Trust Is Key

John 14:1–7 CSB

1 “Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if not, I would have told you. I am going away to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself, so that where I am you may be also. 4 You know the way to where I am going.” 5 “Lord,” Thomas said, “we don’t know where you’re going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you know me, you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Pray

What is Jesus trying to relate to His disciples here? Why would Jesus starting this way? It seems odd right? Well, let’s remember that all these numbers that denote chapters and verses were added later to break up the text and make it earlier to find a certain passage you were looking for. So they were not in the original text when it was written. It’s good to remember this when reading because we normally think that a new chapter means a new subject. That is not always the case. Often it is a continuation of what happened just before it. This is the case with . It’s a continuation of what was happening in chapter 13 and goes through chapter 17. Jesus and the disciples are in the upper room celebrating Passover. And this is all happening hours before Jesus is arrested, which leads to His crucifixion.

Why would Jesus start this way. It seems odd right? Well, let’s remember that all these numbers that denote chapters and verses were added later to break up the text and make it earlier to find a certain passage you were looking for. So they were not in the original text when it was written. It’s good to remember this when reading because we normally think that a new chapter means a new subject. That is not always the case. Often it is a continuation of what happened just before it. This is the case with . It’s a continuation of what was happening in chapter 13 and goes through chapter 17. Jesus and the disciples are in the upper room celebrating Passover. And this is all happening hours before Jesus is arrested, which leads to His crucifixion.

The reason He starts with encouraging them and reminding them to believe is because of what just happened. Jesus just told them that Judas would betray Him and Peter would deny Him. This rocked their world. For the last 3 year there 13 man, Jesus and the 12 disciples, have pretty much gone everywhere and done everything together. And then Jesus said, 2 of our guys are gonna dis us. They are going to betray this brotherhood that we have worked so hard for and turn their back on their leader. Then Jesus says in v33 that where He is going the disciples can’t follow. Church, they felt like their world was crumbling right in front of them and their leaders was going to leave them. And they felt their family as they knew it, these 13 men, we being threatened.

So now, in chapter 14,

Jesus Refocuses Them

V1.

Jesus is saying, I know you all believe in God. you need to have that same belief in me. He is reminding them that He is God’s son, sent by God and in essence God Himself.

Jesus is trying to settle them down. He knows he just totally freaked them out, but He has more to tell them, so He is reminding them of the basics, believe in God and believe in Me. Some translations say trust instead of believe. In this instance, both words apply very well.

But, check this out. There is a reason why all this is happening, why Judas will betray Jesus, why Peter will deny Jesus, why Jesus has to leave. But see, the disciples don’t understand this yet…and they have shown to be a little rash, to freak out, and take matter in their own hands. Jesus is say, chill! I’ve got this. Trust me, believe in me.

Application:

Church, how often to we freak out because things aren't going our way? We go into fix it mode and decide that we know just what to do to overcome these obstacles. (Tell story of howI go into fix it mode with my wife).

Maybe you can figure things out for a little while, but eventually the fact that you aren’t following God’s plan will catch up to you. And I don’t want to be in your shoes when it does because God might have to yell and remove things from your life to get your attention.

But instead of taking things into our own hand, sometimes, we are supposed to set in the chaos because that’s were God wants us…He is teaching us something. What? We have no idea until we get through it, but if we try to fix it without seek Him and waiting on Him, we will miss the lesson.

What season of change, chaos, or turmoil are you going through right now? Are you seeking God’s will and trusting Him…or are you trying to fix everything yourself. It is a very human thing to fix it. But perhaps God’s has a lesson in it and He wants you to wait on Him and trust Him. Pray and ask God to lead you in Him plan.

So now that Jesus refocuses the disciples and reminds them to believe and trust in Him, he does something further.

