Let's open our Bibles this evening
to John chapter 14. I'm going to read the first 11 verses
tonight, but before I read these verses, I want to read a comment
that Matthew Poole made in his comments on these verses of scripture
that we are going to read. You remember a few weeks ago,
we looked at the verse 33 of chapter 13, where the Lord addressed
his disciples as little children. And I pointed this out, that
this is the only time that the Lord Jesus spoke to his disciples
calling them little children. Now with that in mind, Matthew
Poole, and I read, it is pleasant to consider how he continueth
his discourse to them in such a dialect as a mother would speak
to a little child, crying after seeing her preparing herself
to go abroad. The child cries, the mother bids
it be still. She is but going to such a friend's
house, It still cries. She tells it she is but going
to prepare a place for it there where it shall be much happier
than it is at home. It is not yet satisfied. She
tells it again that though she goes, she will come again and
then it shall go along with her and she will part no more from
it. The child is yet impatient. She again endeavors to still
it, telling it that it knoweth whither she goeth, and it knows
the way by which, if need be, it may come to her. I thought
that was so beautiful as we read this passage of scripture and
think of the Lord Jesus Christ dealing with his 11 disciples
as a mother might deal with a small child, little children. Let not
your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also
in me. In 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,
and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and
receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be
also. And whither I go, you know, and
the way you know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord,
we know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way?
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life,
No man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If you had known me,
you should have known my father also. And from henceforth you
know him and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord,
show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, have
I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me,
Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen
the Father. And how sayest thou then, show
us the Father? Believest thou not that I am
in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak
unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth
in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father,
and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very work's
sake. One other comment I wanted to
read to us tonight that Matthew Poole made is this, and I quote,
it is a hard thing to determine what degrees of ignorance are
consistent or inconsistent with saving grace in souls. If I were to write that, I think
I would change one word. When he said it is a hard thing
to determine what degrees of ignorance are consistent or inconsistent
with saving grace in souls, I think I would say it is an impossible
thing. And God hasn't put that upon
us to determine who is saved and who isn't saved and how much
knowledge a person must have. and how a person may be saved
and what degree of knowledge he may or may not have. One other
comment by another writer, Bishop J.C. Rowe, he said, we should
mark in these verses how much better Jesus speaks of believers
than they speak of themselves. And the reason I wanted to share
that, and you see that in the contrast, if you look at verses
four and five, Our Lord said, and whither I go you know, and
the way you know. Thomas saith unto him, we know
not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way? We should mark in these verses
how much better Jesus speaks of believers than they speak
of themselves. And I mention this because I
believe this is a general truth. The Lord, He looks at His bride
at His church, and He sees her without spot or wrinkle. But the bride, she looks at herself,
and she sees nothing but spots and wrinkles. And I want to make
another observation, not from any of these men, but of my own
tonight before we begin the study. I believe at this point it's
fair to say that these eleven disciples still were expecting
a Messiah that they had been taught to look for. A Messiah
who would come and not shed his blood to redeem his people from
their sins, but a Messiah who would come and set up a civil
government in this world and it would be like in the days
of David and in the days of Solomon. And from Jerusalem, upon the
throne of David, the Messiah would reign. I believe that that
is still what was in their minds. And yes, even the day the Lord
Jesus Christ ascended back to the Father, you remember, they
asked Him that question. Wilt thou at this time restore
the kingdom to Israel? But what is interesting, and
I think informative to all of us, that after God the Holy Spirit
was poured out on the day of Pentecost, these same men, as
far as is recorded in the Word of God, they never spoke like
that again. And remember those two disciples
on the road to Emmaus on the day of our Lord's resurrection.
They said, we thought that He was He who would redeem Israel. Well, that tells us right there,
they were looking for redemption that was different from redeeming
His people by blood. They were looking for a redemption
that would restore to Israel its greatness as a nation. They were still, in my opinion,
that's still what they had in their mind. And that's the reason
we can see some of the faults here, if we could use that word,
concerning them. Even though, even though the
Lord Jesus Christ had told them in the Gospels, there's three
times, three times the Lord Jesus Christ told them, we're going
up to Jerusalem and the Son of Man is going to be betrayed.
