WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.799 Amen. Amen. Thank you, Jeff. And praise team 00:00:04.799 --> 00:00:07.099 as well. Thank you for leading us in song today. 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:11.080 And Jeff, thanks for being willing to share the 00:00:11.080 --> 00:00:14.179 Passion Week series. And especially on today 00:00:14.179 --> 00:00:21.500 of all days. The triumphal, what are we calling 00:00:21.500 --> 00:00:24.859 it, TM? Grant had a new TM, new trademark. We'll 00:00:24.859 --> 00:00:27.719 see. But no, I'm grateful. I think it's going 00:00:27.719 --> 00:00:29.929 to be a great series. And it's not because of 00:00:29.929 --> 00:00:31.690 us. It's not because of humans. It's because 00:00:31.690 --> 00:00:35.149 of the source material. As Jeff shared, there 00:00:35.149 --> 00:00:38.729 is no greater topic to focus on from the pulpit 00:00:38.729 --> 00:00:43.030 than the gospel of Jesus Christ. Amen. Every 00:00:43.030 --> 00:00:45.429 believer needs to be encouraged. Every unbeliever 00:00:45.429 --> 00:00:50.869 needs to be hearing about this good news in Christ. 00:00:52.229 --> 00:00:54.210 As Jeff was reading the Valley of Vision, were 00:00:54.210 --> 00:00:57.689 you listening well? I know it's old English. 00:00:59.020 --> 00:01:02.460 But were you listening well? The appeal for responding 00:01:02.460 --> 00:01:06.659 rightly to the gospel call. Those truths are 00:01:06.659 --> 00:01:10.640 the same. The human heart remains the same. The 00:01:10.640 --> 00:01:12.599 appeal that you heard in that reading, it is 00:01:12.599 --> 00:01:16.319 not very different from the disciples who struggled 00:01:16.319 --> 00:01:19.180 to comprehend what this gospel would mean for 00:01:19.180 --> 00:01:22.519 their lives, especially in the face of Jesus' 00:01:22.680 --> 00:01:24.700 impending departure during that Passion Week. 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:28.230 That's what we're going to pick up today. with 00:01:28.230 --> 00:01:33.049 the disciples being prepared for the cross. Now, 00:01:33.109 --> 00:01:35.209 let's think about it for a moment. The disciples 00:01:35.209 --> 00:01:37.989 were with Jesus roughly three and a half -ish 00:01:37.989 --> 00:01:42.689 years, right? Many of you grew up hearing Jesus 00:01:42.689 --> 00:01:47.310 saying, follow me, to the fishermen, right? Now, 00:01:47.310 --> 00:01:49.670 whether you read that in John chapter one, Matthew 00:01:49.670 --> 00:01:52.129 chapter four, Mark chapter one, Luke chapter 00:01:52.129 --> 00:01:57.049 five, all four of the gospels, they record. many 00:01:57.049 --> 00:02:00.390 ministry moments that Jesus had on this earth 00:02:00.390 --> 00:02:04.829 with his disciples. I think sometimes during 00:02:04.829 --> 00:02:06.390 that earthly ministry, though, those three and 00:02:06.390 --> 00:02:09.069 a half years, people often focus a lot on his 00:02:09.069 --> 00:02:13.090 miracles, a lot on the works that Jesus did. 00:02:14.870 --> 00:02:16.810 Think about what John said, though. You remember 00:02:16.810 --> 00:02:19.229 our Gospel of John series, and we titled it very 00:02:19.229 --> 00:02:25.669 purposefully, That You May Believe. that you 00:02:25.669 --> 00:02:28.229 may believe and that in believing you may have 00:02:28.229 --> 00:02:30.629 eternal life. That's what John says, why these 00:02:30.629 --> 00:02:33.949 things have been written and recorded. I'm going 00:02:33.949 --> 00:02:36.990 to make a case today that Jesus was here to be 00:02:36.990 --> 00:02:39.310 with his disciples more than he was here to perform 00:02:39.310 --> 00:02:47.189 miracles. Gasp. Ah, think about that. Now the 00:02:47.189 --> 00:02:50.050 miracles, they validated his message, but the 00:02:50.050 --> 00:02:54.939 message was for what? For people. For people. 00:02:55.340 --> 00:02:57.900 And that's a critical point. Jesus didn't just 00:02:57.900 --> 00:03:00.939 show up and wonder who would follow him. He came 00:03:00.939 --> 00:03:05.879 at an appointed time to an appointed people with 00:03:05.879 --> 00:03:09.539 an appointed purpose. You see the intentionality 00:03:09.539 --> 00:03:13.039 there? He was not with his disciples as a result 00:03:13.039 --> 00:03:15.300 of random chance, like he just shows up and, 00:03:15.319 --> 00:03:18.699 I guess these are the guys I got with me. He 00:03:18.699 --> 00:03:20.979 shows up at the right time, the right place, 00:03:20.979 --> 00:03:23.870 to the right people with the right purpose. It 00:03:23.870 --> 00:03:27.509 was divine intention, not random chance. And 00:03:27.509 --> 00:03:29.710 the disciples who responded faithfully to Jesus' 00:03:29.889 --> 00:03:32.870 call to follow him, they were loved. They were 00:03:32.870 --> 00:03:37.409 chosen. They were protected by the Savior. But 00:03:37.409 --> 00:03:39.509 even in that special position that they had, 00:03:39.569 --> 00:03:43.830 to be those first ones to walk with Jesus, they 00:03:43.830 --> 00:03:48.750 still struggled. How many of you remember Peter's 00:03:48.750 --> 00:03:52.150 calling? You can raise your hand in church. It's 00:03:52.150 --> 00:03:55.009 allowed. If you don't remember, I'm going to 00:03:55.009 --> 00:03:56.669 assume that I'm talking to the majority of you 00:03:56.669 --> 00:03:59.210 now. You don't remember, I'll remind you. Okay, 00:03:59.370 --> 00:04:03.870 Jeff remembers. Thank you, Jeff. Now, I'll be 00:04:03.870 --> 00:04:06.770 honest. Few things in the Gospels get me teary 00:04:06.770 --> 00:04:09.949 -eyed like that event for me. I know there's 00:04:09.949 --> 00:04:11.830 a lot of extra biblical oddities in that Chosen 00:04:11.830 --> 00:04:15.590 TV series, so I'm not recommending it. But one 00:04:15.590 --> 00:04:17.470 thing I think they captured well was that moment. 00:04:17.829 --> 00:04:20.029 I think they captured that moment well. But for 00:04:20.029 --> 00:04:21.670 the real event, you can turn to Luke 5 if you 00:04:21.670 --> 00:04:23.680 want, or you just listen. as I tell you about 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:30.240 it. The disciples, they've been, they weren't 00:04:30.240 --> 00:04:34.160 disciples at that moment, just to be clear. These 00:04:34.160 --> 00:04:38.379 men, they'd been fishing all night. They'd been 00:04:38.379 --> 00:04:42.720 laboring, working hard. They're weary, they're 00:04:42.720 --> 00:04:48.560 tired, and have they caught much? No. But I don't 00:04:48.560 --> 00:04:52.819 think it was just about fishing. They've been 00:04:52.819 --> 00:04:57.060 waiting. God's people have been waiting for the 00:04:57.060 --> 00:05:00.519 Messiah. Hardworking day laborers, Jews like 00:05:00.519 --> 00:05:03.540 Peter, they wanted to be rescued. They were growing 00:05:03.540 --> 00:05:07.100 weary. God had been silent for so many years. 