We continue our sermon series, What's in a Name,
where we're looking at the distinctives, the
titles of Jesus in the Gospel of John. We're
connecting them to our three forms of unity,
which are the Belgic Confession. We're going
to do this alphabetically. Belgic Confession,
Canons of Dort. Heidelberg Catechism, if you're
here and go, what gibberish did they just say?
That is in our Reformed tradition. We are a confessional
church. So we stand on the Word of God first
and foremost. No ifs, ands, or buts about it,
period, end of sentence. The next sentence is
we also look to our confessions, which are writings
that stand on the Word of God. Our confessions
would mean... absolutely nothing without the
gospel. We are not a church that will ever uphold
our confessions over Scripture, but we understand
that they help us understand Scripture, that
God has endowed people much, much smarter than
me. Amen? I cannot believe you actually did that.
But that's okay. Now it's on the interwebs. But
it is something that we can draw from. And there's
some beautiful understanding. So maybe you're
here today and you don't know what our confessions
are. You don't really know Heidelberg Catechism.
What is that? Belgian Confession. Canons of Dort.
Look them up this week. They're actually fascinating
writings that really break down the truths of
Scripture. And we as a confessional church uphold
those. So I try to utilize that lens because
it can be helpful. It can add along our journey
of faith as we hopefully daily are continuing
to kind of deepen our waters of faith so that
we have that energy and we have that gospel that
we can go forward with. So we're in the gospel
of John, and last week we got up to a pretty
pivotal moment in Jesus' ministry. It is the
raising of Lazarus, but notice we didn't even
get to that last week because we got to his claim
as the resurrection and the life. So you've got
Lazarus' sisters. One meets them. One's holding
back. We talked about that last week. But now
we're to the point, if you kind of can remember
last week, we're now to the point where he's
made this declaration. There was a profession
of faith. Lord, if you had been here, then my
brother would not have died. But you are all
the things that you say that you are. So there
is a profession of faith, if you will, but there
has not been a quote -unquote miracle yet. But
Jesus says, I am the resurrection and the life.
So I have a question for you this morning. How
many of you know somebody that I would say kind
of oversells themselves and under delivers? You
don't have to raise your hand. Don't point. But
understand that there are people in life that
they can talk a good game. They talk a good game,
right? And maybe they don't walk that same level
of game, whether it's in sports, in academics,
maybe even just in everyday life. Maybe you have
that neighbor that always is talking about what
they're going to do to the outside of their house
or their lawn. They have all these grand ideas,
yet they never do anything, nor do they pick
up after their dog when they're on my lawn or
something like that. Very not specific. But understand,
I live on Melbrook Drive. Understand that there
are people like that. And you could, maybe you're
a skeptic about Jesus or a believer. Is Jesus
really who he says he is? The thing I love about
Jesus, there's many. He was a man that talked
the talk and walked the walk. Because think if
you're Lazarus' family. Jesus, a good friend,
someone who's known for doing miracles. You know,
raising the centurion from sleep to life, though
they thought she was dead. All of these things.
The servant. And Jesus makes this declaration.
I am the resurrection and the life. You know
what? Let's not even put it in Lazarus' day.
Put it in your family. Think of a loved one that
died maybe in the last five years. And you're
sitting at Smith's funeral home or wherever you
are. Casket in the room. And Jesus shows up and
gives this declaration. I am the resurrection
and the life. My guess is there would be a high
percentage of us that would interpret that, that
would hear that, and go, prove it. And I say
that because we live in a very skeptical age.
We are skeptical about everything. And guess
who makes that even harder to believe in things
in 2025? Us. We, ourselves, make ourselves skeptical
about everything. And I'm thinking that might
be a little bit of what they were thinking. Now,
that's the gospel according to me. We don't know
that yet. Though there is some angst, right?