He's going to be crucified. and he's going to rise again.
And yet they never understood that. They never understood that. Even though they heard him on
one occasion speaking to the Pharisees, I'm sure they were
there, the kingdom of God cometh not with observation. That's
the kind of kingdom they were looking for. A kingdom of this
world. A kingdom that does come with
observation. In other words, a kingdom that
you can see its greatness, its glory, and especially of the
Messiah. But our Lord said, the kingdom
of God cometh not with observation, neither shall they say, lo here
or lo there. Now listen, for the kingdom of
God is within you. The kingdom of God is within
you. It's not meat and drink. It's
righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The kingdom
of God is within you. They'd heard him say that. It was only after, and if you
look over a page or two into John 16, as I said, it was only
after the Holy Spirit was given, and these words here were fulfilled,
that these disciples understood the mission, fully understood
the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ coming into this world.
In chapter 16, in verse 12, our Lord said, I have yet many
things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now. Howbeit,
when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into
all truth. For he shall not speak of himself,
but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, and he will
show you things to come. Now notice, he shall glorify
me, for he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you. Even so, having said that, that
I believe they still were looking for a Messiah who would set up
a kingdom in this world, I'm so thankful tonight that our
God, as great as He is, our God is able to bring good out of
evil and to bring blessings out of even their ignorance. I see that tonight because of
the questions which they asked. The first question, this is what
we'll look at, the two questions. The first question of Thomas
occasioned this statement of our Lord, John 14, 6. I am the
way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father,
but by me. How many people do you think
tonight are in heaven? that God bless that verse of
scripture too in opening up their understanding and opening up
their eyes to believe in Jesus Christ as the only way, as the
only mediator between God and man. How many of God's children
have been given understanding to understand the gospel by those
words that our Lord spoke? And He spoke those words after
the question of Thomas. We don't understand, Thomas said,
whether, Lord, we know not whither thou goest and how can we know
the way? Several months back, I believe
it was at Sue Hume, Mrs. Llewellyn's mother's funeral,
after the service, A lady came up to me afterwards, I'd never
seen her, never haven't seen her since, but she told me something
like this. She said, I am so thrilled, I'm
so glad to hear a preacher use that verse of scripture at a
funeral. She said, in my opinion, no funeral should be conducted
without that verse of scripture. And of course, I agree. It's very clear, isn't it? It's
very clear. I love to hear this verse of
Scripture. In a world where the devil's
lie is spouted and believed by many that there are so many ways
to the Father, this text deals that idea a death blow. You're either faced with believing
that the Lord Jesus Christ is a liar, that he doesn't tell
the truth, are that he is the truth and those who embrace that
false teaching are on a road which will lead them into eternity
without God, without Christ, without salvation, without hope
into a devil's hell. To believe there are many ways,
all to the Father. A few weeks ago, after the message,
one of the brothers here, We were talking and he said, you
know, I believe there's a number of things in the Bible that are
mysterious. I think I'd use that word in
the message. And I said, no doubt, no doubt,
but that which is vital, that which a person must know, is
so clear and so plain. Isn't it? So clear and so plain
that a wayfaring man will not mistake in this. Jesus Christ
is the way, the truth, and the life, and no man cometh unto
the Father but by Him. Let's consider these words quickly.
First of all, I am the way by which you are to come to the
Father. Now, coming to the Father would tell His disciples, when
our Lord used this terminology, this would tell His disciples
immediately that He was not talking about something seen or something
temporal. They may have had in their mind
the Lord Jesus Christ, when He said He was going to leave them,
that He was going to a city, He would come back and He would
be at the head of a great army and they would institute the
kingdom that they had been looking for. But when our Lord tells
them plainly that He is going to the Father, no one can come
to the Father but by Him, They recognize, or at least they should
have recognized, He's not talking about something that we can see,
something that's temporal. He's speaking about something
that is unseen, something that is eternal. Now, coming to the
Father, what does that mean? It means being reconciled to
the Father. It means being accepted by the
Father. It means being received into
fellowship. with the Father. No man can come
to the Father. No man may be reconciled unto
God. No man may come to the Father
and know God as his Lord, as his God. No man can come to the
Father and have fellowship with the Father but by me. Sin, we know, had shut the door
of heaven, barred us all men, barred us from the Father's presence
unless a representative be the way. Unless a representative
be the way of taking away sin by the sacrifice of himself. He must die as a sacrifice for
our sins and in his obedience unto death. We know that he fulfilled
all righteousness He brought in everlasting righteousness.