00:05:07.920 --> 00:05:10.899 His people had been so disobedient. Now they're 00:05:10.899 --> 00:05:13.439 suffering under Roman rule. Sure, they're back 00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:15.839 from the deportations. They're in the promised 00:05:15.839 --> 00:05:19.920 land. But this cannot be the goodness that was 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:23.279 told to them that was coming. This is not eternal 00:05:23.279 --> 00:05:26.779 glory. Now, it's in that season of tumult and 00:05:26.779 --> 00:05:29.560 uncertainty that Jesus arrives on the scene. 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:32.500 And the context of Peter's calling was Jesus 00:05:32.500 --> 00:05:35.699 preaching to a crowd around the shore of Galilee. 00:05:36.579 --> 00:05:39.560 After so many years of God's silence, you have 00:05:39.560 --> 00:05:42.740 first John the Baptist, right? John the Baptist 00:05:42.740 --> 00:05:49.180 comes. Then comes this teacher, this rabbi. And 00:05:49.180 --> 00:05:51.379 he captivated people with his explanations about 00:05:51.379 --> 00:05:54.939 God and God's kingdom. And so the crowd is listening. 00:05:55.040 --> 00:05:57.720 And these fishermen who'd been working all night, 00:05:57.779 --> 00:06:00.240 who were now very tired, they're listening to 00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:04.300 this amazing teacher. They didn't know him as 00:06:04.300 --> 00:06:06.120 Lord. They didn't know him as Savior yet, but 00:06:06.120 --> 00:06:09.480 they were captivated. And so Jesus gets into 00:06:09.480 --> 00:06:12.139 Peter's boat because he's preaching to the crowd. 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:14.079 And Peter's willing because he's listening to 00:06:14.079 --> 00:06:16.360 this teacher who's unlike any other. He's never 00:06:16.360 --> 00:06:19.199 heard a teacher like this. Jesus tells him then, 00:06:19.319 --> 00:06:24.160 put down your net. And Peter doesn't say, sure. 00:06:24.560 --> 00:06:28.439 He doubts. He's still willing, but he doubts. 00:06:29.079 --> 00:06:31.660 Verse 5 out of Luke 5 says, Simon answered and 00:06:31.660 --> 00:06:35.959 said, Master, we labored all night. We caught 00:06:35.959 --> 00:06:40.379 nothing. But at your word, I will let down the 00:06:40.379 --> 00:06:44.439 nets. Now, even in his willingness to let down 00:06:44.439 --> 00:06:47.430 the net, he's not expecting a catch. Can you 00:06:47.430 --> 00:06:50.230 see that? He's like, I'll do it. Nothing's going 00:06:50.230 --> 00:06:54.290 to come up. That's his heart disposition before 00:06:54.290 --> 00:06:56.569 the teacher. He's trying to appease him, but 00:06:56.569 --> 00:06:59.310 he doesn't really believe him or trust him. Now 00:06:59.310 --> 00:07:01.829 we know what happens with that great catch of 00:07:01.829 --> 00:07:04.509 fish and the people are marveling at the work, 00:07:04.589 --> 00:07:10.149 but Simon Peter has a unique response. Instead 00:07:10.149 --> 00:07:14.470 of marveling, instead of just being in awe, Peter 00:07:14.470 --> 00:07:18.920 broke. They catch the fish and he falls down 00:07:18.920 --> 00:07:21.819 to his knees. And look at verse eight, Luke 5, 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:26.480 eight. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell down 00:07:26.480 --> 00:07:31.000 at Jesus' knees saying, go away from me, Lord, 00:07:31.120 --> 00:07:36.939 for I am a sinful man. Think about Peter. When 00:07:36.939 --> 00:07:40.860 witnessing the power of God, Peter didn't go 00:07:40.860 --> 00:07:44.879 and ask for his power. Peter didn't ask for any 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:47.870 special blessing. He saw something miraculous 00:07:47.870 --> 00:07:51.310 and what did he do? He confessed his sinfulness. 00:07:52.470 --> 00:07:56.490 That was his response. The simple act of multiplying 00:07:56.490 --> 00:07:59.610 fish revealed to Peter the identity of who Christ 00:07:59.610 --> 00:08:05.110 was. His response was humility, shame of sin, 00:08:05.310 --> 00:08:08.470 a recognition that holiness was not part of his 00:08:08.470 --> 00:08:12.509 identity. What did Jesus say to him when he says, 00:08:12.529 --> 00:08:14.930 go away from me? Did Jesus say, you're right. 00:08:15.850 --> 00:08:20.050 Get away from me. Did Jesus say, come back to 00:08:20.050 --> 00:08:22.949 me when you're clean? I mean, he'd be working 00:08:22.949 --> 00:08:24.930 on it. He's probably pretty sweaty. Let's be 00:08:24.930 --> 00:08:30.230 honest. No, he didn't say that. Jesus gave hope. 00:08:31.029 --> 00:08:35.309 He gave a new calling. He told them not to fear. 00:08:35.330 --> 00:08:39.250 The other gospels record Jesus as saying, follow 00:08:39.250 --> 00:08:44.809 me. Follow me. I'll give you a new purpose. We're 00:08:44.809 --> 00:08:47.230 not going to be fishing for fish. We're going 00:08:47.230 --> 00:08:50.509 to be fishing for men. And so my statement earlier 00:08:50.509 --> 00:08:53.149 that I think the coming of Jesus was far more 00:08:53.149 --> 00:08:56.970 about people than miracles holds true. He's not 00:08:56.970 --> 00:09:00.190 fishing for miracles. The miracle of the fish 00:09:00.190 --> 00:09:05.149 is for the people. That sets the stage for John 00:09:05.149 --> 00:09:08.029 14. Because these disciples in various ways, 00:09:08.070 --> 00:09:10.529 in various moments, they all saw the majesty 00:09:10.529 --> 00:09:14.419 of the Lord on display. They walked with him 00:09:14.419 --> 00:09:17.940 day by day. They ate with him. They witnessed 00:09:17.940 --> 00:09:20.639 many other things. You know, John 21, the end 00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:24.340 of the gospel says, the world itself could not 00:09:24.340 --> 00:09:27.360 contain the books that could be written about 00:09:27.360 --> 00:09:32.240 his time with the disciples. That's just a little 00:09:32.240 --> 00:09:35.679 bit of stuff, right? You get the sense of how 00:09:35.679 --> 00:09:39.980 much was happening? So I want to impress upon 00:09:39.980 --> 00:09:42.470 you the nature. of that relationship between 00:09:42.470 --> 00:09:45.350 Jesus and the disciples, they were so close and 00:09:45.350 --> 00:09:48.149 so much happened, more than we even have recorded. 00:09:49.690 --> 00:09:52.950 Yet no matter how much time Jesus spent with 00:09:52.950 --> 00:09:55.809 his disciples, no matter how intentional he was 00:09:55.809 --> 00:10:00.429 to teach them, day and night, they still struggled 00:10:00.429 --> 00:10:04.389 to trust him. They still were often confused. 