Comfort and Clarification

Kevin

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John 14:1-7

John 14:1-7 Comfort and Clarification

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.”

‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭1‬-‭7‬ ‭KJV‬‬

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

‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭1‬-‭7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Μὴ ταρασσέσθω ὑμῶν ἡ καρδία· πιστεύετε εἰς τὸν θεὸν καὶ εἰς ἐμὲ πιστεύετε. 2 ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ τοῦ πατρός μου μοναὶ πολλαί εἰσιν· εἰ δὲ μή, εἶπον ἂν ὑμῖν· ὅτι πορεύομαι ἑτοιμάσαι τόπον ὑμῖν. 3 καὶ ἐὰν πορευθῶ καὶ ἑτοιμάσω τόπον ὑμῖν, πάλιν ἔρχομαι καὶ παραλήμψομαι ὑμᾶς πρὸς ἐμαυτόν, ἵνα ὅπου εἰμὶ ἐγὼ καὶ ὑμεῖς ἦτε. 4 καὶ ὅπου ἐγὼ ὑπάγω οἴδατε τὴν ὁδόν.

5 Λέγει αὐτῷ Θωμᾶς· κύριε, οὐκ οἴδαμεν ποῦ ὑπάγεις· πῶς δυνάμεθα τὴν ὁδὸν εἰδέναι; 6 λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ ἡ ζωή. οὐδεὶς ἔρχεται πρὸς τὸν πατέρα εἰ μὴ δι᾽ ἐμοῦ. 7 εἰ ἐγνώκειτέ με, καὶ τὸν πατέρα μου ἂν ᾔδειτε· ἀπάρτι γεινώσκετε αὐτὸν καὶ ἑωράκατε αὐτόν.

I. Comfort for the Disciples of Christ.

“The world of the disciples was about to be shattered; they would be bewildered, confused, and ridden with anxiety because of the events that would soon transpire. Anticipating their devastation, Jesus spoke to comfort their hearts.” MacArthur

A. Comfort Through Faith. vs. 1

vs. 1 - Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

Μὴ ταρασσέσθω ὑμῶν ἡ καρδία· πιστεύετε εἰς τὸν θεὸν καὶ εἰς ἐμὲ πιστεύετε

Do not let your hearts be troubled (distressed, agitated). You believe in and adhere to and trust in and rely on God, believe in and adhere to and trust in and rely also on Me. - Amplified Bible

Let not your heart continue to be agitated. Be putting your trust in God. Also be putting your trust in me. - Wuest

1. The command. vs. 1a

“Let not you heart be troubled:”

troubled - - “To trouble, disturb, agitate,” Young

“Stir up, disturb, unsettle, throw into confusion” - Burer and Miller

God does not want us to be troubled, agitated or disturbed.

Things that oftentimes trouble us: (1) Finances (2) Health (3) Family Problems (4) Work Situations (5) Backsliding - note the example of Peter - 13:38.

“If the present imperative is significant its meaning will be ‘stop being troubled.’” Morris

2. The condition. vs. 1b

“ye believe in God, believe also in me.”

Believing is exercising faith - faith in the person of Jesus Christ.

Heb. 12:2 - Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of God.

Phil. 4:6-7 - Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Be careful - - signifies to be anxious about, to have a distracting care” Vine

“stop perpetually worrying about even one thing.” Wuest

I Pet 5:7 - Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

“for he careth for you.” - “The expression in the original means literally, ‘it is a care to Him concerning you.’ That is, your welfare is His concern.” Wuest

“It is better therefore, with the Latin and old Syriac versions, to take both verbs as imperative with the force of continuous presents. ‘Go on believing in God and go on believing in Me’ in view of the future blessings that I am going to make possible for you.” Tasker

“with the word believe, we find the preposition eis which means ‘into’.” McGee

“It is an active faith, which is trust.” McGee

“Our translaters, most of them, have rendered that sentence with one indicative and one imperative, ‘Ye believe in God,’ indicative; ‘Believe also in Me,’ imperative. I think they should both be rendered as imperatives. ‘Believe in God, believe in Me.’ He thus asked for equal confidence in God and Himself.” Morgan

Believe in God is translated as an imperative (or command), but the Greek could also be rendered as a statement, “You believe in God.” The imperative is probably better in light of the previous sentence. ESV Notes

“’Ye believe in God, believe also in me’ is a clear-cut statement of our Lord that He is God.” McGee

Note: The Deity of Christ.

