DAY THIRTEEN | John 14:1-6

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.”

Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

SPECIAL NOTE // As I prepared to write the reading to go with this passage, I couldn’t help but remember a story that I told in my book, Culture of the Few. The story is about going home with my friend Lee to his house in a private community. It is the best way I know how to describe following Jesus home to the Father. I decided to edit it a little and share it with you as a part of FOCUS. Whether you have read my book or not, I believe that this story fits our theme and will help us fix our eyes on Jesus.

Last year I was heartbroken to learn that Lee had passed away. He was a loyal friend to so many. Lee is second from the left in this old photo.

Come to Papa

A big part of the gospel is that Jesus came to restore us into a real relationship with the Father. This is more than theology; it is an invitation to know God as our Dad. When Jesus walked the earth referring to Himself as a son, He was tampering with the image of who Israel understood God to be. The terminology used in the New Testament to describe God as Father is most often “Abba”. This would not be translated today as “father” in a formal sense, but as “papa” or “daddy”.

Even though I am part of a church culture that places a high value on intimacy and practicing the presence of God, this “papa” approach can seem uncomfortable and too familiar to my understanding. But in the life of Jesus, the God of Isaiah 6—the One who is “high and lifted up”, and whose train “fills the temple”—chose to reveal Himself as Abba.

Make no mistake about it: He is still “Holy, Holy, Holy,” but through Jesus the “Son” we find that He is also “Daddy”.

Can you imagine how angry the Pharisees and the other religious leaders of the day must have been when Jesus showed up and proclaimed I and the Father are one? If it is still uncomfortable for many of us today, what must it have been like for those who heard the very words come from Jesus’ lips?

By proclaiming that He was the “Son of God”, Jesus redefined God as “Father” and insinuated that it was “Father God” that had sent Him to come. This is important; for it was as a son that Jesus became the Way, the Truth and the Life that we might come to…the Father.

When I was a child, my friend, Lee, from school lived on an exclusive island off the coast of North Carolina. I had heard about Figure Eight Island for as long as I could remember. It was where movie stars and politicians lived. Well, one day, Lee invited me to come spend the night.

When the day of the sleepover finally came, my parents picked us up from school and we headed off to his house. I was so excited to get to go spend the night. No longer would this special place be a figment of my imagination; I was going to stay there for the weekend! But as we drove up the road to the bridge that led to his house, I encountered a problem: a tall, locked gate stood between the island and me.

The guard inside the gatehouse had the job of making sure that only those who could prove that they belonged on the island could cross the bridge. Somehow, I thought we’d be in trouble.

Our vehicle didn’t have the special sticker that all of the other cars in line with us had. I felt nervous. Would we be allowed to cross the bridge and get onto the island? My dad rolled his window down as the guard asked if he could help us. Then my friend chirped up from the back seat.

Hey, it’s me, Lee. This is my friend, Brad, and he is staying the night with me.

Just like that, the guard smiled and raised the gate. We were instantly granted access to cross the bridge because we were with someone who belonged. The guard recognized Lee, and I was allowed onto the island because I was coming home with a son.

I must admit that for most of my life I thought that “Father”, “Son” and “Holy Spirit” were more the “job titles” of God than anything else. That being the Son was a job that someone had to do to take care of our sins. In John 14:6 I thought Jesus was saying, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no man comes to salvation except through me.” But that is not what Jesus said. He said you cannot come to My Father unless you come with me. We gain access to the Father because we come to Him with His only begotten Son. The One He loves perfectly became a man so that all of creation could be reconciled to His Dad.

The goal of the gospel itself goes beyond the salvation of our souls from sin and hell. The goal of the gospel is that through the life, death and resurrection of the Son, we who were once far away are brought close and restored to the Father. That we who were orphans find a place at the Father’s table.

Being ‘the son’ was more than a job title; it was the essence of who Jesus was. It is true that there were hundreds of prophecies about what Messiah would be like, but when Jesus showed up, He didn’t rely on His prophetic words to tell Him who He was. The prophetic words relied on His identity as God’s son.

Jesus came as a son so that He could grant access to us to become sons and daughters with Him. He became the firstborn son, so that He might be first among many brothers. He entered this world in humility as a human so that we might become more than mere servants of God like the angels are. The angels long to look into the salvation of the redeemed, blood bought sons and daughters of God. Simply stated, Jesus came to us so that we could come home to Father.

The incredible cost that Jesus paid at the cross to restore us from our sin into a relationship with God was worth it in heaven’s plans. We have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of the Son of His love. This is more than a theoretical, theological position. It is an invitation to embrace the eternal life of knowing the Father by following the Son.

As you follow Jesus, I pray that you would make room in your life to follow Him in being intentional about coming to the Father through the life of the Son. I also pray that you would be reminded today of just how much the Father loves you – enough to send His only begotten Son to lay down His life for you. This is so much more than religion, this is real Love.

JOURNALING QUESTIONS // LINK TO PLAYLIST

Examine – How would you describe what this passage reveals about the life of Jesus?

MindShift – Is there anything about what you read in this passage that challenges the way you think about what it means to follow Jesus?

Prayer Focus – Is there any prayer that you can pray to co-operate with Holy Spirit to see your mind renewed to become more like Jesus?