March 21, 2010
Morning Worship
Text: John 14:1-3
Subject: Jesus Teaches His Disciples
Title: No Fear
As we have gone through these weeks leading up to our Easter Celebration I have been reading a lot in the Bible about what took place during that time before Jesus’ trial and crucifixion. I have really been focusing on the things that Jesus told His disciples on His last night together with them. It never ceases to amaze me that Jesus, who knew exactly what was about to happen, took the time not to be comforted, but to comfort those that He would leave behind.
He told them about how their relationships with one another should be shaped. Each should be willing to be a servant of the other. Being a servant is not a sign of weakness or lack of leadership abilities. It’s just the opposite. A servant leader is one who leads by example. A servant leader is one who would never ask someone to do something that He himself isn’t willing to do.
He told them about how love should be the primary quality that shines forth from their lives. The love that He was talking about is the kind of love that we can have for others only through a restored relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
He told them about the Holy Spirit – the One whom He would send in His place. The Holy Spirit would be their comforter, their counselor, their leader – everything that Jesus had been for them and more. He will bring to remembrance all the things that Jesus had told them. He will convict the world of sin. He will draw people to Christ. He will lead them into all truth.
In Matthew’s gospel we read that He warned them of the things that would happen on the earth before the end of the age. There will be wars and rumors of wars. There will be earthquakes and disease and pestilences. Nation will rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom. Christians will be hated by the world. There will be famines… and these are just the beginning of the birth pains.
I don’t know about you, but if I had been one of the disciples and Jesus had been telling me these things, and knowing that He had said He wasn’t going to be around much longer, I might have been just a little worried.
But on that last night, sandwiched in between His teachings about servanthood and the Holy Spirit, Jesus shares a promise that has become the hope that the church has come to hold on to without fail.
John 14:1-3, I’m reading from the NKJV this morning, 1“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2In 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. 3And 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. The NIV says it this way, 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.
I want to show you this morning that there is no reason to fear if you place your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Lord, open my eyes to see and my ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.
I. TRUSTING IN THE PERSON . 1“Let not your heart be troubled; At this point in the conversation of the night the disciples must have become very distressed. Over and over Jesus had told His followers that He was in the Father and the Father was in Him. If you have seen Me you have seen the Father… that He only did what the Father did. Yes, I’m going away and you can’t come where I am going… yet! But don’t let your heart be troubled. The heart refers to the inner man. Some say it is the soul – the non - physical part of the natural man i.e. emotions, intellect, personality… I believe the heart refers to the spirit man. You should never be troubled in your spirit. Even though it may look like your world is going to come crashing down all around you, you never need to be alarmed. Psalm 34:19, A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all… Of course that’s talking about one who is righteous, not because of his works, but because he belongs to the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:21, God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. You know, I guess the disciples had as much to be troubled about as any other people in history. Jesus told them what the world would be like. He told them that they would be persecuted and martyred. He told them that they would be hated because the world hated Him. He told them that He was going away. They thought that everything they would have to face they would have to face alone. But then He says, Trust in God; trust also in me. Or NKJV, you believe in God, believe also in Me. The word that is translated as trust or believe means to be fully persuaded or to have great moral conviction. In other words, if we are thoroughly convinced that God is God, if we are fully persuaded, then we should trust Jesus also. Why? How can we be sure that Jesus is worthy of our trust? Because we have God’s word on it! Hebrews 1:1-3, 1In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. Did you get that? Jesus is the exact representation of the Father. So if you want to know what God’s desire is for you in this life, you don’t have to look any further than Jesus. What Jesus did then He is still doing today. What God’s wanted for His people then, He still wants today. He wants to save. He wants to deliver; He wants to heal; He wants to provide. If you have seen Jesus, you have seen the Father. Romans 4:16, Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. So don’t be troubled about the things that are happening around you. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever, and you can trust Him.