00:10:05.870 --> 00:10:10.149 You wonder why? Because they're human just like 00:10:10.149 --> 00:10:14.440 us. They could be seated literally across from 00:10:14.440 --> 00:10:17.340 the Savior in the same room, listening to him 00:10:17.340 --> 00:10:20.259 teach. They could even be leaning up against 00:10:20.259 --> 00:10:27.159 him, touching him, and still struggle to comprehend 00:10:27.159 --> 00:10:30.639 his statements and instructions. Think about 00:10:30.639 --> 00:10:34.899 that. Think how many of us have said in our hard 00:10:34.899 --> 00:10:37.120 moments, in our hearts, in our prayers, that 00:10:37.120 --> 00:10:39.279 if only we could be with Jesus, we would understand. 00:10:41.610 --> 00:10:44.110 That if only he would reveal himself to us in 00:10:44.110 --> 00:10:48.710 some way that would make everything okay. Friends, 00:10:48.710 --> 00:10:51.730 the presence of Christ, even for the disciples, 00:10:51.909 --> 00:10:54.809 it was not a surefire safeguard for hope and 00:10:54.809 --> 00:10:58.649 for trust. We need to caution our hearts so that 00:10:58.649 --> 00:11:01.029 we don't think that Christ's presence is more 00:11:01.029 --> 00:11:04.370 precious than his purpose. The nearness of the 00:11:04.370 --> 00:11:09.870 Lord is not the only thing. The Lord, he is the 00:11:09.870 --> 00:11:14.049 one. That might be hard for us to comprehend. 00:11:14.070 --> 00:11:16.529 We're going to see more of this and dig in more 00:11:16.529 --> 00:11:19.830 to understand the nature of the struggle. Several 00:11:19.830 --> 00:11:22.370 times leading up to the crucifixion, really throughout 00:11:22.370 --> 00:11:25.690 his entire ministry, Jesus predicted and foretold 00:11:25.690 --> 00:11:29.450 of his impending departure, of his need to suffer, 00:11:29.529 --> 00:11:32.169 to die. And it was puzzling for the disciples. 00:11:32.669 --> 00:11:35.389 They didn't understand. And it wasn't until that 00:11:35.389 --> 00:11:37.769 final week, what we call Passion Week, that it 00:11:37.769 --> 00:11:40.519 really started to set in. Because before it was 00:11:40.519 --> 00:11:42.480 just down the road. You know, kick the can down 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:43.879 the road. Sure, Jesus is saying that. I don't 00:11:43.879 --> 00:11:45.559 really understand what it means. Okay, it's coming. 00:11:45.639 --> 00:11:47.200 It's coming. It's coming. Now we're at Passion 00:11:47.200 --> 00:11:51.779 Week. He's like, it's here. It's here. Now they're 00:11:51.779 --> 00:11:54.899 starting to get a little worried. It's not making 00:11:54.899 --> 00:11:57.919 the same impact that it was before. Before it 00:11:57.919 --> 00:12:00.879 was a glancing blow. Now it's starting to pierce. 00:12:01.980 --> 00:12:04.360 Starting to set in and trouble is overtaking 00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:08.230 the disciples' hearts. Jesus was faithful to 00:12:08.230 --> 00:12:10.370 declare to them what was going to happen, but 00:12:10.370 --> 00:12:12.389 they couldn't fathom what needed to take place 00:12:12.389 --> 00:12:15.750 because we're human. We have our ideas about 00:12:15.750 --> 00:12:17.690 who the Savior should be, what the Messiah should 00:12:17.690 --> 00:12:21.090 be, what a king should be. And Jesus breaks all 00:12:21.090 --> 00:12:25.129 of that. But we shouldn't blame them. We would 00:12:25.129 --> 00:12:26.929 have been no different. And that's what I'd like 00:12:26.929 --> 00:12:29.009 to show you this morning from God's word, that 00:12:29.009 --> 00:12:31.850 we have so many similarities with those disciples 00:12:31.850 --> 00:12:35.080 leading up. to Jesus's crucifixion and his death. 00:12:35.220 --> 00:12:37.460 And then once we put ourselves in their sandals, 00:12:37.500 --> 00:12:40.759 then I think we can focus on why he said that 00:12:40.759 --> 00:12:44.779 he is the way. So grab your Bibles and let's 00:12:44.779 --> 00:12:48.480 turn to John 13. I know you're like, why aren't 00:12:48.480 --> 00:12:52.419 we in John 14? Just go with me for a sec. I know 00:12:52.419 --> 00:12:53.980 I've set the stage, but we need a little bit 00:12:53.980 --> 00:12:56.679 of context because Jesus didn't just speak in 00:12:56.679 --> 00:12:59.500 John 14 out of nowhere. It came from the context 00:12:59.500 --> 00:13:01.809 of the conversation that was taking place. in 00:13:01.809 --> 00:13:11.269 the upper room. Now throughout chapters 13 through 00:13:11.269 --> 00:13:14.289 17 of John's gospel, we have what's commonly 00:13:14.289 --> 00:13:18.090 referred to as the upper room discourse. It's 00:13:18.090 --> 00:13:20.990 that time when Jesus was with his disciples celebrating 00:13:20.990 --> 00:13:24.669 Passover. During that time, we call it the last 00:13:24.669 --> 00:13:27.769 supper that occurs in that upper room as well. 00:13:28.149 --> 00:13:32.240 Now John's gospel contains the most testimony 00:13:32.240 --> 00:13:34.639 about that time. And think about it. It's the 00:13:34.639 --> 00:13:37.940 final gathering that Jesus has with his disciples 00:13:37.940 --> 00:13:41.220 before his death. Don't worry. I know it's Palm 00:13:41.220 --> 00:13:43.340 Sunday. We're jumping ahead. Just track with 00:13:43.340 --> 00:13:44.740 me. You're like, wait, aren't we talking about 00:13:44.740 --> 00:13:46.580 Palm? Yes, we're in the upper room. John 14. 00:13:46.700 --> 00:13:50.500 So just go with me. We'll finish on Palm Sunday. 00:13:50.600 --> 00:13:52.179 I'll tell you that. Okay. We'll finish on Palm 00:13:52.179 --> 00:13:54.840 Sunday. We're going to read in verses beginning 00:13:54.840 --> 00:13:57.769 in verse 33. of chapter 13, and we're gonna go 00:13:57.769 --> 00:14:01.450 all the way to John chapter 14, verse six. Let's 00:14:01.450 --> 00:14:02.889 do this, though. Let's go ahead and stand for 00:14:02.889 --> 00:14:07.309 the reading of God's word. And you can follow 00:14:07.309 --> 00:14:12.409 along as I read. John chapter 13, beginning in 00:14:12.409 --> 00:14:16.210 verse 33. Little children, I'm with you a little 00:14:16.210 --> 00:14:19.409 while longer. You will seek me, and as I said 00:14:19.409 --> 00:14:22.590 to the Jews, now I also say to you, where I'm 00:14:22.590 --> 00:14:25.789 going, you cannot come. A new commandment I give 00:14:25.789 --> 00:14:28.070 to you, that you love one another even as I have 00:14:28.070 --> 00:14:31.529 loved you, that you also love one another. By 00:14:31.529 --> 00:14:34.009 this, all will know that you are my disciples, 00:14:34.110 --> 00:14:38.450 if you have love for one another. Simon Peter 00:14:38.450 --> 00:14:41.429 said to him, Lord, where are you going? And Jesus 00:14:41.429 --> 00:14:45.090 answered, where I go, you cannot follow me now, 00:14:45.269 --> 00:14:49.350 but you will follow later. Peter said to him, 00:14:49.370 --> 00:14:52.429 Lord, why can I not follow you right now? I will 00:14:52.429 --> 00:14:56.419 lay down my life for you. Jesus answered, will 00:14:56.419 --> 00:15:00.080 you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, 00:15:00.220 --> 00:15:03.419 I say to you, a rooster will not crow until you 00:15:03.419 --> 00:15:07.059 deny me three times. Do not let your heart be 00:15:07.059 --> 00:15:10.320 troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. 