I Am the Way – John 14:1-14

The King James translation of John 14:2 is that Christ is preparing us a mansion in heaven, whereas most modern translations say a room, not a mansion.  Christkirk.com says, “The word rendered as mansions here is μονή (monay), and simply means dwelling places within a larger house. The English word mansion is only misleading to those who don’t know the history of the English word—it can refer to a spacious apartment in a much larger house, as in a king’s palace.”  But what is most astonishing about this promise of Jesus is not the size of our future home but that it is within the household of the living God.  He is offering us the hospitality of His own home.

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled.  Believe in God and believe in me.  In my Father’s house are many rooms.  Why else would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  And if I am going to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, so that where I am, you also might be.  And you know the way where I’m going.”

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going.  How can we know the way?”  Jesus told him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.  If you know me, you also know my Father.  Indeed, from now on you both know and have seen Him.”

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father and it will be enough for us.”  Jesus said, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still don’t know me?  Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.  How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?  Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?  The words I speak to you I don’t speak from myself, but the Father who remains in me does His works.  Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe through these works.”

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me, the works that I do, he will do, and even greater works than these he will do, because I go to the Father.  And whatever you ask in my name, this I will do for you, so that the Father might be glorified in the Son.  Whatever you ask of me in my name, I will do.”  (John 14:1-14)

Jesus is leaving.  Judas has gone to betray him.  His hour has come.  So he must prepare his disciples for what is to come in his “absence” (though he will never be truly absent).  Jesus has done many works among his disciples to show them the Father and the way to the Father and this work must continue through them.  So they (and we) need to know three things:

1) Jesus is preparing a place in his Father’s house for us so that he can return and bring us to himself.  As we serve him we have a promise of eternal hospitality in God’s house.  This gives us the confidence to deal with anything, even death, as Jesus is doing.  Heaven is for real.

2) Jesus is the focus of our message.  He is the way the truth and the life and the only way, therefore, to this relationship with God and heaven.  He is the perfect representation of the Father.  He says this as the one who is in the most intimate of relationships possible with the Father, as the Son.

3) Jesus will enable us to do works of ministry to proclaim the Father.  In fact, because his time here was limited to 3 or so years of ministry, we will do greater (more) works than him.  We cannot say “greater” in quality, because that hasn’t happened, but greater in quantity.  As we ask him to act for the sake of the gospel, to bring glory to God, he will visit us with power.

Discussion Questions

1. Did you have a reassurance of a safe and happy home to return to each day when you were growing up, and if so, how did that help you?
2. Have you felt any reassurance in life by knowing that heaven is your certain destination, and if so, how has it helped you?
3. What struggles, if any, have you had with the idea that Jesus is the only way to the Father?  Why about different religions?
4. Why is it not reasonable to believe that a created being could have the kind of intimacy that Jesus claims to have with the Father?
5. Has the church been doing greater (more) works than Jesus?
6. Do you have faith to believe that Jesus will grant your requests to do great works for the sake of the gospel and His Father’s glory?