We talked about that last week. There's some
angst in this passage. But one of the things
we're going to look at is that Jesus walks into
his words and brings them to fulfillment. Because
as we talked about last week, Jesus could have
been talking about his resurrection. And he was
in some respect. But he's going to double down
on the situation. And we're going to go from
John 14 and John 11. Because there's an aspect
of John 11 that we need to understand. 14 and
11 just to kind of tie the narrative together.
Because the thing we're going to talk about today.
So not only does he say that he's the resurrection
and the life. That was last week's distinction.
The titles. He's going to double down, and he's
going to say that he is the way, the truth, and
the life. Because if we're looking at both of
those sets of distinctions, that Jesus is the
resurrection and the life, that he is the way,
the truth, and the life, so doubling down on
life, really that's all we need. If you think
about your life, he's the way, so we don't need
to ever be lost. He is the truth, so we understand
what to believe, why to believe, when to believe.
And he is the life over death. And then he is
the resurrection, the life, which says, even
death itself is now conquered through me. I don't
know what more we need. Yet some of us will go,
I wish he was the winning lottery ticket. I wish
he was the new car. I wish all of a sudden we
get this kind of like genie mentality or ATM
mentality that because Jesus does what he says
he's going to do and is who he says he is, that
we can put our own spin on it. But maybe, just
maybe this morning, what Jesus is uncovering
for us is maybe this is all we really need. In
our heart of hearts, in the deep parts of our
soul, None of us want to be lost. None of us
want to be alone. And all of us want to know
that there's somebody that sees us, that loves
us, that knows us. That in these kind of five,
four distinctions, if you will, resurrection
and life, way, truth, and life, Jesus does that
for us. So let's dive in. We're going to be in
John 14, and then we're going to flip to John
11. Okay, so John 14, starting with verse 1.
Jesus says, do not let your hearts be troubled.
Believe in God, believe also in me. My Father's
house has many rooms. If it were not so, I would
have told you that I am going to prepare a place
for you. And 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 going. You
know the way to the place where I am going. But
Thomas said to him, Lord, we don't know where
you are going. How can we know the way? Jesus
answered, I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes through the Father except through
me. Now let's go back to John 11. And John 11
reminds us of kind of Jesus continuing from last
week. And after she said this, she went back
and called her sister Mary aside. The teacher
is here, she said, he and is asking for you.
When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and
went to him. Now Jesus had not yet entered the
village, but was still at the place where Martha
had met him. When the Jews who had been with
Mary in the house comforting her noticed how
quickly she got up and went, they followed her,
supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn
there. When Mary reached the place where Jesus
was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said,
Lord. If you had been here, my brother would
not have died. So we're re -entering the tension.
We're re -entering this tension. And it kind
of comes to us in two different ways. A very
practical way with this confession, right, with
Mary and Martha. If you had only been here, my
brother would not have died. Which is an interesting
thing if you break it down. If you break it down,
she is... Living in the temporal. She is living.
I don't want my brother dead. And if Jesus was
here, he would have saw that maybe he was sick
or saw that he was declining or saw something
and would have intervened before the death had
occurred. Remember, he's been dead now four days.
So culturally speaking, it was dunzo. They thought
that that was it. The body was now completely
dead. We went into a little bit of that last
week. So she's making kind of an observation
that really is out of selfishness. And I don't
think anybody can blame her. If the Messiah,
the one that she knew, right? Lazarus, Jesus,
really close, good friends, he's known. She knew
that she knew he would have intervened prior
to death. There's still a death issue here. And
Jesus reenters that tension in John 14. Because
that is what's read in what we know, kind of
Maundy Thursday, the Last Supper. That he is
telling the disciples, I'm going to die. And
I'm going to rise again. And I'm going to prepare
a place for you so you are with me when you die.
That is that ultimate direction. We talk about
it almost every week. The goal has never been,
never will be earth. The goal has never been,
never will be what you do in your profession,
not even your families. Though those are important
things and we need to be good stewards of that.
The goal has been, always will be glory and getting
as many people as we can there. So Jesus is entering
this tension around death. And if we're being
completely honest this morning, none of us handles
death well. 20 years in the ministry. Sitting
with a family who has lost a loved one or is,
you know, kind of is in the process of losing
a loved one is a very sacred time for a family.