00:15:10.580 --> 00:15:13.279 In my Father's house are many dwelling places. 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:16.759 If it were not so, I would have told you. For 00:15:16.759 --> 00:15:20.460 I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go 00:15:20.460 --> 00:15:22.919 and prepare a place for you, I will come again 00:15:22.919 --> 00:15:27.019 and receive you to myself, that where I am, there 00:15:27.019 --> 00:15:31.059 you may be also. And you know the way where I 00:15:31.059 --> 00:15:36.000 am going. Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not 00:15:36.000 --> 00:15:38.320 know where you are going. How do we know the 00:15:38.320 --> 00:15:43.379 way? Jesus said to him, I am the way and the 00:15:43.379 --> 00:15:47.059 truth and the life. No one comes to the Father 00:15:47.059 --> 00:15:56.840 but through me. Amen. You may be seated. As I 00:15:56.840 --> 00:15:59.639 said earlier, my aim this morning is to first 00:15:59.639 --> 00:16:02.120 show our similarities with the disciples and 00:16:02.120 --> 00:16:04.980 then we'll focus on Jesus as the way. There are 00:16:04.980 --> 00:16:07.039 so many good studies on the identity of Christ, 00:16:07.100 --> 00:16:09.159 doctrinal positions on salvation. This is one 00:16:09.159 --> 00:16:10.919 of those plugs I can give Jeff at Oak Hill Bible. 00:16:11.669 --> 00:16:14.129 He will lead you in a good way if you want to 00:16:14.129 --> 00:16:16.370 know more about the identity of Christ from those 00:16:16.370 --> 00:16:19.169 great works. But our focus this morning is much 00:16:19.169 --> 00:16:22.169 more narrow. It is much more narrow this morning. 00:16:22.509 --> 00:16:24.990 We are focusing on the context of Jesus' statement 00:16:24.990 --> 00:16:28.450 in the upper room in John 14, specifically what 00:16:28.450 --> 00:16:32.629 led up to him stating that he is the way, the 00:16:32.629 --> 00:16:35.549 truth, the life. And we're zeroing in on Jesus 00:16:35.549 --> 00:16:38.669 as the way. And there are three ways that I see 00:16:38.669 --> 00:16:41.840 the disciples missing Jesus. Necessitating that 00:16:41.840 --> 00:16:45.080 response from him where he says, I am the way. 00:16:45.220 --> 00:16:47.279 And we're going to cover all three by the time 00:16:47.279 --> 00:16:51.080 we wrap up today. Now in verse 33 of chapter 00:16:51.080 --> 00:16:54.519 13, did you see what Jesus said? He said, where 00:16:54.519 --> 00:16:57.620 I'm going, you cannot come. And he says the same 00:16:57.620 --> 00:17:00.519 thing again in verse 36. And in between those 00:17:00.519 --> 00:17:02.360 two statements about his departure, that he's 00:17:02.360 --> 00:17:04.319 going somewhere, the disciples not being able 00:17:04.319 --> 00:17:07.460 to follow him, Jesus gives a new commandment. 00:17:08.049 --> 00:17:11.109 A new commandment. And he'll explain that more 00:17:11.109 --> 00:17:13.549 in depth later that same evening. What's that 00:17:13.549 --> 00:17:17.849 new commandment? Love one another. What do we 00:17:17.849 --> 00:17:21.230 say at the end of our services? You know that 00:17:21.230 --> 00:17:22.650 one better than the new commandment. We might 00:17:22.650 --> 00:17:27.329 need to switch that. Love one another. You know 00:17:27.329 --> 00:17:29.289 what's interesting though? He gives a new commandment, 00:17:29.309 --> 00:17:31.390 but did the disciples ask about that new commandment? 00:17:34.890 --> 00:17:37.349 Now, instead of questioning Jesus about that 00:17:37.349 --> 00:17:39.369 new commandment, Peter says, Lord, where are 00:17:39.369 --> 00:17:44.190 you going? So the Lord replies. He even gives 00:17:44.190 --> 00:17:46.109 a distinction of time, right? And his second 00:17:46.109 --> 00:17:48.470 response is, where I'm going, you cannot follow 00:17:48.470 --> 00:17:55.289 me now, but you will follow later. Now, again, 00:17:55.349 --> 00:17:57.470 Peter could have asked about that new commandment. 00:17:57.549 --> 00:17:59.869 I mean, how often does a new commandment come? 00:18:01.289 --> 00:18:04.410 Is that a normal thing? Like Jesus just throwing 00:18:04.410 --> 00:18:06.890 around new commandments all the time? I don't 00:18:06.890 --> 00:18:10.430 think so if you read through the Gospels. But 00:18:10.430 --> 00:18:13.349 Peter's laser focused on not being able to follow 00:18:13.349 --> 00:18:17.470 Jesus right now. Then he gets bold. I'm going 00:18:17.470 --> 00:18:20.509 to lay down my life for you. Now, we need to 00:18:20.509 --> 00:18:24.269 not be unfairly hard on Peter, right? Yeah, he's 00:18:24.269 --> 00:18:26.910 the bold one. He's the one who often has that 00:18:26.910 --> 00:18:30.390 foot -shaped mouth, right? But he's also the 00:18:30.390 --> 00:18:33.970 first one to declare Jesus to be the Messiah. 00:18:35.430 --> 00:18:37.950 As I shared earlier in the calling of the disciples, 00:18:38.269 --> 00:18:40.549 he was the one who humbled himself before the 00:18:40.549 --> 00:18:44.670 Lord and recognized his sinfulness. He was the 00:18:44.670 --> 00:18:48.250 one. Peter's hubris, though, it's a lesson for 00:18:48.250 --> 00:18:50.410 us all. Paul says, 1 Corinthians 10, we'll be 00:18:50.410 --> 00:18:53.690 there in 2028. Therefore, let him who thinks 00:18:53.690 --> 00:19:00.329 he stands take heed, lest he... And the wonderful 00:19:00.329 --> 00:19:03.730 thing is that Peter eventually learned, you can 00:19:03.730 --> 00:19:05.910 read in his epistles, what changed in his outlook 00:19:05.910 --> 00:19:08.589 as a disciple of Christ. And I'm teasing, Jeff, 00:19:08.630 --> 00:19:10.390 we'll be there whenever we're ready. I would 00:19:10.390 --> 00:19:13.990 be excited if it's 2028. I'm in it for however 00:19:13.990 --> 00:19:17.829 long Lord has. Now here in John 13, Jesus shares 00:19:17.829 --> 00:19:20.410 something though that must have shocked and shook 00:19:20.410 --> 00:19:23.930 Peter. He publicly questions his allegiance. 