He finished transgression. He magnified the law and made
it honorable. And then also, of course, he
must be raised from the dead, received up into glory, and given
all power, both in heaven and in earth, that he might, in time,
give eternal life to as many as the Father had given Him. I am the way. There is no other
way to the Father. No way to be reconciled unto
God, to be received by the Father, to have fellowship with the Father
except through Christ. I am the truth. I am the truth. In all of the Old Testament,
there are several ways we might look at this, but in all those
Old Testament symbols, and there were many of them, I am the truth. In other words, I am the reality
of those symbols. When you think about the Ark,
the Ark of Noah in which those eight souls were saved. I am
the truth. That Ark pictured me. That ark pictured the only way
of salvation. While all those inside the ark
were saved, even though the wrath of God fell down upon them, fell
down upon the ark, but not a drop, not a drop of that water touched
them. Why? Because they were safe in
the ark. Because they were safe in the
Lord Jesus Christ. I am the truth. All of those
pictures. The Passover lamb. God passed
over Egypt that night and in every house the firstborn was
slain. In every house. You say, well
preacher, there were some houses where the firstborn was not slain.
No, there wasn't. In every house the firstborn
was slain. Either in the substitute are
in reality. Where the blood of the substitute,
the lamb, was sprinkled on the doorpost, the Lord passed by,
passed over that house. But in every home where there
was no blood, death visited the firstborn. I am the truth. When John the Baptist pointed
him out that day and said, behold, the lamb of God which taketh
away the sins of the world, He's the true Passover lamb. The true rock, that rock out
of which flowed water. There was no life for the Israelites
in the desert, in the wilderness, unless water was provided. And
the Lord Jesus Christ, He is the rock out of which living
waters flow. Remember, God told Moses, you
smite that rock and out of that rock shall flow rivers of water
gushing out. And Moses smote the rock and
the water came out. And later when they needed water,
Moses was told, now this time speak to the rock. He didn't
say strike the rock this time. The Lord Jesus Christ appeared
once in the end of the world to put away sin by the sacrifice
of Himself. By His one offering, He hath
perfected forever them that are sanctified. He's not going to
suffer again. There's no need for it because
He has accomplished what He came to accomplish. by his one sacrifice. So Moses didn't listen. He struck the rock a second time,
and that's the reason, he said at least, God did not allow him
to go into the land of Canaan. He saw it from a distance. But
that true rock, I am the truth. When We read about the shepherd
in the Old Testament, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the truth. He is that shepherd who lays
down his life for his sheep, the good shepherd. Every man, every plan, and every
institution that has professed to be the way to the Father is
a lie. Every, every way, every plan,
that man has devised and has spouted out saying, this is a
way, this is a way to God. No, each one is a lie. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
truth. I am the way to the Father. I
am the truth, he said. And third, I am the life. I am the living one. Look with
me over in 1 John, just a moment. 1 John chapter 1. Verses 1 and 2 of the first chapter
we read, That which was from the beginning. Now who was from
the beginning? God. In the beginning, God created
the heavens and the earth. That which was from the beginning.
God, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which
we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the word
of life. For the life was manifested.
The life was manifested. I am the life. I'm the way, the
truth, and the life. The life was manifested. And we've seen and bear witness. and show unto you that eternal
life, which was with the Father, which was manifested unto us. Do you see that life was manifested? The word was made flesh and dwelt
among us. The life, God, was manifested. He, as the God-man, has life
in himself. And he has life in himself that
he might quicken whom he will. That's what he said in John chapter
five. He has life in himself. That
in order that he might quicken whom he will. And that he might
give eternal life to as many as the Father hath given him.