B. Comfort Through Hope. vv. 2-3

In light of the context (Jesus going to the Father; 13:1, 3; 14:28), it is best to understand my Father’s house as referring to heaven. In keeping with this image, the many rooms (or “dwelling places,” Gk. monē) are places to live within that large house. The translation “rooms” is not meant to convey the idea of small spaces, but only to keep consistency in the metaphor of heaven as God’s “house.” In a similar passage, Jesus speaks of his followers being received into the “eternal dwellings” (Luke 16:9; cf. 1 Cor. 2:9). ESV Notes

1. The hope of heaven. vs. 2

vs. 2 - In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

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? ESV

ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ τοῦ πατρός μου μοναὶ πολλαί εἰσιν· εἰ δὲ μή, εἶπον ἂν ὑμῖν· ὅτι πορεύομαι ἑτοιμάσαι τόπον ὑμῖν.

μοναὶ - “dwelling(-place), room, abode” - Burer and Miller

“The Jews believed in a heaven of bliss after death, and Jesus said, ‘If you had been wrong in that, I would have corrected you.’” Ironside

“The Temple at Jerusalem, with its vast courts and numerous chambers, suggest the antitype in heaven.” Morrison, WBCk

a. A place that has many abiding places.

mansions - - “primarily a staying, abiding, denotes an abode . . . . There is nothing in the word to indicate separate compartments in Heaven; neither does it suggest temporary resting-places on the road.” Vine

“The greek word is mone meaning ‘abiding places.’ Jesus is saying that this vast universe is filled with abiding places or places to live.” McGee

“He said, ‘In My Father’s house’ - that is in the whole universe, ‘are many abiding places.’” Morgan

“ . . . , the Father’s house is this vast universe that you and I live in today. We are living on one of the very minor, smallest planets.” McGee

b. A place that has been prepared.

“I go to prepare a place for you”

ἑτοιμάσαι - “put/keep in readiness, prepare” - Burer and Miller

“to prepare, make ready,” Vine

go - πορεύομαι - “to go on one’s way, to proceed from one place to another.” Vine

place - τόπον - “Eng., topic, topography etc., is used of region or locality,” Vine

2. The hope of His return. vs. 3

vs. 3 - And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also.

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. ESV

καὶ ἐὰν πορευθῶ καὶ ἑτοιμάσω τόπον ὑμῖν, πάλιν ἔρχομαι καὶ παραλήμψομαι ὑμᾶς πρὸς ἐμαυτόν, ἵνα ὅπου εἰμὶ ἐγὼ καὶ ὑμεῖς ἦτε.

go - πορευθῶ - “to go on one’s way, to proceed from one place to another.” Vine

prepare - ἑτοιμάσω - “to prepare, make ready,” Vine

place - τόπον - “Eng., topic, topography etc., is used of region or locality,” Vine

will come - “Grammatically, this is a futuristic present, emphasizing both the certainty of the coming and the impending nature of the event.” Harrison, WBC

receive - παραλήμψομαι - “to receive from another, or to take, signifies to receive.” Vine

“Now how are we to interpret that ‘come’? There have been various ways. I think they are all included. He came to them in resurrection. He came to them in a full and new sense when the Paraclete came. He came to receive the majority of them as they passed to Him through violent death. He met them as they passed over. The ultimate reference was undoubtedly to His second Advent.” Morgan

I Thess. 4:16-17 - For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Titus 2:13 - Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

“This is the first time in the Bible where you find a mention of God taking anyone off this earth to go out yonder to a place that He has prepared. This was not the hope of the Old Testament saint.” McGee

“This is one of the passages that refers to the rapture of the saints at the end of the age when Christ returns. The features in this description do not describe Christ coming to earth with his saints to establish his kingdom (Rev. 19:11–15), but taking believers from earth to live in heaven. Since no judgment on the unsaved is described here, this is not the event of his return in glory and power to destroy the wicked (cf. Matt. 13:36–43; 47–50). Rather, this describes his coming to gather his own who are alive and raise the bodies of those who have died to take them all to heaven. This rapture event is also described in 1 Cor. 15:51–54 and 1 Thess. 4:13–18. After being raptured, the church will celebrate the marriage supper (Rev. 19:7–10), be rewarded (1 Cor. 3:10–15; 4:5; 2 Cor. 5:9–10), and later return to earth with Christ when he comes again to set up his kingdom (Rev. 19:11–20:6).” MacArthur

that where I am - “the most satisfying definition of heaven”. WBC

C. Comfort Through Knowledge. vs. 4

vs. 4 - And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

And you know the way to where I am going. ESV

καὶ ὅπου ἐγὼ ὑπάγω οἴδατε τὴν ὁδόν.

go - ὑπάγω - “to go away or to go slowly away, to depart, withdraw oneself, often with the idea of going without noise or notice,” Vine

know - οἴδατε

“Jesus tells them two things: the destination, which is the ‘where,’ and the way to go, which is the ‘how.’” McGee

I. Clarification. vv. 5-7

A. The Question of Thomas. vs. 5

vs. 5 - Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not wither thou goest: and how can we know the way.

