Sermons from Lone
Rock Bible Church Really Good Questions (Part I) John’s Gospel alone includes
Jesus’ intimate prayer to His Father (John 17.) Prior to His deep conversation with
the Father about His disciples, Jesus spent some time talking to His disciples about the
Father, suggesting six “Really Good Questions.” 1. Who am I? (John 13) I have been doing some advance work
and study in the 17th chapter of John’s Gospel. This is an entire chapter
devoted to a deep, intimate prayer between Jesus and His Father. It is an amazing prayer
where the Son of God within, shall we say, minutes prior to His betrayal and arrest, is
talking to God. He is sharing His heart. He is saying things that really matter and the
disciples are listening. The prayer certainly is between Jesus and God but in large
measure it is for the benefit of those disciples, who are listening. Jesus didn’t just sit down and
say, “I think now I’ll pray my John 17 high-priestly prayer so everybody be
quiet.” He didn’t do that. Prior to that, beginning in John 13 through 16 He
wraps up 3 to 4 years of time with these disciples by telling them things that matter. He
is preparing them for the prayer. I have entitled John 17 very simply,
“What Jesus Wants.” Jesus goes to the Father in John 17 and tells Him what He
wants. What amazes me about that prayer is the depth to which Jesus goes by saying, “Father,
I want these people.” He expresses the depth of His love and compassion and
attachment for that band of followers of His; who to this point have not given a whole lot
of evidence of being worth it. He wants them,
how He is attached to them, devoted to them and committed to them. For our part, however, we are not
going to go to John 17 today. We need to be prepped first. We need to be ready for the
prayer, just as these guys were. He talked to them about God in chapters 13, 14, 15, and
16. In chapter 17 He talks to God about them. We are going to ask six questions, the
answers to which are found in the verses we are going to explore. The Bible says faith
comes by hearing the Word of God. There is a mechanism built into it that somehow has a
spiritual connection. Jesus taught them in these four chapters, 13 through 16. Were they
listening? When I read those chapters and
look at the highlights in them, the themes that surface,
I see how amazingly like the themes of chapter 17 they are, so I ask myself,
“Am I listening? Are my ears on? Do I have, in Jesus’ words, ears to hear? Were
they ready for what was coming? Were they listening? Are we?” 1. Who am I? (John 13) John is what we might call a lopsided
gospel because the last week of Jesus’ life takes up almost half the book. It begins
in chapter 12. We are going to begin in chapter 13 and ask and address the very first
question that suggests itself. We are asking the question. I am asking the question. This
is a first person thing, “Who am I?” Jesus wants these guys to understand
something about Himself, yes, but also about themselves. “Do you understand who you
are? Do I understand who I am?” Who am I? The 13th chapter
will address that. My answer, according to these verses -- I am someone in serious, dire,
critical spiritual need. I need Him at a level I cannot even truly grasp. If you ask that
question of most folks in the flesh, “Who am I?” I’m someone, who can handle it. I’m
someone, who can figure it out. I’m someone, who deserves it. And I’ll be
alright on my own.” We are natural humanists. Who am I? I am someone in serious,
dire, critical, spiritual need. First of all, I am resistant to servant hood. John
13 Jesus, in this unprecedented moment,
knows exactly what is coming. He knows what the devil is doing with Judas. He knows what
happens when he heads to the garden. He knows where it is going. What does He do? He
assumes the role of a servant. He has been their rabbi, their teacher, their leader, their
guide, their authority, and now He is their servant. They are a bit resistant. It is
interesting if we compare Gospels. In Luke 22 and Mark 10 the disciples had been having a
conversation about which of them was the greatest. It was in this context, that
James and John and their mother came to Jesus and said we really want to be prominent in
your kingdom. We really think we deserve these positions of authority and power. Jesus, in
response to that, girds Himself with a towel and washes their feet. This is an object
lesson of servant hood, which will help them understand that the difference between them
and Him is vast. He is, according to Isaiah 53, the suffering servant Messiah. He
demonstrates it for them here. Who am I? First of all, I am resistant
to servant hood. Secondly, I need to be cleansed. 6So He came to Simon Peter. He said to Him, "Lord, do You
wash my feet?" He
is adamant about that, agitated and saying no, Jesus, you are my Lord, you don’t wash
my feet because you are the master. I am the servant.” Jesus
answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me." Jesus takes the initiative to do the
cleansing. “You need to be cleansed,” He is telling them. Then He goes on to