Are we truly trusting God and His plan, or are we taking matter into our own hands and doing what we think is best? If your doing the later, how’s that working out for you? Maybe you can figure things out for a little while, but eventually the fact that you aren’t following God’s plan will catch up to you. And I don’t want to be in your shoes when it does because God might have to yell and remove things from your life to get your attention.

So now that Jesus refocuses the disciples and reminds them to believe and trust in Him, he does something further.

Jesus Reassures Them

v2-4.

Here Jesus is saying, I know my going away sounds scary and confusing, but it is for your benefit. He says, where I am going, there is plenty for you all. The reason I’m going is to get everything ready for you and then I’ll come back and get you. This isn’t goodbye, it’s more “I’ll be back”… Sorry, I had to...

Here is a question though.... When Jesus says I will come again, what did He mean? Does He mean He resurrection? Does He mean the sending of the Holy Spirit? Does He mean His return in Revelations?

Something really interesting here is that Jesus language in ambiguous on purpose. But, most scholars agree that He is referring to Christ’s second coming, when he returns to take believers to Heaven forever. This is because of the phrase Father’s House indicates Heaven and the greek word for rooms, which mone´, means a place you remain, stay, or reside. These all convey longevity or a finality of where we will be. In other words, it’s not temporary.

And I love how Jesus says, “if it wasn’t this way, I would have told you guys.” This come right after Him telling them to trust Him. He’s saying, “Come guys, you can trust me.”

Then he says, “you know the way to where I am going.” In a way He is teasing them. They really don’t know how to physically get there…but that’s not what Jesus us meaning. He is saying, you already know me, and I’m all you need. Jesus unpacks this in verse 6, but first we have to address verse 5.

v5.

v5. I bet many of us look at Thomas and his words and say, man you’re dumb! You have Jesus right in front of you, spelling it out. It’s obvious and you can’t see past yourself.

Jesus Realigns Them

v5.

Good ol’ Thomas. Many have referred to him as doubting Thomas, but I think that’s really an unfair label. It should be more like, realistic Thomas. He is saying, without a specific destination, how will we know where to go and how to get there.

This is a stripped down version of this conversation:

Jesus: Guys, you know the way, so you don’t need to know where it leads.

Thomas: If we don’t know where we’re going, how can we know the way.

The funny thing is, Jesus just told them where He was going and that they know the way. The issue comes back to their lack of trust here.

But there is a little lack of trust here again............

Look at it this way: People are broken down into introverts and extroverts. Introverts, like my wife, often seem shy. But really they are internalizing their thoughts and whats going on around them. They normally don’t like to speak in public settings, so when they do there has to be a really good reason. Now extroverts, like me, just want to engage with people as much as possible. So we will give you a quick answer to help move the conversation.

I bet some people look at Thomas and his words and say, man you’re dumb! You have Jesus right in front of you, spelling it out. It’s obvious and you can’t see past yourself.

But, I bet if we admit it, there are more of us that say, I’m with you Thomas! Jesus’ words don’t seem very clear at all. In fact…they seem kind of cryptic.

I just spend some time breaking down what Jesus said. The disciples didn’t have this. It appears to be a quick conversation, and again…remember…they are distraught, confused, and upset over the news they just heard on chapter 13. And they probably aren’t thinking clearly.

So again, Jesus is trying to get them to believe and trust Him, but the disciples are wanting Him to spell everything out in detail so they are understand completely what’s happening and why.

Application:

Now, I want us, me included, to pretend like we are looking into a mirror and realize that we are a bunch of Thomas’. Come on…how many time do we say, I don’t know about this God… Can You really do this. I know what Your Word says, but that seems like a stretch…

God is always calling us to be better. If we let Him, the Holy Spirit will lead us in a direction of growth. We cannot stay were we are, we should always be moving closer to God. And church, this is scary. When we let these emotions get the best of us, we share our fears with those around us. The problem is, often this can come out as complaining, questioning the leadership or the church, and appearing opposed to the direction God is taking the church. Then this can turn into gossip when people start pointing fingers and casting blame about who is responsible for this change that is causing their fear. The reality is, the finger should be pointed back you and at God. If God wants me to move, that’s on His shoulders, and He’s ok with that. If I choose to not move but instead to complain about it, that’s on me, and I need to be ok with that. If I’m not ok with that, then I should stop getting in God’s way and get on board with what He wants.

