I AM The Way, and the Truth, and the Life

Opening Summary

I AM the Light of the World

John 1:1–10 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.

2. I AM the Gate

John 1:7 ESV

He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him.

3. I AM the Good Shepherd

John 10:11 ESV

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

The Mission of Jesus Summarized

John 6:38–40 ESV

For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

Those whom the Father chose for himself, he also gave to the Son.

And for those who belong to the Son, he also laid down his life.

And those for whom he laid down his life, he also called to himself.

And those whom he called heard his voice and followed him.

And to those who followed him, he gave eternal life.

And those to whom he gave eternal life can never be taken from his hand.

And there will be one flock and one shepherd forever.

The Question

Peter and Thomas ask 2 questions

Where are you going?

How do we get there?

John 13:36 ESV

Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.”

John 14:5 ESV

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?”

Peter asks “where you going” cause he wants to go, he thinks he is ready

Jesus answers Peter’s question

John 14:1–4 ESV

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 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. And you know the way to where I am going.”

But even after Jesus gives an answer Thomas chimes in with the same question- “we don’t know where you are going so how can we know the way”

inherent in the questioning is a lack of understanding of what Jesus is and has been saying about who he is and what he’s about

to the credit of the disciples the questioning does indicate a desire to learn

An example of how the disciples might be feeling- have you ever been following someone somewhere and you really have no clue how to get where your supposed to be going and then you come to a traffic light and it turns yellow and the person you are following continues through it but it turns red as they are passing through

In that moment you have a choice- speed through the red light so that you don’t loose the person you are following (that might be Peter’s approach) or you can be a good law abiding citizen and stop and I guess hope you’ll catch up to them when the light turns green

That’s how I feel when I put myself in the disciples shoes, its that moment of panic as you watch the person who is leading continue to drive off while you are stuck at the red light

I see Jesus in this moment like the parent who is trying to teach their child something - I can’t do it or I don’t know how- as a parent the response is “you can do I know you can”

That’s what I see Jesus saying here- “you do know the way” if only you would take a minute to consider everything that I have telling you and teaching you about myself

But their understanding is clouded I think in part by their idea that Messiah would establish an earthly kingdom somewhere, so in there questioning they are thinking some physical geographical location on earth

The Answer

You believe in God- believe also in me- this is the Jewish hurdle. They believed in God- the God of Isreal, of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob

Now believe in me- believe what I have been telling you about myself. God is my father, I am his son, we are one

If you know me and believe in me then you know where I am going- I am going to my father- I am not going somewhere else geographically on this earth the set up some other type of kingdom- I am going back home

You believe in me- you know me, you have seen me, you have studied under me - then you know the way

Because I AM the Way- I also hear resounding in the background I AM the Gate

I AM the Way-

I am the the singular way- there are not multiple paths to get into heaven

This is not like going to pizza hut for lunch- there are multiple routes that you can take to get to pizza hut, and in fact when you get there there are 3 ways into the parking lot so hey, however you choose to get there is fine, I’ll choose what feels right to me and you choose for you and we’ll all end up at the same place in the end

Heaven is not like the parking lot of pizza hut- there is one way, there is one gate and its through the person of Jesus Christ

I AM the Truth-

I am the one truth- I don’t just speak truth I am truth

We have seen, we are seeing what happens when we/societies move away from this understand- when the source of truth is moved from that which is outside of us-God- to something that we decide

Jesus is giving them assurance here- this statement actually removes uncertainty and doubt- because it gives us a foundation- we can know what is true because we know the source of truth

Society/Humans buck up against this idea of absolute truth because its seen as limiting, restricting their freedom, their expression, their ability to be who they are

That is a false reality- relative truth does not make us more free in fact it traps us in the uncertainty of what really is true, it leaves us asking the same questions over and over again without any good answers because we refuse to acknowledge the source of truth that exists outside of ourselves

Absolute truth- removes that instability and uncertainty and reveals to us who we truly are

He is the embodiment of truth, Jesus is the proof that what God says is true, he is the fulfillment of all the promises that God made

I AM the Life-

All of this leads to life- following the way, living in the truth- it leads to life

I have been beating this drum for the the last three weeks

The Light of Life

The Gate that leads to Life

The Good Shepherd who gives Life

I AM LIFE

I would suggest that it’s not just fullness of life eternally, but also fullness of life on this earth as well that we experience when we follow Jesus the Way, Truth and Life.

Conclusion:

This is a summary statement within the I AM statements- these are things that Jesus has been saying about himself throughout John’s gospel.

That is all well and good but here we are sitting at the red light- the car we were following is long gone and the light is turning green- how do we know where to go

It’s similar to what I said last week- for a time Jesus was physically on the earth his physical voice was going out and people where hearing it and responding to it- how are we drawn- by his voice- but we don’t have Jesus with us physically now but we still have his voice

The same is true on this life journey- we know the way- it’s Jesus but Jesus isn’t physically here for us to follow anymore so how can we know which way to go?

John 14:15–21 ESV

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

John 14:25–27 ESV

“These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

John 20:19–22 ESV

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

It’s Holy Spirit- Jesus didn’t leave us sitting along at a traffic light with no way of knowing which way to go

Their is someone else in they car who knows the way, a spiritual GPS of sorts but its more than just turn by turn navigation Holy Spirit is actually the driver

We can have peace because someone is driving

It might not all be roses and sunshine and beautiful scenery, there may be storms and desert and wilderness and the car might even break down at times but Holy Spirits driving the car

I know some of us aren’t very good passengers

What peace