say, if you are right with Me from a spiritual standpoint you are washed. You need a
little touchup every now and then, but you are fine. The point of the object lesson,
though, is who does the cleansing and who needs it. Jesus does it and we need it. There are a couple scripture passages
that underscore this. One is in I Corinthians. The church in Corinth, by the way, was
something of a wreck. Paul, who did not pull any punches, is chewing out these people who
are patently immoral and claiming that God is OK with it. It is one thing to be immoral
and another to say God thinks it is fine. They were wrong on two counts. I
Corinthians 6 You had problems and somebody fixed
you. You didn’t do it. Someone else did. Titus
3:3-6 Who am I? I need to be cleansed. I
cannot do it. Only He can do it. The disciples have heard this before. He is telling them
again. You don’t have it in yourselves to fix the problem. It has to be taken care of
by the One who can -- and that is God. I also tend, therefore, to
overestimate my own spiritual ability. “I am actually not too bad a guy.” Judas
didn’t realize how spiritually vulnerable he really is. He has tagged along with
Jesus. He has been given responsibility. He has been a part of the going out two-by-two,
the casting out the devils, and so forth. He has seen the power, been a part of it. But in
verse 2, the devil has put something in his heart. Further down, in verse 27, the devil
enters him and Jesus dismisses him to go off and begin the betrayal process. He is
spiritually vulnerable. Peter thought he was
OK. Peter is an interesting study. Jesus tells them what is going to come. He is going to
be betrayed and they all say, “Who would do such a thing?” They look around
among their own number. Peter says to John, “See what you can find out. Who is going
to be the bad guy?” We all are the bad guy. 36Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, where are You going?"
Jesus answered, "Where I go, you cannot follow Me now; but you will follow
later." Let’s pause a moment and remind
ourselves who Peter is. Peter walked on water. Peter’s mother-in-law was healed.
Peter was on the Mount of Transfiguration. Front row seat to the glory of God. Peter is
first among equals, primus inter pares, according to the theologians. Peter is the
man. 37Peter said to Him, "Lord, why can I not follow You right
now? I will lay down my life for You." I ask myself, what is worse -- Judas
Iscariot betraying Him or apostle Peter denying Him? I would imagine from the
consequential standpoint we may have some differences, but aren’t we dealing with a
human heart that overestimates itself spiritually in either case? Later, Judas is full of
remorse, takes his own life. Later, Peter bawls in the garden when, with a curse, he
denies knowing Jesus. He calls curses on himself and he swears an oath that he doesn’t
know Him. So who has the problem here? Later on
in John’s gospel, they show up to arrest Jesus, “all the disciples left him and
fled.” Who has the problem? Who overestimates their spiritual ability? I can remember
when I had been a Christian a little over two years. I had the Christian thing down. I was
involved with a group of exuberant young, single, college-age people. We were on fire for
Jesus. We decided one summer that since we had all these Bible studies, we just knew so
much, and things were going so well that we should have a bonfire at the beach. We’ll
go down there, make a big fire, and we’ll have guitars and sing, and when people ask
us, “What are you doing?” we’ll share Jesus with them. So we go down to the beach, pile up
wood, make a fire, drag out the guitars and sing “For Those Tears I Died.” We’re
doing all this “very spiritual stuff.” All was on a roll until a guy, who I had
gone to high school with, walked up and I couldn’t say a word. I had generated all my
own spiritual momentum. This was my idea, my doing, my strength, my
show, probably for me. Overestimate spiritual ability -- it’s not that
hard to do. I also continually need to be taught
or reminded of the basics of the faith. 34"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another,
even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. They had just been discussing which one of them is the greatest. He washes their feet and says put the other guy first. Please don’t think this is the first time they have heard it. It’s certainly not the first time we have heard it. They had been with Jesus now for 3 to 4 years. They had heard it before around lots of campfires, in lots of Bible studies, lots of debates and lots of discussions. He is telling them again. Do we need to hear this again -- the
basics of the faith? What is it to be a Christian? Read your Bible, pray every day, give
your heart to Jesus, a lot of things. But Jesus says if you want to look like Me, if you
want to reflect My glory, if you want to draw people to the Father -- love one another. I suspect that learning that and doing
that will probably take a lifetime. So we, like they, continually need to be taught the
basics. Finally, Who Am I? -- I am the object