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

Λέγει αὐτῷ Θωμᾶς· κύριε, οὐκ οἴδαμεν ποῦ ὑπάγεις· πῶς δυνάμεθα τὴν ὁδὸν εἰδέναι;

we know not - οὐκ οἴδαμεν

can - δυνάμεθα

we know - εἰδέναι;

“His bewilderment is due to a failure to undertand that, though the necessity of human language compels Jesus to speak of ‘going away’ and of ‘a way to the Father,’ these terms have no spatial or material significance. The way to God lies in the knowledge of the truth about Him and in the experience of His life. It is precisely this knowledge and this experience which Jesus throughout His incarnate life, and supremely in His atoning sacrifice, is bringing within men’s reach.” Tasker

“Then Thomas the magnificent, the honest - the man who would not pretend to have a faith he had not, or a knowledge he lacked - bluntly contadicted Jesus, broke in upon what He was saying, and said, We do not know where. You have not answered Simon. You have not told us where. How can anyone know the way who does not know the destination.?” Morgan

B. The Answer of Jesus. vv. 6-7

1. Jesus is man’s access to the Father. vs. 6

vs. 6 - Jesus saith unto Him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ ἡ ζωή. οὐδεὶς ἔρχεται πρὸς τὸν πατέρα εἰ μὴ δι᾽ ἐμοῦ.

“The article in the Greek is an adjective. Jesus said, ‘I am the way.’ He is not just a person who shows the way, but he, personally, is the way.” McGee

Note: The “I Am’s” recorded in John:

“I am the bread of life”. Jn 6:35

“I am the light of the world”. Jn 8:12

“I am the door”. Jn 10:7,9

“I am the good shepherd”. Jn 10:11,14

“I am the resurrection and the life”. Jn 11:25

“I am the true vine” or “I am the vine”. Jn 15:1,5

a. The way.

Prov. 14:12 - There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

b. The truth.

truth - ἀλήθεια - “truth, is used (a) objectively, signifying ‘the reality lying at the basis of an appearance; the manifested, veritable essence of a matter’ (Cramer), . . . ; the word has an absolute force in John 14:6;” Vine

“It will point to Jesus’ utter dependability, but also to the saving truth of the gospel.” Morris

c. The life.

life - ζωή - “(Eng., zoo, zoology) is used in the N.T. ‘of life as a principle, life in the Absolute sense, life as God has it, . . . ‘ (Hogg and Vine).” Vine

“’way’ speaks of a connection between two, the link between God and man. ‘Truth’ reminds us of the complete reliability of Jesus in all that He does and is, And ‘life’ stresses the fact that mere physical existence matters little.” Morris

no man or “no one” - οὐδεὶς

“Jesus Himself is therefore the way, because He is the embodiment of the truth about God and His relationship with men; and by reason of this, the life, that is inherent in His own words and actions, the very life of God Himself, is available to mankind.” Tasker

“We should not overlook the faith involved both in the utterance and in the acceptance of these words, spoken as they were on the eve of the crucifixion. ‘I am the Way’, said One who would shortly hang impotent on a cross. ‘I am the Truth’, when the lies of evil men were about to enjoy spectacular triumph. ‘I am the Life’, when within a few hours His corpse would be placed in a tomb.” Morris

2. Jesus is man’s way of knowing God. vs. 7

vs. 7 - If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”” ESV

‭εἰ ἐγνώκειτέ με, καὶ τὸν πατέρα μου ἂν ᾔδειτε· ἀπάρτι γεινώσκετε αὐτὸν καὶ ἑωράκατε αὐτόν.

known - ἐγνώκειτέ - second plural, pluperfect active indicative- ESV Notes

have seen - ἑωράκατε “denotes to see, of bodily vision, . . . . ; and mental, . . .It especially indicates the direction of the thought to the object seen.” Vine

“Up till now all has been preparation. They have not really come to the full knowledge of Jesus and his significance. But from now on it is to be different. From now they know Him and they have seen Him. This is to be understood in terms of 1:18, ‘no man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.’ God cannot be seen in the literal sense. But to know Jesus fully is to see the heavenly Father.” Morris

“The Father is only known through the Son.” Ironside

“who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬ ‭KJV‬‬

“He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬ ‭ESV‬‬

3 ὃς ὢν ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης καὶ χαρακτὴρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ, φέρων τε τὰ πάντα τῷ ῥήματι τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ, καθαρισμὸν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ποιησάμενος ἐκάθισεν ἐν δεξιᾷ τῆς μεγαλωσύνης ἐν ὑψηλοῖς

The Lord Jesus is the radiance (ἀπαύγασμα) and the exact (χαρακτὴρ) imprint of God’s glory. He is not a mere man - He is the God man. He shares the very nature of God’s glory because He is God.

“Then in the second place I would like to remind you of this, Christ is the exact expression of the Father.” Ironside

Jn 1:18 - No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

Note: the council of Nicaea in A.D. 325 did not come up with the Deity of Jesus - it only affirmed His Deity. Early manuscript evidence of John’s gospel affirm this.

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