The Promise of His Presence

John 14:3-7 "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. You know the way to the place where I am going." Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?" Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him."

Also, as a text, verse two: "I go to prepare a place for you."

INTRODUCTION

Jesus spoke these words to prepare His disciples for a radical change. He wanted them to understand that He wouldn't be with them in the same way that He had been for the previous three years.

It wasn't the first time that He had tried to tell them of His mission of salvation. In fact Jesus had said on many occasions that He had come from the Father and was going back to the Father. But did you know that there was a time when Jesus had used almost these same words, "I am going away," in a very different setting?

Here His purpose is clear; He loves these people so very much; and His clear intent is to cushion the shock and to strengthen the faith of people who already knew and loved Him. But this other time John records almost these same words, earlier on in Christ's ministry, in John 8, there is a different setting, a different mood entirely.

I. WHEN TWO WORLDS SEPARATE IN UNBELIEF

In John 8 Jesus had declared "I am the light of the world." (John 8:12) And later in that same setting, as the Pharisees objected and opposed Him, Jesus said these disturbing words:

"I am going away, and you will look for Me, and you will die in your sin. Where I go, you cannot come."

Why do you imagine Jesus would say something like that, and to whom?

It is significant that in both instances where Jesus mentioned going away the conversation came to center around heaven, and knowing God the Father.

In response to His declaration that He was the Light of the World, the Pharisees had asked Him derisively, "Where is your father?"

There could have been an intentional double meaning here, with the intention being a cutting reference to what we know as His virgin birth. But Jesus answered them that they knew neither Him or His Father.

"If you knew Me you would know my Father also," He said. These are the exact same words Jesus spoke in comfort and assurance to the disciples perhaps two years later in the Upper Room. "If you knew Me, you would know My Father as well!" This is some of what had preceded these strong words, "I am going away and you will seek me and you will die in your sin!"

Their response was, "Will He kill Himself? Is that why He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?" They were totally insensitive to the truth Jesus was speaking.

Jesus went on to say "We are on different paths, different patterns of thought, different world-schemes entirely. You are thinking only of this world, I am not of this world. If you do not believe that I AM what I claim to be, there is no hope that you will ever change and see the futility of the way you are now going.

It wasn't that Jesus took delight in damning these people. He merely stated the fact— this world ends. This world is dead ended. The values and goals and things of this world are not worth living and dying for.

And as a matter of fact even as Jesus spoke these words the scripture says that many there found the grace and faith to trust that He indeed is who He says He IS.

II. WHEN TWO WORLDS COME TOGETHER IN FAITH

It was different that night in the Upper Room the night before Jesus died on the Cross. Tomorrow the world would begin again. Tomorrow the powers of death and darkness would be defeated forever. Tomorrow all the sins of the world would be met with the Infinite Love of the Savior.

And the Savior was thinking of His own. He was concerned about their frailty. He wanted to assure them. "I am going away for a while, " He told them. "But I am coming back to get you— and you know where I am going, and you know the way there." He made it plain that He was going to the Father. Which brought about the questions and the assurance.

Thank the Lord for Thomas. You can criticize him if you want. I am thankful for a man who expressed his honest doubts. Notice that Jesus did not write him out of the kingdom.

III. TWO WORLDS MEET HERE TONIGHT

In the sacrament of Communion we sit at table with the Lord once again. He has gone to prepare us a place. But we know that He is HERE. And we know, too, that He is THERE, with the Father, making intercession for us. And, mystery appreciated, we also know that Jesus is COMING AGAIN to receive us to Himself, even as He told the disciples at the first Communion that He would. The assurance that He gave them is our assurance as well.

CONCLUSION

How we know Jesus is a mystery. None of us has ever seen Him, yet we do know Him. He is our Friend. And because we know Him, we know the Father, and we know the WAY to God and Life and heaven.

The sacrament is one way that Jesus assures us. By faith we are at the Table with Him this evening, and hear Him say:

Don't worry! I have gone away, but I'll be back to get you. And I won't ever leave you. And you will know the way to me, and you DO know the way.