of Jesus’ deep, unfailing love. With all that was said, my bloated sense of
spirituality, my need to be cleansed, my resistance to servant hood, my forgetfulness of
the basics -- in spite of all that, I am the object of His deep, unfailing love. I remind you of verse 1. 1Now before the Feast of
the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would
depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He
loved them to the end. Jesus knows everything about the
situation. This is the pivot point of human history in a spiritual sense. He is going to
the cross to make the payment and He knows it. He is ready to go back to the Father. He is
getting ready to go home, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them right
down to the end. Some translations indicate “He loved them with an eternal love.”
This is the paradox of the Christian faith -- undeserved, unmerited, may I say
ill-merited, love from God in spite of all. Absolutely amazing! He loves them to the end. He does not
walk them through this string of experiences and say “You forgot the basics. You’re
out.” Or, “You have an inflated view of your spirituality. I’m done with
you.” You can’t make a stronger
human statement than the one Peter made when he denied Jesus. When Peter meets Jesus on
the shore of the Sea of Galilee and Jesus didn’t come at him with “OK, Peter, if
you will just memorize these verses, and jump through these hoops, and share the gospel
with five different people, then I’ll take you back.” He just loves him to the
end. That needs to sink in to you and me. Question 1 - who am I? Someone in
serious, dire, critical spiritual need who is loved by Jesus. 2.
Where is my home? (John 14:1-6) 1"Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe
also in Me. My home is somewhere I have never
been. In the 14th chapter, Jesus talks about His Father’s house where
there are many dwelling places. That is where He is going. That is where He is going to
come fetch them to live. Verse 4: 4"And
you know the way where I am going." I love Thomas. He says things that I
am thinking. His candor is very refreshing and I have a hunch he speaks for these other
guys. If there is ever anything that they are afraid to ask they probably say, “Let
Thomas.” 5 Thomas
said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?"
We’ve never been to heaven
before. We can’t identify with heaven. We can’t relate to the place. We’ve
never been there; how can we possibly know the way? It’s a big question because home
is a big deal. If you don’t think so, think of it on a large scale. A few weeks ago,
when the few Israeli settlers, who were in the city of Gaza, were removed from their
homes, they went kicking and screaming, why? It was their home. Perhaps if we were dragged
from our homes, we would kick and scream too because home tends to be a precious place. In
New Orleans there are many people, who are refusing to leave their home. Why? Because it
is home and it represents perhaps for many the only security they can get a handle on. On a local scale, there are probably
half a dozen families, in this fellowship, dealing with a new home, either finding one or
building one. A lot goes into it, a lot of anticipation, a lot of planning, a lot of
dreaming. We anticipate it and we live in it. We build memories there. Our children grow
there. We sometimes put marks on the walls to document their height. Joy and laughter
happen there. It smells good there. We are comfortable there. We build security there. We
have memories there. It’s a huge issue. Jesus is saying “My home is in heaven. I’m
not from here. I’m going home. And once I get there, I’m going to begin a
building project and I am bringing you with me.” Where is my home? It’s somewhere
I’ve never been. It’s a place in heaven. It’s where Jesus is. We tend to
think our home, whether it is a physical structure on a piece of ground or whether it’s
a culture to which we are accustomed, we tend to lock in here. That’s why Thomas’
question reflects our own. How can we possible imagine a heavenly home? Jesus as much as says you are going to
need to trust me with this. I am going to prepare a place for you, and then I am coming
back. His leaving is literal and physical. His return is literal and physical. There is no
doubt in my mind, that what He does in the interim is going to be literal and physical. He
is going to prepare a place for us. It took God six days to create all of the splendor we
see. It was evening and it was morning. Evening and morning constitute a day. He has been working on our home for
2,000 years. I bet it is going to be nice. It’s going to be unspeakably, unimaginably
and undeservedly wonderful for us and that’s where it is all going. He is trying to
get His disciples to think, to plan, to prioritize in terms of eternity. This is
temporary. This is preparation. That is real. That is forever. He has
worked on them in that regard for years now, trying to get them to understand that there
is an eternity out there that means considerably more than anything we can lock into here.