II. TRUSTING IN THE PROCESS 2In my Father’s house are many rooms… It’s very appropriate for Jesus to begin talking about His father’s house. After all, that is where He is about to go. In My Father’s house are many rooms, (dwelling places, mansions…). The song says, “It’s a big, big house, with lots and lots of room. A big, big table with lots and lots of food. A big, big yard where we can play football. It’s a big, big house… it’s my Father’s house. My God’s house is big enough for all who will come to it. And there is plenty of room for all. Over the years scientists have endeavored to calculate how many people have lived on the earth since the beginning. They come up with estimates ranging from 68 billion to 110 billion. For simplicity’s sake let’s use the figure 100 billion. Now, of all those people how many have or will make it to heaven? I’m going to be generous and say 25% or 25 billion. Keep that figure in mind. Now, let’s look at the New Jerusalem. It will be a city that descends from the heavens and will be approximately 1500 miles cubed. The area of one side will be 1500 miles x1500 miles, or 2,250,000 square miles. If you divided the height into sections say 20 feet high, that would be 264 levels per mile. It’s 1500 miles high times 264 = 396,000 levels. Now take that times the area of just one side and you come up with 891 billion square miles of living space. Now divide that by the number of the estimated people who will make it to heaven and that gives you over 36 square miles per person in heaven. You can call it what you want – a dwelling place, a room, an abode. In my Father’s house I’ll have a ranch. … if it were not so, I would have told you. In the four gospels there is a phrase that Jesus used, “I tell you the truth.” In the KJV it is, “verily, verily I say unto you…” In the NIV, “I tell you the truth.” In the four gospels it is recorded 78 times. In John 17:17 Jesus said, “17Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” Did you ever wonder why Jesus said that? It’s because as Christians we have one sure thing that never changes – the word of God – and it sets us apart from the world. We can trust the word because it tells us everything we need to know about this life and the next life. … I go to prepare a place for you… It is important for you to know that while you are waiting for the time that you will see Jesus face to face, He has been busy. He has been preparing a place for you. Not only is there plenty of room for you, but it will be the most beautiful and extravagant place that you could ever imagine; not because of who you are but because of who He is and His great love for you. The bible says the foundations will be made of precious stones. The city gates will be made of giant pearls. The streets will be gold and a river will be so clear that it looks like crystal. He has gone to prepare that place for you and He isn’t done yet. It is a process you can trust.
III. TRUSTING IN THE PROMISE. 3And 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. You know, if I didn’t know anything different I suppose that I would be satisfied in knowing that when I die that I could go and be in the presence of the Lord forever. That would be enough for me – except… He has told us in His word that there’s more. If He left, He is going to come back personally to make sure that we are taken with Him to heaven. Acts 1:10-11, 10They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” The truth is that whether we are dead or alive when He comes back we are going to go sailing up through the sky to be with Him. We’ll have a glorified body that will be eternal. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, 16For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. What a wonderful promise that has been given to us. And as if the promise itself isn’t enough, He also has given us the timing of the promise. God is going to send Jesus before the coming wrath of God that occurs during the tribulation period. 1 Thessalonians 1:10, …wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. Revelation 3:10, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. Jesus finished this line of reasoning with the next three verses in John 14. 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
I am the way and the truth and the life…
That takes us back to the very beginning of this sermon today – trusting in the person.
Jesus left the earth and has gone back to the Father. He is there preparing a place for you and for me. He’s coming back to gather the church for Himself.
The word "maranatha" is a Syriac expression that means: "our Lord comes." It was used as a greeting in the early church. When believers gathered or parted, they didn’t say "hello" or "goodbye" but "Maranatha!" If we had the same upward look today, it would revolutionize the church. O that God’s people had a deepening awareness of the imminent return of the Savior!
While on a South Pole expedition, British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton left a few men on Elephant Island, promising that he would return. Later, when he tried to go back, huge icebergs blocked the way. But suddenly, as if by a miracle, an avenue opened in the ice and Shackleton was able to get through. His men, ready and waiting, quickly scrambled aboard. No sooner had the ship cleared the island than the ice crashed together behind them. Contemplating their narrow escape, the explorer said to his men, "It was fortunate you were all packed and ready to go!" They replied, "We never gave up hope. Whenever the sea was clear of ice, we rolled up our sleeping bags and reminded each other, ’The boss may come today.’"
The hymn writer Horatius Bonar exhorted us "to be ready for the last moment by being ready at every moment...so attending to every duty that, let Him come when He may, He finds the house in perfect order, awaiting His return." The trump may sound anytime. How important for us as Christians to be "packed and ready to go!"
As you leave home today, don’t say goodbye -- say "Maranatha!"
Our Daily Bread.
The world we live in is troubled. The economic crisis has everyone wondering what is going to happen next. Economists believe that the upturn in Wall Street is temporary – that thing are going to get much worse than they have been.
You know how the headlines every day read like they have been taken from bible prophecy about the end times. Even those in the world see that and are in great fear of what might be.
Jesus cared enough for His disciples on the last night that He spent with them to comfort them with the words He spoke. As we see the day approaching quickly the sense of urgency arises in the church for all those who don’t know that Jesus is the way the truth and the life. How long will you wait before you comfort others with the words of Jesus?
1“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2In 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. 3And 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.