Because a thousand different emotions can happen
all in one minute. But Jesus is telling us, I
meet you in this place. And this definition of
physical death is not the final definition for
you and me. That if we understand him and follow
him as the way, there is a way where he is going
and we will be with him. Jesus is reminding them
that though in the culture it says there are
many ways to find that enlightenment, to find
all of the things for you, much like 2025, he
is that only way. So we see the struggle. We
see the struggle that Jesus is claiming to be
the only path. And if we're being honest, it's
a struggle. Because there are things that we
want to follow, do, think, say, live, that are
different than the way Jesus wants us to do it.
It's more comfortable to do this. I don't want
to go that route. I don't want to die to self.
I don't want to pick up my cross. I don't want
to follow Jesus. And for some of us, we choose
not to. We go, no, I want this. I want the instant
pleasures of the world. I want the success, the
fame, the finances, whatever it is. But Jesus
is saying something very specific here by calling
himself the way. You see, in the ancient world,
paths and roads were crucial for travel and communication.
The way was also a term used to describe the
followers of Christ after he rose and ascended.
That he's using terminology because he's so good
that way that people would understand. They're
all trying to find the way. The Roman road back
in this time of history, that was the main highways
and byways that people got around. And Jesus
is saying, no, do not follow those things. Follow
me for I am the way. The Jewish people believe
that access to God came through the temple and
the sacrificial system. Jesus is now declaring
that access to God is through him and him alone.
So the Belgian Confession, one of our confessions.
The Belgian Confession, Article 26, reminds us
this morning that we believe that we have no
access to God except through the one and only
mediator and intercessor, Jesus Christ the righteous.
April, leave that up there. This is important
to understand because we live in an age, and
guess what? It's nothing new. It's always been
there. There's more than one way to get to heaven.
You can follow other world religions. You can
follow yourself. You can follow the money. You
can follow the power. You can follow the whatever.
But what the Belgic Confession is really doubling
down on for us is we believe there is no access
to God except through Jesus. So what does that
mean? You can't earn your way to the table. You,
you know, though it is good and right and faithful
to give and to be a part of things, but you could
have been a Gems leader for 60 years. And without
Jesus, you can't Gems your way into heaven. You
can't cadet your way into heaven. You can't Bible
study your way into heaven. You can't pastor
your way into heaven. You have to understand
and submit that there is one road to the Father,
and that is Jesus, and that is good. Yet, we
work ourselves tirelessly to think we can earn
that seat. Friends, that cannot be. Because then
you can kind of backdoor Jesus, what he did for
you out of love for you, to try to earn it yourself.
And I look out here today, and I know we have
some workhorses. I know we have a lot of worker
bees. That a 70, 80 hour work week is not uncommon
for you. I, as your pastor, or maybe just some
guy talking to you because this is your first
time here, that's probably not a good thing.
Life balance is important, but we get this worker
mentality. So that's fine. As a pastor, I'll
utilize that. What do you, after submitting your
life to Jesus, what is he calling you to do?
Because if he's the way, he wants you to point
people to the way. And the only way we can do
that is by knowing him and recognizing him as
Jesus Christ, the righteous. So have you fully
embraced Jesus this morning as the way? Or is
he a way? Is he an option? When it suits me?
When it feels good? Or just on Sundays? Or is
he the way in your life? None of us ever want
to be lost. That feeling of being lost, that
feeling of not knowing, has it gone down now
because of GPS and all of those things? Absolutely.
Remember when we used to use maps? So maps are
things that have like towns and cities and to
show where the roads are. Or do you remember
when MapQuest first came out and you had to print
out sheets and you had to try to do that while
driving? Which no one ever thought that was a
good idea, yet we would do it anyway. But now,
okay, under the house of grace, how many of us
still use GPS to places you absolutely, I didn't
even ask the question and your hand is up, you
absolutely know where it is, you've been there
hundreds of times, you still put it in your GPS.
