JESUS THE WAY

John 14:1-14

Key Verse 6

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

Introduction

In our upcoming 2018 Spring Bible conference, we would like to study John 14:1-14 in our group Bible study with the theme, “Jesus the Way.” People may think that there are many ways to come to the Father in Heaven. But Jesus declares in this passage, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” May the Lord bless our retreat richly so that many young people may come and accept Jesus in person as the only Way to have the absolute Truth and eternal Life. May the Lord help each of us to renew our hope in Him so that we may be inspired to bring many to the place Jesus went and prepared in advance for us. Amen.

1. Read verses 1-4. Why were the disciples’ hearts troubled? (13:31-38) What did Jesus promise them? (1-4) Why is it important for us to know the way to the place where Jesus went?

1-1, Read verses 1-4.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

1-2, Why were the disciples’ hearts troubled? (13:31-38)

31 When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once. 33 “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. 34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” 36 Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”37 Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” 38 Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!

• For more than three years, Jesus had taken care of them as the Good Shepherd. Following Jesus, they were always secure.

• But now Jesus said that it was time for him to leave the world and go back to his Father. He would be arrested, tried, condemned, and crucified. Jesus would be taken away from them in the most horrible way, and they would be left feeling scared, abandoned and utterly alone.

• Like the disciples, we too are anxious about the future. We are living in the age of anxiety. We see increasing levels of terrorism and gun violence. Everyone is looking for a security blanket.

• There is no security at all in this world. If there is no security in this world, then how can we overcome anxiety?

1-3, What did Jesus promise them? (1-4)

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.

• This verse is full of comfort. It is also a command. When we are in danger of becoming overwhelmed with anxiety, it’s time to repent and put our trust in God and to believe in Jesus’ promise. We can’t necessarily control our fearful, anxious or restless feelings. But we can still reject them and decide to entrust our lives to our Sovereign Lord, God and Jesus.

• To overcome anxiety, we have to trust in God. We have to trust in Jesus. God is the Creator and Sovereign Ruler whose purpose is always good. God is love, and he expresses his love to people continually without fail.

• In God there is no reason to be anxious. Anxiety comes when we look at the situation and forget about God. Anxiety comes when we have no faith in God.

• God has been faithful generation to generation. When we trust in Him, we are set from anxiety, for he will be faithful continually.

My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

• People are also anxious because they don’t know where their true home is. People today are restless wanderers like Cain in Genesis.

• But the disciples of Jesus are not without a home. Jesus declares with absolute certainty that he will go to his Father’s house, prepare a place for us, and then come back to take us there.

• The expression, “My Father’s house” conveys warmth and security. Home is important. To Jesus, heaven is not a theological concept. It is a place of love, joy and eternal happiness.

• Jesus knew this well, because he came from Our Father’s house in heaven. When the hour of his suffering and crucifixion was imminent, his soul was filled with anguish.

• But by remembering the vivid image of his Father’s house in all its majesty and brilliance, he could gain courage and strength to face the cross with all its suffering and shame.

• Jesus wanted to give his disciples the same glorious vision. Jesus set an example as the Good Shepherd who leads his flock by going on before us. Seeing the Father’s house gives us joy and hope.

• When we are overwhelmed with anxiety, Jesus wants us to believe his promise that he is preparing places for us in his Father’s house. Jesus wants us to overcome our anxiety and experience real peace and security.

• “In my Father’s house are many rooms.” The King James Version says, “In my Father’s house are many mansions…” A mansion is a stately palace occupied by someone who is very important. God’s promise is that we will be co-heirs with Jesus Christ in Our Father’s house.

1-4, Why is it important for us to know the way to the place where Jesus went?

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going

• It’s important for us to know that we were simply not made to take root in this world or live here forever. Rather, we were created to live in our Father’s house.

• Revelations 21 describes this eternal house so vividly. There will be streets of pure gold as pure as glass, pearly gates, with city walls decorated with every type of precious stone. Most importantly, this is the dwelling place of God himself. We will dwell in the house of the Lord, dining at the table with our King.

• The entire focus of heaven is being reunited with Jesus. Heaven is heaven not because of the streets of gold, pearly gates, or even the presence of angels. Heaven is heaven because of Jesus. It is heaven because our bridegroom is there.

Revelation 21:9 reads,

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”

• Jesus is going to prepare a place for us. He will also come back to bring us there, so that we can be with him. Jesus is referring to his death and resurrection into heaven. He literally paves the way for us to enter into his heavenly home.