00:19:25.230 --> 00:19:28.950 He tells Peter that he's going to deny his master 00:19:28.950 --> 00:19:33.670 not once, not twice, but three times. And how 00:19:33.670 --> 00:19:38.470 quick? Before the next morning. Think about that. 00:19:38.730 --> 00:19:40.549 Peter's saying, I'm going to die for you, Lord. 00:19:40.609 --> 00:19:42.769 And Jesus is like, no. Before tomorrow morning, 00:19:42.829 --> 00:19:47.250 you're going to deny me three times. Now, Mark 00:19:47.250 --> 00:19:50.490 14 gives a little more information about the 00:19:50.490 --> 00:19:53.420 disciples' response to this. He tells us that 00:19:53.420 --> 00:19:55.339 Peter and the disciples, they kept insisting 00:19:55.339 --> 00:19:57.640 that they would follow Jesus even to the death. 00:19:57.700 --> 00:20:00.599 So Jesus tells Peter this, and then Peter and 00:20:00.599 --> 00:20:01.900 the disciples are like, no, no, no, we really 00:20:01.900 --> 00:20:03.279 would. We would die for you. We're going to live 00:20:03.279 --> 00:20:06.319 for you, whatever you need. But we know how it 00:20:06.319 --> 00:20:09.500 turned out, don't we? We know the end of that 00:20:09.500 --> 00:20:12.880 part of the story. Peter would indeed deny knowing 00:20:12.880 --> 00:20:17.619 Jesus three times, would he not? Before the rooster 00:20:17.619 --> 00:20:21.259 crowed, like Jesus said. And then he would weep 00:20:21.259 --> 00:20:24.200 bitterly. Because he turned his back on the Savior 00:20:24.200 --> 00:20:26.319 of his soul in the most trying hour for Jesus. 00:20:27.140 --> 00:20:30.480 That's what happened. Do you see yourself in 00:20:30.480 --> 00:20:35.680 Peter? Think about it. Externally professing 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:40.779 faith unto death. I'll die with you. Inwardly 00:20:40.779 --> 00:20:44.180 though. Struggling with a feeble faith at times. 00:20:44.940 --> 00:20:48.180 You fear earthly consequences for things more 00:20:48.180 --> 00:20:56.079 than you fear the Lord who is over. I think in 00:20:56.079 --> 00:20:59.359 that moment, Peter made it more about his work, 00:20:59.559 --> 00:21:04.539 his response, than the work of the Lord. Don't 00:21:04.539 --> 00:21:08.400 we do that as well? We struggle to comprehend 00:21:08.400 --> 00:21:10.640 that Jesus alone saves. We try to insert our 00:21:10.640 --> 00:21:14.880 own merit. We say with our mouths, our songs, 00:21:14.980 --> 00:21:20.200 our sermons, only Jesus. And we say in our hearts, 00:21:20.299 --> 00:21:23.960 but I've done this and I've done that. I deserve 00:21:23.960 --> 00:21:30.420 this. Like Peter, we can make much of ourselves. 00:21:32.299 --> 00:21:34.180 Sadly, in response to the great things the Lord 00:21:34.180 --> 00:21:36.460 has done, we make our lives about what we think 00:21:36.460 --> 00:21:39.619 we should do. We fill our time with all manner 00:21:39.619 --> 00:21:43.839 of vapid things. We try to justify the few holy 00:21:43.839 --> 00:21:47.819 Christ -like things we do with those. As if a 00:21:47.819 --> 00:21:49.779 few moments of service every week is going to 00:21:49.779 --> 00:21:52.140 erase all the selfishness that happens throughout 00:21:52.140 --> 00:21:55.079 the week. Friends, we don't just need part of 00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:58.339 us washed clean. We need a new heart. We need 00:21:58.339 --> 00:22:02.240 resurrection from life to death. What an amazing 00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:07.430 truth that Jesus provides his merit for us. The 00:22:07.430 --> 00:22:09.990 way forward when we miss Jesus and we make things 00:22:09.990 --> 00:22:12.529 about what we've done or we think we can do is 00:22:12.529 --> 00:22:15.430 to go back to that first response of Peter when 00:22:15.430 --> 00:22:18.450 Jesus called him in Luke 5. The prayer should 00:22:18.450 --> 00:22:22.089 be something like this. Lord, I'm a sinner. I'm 00:22:22.089 --> 00:22:25.750 unworthy of your presence. Nothing I can do can 00:22:25.750 --> 00:22:30.349 atone for my sin. Rescue me. Save me. Redeem 00:22:30.349 --> 00:22:33.509 me. Give me a heart of flesh. Renew a steadfast 00:22:33.509 --> 00:22:37.859 spirit within me. Guide me by your word. Strengthen 00:22:37.859 --> 00:22:41.740 me by your spirit. Encourage me by your people. 00:22:42.680 --> 00:22:45.880 That should be our response every time that we 00:22:45.880 --> 00:22:49.319 are tempted to miss Jesus for our own personal 00:22:49.319 --> 00:22:53.319 merit. What a grace, though, that we're not judged 00:22:53.319 --> 00:22:58.000 by what we do. For those who are in Christ, you're 00:22:58.000 --> 00:23:01.410 judged by what he has done. If you're not in 00:23:01.410 --> 00:23:04.569 Christ, that judgment stands square on your shoulders. 00:23:05.910 --> 00:23:10.289 That's the grace. But think of this. Having walked 00:23:10.289 --> 00:23:13.329 with Jesus for all those years, as loyal as Peter 00:23:13.329 --> 00:23:17.190 was, even Peter didn't have the ability to remain 00:23:17.190 --> 00:23:20.650 steadfast to Jesus during the trial and crucifixion. 00:23:21.529 --> 00:23:25.549 Even Peter. We would not have fared any better. 00:23:26.990 --> 00:23:29.569 We need something greater than our works. We 00:23:29.569 --> 00:23:32.829 need someone greater than our works. We need 00:23:32.829 --> 00:23:40.410 a savior. After Jesus rebuked Peter, and even 00:23:40.410 --> 00:23:42.609 after he and the other disciples were insisting 00:23:42.609 --> 00:23:44.369 that they were willing to follow Jesus unto death, 00:23:44.529 --> 00:23:47.230 it became apparent to the Lord that the disciples 00:23:47.230 --> 00:23:51.470 were troubled. Their self -confidence, it was 00:23:51.470 --> 00:23:55.240 shaky at best, and rightfully so. Because if 00:23:55.240 --> 00:23:57.779 Jesus said that the boldest of them was going 00:23:57.779 --> 00:23:59.980 to deny him three times before the next morning, 00:24:00.039 --> 00:24:03.960 would any of them do any better? So in response, 00:24:04.279 --> 00:24:05.759 you know, you can just get a sense that they're 00:24:05.759 --> 00:24:08.480 just blustering. No, no, no, we will, we will, 00:24:08.519 --> 00:24:11.740 we will, surely we will. No, no, they won't. 00:24:12.920 --> 00:24:16.539 Jesus told his disciples in John 14, 1, don't 00:24:16.539 --> 00:24:20.339 let your hearts be troubled. He saw their resolve 00:24:20.339 --> 00:24:23.180 for what it was. They had confidence in the flesh. 00:24:23.869 --> 00:24:28.369 They didn't have conviction and faith. Now the 00:24:28.369 --> 00:24:31.549 answer from Jesus was to deal with a heart troubled 00:24:31.549 --> 00:24:35.230 by his departure was simple. Replace your fear 00:24:35.230 --> 00:24:40.109 of man with right faith in God. That's the answer. 00:24:41.009 --> 00:24:43.910 Replace your fear of man with the right faith 00:24:43.910 --> 00:24:46.869 in God. And now that faith in God is the same 00:24:46.869 --> 00:24:53.170 as faith in who? Jesus. Now, I know you might 00:24:53.170 --> 00:24:55.210 say this is just too simple. Don't be troubled. 