Yeah, the rest of you are liars. That's absolutely
junk, right? I know that you do, right? Maybe
not for your house, but your kid's house, you
still do it. But understand that Jesus isn't
just some option. Jesus is not a rerouted route.
He is the way. And as we're going to dive into
the truth. You see, these are kind of a package
deal. Way, truth, life, they all are built onto
each other. Because if you don't believe that
Jesus is the truth, guess what? You don't believe
that he's the way. And ultimately, life at the
end, we'll get there in about seven minutes,
that's going to get real hard. But Jesus then
doubles down, right? He's the truth. So we're
going to read in John 14, 7 through 11, then
John 11 to round out that story, that Jesus is
the truth. Chapter 14, verse 7. If you really
know me, you will know my Father as well. From
now on, you do know him and have seen him. Philip
said, Lord, show us the Father and that will
be enough for us. Jesus answered, don't you know
me, Philip? Even after I've been among you such
a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen
the Father. How can you say, show us the Father?
Don't you believe that I am in the Father and
that the Father is in me? The words I say to
you, I do not speak on my own authority. Rather,
it is my Father living in me who is doing his
work. Believe me when I say that I am in the
Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe
on the evidence of the works themselves. Leave
that one up before we jump. believe on the evidence
of the works themselves. For all you analytic,
scientific, engineering type people, right, which
I am not, but I know plenty of you are, this
is where I love that Jesus is going straight,
not only to the heart, but to the mind of anybody
that reads this. That he is giving empirical
evidence of the fact that him and the Father
are one. And for some of us, you need that evidence
in order to believe. You need to understand and
try to analyze that 2 plus 2 equals Jesus in
your life. Now, pastorally, I'm going to say,
you're going to be frustrated because more times
than not, Jesus is going to ask you to believe
in a higher understanding. It's called faith.
Now, some of you can give scientific equations
for faith, and for that, I applaud. For some
of you, it's as easy as... God said it. I believe
it. That's the end. Okay. And everywhere in between.
But Jesus, this is the talking talk, walking
walk. This is where he's going to prove unequivocally
that he is who he says he is. Because he's going
to do things like we're going to see in John
11. So John 11, starting with verse 33. When
Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come
along with her also weeping, He was deeply moved
in spirit and troubled. Where have you laid him,
he asked. Come and see, Lord, they replied. Shortest
verse in the Bible. Jesus wept. Then the Jews
said, see how he loved them. But some of them
said, could not he who opened the eyes of the
blind man have kept this man from dying? Oh,
we're right there. We're right in the mix. There's
a tension. It's uncomfortable. They see his love
for people. They see his love for Lazarus. They
see this teacher, this miracle worker, as they've
already declared. They see the love. Yet one
thing they still demand, if they're being honest,
physical evidence of conquering death. You're
going to say you're the way? You're going to
say you're the truth? Fine. We still want him
to prove it. And if we're being honest this morning,
there are some of us that we camp there a lot.
Lord, I still don't have the job I want or a
job at all. I still have conflict in my marriage
and in my family. I still can't get so and so
to notice me. I still am not, I am still am not,
I still don't have, insert whatever here. Friend,
what we're doing then is looking at God as the
genie from Aladdin. Or looking at God as some
apostolic ATM. That if we give the right code,
say the right things, he will give us everything
we desire. It even says, ask and it will be given
to you. But let me ask all the parents in the
room. When your kid asks, and I know your kids
always ask for really good things, right? And
they're never dumb. Do you give them everything
they want? Do you give your kids everything that
they want? No, because if you did, guess what?
They'd never be in school. They'd be behind the
wheel of a car at five. And guess what? At times,
you won't exist. Because if we're being honest,
our kids don't always want parents. They want
somebody else. I beat Johnny's dad nine times
in the last two weeks. I don't even know who
Johnny's dad is. But I wouldn't be me. The father
gives to his kids what is best for the kids.