Application:

So are you standing in God’s way? Are you hindering His movement or life and in our church? Or are you on board, trusting God and the leaders He has placed here?

So now that Jesus has refocussed the disciples and reassured them that He isn’t leaving them for good He answers Thomas’ question.

Jesus Reestablishes The Way

v6.

In the Old Testament the Law and the Old Covenant of sacrifices and offerings was established for the Israelites/Jews to follow. The Old Covenant was not for the forgiveness or permanent removal of sin, but a way of temporary covering sin. Jesus came so that we can be forgiven and have our sin washed away. Remember, in Jesus says, I did not come to abolish the Law but the fulfill. So in v6. Jesus is reestablishing the way to God and to salvation.

And He is answering Thomas’ questions of how can we know the way. Jesus spells is out for Him. Check out how Thomas à Kempis puts it:

Here is where Jesus hammers it home.

This is a quote from Thomas à Kempis:

Thomas à Kempis

The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel according to John 3. Jesus as the Way to the Father (14:5–14)

Follow thou me. I am the way and the truth and the life. Without the way there is no going; without the truth there is no knowing; without the life there is no living. I am the way which thou must follow; the truth which thou must believe; the life for which thou must hope. I am the inviolable way; the infallible truth, the never-ending life. I am the straightest way; the sovereign truth; life true, life blessed, life uncreated.

Jesus reestablishes that He, alone, provides the way, access, to God. He paid the ultimate penalty for our sins through His death on the crooss.

He, alone, is the truth because all other ways are false. There is no other way but through Him.

He, alone, is the life because only through Him are we given eternal life. Through Jesus we can live for eternity in Heaven.

Then Jesus explains how you can know the way in v7.

v7.

Jesus is pointing out again that He and the Father are one and equal. This is why no one comes to the Father except through Him, because if you know Jesus, you know the Father. If you know one of us, you know the other. If you know Me, the way to the Father, then you will also know the Father.

Jesus is pointing out again that He and the Father are one. So if you know one of us, you know the other. So if you know Me, the way to the Father, then you will also know the Father.

So there is a little bit of, yes you know me, but you still aren’t completely trusting me.

Application:

Do we truly believe Jesus is the only way to God, or do we think we can earn our salvation. Jesus makes it crystal clear that He is the only way. So this is a great verse to point other to when they are trying to earn their salvation by their actions or find it in something else.

If we want to know God and are truly seeking Him, we have to start with Jesus. Learning who Jesus is, He insights, His character, His heart, shows us who God it. They are one. Have you truly sought to know God through learning more about Jesus?

Now What?

We know that, just as the disciples, Jesus wants us to trust Him. We have the complete Word of God see we can see why He did the things He did. They were all for our benefit. He is still preparing a place for us and He wants to come back and take us there. But we have to believe that He is the way, the truth, and the light. We have to accept Him as our Savior and then model our lives after His.

So here’s the questions: have you done this? Have you believe in Jesus and accepted Him? We know that no one comes to the father accept through Him. So if you haven’t, what are you waiting for? You have a chance to make that change today, and I strongly encourage you not wait...

If you have already made this change, are you wholly trusting God and His plan. Are you seeking Him daily and asking Him to guide you heart, your thoughts. If not, this a s shift you need to make. Tell God today that you want to give Him control of your life because you know His plan is better than yours.

As we enter into this time of response, let God talk to you and lead you how to respond. This next songs encourages us to give all we have to know Jesus because He is our hope. I pray that today you find hope in Him and give all you have to know Him more.

Stand and pray.