Give eternal life to all whom the Father hath given him. I am the way, the truth, and
the life. Now, as I said just a minute
ago, there are things in the scriptures, no doubt, which are
mysterious and which probably none of us understand completely. But I understand this, don't
you? I do. I know there is a God, And I
know that I've sinned against Him, and I know there's one way
back into the presence of God, back into the fellowship of God,
back into the communion with God, back into acceptance with
God. And that way's not a plan. It's
not the Roman road. It is a person, the God-man,
the Lord Jesus Christ. Arthur Pink made this comment
on this passage. He said, before sin entered into
the world, Adam enjoyed a threefold privilege in relation to God.
Number one, he was in communion with his maker. Number two, he
knew God. And number three, he possessed
spiritual life. But when he disobeyed and fell,
this threefold relationship was severed. He became alienated
from God, as the hiding of himself plainly demonstrated. Having
believed the devil's lie, he was no longer capable of perceiving
the truth as the making of fig leaves, aprons clearly evidenced. and he no longer had spiritual
life, for God's threat in the day thou eatest thereof, thou
shalt surely die, was strictly enforced. In the same awful condition
as each of Adam's descendants entered this world, for that
which is born of the flesh is flesh, a fallen parent can beget
naught but a fallen child. Every sinner, therefore, has
a threefold need. Reconciliation, illumination,
regeneration. This threefold need is perfectly
met by the Savior. He is the way to the Father. That's reconciliation. He is
the truth incarnate. That's illumination. And third,
He is the life, that is, regeneration to all who believe, all who believe
in Him. Now let's look just a minute
at this second. The request of Philip occasioned
the Lord's confession in verse 9. He that has seen me has seen
the Father. We saw that Thomas, that his question was
the occasion of our Lord making that statement, I am the way,
the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father
but by me. But now we see Philip and his
statement occasion this confession of our Lord. He that has seen
me has seen the Father. Now Philip thought only of seeing
the Father from the Lord's words in verse 7. And he did not consider
how the father is seen. He may, it's possible that Philip
knew the Old Testament well enough to know that Moses had been hid
in the cliff of the rock and God passed by and allowed Moses
to see the hinder part of God Almighty. He may have known that,
probably did. He may have also known about
the time when Moses, Aaron, and the 70 elders of Israel were
also permitted to witness when they saw the God of Israel and
under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone and as
it were the body of heaven in His clearness. Philip may have
known those two occasions from the Old Testament, and he may
have thought, that's the way I want him to show us the Father. If he'll show me the Father like
Moses saw the Father, like those elders, and Moses and Aaron saw
the Father. The Lord Jesus Christ, and hear
this this evening, and I know you know this, the Lord Jesus
Christ is the most glorious revelation of God that there is. He is the express image of the
Father. He's the visible image of God. He's the visible image of the
invisible God. Just like we saw there in 1 John
chapter 1, the life was manifested That which was in the beginning
was manifested, and yet John said, we heard him, we saw him,
we touched him. He was manifested in the person
of Jesus Christ. There exists, and we know this
is a mystery, this is one of those mysteries, the Trinity,
three persons in one. But we know that there exists
a union between the Father and the Son. And it means that the
Son of God, Him in the flesh, the brightness of His glory,
the express image of His person. To see Him is to see the Father. And notice in closing in verse
10, He speaks of His words, that is our Savior's words. He speaks
of His words as the Father's works. His words were works,
for they were words of power. He spoke, and it was done. He spoke. He spoke to the wind
and the sea, be still, and it was done. He spoke to the leopard,
I will be thou clean, and he was clean. His words, his works, the power
of God manifested. I pray the Lord would bless these
words. Very familiar passage of scripture
and yet so much here, isn't there? So much truth. And if you know
this truth tonight, how thankful I know we are that God has revealed
this unto us. You know, the natural man receiveth
not the things of the Spirit, their foolishness unto him. But God reveals them unto us
by His Spirit. All right, David.