John 14:1-14: The window into God.

“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.”5 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.”8 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.” NIV

Here are two complementary truths about Jesus: He brings God to people, and He brings people to God.

He brings God to people. He reveals ”the Father.” In the incarnation, He shows us what God is like, in terms we can understand. He is translating into our language; we can comprehend flesh and blood. What is God like? That’s a good question. The answer: He is just like Jesus.

He brings people to God. Somebody said that Christianity is both exclusive and inclusive. If Jesus is the only way to the only God there is, then all people must hear about Him, regardless of colour, creed or culture. But the same speaker also said, at a meeting in Leeds, held probably around thirty years ago, that he felt that in the church there is a ”loss of nerve” over this point. That may be even more the case now. The secular world does not like exclusive truth claims. But this is still the gospel message. Jesus is the only One who can bring people to God. He is the only ‘Bridge’ over the great gulf.

Apparently, if you were to get lost in Jerusalem in Jesus’ day, and you stopped someone and asked for directions, they wouldn’t say, ”Well take a right, then next left, then…etc etc.” They would be likely to reply, ”I am the way”, meaning ”Follow me. I’ll take you there.”

The Lord Jesus is still saying this to the world.

Let’s be brave enough to pass on His message.