• In heaven, there will be no need for light because the glory of God gives it light with the Son as its lamp. Nothing impure will ever enter it. There will be no tears, because there will be no death and no sorrow. There will be no exams, no job problems, and no anxiety!

• We can’t believe the fact that our eternal and glorious God has chosen us to live in the rooms of his house eternally. But it is true indeed. Jesus went ahead of us to prepare a place for true believers.

• The disciples were searching for physical rest for the tired bodies, but Jesus tried to give them rest for their souls. This is why he gave them the hope of God in the Kingdom to come.

• Our earthly house gives us all kinds of problems. But God’s kingdom is eternal and unchanging. There are no problems in the house of God, only peace and joy.

• Jesus’ disciple Peter wanted to secure his position on earth as Jesus’ right hand man. He wanted to have glory before men. His hope was in this world. But when he met the Risen Jesus, he realized the temporary nature of this world. He had a new hope in the kingdom of God which will never spoil, perish or fade (1Pe 1:3,4)

• We can also follow Jesus’ example when teaching the Bible to our sheep. Sheep have many problems. If you try and take care of all their little problems, you will only exhaust yourself because they are endless!

• Rather than trying to fix each problem, be like our Lord Jesus. Solve their deeper problem by giving them the Hope of God. Plant the word of God into their hearts.

• Give them the ultimate hope in the kingdom of God so they too can have a room in heaven and find rest for their souls. Teach them to trust in God and in Jesus.

• This is another reason to go to our international Bible conference despite handsome cost to make it. May the Lord bless this meeting so that we may renew our hope of the Kingdom of God and live for God’s eternal glory!

2. Read verses 5-7. How did Thomas respond? (5) In what respect is Jesus the only way to God, to absolute truth, and to eternal life? (6) How can we know our Heavenly Father in person? (7)

2-1, Read verses 5-7.

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

2-2, How did Thomas respond? (5)

5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

• The words of Jesus brought him no comfort at all. Perhaps Thomas was worried about practical problems. All this talk about heaven and the Father’s house sounded good, but who was going to take care of him and solve his problems here and now?

2-3, In what respect is Jesus the only way to God, to absolute truth, and to eternal life? (6)

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

• Jesus’ answer was short but profound. Jesus said, “I am the way.” It means that Jesus first knows where he is going. He knows what he’s saying.

• Human beings simply cannot find the way on their own. They even don’t know the destination. Thomas even said that he had no idea where they were going.

• There is a saying: “Life is a journey, not a destination.” People are aware that they are traveling through time and space but they don’t know where they are headed; this causes great insecurity, discomfort, and anxiety.

• But Jesus knows exactly where we’re going. “No one comes to the Father except through me.” Life in Jesus is not a random walk. Life in Jesus is a pilgrimage back to the kingdom of God.

• When Adam and Eve sinned, they were banished from the Garden of Eden, and God placed cherubim with a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way back to the tree of life (Ge 3:24).

• We are incapable of returning to paradise on our own. But God provided a way. Jesus is the way. Jesus is the one who went ahead of us and, by his death and resurrection, opened the gate for all people to go back to paradise.

• “Jesus is the way” also means that Jesus shows us how to live in this dark and sinful world. We live in a postmodern generation that rejects all the ways of the past. There are no more rules.

• Each person is expected to make his own way. To young people, who face difficult life choices, the responsibility to make their own way is too overwhelming.

• No one uses the word “sin.” In public schools, children are no longer taught that sex outside of marriage is wrong. They are told, “Everyone should use their own best judgment. Be true to yourself.”

• Everyone is expected to invent his own religions and find his own way. Nowadays, the, “Me too,” movement has clearly exposed people’s shameful sexual sins as in daylight. As the book of Samuel says, when there is no Living Word of God, the people in their darkness and ignorance, do as they see fit! May the Lord help us to go back to His Way rather than our sinful ways by true repentance!

• “The Way,” indicates that there is another way other than Jesus. These days, young people are expected to invent their own rules and moral systems. That responsibility is too much to bear. It’s also unrealistic.

• Human beings are weak and sinful. Even if they know what they are supposed to do, they cannot do it on their own. We need someone stronger and wiser than us who can teach us values, showing us exactly how to live and then helping us to do it.

• Jesus did not say, “I will show you the way.” He said, “I am the way.” God did not give us a complicated set of rules to follow. He sent his son Jesus into this world to personally lead us and show us the way.

• “I am the way,” means that Jesus is not a philosophy, belief system or organization. He is the living Savior who rose from the dead, ascended into heaven and sends his Holy Spirit to all who believe in him.