Not always what the kids want. As your kids get
older, let's just take holiday season where we
give a lot of gifts. If you gave your kids everything
they've ever wanted, you'd be poor. You'd be
out of a house. You'd probably be out of a job
because you'd have nothing left. Because when
we are kids, we just want and want and want and
want and want. But isn't it funny that even as
adults, maybe that's what... God gets from us.
I want, I want, I want, I want. I'm praying to
you, God, I want these things, I want these things.
Okay, I'll also pray for good weather so I'm
not super selfish. But really, I want all these
things. The way, the truth, and the life is exactly
what all of us should ever want. Because it's
all that we ever need. That we need to understand
this understanding of truth. Is Jesus being the
revelation of God? In the Greco -Roman thought,
truth was seen as abstract and philosophical.
Jesus now is doubling down on that and saying
truth is not just an idea. It's not just a theory.
It's not just a religious system. It's a person.
That Jesus is truth himself. Maybe you've said
it or you've heard other people say it. Did you
do that? No, I didn't do that. I swear to...
I know, but you don't want to say it because
that's breaking an actual commandment. And I
don't want you to do that, but understand that
that's what it is. That's using the Lord's name
in vain. We talked about it in junior high catechism
a couple weeks ago. When we flippantly say, I
swear to God, that is misusing the name of the
Lord. That is using the Lord's name in vain.
That understanding, if we're going to claim Jesus
is all these things, then we better believe it.
as well. That Jesus himself is truth. That Jesus
is the clearest picture of God that we will ever
have. And now let me turn that on its head. When
we get up there, Jesus will be the clearest picture
of you that the Father will see. Have you ever
thought about that? Because if you get up there
and you throw at those gates, the years you've
put in gems, how many cars you made of cadets,
how many hobo pies you made out of a fire that's
given you so many gut issues over the years,
if that's what you're going to bring to the gates
of glory, what is the Father going to say? I
never knew you. It's Jesus. That when we get
up there, Jesus is going to be the clearest picture
of us that the Father sees, as Jesus is the clearest
picture of the Father that we have on this earth.
So what does that mean for people around you?
What does that mean for your neighbors? Even
the one that doesn't pick up after his dog. I
may be the clearest picture of God they may ever
see. Friend, I don't know about you, but that's
terrifying. And the way I live my life and the
way I talk to people, the way I drive my car,
the way I work my work, the way I eat food in
public, all these things. If you claim to be
a believer, then people may put that on you.
In whichever way they're going to do it. Jesus
talks to us about that in Matthew 5. People are
going to revile you because of me. They're going
to try to pick apart your life because of me.
But take heart, they did it to me first. The
Heidelberg Catechism Lord's Question and Answer
19 reminds us that God himself first revealed
his gospel in paradise. And he fulfills, and
he himself fulfills it through only his son.
Ever thought that's why Adam and Eve couldn't
go back into the garden? That God put that flaming
cherubim so they could not go back. Their eyes
were already opened with the knowledge of good
and evil. What we forget is that tree of life
was still there. And God knew that if we would
have eaten of that apple, of the tree of life,
we would have been forever in sin with no hope
of salvation. That's why we see in Revelation
the tree of life is now a way present and made
a way to it through the person of Jesus Christ.
If that's not the way, if that's not the truth,
then I don't know what is. So here we go. We're
going to round out the story. The way, the truth,
and the life. How many lives am I at so far?
A lot. Thank you. So the gems, they do a thing
where we pick a word of things I'm going to say,
and they have to mark down every time I say it.
Thank God it's not the word um. That would be
terrifying. The life, starting with John 14,
verse 12. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes
in me will do the works I have been doing, and
they will do even greater things than these,
because I am going to the Father. and I will
do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father
may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for
anything in my name, and I will do it. Before
we jump, that is not a license for us to ask
God out of our selfishness. That that is a freedom
and a liberty to seek first the kingdom of God
as he instructs us to. And now back to Lazarus.
chapter 11, verse 38. Jesus, once more deeply
moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a
stone laid across the entrance. Take away the
stone, he said. Four days dead, okay? But Lord,
said Martha, the sister of the dead man, by this
time there is a bad odor, for he has been there
four days. Okay. They want this to happen. They
were assuming it could have happened. They bet
that if Jesus was there, this would never have
happened. Yet they're worried about the smell.