He is building custom homes in accordance with His floor plan. He says in my Father’s house are
many mansions. The model here is a huge mansion with lots of apartments. It is going to be
owned by One; that is God, and we all get to live there. It will be like a condo, so
someone else can do the lawn work. And He
says I’m coming back and I’m going to take you to be with me so that where I am
there you may be also. Do you see how badly Jesus wants His people with Him? He is
committed. His love is unfailing. He loves us to the end. When we get to His prayer in
John 17 we will see how profoundly in love with His people He is and how He will have us
with Him. He will have places prepared for us. We are going. He wants us to be with Him.
Amazing. Where is my home? Somewhere I have
never been, but Jesus is there and He will take me there. 3. Who is He? (John 14:7-15) He comes back with His disciples to
discuss a little bit about who He really is. There were many itinerant rabbis in first
century Palestine and they would have a following of people. These particular individuals
were convinced that they were right and that they were unique. But they did not yet make
the heaven connection with Him. He is working on it. Who is He? As Josh McDowell’s
book says, He is certainly more than a carpenter. He is the Messiah, the anointed
deliverer, the Son of God and He is One with the Father in Heaven. This is where it gets a little bit
difficult for me because He, Jesus, is going to identify Himself with a Father in Heaven,
who we have never seen, nor can we. God, the Father and His Son, Jesus, have been
misunderstood by people for centuries. For 2,000 years, people have tried to figure out
God and who He is, maybe what He looks like, and His Son, Jesus and their true identity,
perhaps how they relate to one another. It’s interesting how that works. In the Old
Testament, God is held forth in contrast to idols. Idols can be seen and felt and thrown.
God is saying, “I’m not like that. I cannot be seen.” There is no such
thing as visually appropriating God in His essence. According to the prophet He dwells in
unspeakable light. He is Spirit. He cannot be seen. He makes His presence known in the Old
Testament through various ways but He always seems to keep a personal distance. He was in
the Garden with Adam and Eve. That was good, but after that we catch glimpses, if you
will, of God the Father. We catch Him in a vision perhaps, like the one Jacob had with the
ladder. Or we hear His voice. We don’t see Him. Perhaps there is a dream, a prophet,
a person, who can tell us what God is saying. Sometimes maybe we can see Him in the
elements when there is thunder and lightning as on Mount Sinai, but that’s not really
God. That’s just how He is making His presence known.
So there has always been, “I wonder what He looks like.” It got to
Moses after a while and he said, “God, I want to see your glory. I would like to see
your face. I want to first hand appreciate you.” God hides him in a rock and just
gives him a glimpse of the wake in His train because no one can see God. It’s not a
doable thing, despite people’s best efforts. Even Moses’ request was only
partially fulfilled. Who is He? People, down through the
years, have had their own answers to this sort of thing. In our day it sounds something
like, “My God is . . . “ Or “My God this” or “My God that.”