• Following the way is to have a personal relationship with Jesus. We discover who the real Jesus is by studying the Bible and making decisions to personally follow Jesus. We make a decision to dedicate our lives to him regardless of what other people may do or say.

• Therefore, “Jesus is the way,” means that Jesus is the one who will guide us back to the Father’s house. This verse also declares that Jesus is the solution to every dilemma and human problem.

• The solution surely comes when we pray, seek to obey and please Jesus, and trust that he is with us.

“I am the truth”

• Jesus also said that he is the truth. What is truth? Truth is universal and unchanging. Truth applies equally to all people. Jesus’ words, “I am the truth,” declare that there exists an absolute truth.

• People today are relativistic. They say, “That may be true for you, but it’s not true for me.” “Right” and “wrong” are not in their vocabulary, rather they are replaced by “maybe” and “whatever.”

• But no matter how confused and relativistic the world becomes, there is truth. Real and absolute truth comes from God. Real truth is a universal and perfect standard that applies equally well to all situations. Where can you find such truth?

• Jesus said, “I am the truth.” Jesus is the truth because his words are true. Jesus is the truth because he never changes. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

• John 8:31,32 says, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

“I am the life.”

• Following Jesus is the path to eternal life. It is also the path to a meaningful life, full of joy, purpose, struggle, and discovery.

• The life of sin is empty, meaningless, and boring. The life of following Jesus is exciting. Jesus is the life because following him leads us to know God.

• John 5:24 reads, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”

• From an outsider’s view, a mission-oriented life may not seem like a glamorous one. Some may even think it’s a waste. But the reward of eternal life is in heaven. We do not live our lives merely for reward during our lifetimes here on earth. Our hope is not in this world, but the life which is to come. Jesus shows us the way and leads us to the Father.

2-4, How can we know our Heavenly Father in person? (7)

7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

• To sinful human beings, God is mysterious, infinite, and beyond our human understanding. But Jesus leads us to God, the author of life and the source of life. Jesus is the exact representation of God Himself!

Hebrews 1:3a reads,

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.

Colossians 1:15-19 reads,

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,

3. Read verses 8-14. How did Philip respond? (8) What did Jesus teach him about the relationship between the Father and the Son? (9-11) What promise does Jesus make to anyone who has faith in him? (12-14)

3-1, Read verses 8-14.

Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”

9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

3-2, How did Philip respond? (8)

8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”

• Verse 7 might spur Philip on to ask a question in verse 8. Philip was a genius mathematician. He was smart and knew how to calculate. In John 12, Greetian believers approached him, asking to see Jesus through Philip’s help.

• Because of his brilliant character, Philip needed hard evidence of the Father. Philip could not picture the Father’s house because it was not tangible. What Philip still needed was the faith required to see.

• He did not see the Father, who is Spirit. He could not see the spiritual kingdom. Philip was one who always demanded experience and didn’t want to just sit and listen to Bible lectures. He wanted to feel God and touch God.

• But the problem was, Philip had already been in the physical presence of God for three years and still he wasn’t convinced or satisfied. Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us”.

• Since Philip was a very intellectual person, his pride was also strong. He needed to curb his pride to listen to Jesus’ truthful teaching. But in great patience and love, Jesus served a person like Philip to the end! Praise Jesus!

• Even though Philip had been with Jesus so long, he didn’t know Jesus. Jesus told him plainly, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.”

• This is one of the clearest statements made by Jesus himself regarding his deity. Jesus is God. Due to our inability to see and accept the spiritual reality, God sent Jesus, born of a woman, in human flesh, to show us himself more clearly.

• Jesus is God who entered human history for a short time so that the spiritually blind and deaf might see him and believe. He did this that in and through him, we might find the way back to our Creator God.

• The Old Testament points to him. It points to his sacrificial life and death as the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world. The New Testament is the witness of those who saw him and heard his voice and lived with him. Do you still want to demand, “Show us the Father,” as Philip did?

3-3, What did Jesus teach him about the relationship between the Father and the Son? (9-11)

Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.

• Actually, Jesus showed his disciples that he is the Son of God through many miraculous signs. Next, he taught them through “his words” that he is the Son of God who came as the Lamb of God through his death on the cross and resurrection.

• Although Jesus had clearly revealed God through “his words,” the disciples needed to make a decision of faith personally. They should have accepted Jesus as God by faith believing the words of Jesus. But they did not.

• Usually, Jesus did not encourage faith based on miracles. Jesus wanted his disciples to believe “his word.” But Jesus felt that it was so urgent to plant faith in his disciples before his death that he even appealed them to believe his miracles.

