At Home With Jesus

Let’s begin tonight by giving thanks to what the Lord has been doing in each of our lives. I know that it is God that is doing these things. We are dependent on the Lord and His stirring our hearts.

We can study, and train, and discuss what needs to be done and what should be done, but it will always be God (and God alone) that moves us.

Text: John 14:22 & 23 (NIV & NKJV)

Prayer:

In our text we find Jesus talking with His disciples about His relationship with His heavenly Father. We should keep in mind that even though the disciples were getting to know Jesus better with each day, they didn’t necessarily have a connection with the Father of Jesus.

That is, they were getting to know Jesus, but I wonder how well they knew God. Why is this important?

I believe that many times Christians will know what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and they may rightfully call themselves Christians. And yet some people may not sense a connection with God.

As an example, I have met many people who call themselves a Christian but do not know God. Admittedly, they don’t feel close to God.

They ask questions like,

“Where is God? How can I really know God?”

I believe Jesus knew that even though the disciples were close to Him, they did not know God.

The obvious is that this is one of the reasons why Jesus was sent from heaven. So that man would know God.

Let me show you what I mean.

Jesus referred to His Father in heaven almost 200 times in the gospels. Most of those times, He would speak in the third person. By that I mean Jesus would say things like, “My Father…your Father…the Father…”

I believe that Jesus is sensitive to our frailties and inadequacies. He knows what is best for us.

Jesus knows that many of us have trouble relating to God. Many people do not understand God.

It is also obvious to me that Jesus loved to talk about His Father. Jesus made sure the disciples knew how pleased He was about His Father.

Jesus talked about Father God quite often.

Jesus was very close to His disciples, and he knew the disciples felt distanced from having a relationship with Father God. Church, this is still a common problem with the followers of Jesus living in our day.

It seemed that Jesus spoke often about His Father. And the more He did, the more the disciples were intrigued. The disciples knew Jesus had a very unique relationship with His Father. As a result, they wanted to know more.

This is one of the reasons why it is so important for us to study the life of Jesus. It is so that we will first know Jesus, and secondly know OUR HEAVENLY FATHER.

Any man should consider himself fortunate to have a strong relationship with his father. This can make a big difference for any man, and especially for women.

Oftentimes, the relationship a man has with his father will determine whether or not that man is strong and disciplined in his own life.

A great father will mentor great sons and daughters.

A good man or woman will covet the godly counsel and wisdom their father has.

In our text, we can see the disciples standing around and listening to what Jesus had to say about His Father.

I suppose that Peter had a great relationship with his father. But as Peter would listen to Jesus, he began to realize how much Jesus truly loved His Father. Peter knew that Jesus had something much more with His Father than Peter did with his.

When the disciples listened to Jesus they:

· Wanted to know more about the God Jehovah, the Father of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

· Sensed the presence of Jehovah God with them.

They could see and touch and know the physical Jesus.

But they were just like you and me. The disciples could not see God with our eyes, or hear God with their ears.

Jesus desires for us to know His heavenly Father.

To know Jesus is to know His Father.

Jesus had (and still has) a meaningful relationship with His Father, and He wants to share that with all of us.

The question Judas asked in verse 22 is our question.

“…Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?"

Let me rephrase this question:

When I listen to Jesus speak, or when I read His words, I sense the presence of God. But how will the world ever know you, Lord?

This is a challenging question for all of us to consider.

Jesus revealed Himself to us, but how will the world ever see Jesus? I think I can see how the Lord will do this.