image, there was something right in front of my eyes that I wasn't seeing. I don't know how much work it took to pull this off, but standing in front of the case was a man who was painted, from the top of his head, down to his shoes, in such a way as to blend in with the books that were behind him. It was somewhat surprising to see once my eyes focused on him, but once I saw him, I couldn't "unsee" him.
It's clear when we read the gospels that there were certain things the disciples of Christ couldn't see just yet. Many of the deeper level statements Jesus made went right over their heads. They were overly focused on earthly things, and remained so until their eyes were spiritually opened.
In this passage, Jesus told them that they knew the way to where He was going. Thomas, in his typical fashion for the time, questioned that statement. He wanted to hear how they could possibly know the way to the destination Jesus was speaking of since they didn't even know where He was headed.
I don't know if you've ever noticed this, but in the early chapters of the book of Acts, even before believers were called "Christians", they were called followers of "the way." This is in reference to Christ's statements in John 14.
Thomas was trying to figure out what "the way" was as if it was merely a path. Jesus was about to show him, however, that "the way" is a person. Jesus is "The Way."
IV. Jesus is the One who satisfies the deepest longings of our hearts. (John 14:6-7)
“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.””
We live in a pluralistic age that bristles against definitive statements and objective truth. If I'm bold enough to say, "Salvation can only be obtained through Jesus Christ," I may receive some pushback from those who don't agree, or those who don't appreciate the exclusive nature of that claim.
That's part of what makes me appreciate what Jesus states in John 14:6-7 even more. He doesn't mince words. He doesn't give a "qualified" answer. He states the facts plainly, and makes it clear that He alone is three things, the way, the truth, and the life.
Jesus is the way through which we may approach the Father and have a relationship with Him.
Jesus is the truth and the fulfillment of the Old Testament's Messianic prophesies.
Jesus is the life, and He grants abundant eternal life to those who were once dead in sin.
To know Jesus is to know the Father. While this statement is true, it was because Jesus made claims like this that the religious leaders of the day felt justified in insisting on His crucifixion. They understood the nature of what Jesus was saying, but they rejected Him. As His disciples, we're invited to understand the nature of what He was saying, and embrace Him.
““The human longings that are deep inside of us never go away. They exist across cultures; they exist throughout life. When people were first made, our deepest longing was to know and be known. And after the Fall, when we all got weird, it’s still our deepest longing - but it’s now also our deepest fear.””
Jesus satisfies the deepest longings of our hearts. Our hearts long for direction, and He is the way. Our hearts long for honesty, and He is the truth. Our hearts long for eternity, and He is the life.
© John Stange, 2019
