Wow! It has been a LONG time since chapter 13. I would genuinely be surprised if anyone still read this blog. Lol!
Anyway, here we go...
14 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 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? 3 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. 4 And you know the way to where I am going.”
What a funny thing to say... Let not your hearts be troubled. After all, He has just told them at dinner that one of them is a traitor! And He has just rebuked Peter, as well. And He has previously talked about His own death.
That's troubling.
Note what this is NOT saying: It does not say, "Hey, don't worry, you won't have any trouble." In fact, it is outright stated two chapters from now that the disciples are going to have troubles in this world.
But as chaotic and troublesome as this world can be, Jesus directs their focus to something unchanging -- their Heavenly Father and Himself.
It makes me think of James -- since that's the book that we are getting ready to preach on at CLC. James 1:17, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." What a sacred promise. Our God does not change. His mercies are for you today. His peace is for you today. His love is for you today. Cling to that.
And Jesus' promise is the same. Believe in me. Stake your life on Me. Trust Me.
He is speaking to men with whom He has built deep friendships, relationships. It has been and always will be about your relationship with Jesus. Theology is worthless without the relationship.
As Jesus is going towards His own death, He has unwavering certainty. Yes, it will be painful, brutal, agonizing. But His success is never a question in His own mind.
I take special comfort in verse 3, especially as I consider the world today. Jesus hasn't forgotten us; He is coming back.
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?”
Lol Thomas... "So, where exactly are you going? I just want to make sure we've talked about the route beforehand."
Thomas goes unmentioned for so many chapters in John, and then when he finally shows up, he gives such a clear voice to so many of us. "I DON'T GET IT. WHERE ARE YOU GOING NOW? HELP ME UNDERSTAND I AM DOING MY BEST."
Don't forget... in chapter 7, Jesus says the words, "You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come." Granted, He is saying that to the Pharisees, but you can see why someone like Thomas might be a little confused.
But it just hammers home our need for Jesus... We aren't getting there on our own. He has to "receive" us.
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
If Thomas had any idea what Jesus' immediate future looked like, he would probably ask for a different way.
The Way to the Father is not achieved through intellectual study, nor is it a demonstration of superior ethic.
This is a Word of comfort, believe it or not. "You've got everything you need to get to Father, Thomas. You've got Me."
8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”
Like, honestly, Philip... Think about what He just said. You're looking at His spitting image.
I've thought about this concept a lot, especially with Summer pregnant. I hope our daughter looks just like Summer. I hope she acts like Summer. Summer is the love of my life.
Well, Jesus is just like His Daddy. You can know one simply by knowing the other.
9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves."
At risk of supplying more to the text than is explicitly stated, I imagine Jesus in this verse banging His head against a wall.
It doesn't do you anymore good to see the Father. If you have seen Jesus, that's enough! And I would argue that until Jesus the Father was completely incomprehensible, foreign, and terrifying!
Their forefathers longed to see God so clearly. They saw signs, miraculous things, glimpses of His glory. But they still failed so often to take Him at His Word.
All those glimpses pale in the glory of Jesus -- God in the flesh. The Incarnate Word.
Jesus is telling them, "I am the only way you could ever truly know or see the Father." I am the Way in which the Father wants to be known. No more, no less.
And if you don't believe my words just yet, believe the other crazy things you've seen Me do.
12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. 13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it."
And if you believe in Jesus, you will do these miraculous works, as well.
The work of the Kingdom of Heaven is yours to take part in.
So, you're probably asking yourself, "Why don't I do more miracles? Why don't I walk on water more often?"
But think about what the works were actually meant to accomplish... They were meant to point to Jesus, to reveal that He is the One to believe in. You have that power.
The last two verses have caused many people frustration in the last 2000 years.
I think a better translation of the Greek is this: "What you ask of the Father, He'll give to you on my account." (If you need something, because of My sake, you can approach the Father and ASK without fear.)
That is an awesome invitation. It demands that we take it seriously. When you pray in Jesus' name, really take seriously what you're asking. In your prayers should be the desire that your will would be subsumed into God's will. You pray in Jesus' name. You act in His name. And He is always about what the Father is about.
I'll try to post Pt. 2 ASAP.
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