Jesus Has Prepared the Way to God

Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR Fifth Sunday of Easter + May 10, 2020 Text: John 14:1-14 JESUS HAS PREPARED THE WAY FOR US TO GOD. We often make the mistake of trying to compare God and His Kingdom to what we’ve experienced. We come to a wonderful and beautiful place, and say it’s heaven on earth. When a loved one dies, we imagine that they’re up in heaven fishing. Our pictures of the ideal, what paradise is are crippled by our understanding of creation under the curse of sin. In a similar way, we think the way into God’s favor is what would please us. Like a teenage boy trying to get the attention of his sweetheart by impressive show, people think God will notice what sacrifices we make for Him. When we think of God, depending on our personality we may imagine that He is pleased with structure and order, or that He is like a will-o’-the-wisp who can never be pinned down. Either way, we tend to make calls about what God is like by looking inside ourselves. But what does Jesus say here in the Gospel? “And you know the way to where I am going…I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” The way to God is not the product of our own imagination. It isn’t a matter of free human choice, like whether you decided to get dressed this morning or spend the whole day in pajamas. It isn’t about intelligence, as if only people smart enough to explain the Trinity could rightly be called Christian. The way to God isn’t in having a transcendent experience, having the feeling that you’ve met him on the mountaintop or seen a vision of him in a dream. The way to God is of God’s choosing, and it is God’s working. Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” And like St. John wrote at the beginning of his Gospel, “No one has ever seen God; the only-begotten God, who is at the Father’s side, He has made Him known.” (John 1:18) Every soul who desires to actually know God must know Him through His Son. God does seek us out, yet He will forever do it through His Son. Even though the whole world and our fallible hearts are filled with ignorance, doubt, or outright lies, He is the truth. Our lives are already filled with questions that don’t have answers—What will a food shortage be like? Can I trust this person in my life or this leader with power? Will my family stay faithful to Christ? But in Jesus, we have the firm foundation we desperately need—the truth of God. He is the Rock upon which our life is built which will withstand the wind and rain [Matt. 7:24-27]. Upon that Rock, we have life from Him. It’s not life on our own terms, life as we would dream it would be, but life as God, the Giver of Life gifts it to us. As we come to Him in His Son, God takes us like stones to build the spiritual house of the Church. In the Epistle lesson (1 Pet. 2:2-10), Peter calls us “living stones” because we are arranged by the master Builder according to His plan and purpose. Yet, we are living stones because we are made in the image of God and either glorify or profane Him by our conduct. God brings about His desire for us when He gives us the Holy Spirit, so we cling to His Word above all else, and want to please our Father in heaven with all that we do. Christ is the cornerstone of this Church, and when we are found to be out of square by what we’ve done, we come back to Him in repentance and believe that He will not throw us on the scrap heap, but instead will be glorified in being gracious to us. In the building project which is the Church, He does incredible things with us, and far better than we could estimate. Peter goes on to say, “You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” We are more than living stones, but also a priesthood of believers who offer Him sacrifices that are acceptable to Him. Yet, those sacrifices we are given to offer are not necessarily those that we think would be best and most fitting. Consider the story of Stephen, the Church’s first martyr (Acts 6-7). He was ordained to administer the church’s ministry to poor Greek and Jewish widows. It turned out that God had different plans for him. He filled Stephen with power to show great wonders and signs, which drew the attention of many—some we might say was unwanted. But the sacrifices Stephen ended up offering were an eloquent testimony confessing Jesus as the Christ before the council, followed by the offering of his life as a testimony of Christ. As a model of Christ, Stephen prayed for forgiveness for his tormenters, gazed into heaven as confirmation of Christ’s ascension, and breathed his last to the jeer of the crowds. Our Lord says, “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.” Here again, we must not judge the greatness of the works with human judgment. Of course, Stephen’s testimony and martyrdom was the greatest offering he could make, and he is remembered throughout the Church. But the same holds true for each Christian, as God builds His Church out of living stones. Great works include—but aren’t limited to—holding fast to our hope in the face of worldwide pandemic and impending depression. It is desiring the freedom to worship together with more earnestness than an impatient crowd of Walmart shoppers. It’s seeing the vital importance of being fed by God’s Word by still making time for Sabbath rest even when routines are thrown off. That’s only scratching the surface of the works which God displays in us. What they have in common is that they are done in faithfulness to God and according to His Word. No matter if they are always fun, or make us look good to other people, or even if we can explain the rationality to others of why we do them. As living stones and priests, God will guide us in those things to which He has need. So, as His own, we not only have confidence in the way to the Father, who is Christ, but we also have confidence that in Him, He is directing our earthly way. Along the way now, He is guiding each of us in His wisdom—giving us the great treasure of a place in His house, and those sacrifices which bring honor to Him. This is our calling as followers of the Way, and each day we devote ourselves to how our Father will lead us. To that end, there is a helpful prayer in the hymnal in the daily services: Almighty God, merciful Father, who created and completed all things, on this day when the work of our calling begins anew, we implore You to create its beginning, direct its continuance, and bless its end, that our doings may be preserved from sin, our life sanctified, and our work this day be well pleasing to You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.