00:24:55.569 --> 00:25:00.009 Just believe, right? I can't tell you how many 00:25:00.009 --> 00:25:03.210 people I've sat with who have wrestled with that 00:25:03.210 --> 00:25:06.430 thought. I can't tell you how many times I've 00:25:06.430 --> 00:25:08.529 prayed with, encouraged, walked with people through 00:25:08.529 --> 00:25:11.809 scripture. 20 plus years in ministry, I've seen 00:25:11.809 --> 00:25:16.269 similarities among all kinds of people. The issue 00:25:16.269 --> 00:25:19.710 here in John 14, one, is that Jesus is gonna 00:25:19.710 --> 00:25:22.390 depart. And the disciples aren't so sure that 00:25:22.390 --> 00:25:25.109 everything's going to be okay. That's the tension. 00:25:25.930 --> 00:25:29.650 Is everything going to be okay? They don't want 00:25:29.650 --> 00:25:31.930 him to go. They don't know what's going to happen 00:25:31.930 --> 00:25:34.769 next. So that idea of just believing, there's 00:25:34.769 --> 00:25:37.690 a tension there. Even though Jesus had already 00:25:37.690 --> 00:25:39.930 shared that he has a place for them, an eternal 00:25:39.930 --> 00:25:41.849 dwelling with the Father, that he's going to 00:25:41.849 --> 00:25:45.230 go get things ready. Just think about that for 00:25:45.230 --> 00:25:48.430 a moment. You put yourself, just try to bring 00:25:48.430 --> 00:25:52.579 the analogy down to your, to our level. It's 00:25:52.579 --> 00:25:55.579 like a friend who's telling you, hey, before 00:25:55.579 --> 00:25:58.319 you come over, I'm going to go back home and 00:25:58.319 --> 00:26:00.180 I'm going to make sure that I have clean sheets, 00:26:00.400 --> 00:26:03.440 a towel. I'm going to get some snacks for you. 00:26:03.700 --> 00:26:05.819 And then, and then, right, then you can come 00:26:05.819 --> 00:26:07.920 over. And I'm not trying to make that goofy, 00:26:07.940 --> 00:26:10.099 but do you understand how very basic that is 00:26:10.099 --> 00:26:12.539 for the Lord to say, I'm going to go and get 00:26:12.539 --> 00:26:14.900 this ready. And then when it's ready, then I'm 00:26:14.900 --> 00:26:18.900 going to bring you. He says in verse 14 too, 00:26:18.980 --> 00:26:22.079 he's going to get the place ready. And in 14 00:26:22.079 --> 00:26:24.900 .3, the very next verse, he says, I'm going to 00:26:24.900 --> 00:26:28.559 come back and receive you myself. So he's not 00:26:28.559 --> 00:26:30.400 even just going to go to his house and get things 00:26:30.400 --> 00:26:32.759 ready and then be at the front door waiting for 00:26:32.759 --> 00:26:35.880 you to arrive. He's going to go to the house, 00:26:35.940 --> 00:26:38.019 get things ready, and then he's going to come 00:26:38.019 --> 00:26:41.859 and get you and make sure you get there. He's 00:26:41.859 --> 00:26:45.299 going to bring you to his place. And so he says, 00:26:45.440 --> 00:26:49.140 don't worry. Don't worry. Don't be troubled. 00:26:50.640 --> 00:26:52.779 He has the confidence that you won't get lost. 00:26:53.579 --> 00:26:57.359 So you don't need that confidence. You need your 00:26:57.359 --> 00:27:01.000 confidence to be in him. And he tells his disciples, 00:27:01.119 --> 00:27:02.940 you know where the eternal resting place is. 00:27:04.140 --> 00:27:07.180 But in verse 5, Thomas, like Peter, like the 00:27:07.180 --> 00:27:10.059 disciples, like us, he expresses his trouble. 00:27:11.680 --> 00:27:15.980 Lord, we don't know where you're going. How do 00:27:15.980 --> 00:27:20.279 we know the way? Now, Thomas struggled more than 00:27:20.279 --> 00:27:22.740 that moment. Some of you know Thomas, Doubting 00:27:22.740 --> 00:27:25.440 Thomas, as we sometimes call him, right? He was 00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:27.579 a disciple after Jesus' resurrection. He would 00:27:27.579 --> 00:27:30.339 maybe boldly or foolishly, depending on the way 00:27:30.339 --> 00:27:32.779 you look at it, claim that he would not believe 00:27:32.779 --> 00:27:37.119 that Jesus rose from the dead unless he felt 00:27:37.119 --> 00:27:42.740 the pierced side and the pierced hands. You know, 00:27:42.740 --> 00:27:44.700 poor Thomas. Let's not be too hard on him either. 00:27:44.960 --> 00:27:46.460 If we're not going to be hard on Peter, let's 00:27:46.460 --> 00:27:49.009 not be too hard on Thomas. He's like that guy 00:27:49.009 --> 00:27:52.029 who just always wants the GPS location, you know? 00:27:52.930 --> 00:27:54.789 He doesn't want to just be pointed in the right 00:27:54.789 --> 00:27:56.789 direction. He doesn't just want the compass. 00:27:56.869 --> 00:28:00.130 He wants the detailed, turn -by -turn directions 00:28:00.130 --> 00:28:03.609 for how to get to Jesus. Now, maybe you're blessed 00:28:03.609 --> 00:28:06.210 and you're not directionally challenged. I mean, 00:28:06.250 --> 00:28:07.849 but how many of you appreciate a good map set? 00:28:07.890 --> 00:28:09.809 I do. I think that's a grace. You don't have 00:28:09.809 --> 00:28:13.170 to raise your hand. We trust. Especially if you've 00:28:13.170 --> 00:28:15.130 never been there, especially in LA. Good grief. 00:28:15.470 --> 00:28:18.440 Now, I'm old enough. to remember that when I 00:28:18.440 --> 00:28:20.599 learned to drive in those early years, we had 00:28:20.599 --> 00:28:23.740 those printed Thomas guides. Yeah, all right. 00:28:23.759 --> 00:28:26.400 Some of you know that. Thank you. But it wasn't 00:28:26.400 --> 00:28:29.619 for every city, right? Like, not every city had 00:28:29.619 --> 00:28:31.480 one. So I grew up in a small town. We didn't 00:28:31.480 --> 00:28:33.519 have one. So that was a whole other thing. But 00:28:33.519 --> 00:28:35.720 I had it when I got out of the small town. I 00:28:35.720 --> 00:28:37.759 think MapQuest was a thing back then, too. Remember 00:28:37.759 --> 00:28:39.539 going on MapQuest and you inputted things? You 00:28:39.539 --> 00:28:42.920 printed out. So you had like 18 pages with like 00:28:42.920 --> 00:28:46.079 three turns on each one. It was... It was rough. 00:28:46.220 --> 00:28:48.579 What a day, right? What a day. Now imagine in 00:28:48.579 --> 00:28:52.779 that day, if you got lost, whoo, gasp, you had 00:28:52.779 --> 00:28:55.500 to ask somebody. You had to talk to a human. 