We get so easily confused here. Jesus wanted the disciples to understand something about
God. He wanted them to be able to get a handle on God, some sort of a tangible
appreciation of God so that they could have a link to heaven that they would really need
and understand. God, in the Old Testament, was very
consistent with His law and His compassion and His patience but the personal side -- what
does He look like? This remains a question.
So we come to Jesus. Jesus shows up. Let’s look at a couple Bible verses that will
help. In Colossians 1, speaking of Jesus and how wonderful He is, the apostle writes this: Colossians
1:15 He is the most critical being ever to
enter the created world. He is the image of the invisible God. That word “image”
is the same word that is used in speaking of minting a coin. That is not George Washington
on the coin, it is his image. If you take the coin and press it in soft clay and remove
the coin you will see the image there in the clay. This is the idea. There is nothing
about God that Jesus does not represent. Jesus brings us the image of the Father. In Hebrews 1:3 a little more detail is
provided by the apostle. Hebrews
1:3 A rough illustration would be those
fantasy shows about the invisible man. No one can see him until one of the Three Stooges
dumps paint on him. He cannot be seen in his essence, but his image is available, the
pure, exact, accurate image of the Father. Jesus is telling them you don’t need to
look any further than Me. God is Spirit and unapproachable light. Jesus makes Him known in
3-D without the glasses. Misunderstanding still prevails. If we
were to take a poll, just be brutally honest, and when
I suggest God the Father, what do you think? I’ll bet a lot of us conjure up a
similar “God the Father.” We have to fill that in with something, don’t we?
So a lot of folks think of a kindly, white haired, big beard, grandfatherly, benevolently
oriented being in the clouds. We have to think of something so we tend think maybe of
something out of those Lord of the Rings movies with the long white beard, very wise. And
there, somewhere, we can go very wrong. We think of a benign Santa perhaps,
and others may think perhaps more of a mean dictator. Whatever your image is, it’s
wrong because God in His purity and in His essence doesn’t lend Himself to images,
which is why He was always really down on idolatry. That’s why Jesus came. I’m going to share with you what
to me is a liberating truth. I no longer have to imagine this cosmic being and I believe
that’s what the Bible would have me do. I believe the Bible is saying if you want to
ponder the Father, which you cannot do, just remember Jesus. He took on flesh and blood so
that we would have an accurate representation of the Father and we could know Him. If we
imagine the Father, we are wrong. Sometimes we imagine Jesus -- a great moral teacher, a
prophet, a good man, a radical revolutionary. We are wrong. So frequently people are wrong
about that. Some say “Son of God” without even knowing what it means. People
will say, “I know who Jesus was, He was the Son of God,” without having a clue
what the implications of that are. He is God’s incarnate Messiah. He is the exact
representation of the Father in flesh and blood. He went to a cross and paid your and my
spiritual and moral debt. That’s who Jesus is. He did it in history. He did it in
fact. He did it physically. He did it in His blood. We must be right on that score. Here
is our God. He is Jesus, the Messiah. Not who He is to you or to me. That doesn’t
matter. It doesn’t matter what I think about Jesus. It doesn’t matter if I think
there is a train coming down the track either. If it hits me, it’s coming down the
tracks whether I think it is or not. The bottom line is what is true. What’s true is
Jesus is God in the flesh and He paid for our sins. He says if you want to go to Heaven
with Me, you will put all your trust only in Me. Nothing more. Nothing less. That’s
what is true. We can opt whether we care to embrace what is true. That’s up to us,
but we will deal with truth where it stands. 5 Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are
going, how do we know the way?" I wonder about His tone of voice there. “I am the way. I am the truth and the life.” You want to go to Heaven? You must put all your trust in Me alone. Easy? Perhaps not. Simple? Refreshingly so. "Scripture
taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Jim Carlson 2005, Lone Rock Bible Church, Stevensville Montana, USA |