Intro:
Somehow I have surrendered the practical for the convenient. I have surrendered maps for my Garmin. Don’t get me wrong, I love my Garmin … when it works. But a new problem has been created for me. When my Garmin doesn’t work, I don’t work! I can be on a business trip (Memphis, Washington DC, Nashville) and get so lost if the Garmin doesn’t come to the rescue. I can get so lost I have no clue how to find my way.
Really, I have surrendered the big picture. A map allows me to see from a bird’s view. I look down from space and determine my course. The Garmin, not so much. The Garmin gives me my next steps. That’s good when those steps lead to my intended target! Not so good when I get lost. Sometimes that is in downtown scaryville!
Jesus’ disciples felt like that too. Jesus had become their Garmin! They felt safe when he was guiding them. However, having surrendered the practical (self-directed lives, careers, relationships, their synagogue, “safety”, etc.) they were set up to feel lost and scared. They needed to know the way.
Read: John 14:
1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And 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. 4You know the way to the place where I am going."
5Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"
6Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him."
8Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
9Jesus 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'? 10Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11Believe 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 miracles themselves. 12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. (NIV)
Think:
What does it mean that Jesus is THE way? We like less definite terms today. We can get away with saying Jesus is “a way” but not “the way”. Satan does not like the exclusivity of Jesus! The world does not either. He is the way to the Father. He is the way to heaven. He is the way to peace. He is the way to forgiveness. He is the way to never be lost.
Jesus said, “No one comes to the Father except through me.” Break that down in its parts:
• No one – that includes me, you, friends, spouses, kids, parents, etc. No one!
• Comes to the Father – Jehovah, the Creator God, revealed in the Scriptures
• Except through me – Not Joseph Smith, not Mohammad, not Buddha, not me, not you, not any group or church. Only through Jesus Christ can we come to God. He is the only Way to the Father.
Do:
When is the last time you made an exclusive claim to someone about Jesus? Have you had opportunity to declare your conviction that he is the only way to God? Check your heart in this matter to see that that cultural slide has not invaded your thinking.
There was a song in the 80s the chorus of which said: “I may not know what the future holds but I know Who holds the future. I may listen to a thousand tongues but I only hear one whisper.” Can you trust Who holds the future?
Have you ever felt lost? Have you ever been lost? How can knowing Jesus is the Way help? How does knowing that your Way is covered give you comfort? Death is a road you will walk alone. It is a source of great fear for many. How will I die and when? Will I be alone or surrounded by loved ones? Will there be light or darkness? Will I be in pain? Is there immediate judgment? What will that be like? I do not have all those answers BUT I know Who does! And you do not need to worry about the details just worry about him! HE is the way.
DevoLink: Devotions to help you Link with God.