00:28:56.079 --> 00:28:59.000 Wow. Or you didn't, and then you just stayed 00:28:59.000 --> 00:29:01.519 lost, or you were blessed and you eventually 00:29:01.519 --> 00:29:04.000 found the place. You got back on track. Back 00:29:04.000 --> 00:29:06.460 in that day, you couldn't text someone, and you 00:29:06.460 --> 00:29:08.099 couldn't call them either because cell phones 00:29:08.099 --> 00:29:11.000 weren't even a thing. I think I got one after 00:29:11.000 --> 00:29:13.160 I learned how to drive. but we weren't even allowed 00:29:13.160 --> 00:29:15.099 to text on it because texting was like a per 00:29:15.099 --> 00:29:17.640 cost thing. It was lame. Now it's like free text 00:29:17.640 --> 00:29:19.839 and data, all that. Now, people didn't keep the 00:29:19.839 --> 00:29:21.559 phone next to them, even if you did have a cell 00:29:21.559 --> 00:29:23.380 phone. It's not like it lived on them like today. 00:29:23.440 --> 00:29:25.680 It's in our pockets all the time. Back then, 00:29:25.720 --> 00:29:28.039 it was the landline in the house. If they weren't 00:29:28.039 --> 00:29:30.420 sitting by it, heaven forbid, you don't get a 00:29:30.420 --> 00:29:35.720 hold of them, right? Imagine such a day. I can 00:29:35.720 --> 00:29:39.819 understand Thomas's desire for a step -by -step 00:29:39.819 --> 00:29:45.150 direction to the Lord. I think all of us, you 00:29:45.150 --> 00:29:48.230 know, to a degree, want that. I'll be honest, 00:29:48.309 --> 00:29:51.849 to this day, I use GPS for everything. My wife 00:29:51.849 --> 00:29:55.170 teases me. She's over here not judging me because 00:29:55.170 --> 00:29:58.309 I use it even for places that I've been, even 00:29:58.309 --> 00:30:01.210 places around town. Anyways, enough about me. 00:30:02.690 --> 00:30:04.990 Now, Thomas' statement, though, that they don't 00:30:04.990 --> 00:30:12.160 know the way, that wasn't exactly truthful. In 00:30:12.160 --> 00:30:16.059 fact, it was a bold -faced, disobedient lie. 00:30:18.039 --> 00:30:20.440 Now, I'm not being harsh on Thomas. I'm just 00:30:20.440 --> 00:30:22.960 being accurate. Look at what Jesus said right 00:30:22.960 --> 00:30:27.220 before Thomas in John chapter 14, verse 4. And 00:30:27.220 --> 00:30:33.940 you know the way where I am going. Let me ask, 00:30:34.099 --> 00:30:43.779 was Jesus lying? Did he tell the disciples they 00:30:43.779 --> 00:30:45.920 knew the way, but in reality they didn't know 00:30:45.920 --> 00:30:55.539 the way? Thomas' answer, he essentially tells 00:30:55.539 --> 00:31:00.299 Jesus he's a liar. Thomas argues with the Son 00:31:00.299 --> 00:31:04.859 of God. He tells the Savior of souls that he's 00:31:04.859 --> 00:31:10.299 wrong. That's what Thomas did. How often do we 00:31:10.299 --> 00:31:15.039 do the same? What about when we're uncertain 00:31:15.039 --> 00:31:17.799 about what God's going to do with our temporary 00:31:17.799 --> 00:31:22.400 future? With our trials, with our conflicts, 00:31:22.599 --> 00:31:27.380 with our suffering? Don't we often say we don't 00:31:27.380 --> 00:31:34.500 know what he's doing? Boldly at times? Don't 00:31:34.500 --> 00:31:37.640 we demand to know the details of our lives? The 00:31:37.640 --> 00:31:40.839 turn -by -turn directions for salvation rather 00:31:40.839 --> 00:31:43.599 than entrusting ourselves? to the true north 00:31:43.599 --> 00:31:47.720 compass that is Christ himself? Like Thomas, 00:31:47.839 --> 00:31:50.519 don't we demand proofs for God's work in our 00:31:50.519 --> 00:31:55.059 lives? Lord, give me a sign that I'm going the 00:31:55.059 --> 00:32:00.220 right way. I know we're all tempted like Thomas. 00:32:02.220 --> 00:32:06.180 We'd all rather see before believing, would we 00:32:06.180 --> 00:32:12.690 not? I get it. I'm tempted too. Wouldn't life 00:32:12.690 --> 00:32:15.890 be wonderfully easy if we had a roadmap to all 00:32:15.890 --> 00:32:18.769 the bumps and the turns displayed before us? 00:32:20.809 --> 00:32:23.269 We can go to the next slide, but I think we do 00:32:23.269 --> 00:32:27.529 often miss Jesus because we are so very demanding 00:32:27.529 --> 00:32:32.410 of all the details. Maybe if we had all those 00:32:32.410 --> 00:32:34.190 turn -by -turn directions, maybe life would be 00:32:34.190 --> 00:32:36.049 easier. I don't know. You know, I actually don't 00:32:36.049 --> 00:32:38.089 think it would be. If you knew what was going 00:32:38.089 --> 00:32:40.769 to happen, then you'd fret and worry over that. 00:32:41.259 --> 00:32:43.660 And then you spend all your time knowing what's 00:32:43.660 --> 00:32:44.859 going to happen, worrying about what's going 00:32:44.859 --> 00:32:46.380 to happen, but you can't stop it from happening? 00:32:46.900 --> 00:32:50.259 Would that really be better? You're like, maybe. 00:32:50.460 --> 00:32:53.319 I don't know. You know what it would lack, though? 00:32:54.259 --> 00:32:58.779 It would lack dependence. It would lack dependence. 00:33:00.579 --> 00:33:04.259 When we chase the details, we miss depending 00:33:04.259 --> 00:33:09.339 on the Savior. He never promised to easily chart 00:33:09.339 --> 00:33:13.180 our lives. What he did promise was to never leave 00:33:13.180 --> 00:33:16.099 us, to never forsake us. He promised that those 00:33:16.099 --> 00:33:19.960 whom he saves would be saved until the end. He 00:33:19.960 --> 00:33:22.160 promised that he would rescue those who humbly 00:33:22.160 --> 00:33:25.680 call upon his name for salvation. He promised 00:33:25.680 --> 00:33:30.240 redemption for the repentant. And none of that, 00:33:30.240 --> 00:33:33.339 none of that requires that we know all the details 00:33:33.339 --> 00:33:38.359 of our lives. Like Thomas, we need to learn that 00:33:38.759 --> 00:33:41.119 The compass of Christ is more important to believing 00:33:41.119 --> 00:33:46.420 than the chart of life's twists and turns. This 00:33:46.420 --> 00:33:48.880 is why the cure for a troubled heart is trust, 00:33:49.079 --> 00:33:54.980 belief, faith. Christ calls us to believe in 00:33:54.980 --> 00:33:58.740 him and to believe in God, to depend on him as 00:33:58.740 --> 00:34:02.440 we follow his way because the details are in 00:34:02.440 --> 00:34:06.319 his hands. The compass direction is in ours. 00:34:07.140 --> 00:34:13.050 See that? But even if we're pointed in the right 00:34:13.050 --> 00:34:16.829 direction, even if we have that compass, we still 00:34:16.829 --> 00:34:21.110 can get lost, right? We need to pivot briefly 00:34:21.110 --> 00:34:23.389 from John 14. I told you we're gonna end on Palm 00:34:23.389 --> 00:34:25.809 Sunday and we'll come back to John 14 as well. 00:34:26.130 --> 00:34:28.050 But we need to look at the nature of Palm Sunday. 00:34:29.050 --> 00:34:31.170 I am not trying to argue with Jeff, by the way, 00:34:31.190 --> 00:34:34.889 on this. We actually don't disagree on the interpretation. 00:34:35.050 --> 00:34:37.690 We agree, okay? I just don't have an issue with 00:34:37.690 --> 00:34:39.070 the designation. That's the only difference. 00:34:39.849 --> 00:34:41.670 But we agree, it's a tradition, and it's one 00:34:41.670 --> 00:34:43.889 that does not break fellowship. How does it relate 00:34:43.889 --> 00:34:45.590 to our study so far, though? How does it relate? 