Following Without A Trouble Heart

Following Without A Troubled Heart

Text: John 14:1-7

Introduction

The longer I live and the more life I face, the more I realize how important it is that we never stop striving to have a child-like faith every day. The ongoing conversation that we started looking at last week between Jesus and His Disciples left the Disciples with unanswered questions and uncertainty.

Illustration: As my boys have gotten older (especially Henry) they require to know more about the facts and details before they will launch out into something new with confidence that everything will be okay.

One of the greatest (if not the #1 greatest) things that bring a lot of trouble to our souls is the unknown.

Following conveying to Peter that he would one day follow in His footsteps in suffering for His faith, all the other men fell into a troubled state of emotion. Jesus then teaches them why they can live this life without a troubled soul…

1) Jesus Is Preparing The Perfect Home

Verse 1

Remember, those who were following the Father were in the process of being given to the Son by the Father.

There were a remnant of Jews who faithfully looked for the coming Messiah and were ready to follow Him.

Jesus is telling them, “The same kind of faith (think to be true; trusting; entrusting) you are placing in God, place that same level of faith in Me.”

“heart” — heart (internal feature) n. — the locus of a person’s thoughts (mind), volition, emotions, and knowledge of right from wrong (conscience) understood as the heart.

“troubled — to be troubled v. — to be or become characterized by or indicative of distress or affliction or danger or need.

What kind of inner distress, affliction, danger, or need would Jesus be speaking to?

First of all, He said where He was going, they could not follow after Him. This of course spoke to the fact that Jesus was going to fulfill the Father’s will through crucifixion. Following His resurrection and ascension, then and now, many would follow after Jesus in persecution, martyrdom, and ascension into glory.

All of these men had developed such a confidence and comfort with Jesus being physically with them. Now, Jesus is speaking of a time in their life when He would go away.

Following Jesus’ teaching, He transitions to sharing the truth about an eternal experience they are guaranteed to enjoy one day.

The guarantee came from a person who can never lie!

Illustration — Our boys

Verse 2

“In My Father’s house are many rooms”

This phrase brings me much comfort. Jesus describes Heaven as His Father’s house. This is the place where Jesus is preparing us a home.

That being so, it must be a place of love and joy.

Reference: Rev. 21-22 (no more death, sorrow, crying, pain, night, etc)

“I go to prepare a place for you”

I love the parallel of Jesus growing up as the adopted son of a carpenter and now currently in Heaven building each of His children a room of love and joy within His Father’s house.

Illustration — Andie and I knew that George had a home once being discharged from the NICU. That was not the case for every precious child who end up in the NICU. We talked with one of the nurses who took care of George about times when babies would be ready for discharge and there would be no mommy or daddy to take it home. She actually adopted one of those children.

This is never the case for any of God’s children!

Matthew 25:34 “34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:”

Hebrews 11:16 “16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.”

LISTEN…the Bible describes every child of God as “adopted.” There was a time when all you had was an eternal home of torment and pain. God stepped down to this earth to take in all the orphans (unbelievers) who would receive His offer of life eternal with Him.

Verse 3-4

The manner of which Jesus spoke to these men, gives us an idea of how much they wanted to be in His presence.

The greatest joyful truth A Christian can learn are the ways Jesus keeps them in His presence.

In a general sense, God is seen and felt within all creation around you.

His Spirit is near you through His Word, His people, and His church.

He is within you through His Spirit at the moment of believing faith.

Here, Jesus speaks of the manner by which every child of God will be near Him.

None of the comforting ways Jesus is with us today will compare to what it feels like to be in His physical presence.

This reality is not somthing we can lift ourselves up to. It will take Jesus once again stooping down to receive all His children into His presence.

LISTEN…He did not say, “I will receive you to Myself so you can enjoy the streets of gold and the walls of Jasper.

He is coming to receive you so you can enjoy Him in a way you have yet to!

The radiants of His grace drives my heart to worship Him at a distance. I can’t imagine what kind of worship will burst out of me once I am brought into His glorious presence!

Acts 1:11 “11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”

1 Thessalonians 4:17 “17 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.”

2) Jesus Has Prepared The Perfect Path

Verses 5-7

Thomas reveals his genuine desire to be with Jesus — John 11:16 “16 Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellowdisciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

He wanted to know where the Master was going and how he himself would get there.

Jesus then directs Philip to understand, He was not someone just to point him in the right direction, but He IS THE WAY!

A. Jesus is the perfect WAY

Someone might ask the question, “Why are you so confident in your salvation?” I would respond with, “I have put my trust in the exclusive way to Heaven.”

“The Way” was actually the early names for the Christian faith.

Acts 9:2 “2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.”

Acts 19:9 “9 But when divers were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus.”

Acts 19:23 “23 And the same time there arose no small stir about that way.”

For all those who teach, preach, and disciple people to believe there is another way to heaven have to deal with the very words of Jesus.

B. Jesus is the perfect TRUTH

Jesus was not only THE WAY, but the TRUTH:

Jesus then answered the question, “How can I really be sure I am born-again?”

While there are many way to Jesus, there is but one way to Heaven; JESUS CHRIST!

LISTEN…Budha, Greek philosophers, Indian mystics and more have come and have expired!

The human race had roughly 5,000 years to conclude the bankruptcy of the world’s product of religion.

Quote: (John Phillips) “Every religious dogma, every philosophical concept, every scientific theory, every political, economic, social, or psychological proposition that does not ultimately find its center, sum, and substance in him is bound, in the end, to prove itself wrong.”

Over the centuries, humanity has filled their tank of confidence with their riches, success, religious morality, and power to fuel them to a right relationship with God. IF YOU DON’T COME THROUGH JESUS, YOU DON’T COME AT ALL!

Some might say, “That is just arrogant!” Actually, it is just truth!

The has risen up a generation who hates truth!!!

Our culture says, “We all have our own truth.” That statement is a false dichotomy.

Here is the thing about truth…it is always exclusive, dogmatic, and has not toleration for false truth.

Non-truth can never be truth.

C. Jesus is the perfect LIFE

Jesus was not only the way, and truth, but also the LIFE:

This answers the question of satisfaction.

This word “life” speaks about life in all its forms all the way down to the most basic microorganism.

Q — Life is the opposite of what? DEATH.

John 11:25 “25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:”

This word “life” captivated John. He uses it over 50 times.

Matthew 7:14 “14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

Here is a reality very few seem to realize…Each and every person can be satisfied with nothing less than a happy and vibrant life while on earth.

Solomon searched for this as you read Ecclesiastes.

His error was that he thought it was found “under the sun.”

This kind of life is not found under the “sun” but in/through the “Son.”

Solomon was haunted by the reality of death.

Conclusion