Sermon on John 14, Bringing Others to Heaven With Us

There once was a very famous philanthropist whose gift at giving away money was unequaled in his day.  Not only did he give his money, he gave his heart.  He had a special knack for finding out about situations that would be helped by some financial support and would find a way to connect with those in need and show them monetary and personal concern.

Of course, people would come to him, as well, once they learned what he was about.  Some were sincerely in need and the philanthropist was eager to help them.  Others were trying to play him and get as much out of him as they could, but he had an uncanny way of discovering their true motives and exposing their deceit.  But even then he offered them a chance to acknowledge their wrongdoing and if they did he let them know that he was their friend and there were still legitimate ways he could be a resource for them in their lives.

As the years went by the philanthropist began to think about the fact that he would not always be here.  He didn’t have any family but he wanted his work to continue.  So he began reviewing the people he had helped and paying attention to what they had done with his help.  He noticed several who had taken his money and had paid it forward.  They, too, had become philanthropists with the resources they had.

So he decided to ask 12 of them to become a team with him and learn how he did what he did.  They became his apprentices and were with him every time he made a contribution to someone’s life and when he had to deny someone a contribution.  They learned the ropes very well and before too long he was letting them try it without him to see how they would do.  He was very proud of his team.

When it became obvious that his age and health conditions would not permit him to be much longer on this earth, he called his team together and made an announcement.  “Ladies and Gentlemen,” he said, “I am going the way of all the earth.  God has given me the chance to make a real difference while I was here.  Now I am going to depend on you to make that same difference.  Here is my plan.  All my money is in a trust that you will be able to write checks on for other people.  But I have also set aside an amount of money just for you that you can claim when you reach the age of retirement.  And for when times get tough, I have sealed in a letter for each of you some thoughts that might sustain you.  Thank you for all you have done and for all you are going to do.”

After his death there was great sadness.  But the team began carrying out their mission.  Before too long, however, it became apparent that some of them had shifted their focus.  Instead of focusing on how to find people who really needed their help, they were focusing on the day their retirement came in.  They wondered how much it was going to be.  They thought about how they were going to spend it.  Others were staying with the task, but they were finding the going hard.  They kept telling themselves that it wasn’t so hard that they needed to open the letter yet.  Fewer and fewer people were getting helped.

One day one of them was looking through their mentor’s library and saw a video sitting out on the shelf.  He stuck it in the player and was astonished at what he saw.  He called the others in and played it for them.  There was the philanthropist, talking to them, and reminding them of why he had recruited them in the first place.  He was talking about keeping the first thing the first thing.  He reminded them of the needs people had and that it was for this that he had lived and that it was for this reason that he had apprenticed them.  Yes, there was a consolation prize awaiting them at retirement for their faithful service, but it was about the faithful service.  He asked on the video, “Have any of you opened your letters yet?”  He challenged them to consider that waiting until they felt they had expended all their own energies was not the wisest course.  “Use the letter,” he said, “it will help you.”

This day changed their lives.

 

On the night he was betrayed Jesus said these words to his disciples:

John 14:1 “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.

We have a retirement compensation prepared for us by the Savior.  We’re going to the Father’s house when we die.  Everyone who belongs to Jesus’ family will be there.  But most important of all, Jesus and His Father will be there.  It’s not the Father’s hotel, where I’m sure there would be great room service by more than adequate staff.  It’s not the Father’s school, where I’m sure I would learn much that is valuable.  It’s not the Father’s gym, though I expect to get a full workout in heaven.  It’s not even the Father’s temple, though none the less a sacred space.

It’s the Father’s house, where every day I wake to the sounds of family, where daily I dine with the Father and with His Son and experience rich fellowship as part of the diet.  It is the place where I am always welcome, always at home, always rested.  It is a haven of safety and protection and a place where I know I will always be accepted.  He will delight in me every day and I in Him.  There will never be a more joyous place in all the universe.  I need that reassurance while Jesus is away and while I am facing life in a challenging world.

But that can’t be my sole focus.   I can’t simply live every day for heaven.  Jesus is comforting me with this focus for my life, but he has given me another focus for my life that I must not lose sight of.

John 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.

It’s all about completing the Father’s mission that he gave to Jesus.  Jesus went to the Father in order to inaugurate the kingdom and the New Covenant.  His doing this made us representatives of the coming kingdom and in His power we are called to do even greater things than He did.  Has anyone done greater miracles than Jesus?  No, but we have done more through the centuries, and we have done so as children of the kingdom.

And as long as we are about the mission, we can ask Jesus for whatever we need to complete the mission.  “Ask for anything in my name,” he says, “and I will do it.”

So how do we engage in such an overwhelming mission?  Without Jesus what is our resource?  And Jesus does not leave us wondering.

John 14:15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

Don’t think you can do this mission in your own power.  Ask the Holy Spirit’s help at every stage.  Jesus has come to us via the Holy Spirit of truth. He is Jesus’ replacement advocate.  Jesus was with his disciples, helping them to grow and learn and operate in power, and now, in his absence, the Spirit carries on this advocacy.

The way to make it in Jesus’ absence is to anticipate heaven, participate in the mission, and rely on  the Spirit.

Because for you to survive Jesus’ absence on earth you must count on him preparing heaven for you without giving up on the mission, count on the mission still being on without succumbing to believing you can do it yourself, and count on the help of the Holy Spirit to help you live like Jesus, so that everything you do is modeled after him.

Jesus is in heaven, but he’s preparing a place for us there, counting on us continuing the mission, and providing the Holy Spirit to us to help us complete the mission.

It’s as if Jesus said, “I’ll be right back to take you home, so stay on task in the Spirit’s power.”

All we need to know is that Heaven’s being readied, the mission’s a ‘Go’, the Spirit’s here to help.  So don’t fret, don’t quit, don’t do it by yourself.  If you’re longing for the Father’s house, good, but don’t forget the mission He’s called you to, and don’t forget to depend on the Holy Spirit to accomplish the job.

The journey to the Father’s house isn’t complete if we aren’t gathering new guests along the way with the help of the Advocate, the Holy Spirit.

So…

Your mission, if you decide to accept it: Serve Jesus, the only way to the Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit, showing the world the way to the Father’s house.