3-4, What promise does Jesus make to anyone who has faith in him? (12-14)

12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

• Rather than rebuking Philip for his unbelief, our Good Shepherd Jesus encouraged him and the other disciples that they could do more than Jesus had done while on earth.

• Philip was smart and Jesus knew that he could do great things if he believed in God through Jesus. Jesus quietly encouraged him that he could do greater work than Jesus. Wow!

• Jesus went to the Father through his death, resurrection, and ascension. Jesus sits at the right hand of God and grants the Holy Spirit to his people.

• Through the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus changes his disciples and enables them to do greater things than Jesus.

• Jesus does not want us to be mediocre Christians. Jesus wants us to do great works of God by faith.

• As we listen to the song, “God of This City,” by Kris Allen, winner of American Idol, we are drawn to the three passages in John’s Gospel where Jesus mentioned “greater things.”

• The first is in 1:50 where a man named Nathaniel was willing to become a Christ-follower simply because of Jesus’ perception. Jesus appreciated Nathaniel’s sentiment but promised, “You shall see greater things than that.”

• The second time is in 5:20 where Jesus healed a lame man. Jesus was questioned by the religious leaders who thought Jesus was unorthodox for healing someone on the Sabbath. Almost tongue-in-cheek, Jesus said to them: “That’s nothing! I will show you “even greater things than these.”

• The third time Jesus told them this just a moment before his arrest. The disciples knew that something bad was about to happen and Jesus was trying to comfort them. Knowing the end was near, he challenged them to continue his work-not just his first-century followers, but also all followers throughout all time.

• So what is the work we are to continue? Not only does Jesus tell us to continue to do this Gospel work, but also to do it on a greater scale than even he was able. In another passage, Jesus also promises to enable us to accomplish this task with the help of his Holy Spirit.

• Philip could not do anything. He could not even believe in Jesus before his departure, because he was only thinking while doing nothing.

• So Jesus encouraged him to pray. We want to be a man and woman of faith rather than a person with just ability or intelligence alone. In this way, Jesus further explained how to do an even greater work of God.

“And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”

• There are so many brilliant, able, and physically strong people. There are many idea banks that think and analyze, but fail to pray. Because of this, they can’t do anything. If brilliant people pray, they can do greater works than Jesus–of course, not in quality but in quantity.

• Jesus urges us to pray. When we pray, Jesus does great things through us. Jesus uses our prayers to accomplish his will. This is not vague and general. Jesus wants us to pray specifically so that we may see the answer to prayer. Jesus wants us to know he is working through our prayer.

• At that time, Thomas and Philip did not have spiritual eyes. Their inner men were not changed. But after the cross and resurrection and coming of the Holy Spirit, their inner persons were changed.

• Their spiritual eyes were opened to see the spiritual world. They could see the Father when they looked at the Risen Jesus. They could walk with Jesus the way to the Kingdom of heaven.

• During his lifetime on earth, Jesus could not change the inner hearts of his disciples. But by going to the Father by the way of the cross, he could change them all. In the name of Jesus, they healed the crippled beggar, saying “Walk.” When Peter and John prayed together and delivered the Gospel message, five thousand people accepted Jesus as their Savior in Jerusalem. (Act 4:4)

• The Gospel has transforming power. This gospel still transforms people, when we believe it and pray. Jesus tells us to pray, to depend on him and not on ourselves. Belief is expressed in prayer. We pray when we do not believe in our own ability.

• When we believe in Jesus, we will pray. Then, Jesus will do whatever we ask in his name, so that the Son may bring all the glory to the Father.

• Some Christians want to be missionaries. But they do not preach the gospel here and now. We should ask for what Jesus wants, not for things to satisfy our own petty desires or dreams. Then God will be glorified through us.

Conclusion

Jesus is the way. Jesus is truth. And Jesus is life. These 3 facts, the way, the truth, and the life are found in Jesus. May God help us to overcome anxiety by seeing the Father’s house. May God help us to experience real direction, truth, and life by following Jesus Christ. Without faith in Jesus, we believe nothing. We are just like Philip and Jesus’ disciples. So we easily say, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” But Jesus promises that anyone who has faith in Jesus would do even greater things than Jesus. Through prayer, we can receive Jesus’ Holy Spirit and participate in the great work of God and see the glory of God. There is no easy way. No cross, no crown. No fishing, no sheep. No fishing, no 1:1. May God bless our glorious fishing and 1:1 Bible study. May the Lord bless our Spring conference so that we may be filled with the Holy Spirit to see Jesus’ power and authority on our mission life! Amen.

One word: Jesus The Way!