Then Jesus said, did I not tell you that if you
believe, you will see the glory of God? So they
took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and
said, Father, I thank you that you have heard
me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said
this for the benefit of the people standing here,
that they may believe that you sent me. When
he had said this, Jesus called out in a loud
voice, Lazarus, come out. The dead man came out,
his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen
and his cloth around his face. Jesus said to
them, take off the grave clothes and let him
go. So we see the drama unfold. Jesus declares
that whoever believes in him will do greater
works. This does not mean greater miracles, but
the expansion of the gospel through the church.
In John 11, Jesus commands Lazarus to come out
of the tomb. He has power over life and death,
proving he is the source of all things. So what
in the world do we take from this? The Canons
of Dort, head to Article 8, reminds us of this.
The death of the Son of God is a single and most
perfect sacrifice and satisfaction for sins.
Of infinite value and worth, abundantly sufficient
to expiate the sins of the whole world. Everything
you've ever done to everything you will do. Every
thought you ever have, every sin you've done
with your hand, anything. This is a perfect sacrifice
for you and for me. There's fullness in this.
Jesus is showing that he is the way, the truth,
and the life. And here's the rub. Some of us,
even right now, are struggling with a very active
sin. Maybe it's the sin of lust. Maybe it's the
sin of this, that, or the other thing. Go list
through all the commandments. List through all
600 laws. Maybe you are struggling actively in
one of these. Maybe, just maybe, you feel yourself
dead in that sin that's been longer than four
days. Friend, Jesus is saying, come out. He wants
to raise you to new life. He wants to teach you
to conquer that sin in this world. Though it
may always be a sin. It may always be a temptation.
It may always be something you have to run back
to dad for. Guess what? That's okay. Just as
your kid knows there's nothing in the closet
at 3 .30 in the morning that should scare him,
they may still come to seek peace from the father
and the mother or the Holland in our house, the
mother. We know that we know these things are
not out to get us, yet we believe they are and
we run back to the father who is always there.
Abundantly sufficient. Abundantly sufficient.
He gives you and I more than we could ever dream.
But maybe you're spiritually stagnant this morning.
Maybe the walk in Christ is just dry. It's just
not exciting. Maybe you're just really bored.
What Jesus is calling you out of is your selfishness
and your ego to say, stop making this about you.
Get your butt out there and serve. Find the soup
kitchen. Find intermission. Find the TMC. Find
whatever ministry, if you're not from Archer,
said we are involved in. Get involved. You want
to make something not about you? Come every other
Wednesday to Cadets or Gems. Help build into
the life of somebody else. Because you're going
to be called to a responsibility. You're going
to be called to a boldness. And if you're going
to teach it, you better live it as well. And
that's hard, and that can be a hard, long road.
But guess what? Look around. It's why you're
not here by yourself, because that would be an
awkward sermon. We do this together as the body
of Christ. Do we live in the fullness of life
that Christ offers, or are we spiritually stagnant?
Remember, Jesus calls us to abundant and eternal
life in him. So where do we go from here? How
do we take this into our week? First, for our
head. Know the way. Study how Jesus is the only
mediator. Read John 14, Acts 4, Hebrews 10 and
reflect. Do I fully trust in Jesus as the only
way to salvation? For the heart, trust the truth
that Jesus is the full revelation of God. Rest
in him rather than searching for identity and
truth elsewhere. Reflect what competing truths
tempt you to doubt Jesus' sufficiency. And finally,
for our hands and feet, walk the life. Share
the hope of Christ with someone who is lost.
Live with boldness knowing that eternal life
is found in him. Challenge for that? Who in my
life needs to hear that Jesus is the way, the
truth?