For more than twenty years, I’ve had the honor of preaching and teaching God’s Word pretty much every week, going line by line through a few dozen books of the Bible. In my current sermon series through John’s gospel, one line from Jesus might be at or near the top of the list of the most significant things ever said in the history of the world.
For context, Jesus was just about to die for our sins on the cross, rise from death, and then return to heaven where He rules and reigns as God. A student of Jesus named Thomas asked Jesus in John 14:5, ‘“Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’”
Thomas’ question is one of the most important questions anyone can ever ask. When we die, how can we know where we are going forever? John 14:6 reports, “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life.’”
Jesus’ words are without precedent or peer. What He says about Himself is simply not said by anyone else. An old Christian teacher named Thomas a’Kempis says of this Scripture, “Without the way, there is no going; without the truth, there is no knowing; without the life, there is no living.” (1)
The culture says that there are many religious or spiritual paths to heaven. Jesus says that He is the only person who can get you to Heaven.
The culture says that there is no such thing as truth. Jesus says that He is the only Truth.
The culture says that there are lots of ways to live your life. Jesus says that life with Him is the only real life that never ends.
The culture says that it’s all about you, always about you, and only about you. Jesus says that it’s all about Him, always about Him, and only about Him.
Have you settled in your heart and mind the truth of what Jesus says?