00:34:45.690 --> 00:34:48.630 Let's set the stage for this. Prior to that upper 00:34:48.630 --> 00:34:50.409 room, that upper room happens later in the week, 00:34:50.429 --> 00:34:52.429 but prior to that, there's a situation that happens 00:34:52.429 --> 00:34:55.530 that many of you are familiar with. Jesus raises 00:34:55.530 --> 00:35:02.190 Lazarus from the dead. Incredible feat. Literally, 00:35:02.230 --> 00:35:05.769 dead for days, and he raises him to life. And 00:35:05.769 --> 00:35:07.590 he does that in the city of Bethany, not too 00:35:07.590 --> 00:35:09.409 far. I'm going to leave the map stuff to Jeff, 00:35:09.449 --> 00:35:11.550 so I didn't even bother with that one. Green, 00:35:11.769 --> 00:35:13.789 purple, orange dot. I don't know. He'll figure 00:35:13.789 --> 00:35:17.010 it out for you. But it's not very far away. And 00:35:17.010 --> 00:35:19.530 he raises Lazarus from the dead in Bethany. Remember, 00:35:19.750 --> 00:35:23.230 Lazarus has two that we know of, siblings, Mary 00:35:23.230 --> 00:35:26.610 and Martha. Good job, Martha, Martha, Martha. 00:35:26.789 --> 00:35:30.730 Some of you know that. Well, I could tell who 00:35:30.730 --> 00:35:33.510 was laughing at that one because you younger 00:35:33.510 --> 00:35:36.369 people didn't know that one at all. Yeah, it's 00:35:36.369 --> 00:35:39.969 Marsha, Marsha, Marsha. Anyways, okay. This is 00:35:39.969 --> 00:35:43.090 right before his entry into Jerusalem. He raises 00:35:43.090 --> 00:35:46.789 Lazarus from the dead, and then he stays with 00:35:46.789 --> 00:35:49.170 them, and Mary anoints his feet with that costly 00:35:49.170 --> 00:35:53.110 oil. Remember that one of the disciples was very 00:35:53.110 --> 00:35:56.389 burdened by the cost of it? Now, a crowd had 00:35:56.389 --> 00:35:59.070 gathered at the home because Lazarus was dead. 00:35:59.349 --> 00:36:01.809 They had already, it was already a done deal, 00:36:01.849 --> 00:36:05.340 and then he's raised alive. They want to say, 00:36:05.380 --> 00:36:09.360 is this true? They wanted to see this prophet 00:36:09.360 --> 00:36:13.559 who brought a man back to life. Now Lazarus, 00:36:13.559 --> 00:36:16.019 he drew heat from those priests, those chief 00:36:16.019 --> 00:36:18.059 priests. They wanted to put Lazarus to death 00:36:18.059 --> 00:36:21.300 even because they didn't want proof of this amazing 00:36:21.300 --> 00:36:24.579 miracle. They weren't just believing in Jesus 00:36:24.579 --> 00:36:27.820 because Lazarus was raised. They were believing 00:36:27.820 --> 00:36:30.400 in Jesus because Lazarus was giving testimony 00:36:30.400 --> 00:36:35.320 about who Jesus is. Both that miracle and coming 00:36:35.320 --> 00:36:38.960 back to life, the one who did it. So that crowd's 00:36:38.960 --> 00:36:42.099 there. This is important for us to note. It's 00:36:42.099 --> 00:36:46.219 that crowd who was there to see this Jesus and 00:36:46.219 --> 00:36:49.380 this miracle that he did that lays down these 00:36:49.380 --> 00:36:53.739 branches, that lays down their coats, that says, 00:36:53.860 --> 00:36:57.559 Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name 00:36:57.559 --> 00:37:02.000 of the Lord, even the king of Israel. Do you 00:37:02.000 --> 00:37:08.690 remember what Hosanna means? Save us. Save us. 00:37:10.030 --> 00:37:12.489 The people were hearing this incredible testimony 00:37:12.489 --> 00:37:16.269 of a man who was brought from death back to life. 00:37:16.670 --> 00:37:19.809 They're getting ready for Passover. They've been 00:37:19.809 --> 00:37:22.110 struggling under Roman rule. They're so weary, 00:37:22.210 --> 00:37:26.510 God has been silent. They cry out for salvation 00:37:26.510 --> 00:37:30.449 to the right person because there's no other 00:37:30.449 --> 00:37:33.889 name given under heaven by which we must be saved. 00:37:35.949 --> 00:37:38.190 but what happens to Jesus in just a few days? 00:37:40.670 --> 00:37:44.489 On Palm Sunday, they welcomed him like Zechariah 00:37:44.489 --> 00:37:47.530 9 says. Even though John is clear, he says, it 00:37:47.530 --> 00:37:50.230 wasn't until after Jesus' ascension that we understood 00:37:50.230 --> 00:37:55.150 this. Zechariah 9 says, Rejoice greatly, O daughter 00:37:55.150 --> 00:37:58.409 of Zion. Make a loud shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. 00:37:59.230 --> 00:38:03.510 Behold, your king is coming to you. He is righteous 00:38:03.510 --> 00:38:07.880 and endowed with salvation. lowly and mounted 00:38:07.880 --> 00:38:14.099 on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a pack 00:38:14.099 --> 00:38:19.739 animal. He was welcomed like a king on Sunday, 00:38:19.840 --> 00:38:23.500 but by Thursday night, he would be betrayed, 00:38:23.679 --> 00:38:29.320 arrested, and put on trial. And by Friday, less 00:38:29.320 --> 00:38:32.320 than a week, Jesus, the son of the living God, 00:38:32.750 --> 00:38:35.309 the one to whom they cried, save us, Hosanna, 00:38:35.429 --> 00:38:39.269 just days earlier, by Friday, the crowd's chance, 00:38:39.329 --> 00:38:43.809 the same crowd would change from save us to crucify 00:38:43.809 --> 00:38:52.130 him. How tragically quick did those cries change? 00:38:54.010 --> 00:38:59.130 From salvation to condemnation in less than a 00:38:59.130 --> 00:39:08.360 week. Friends, are we that different? I'm not 00:39:08.360 --> 00:39:10.840 trying to imbue you with false guilt or to engender 00:39:10.840 --> 00:39:14.199 some kind of emotional response right now. I'm 00:39:14.199 --> 00:39:17.639 just appealing to your own sense of self. Are 00:39:17.639 --> 00:39:23.099 we not just as fickle? In our moments of hardship, 00:39:23.400 --> 00:39:28.119 we beg the Lord to rescue us. We even offer him 00:39:28.119 --> 00:39:31.480 deals for his mercy. Lord, if you heal me, if 00:39:31.480 --> 00:39:33.360 you get me through this, if you rescue my loved 00:39:33.360 --> 00:39:37.099 one, I'll do anything for you. I'll come to church 00:39:37.099 --> 00:39:41.280 regularly. I'll serve regularly. I'll read my 00:39:41.280 --> 00:39:47.400 Bible daily. I'll tell people about you. You 00:39:47.400 --> 00:39:49.920 know what? The Lord is so kind to us. Not because 00:39:49.920 --> 00:39:52.360 of the deals that we make. No, in spite of those. 00:39:52.500 --> 00:39:54.739 He just tends to be more kind than we can imagine 00:39:54.739 --> 00:39:58.079 because we often get through the hardships. We 00:39:58.079 --> 00:40:00.280 often get through the difficulties and then what 00:40:00.280 --> 00:40:03.300 about those promises that we made under duress? 00:40:04.619 --> 00:40:09.920 We forget. We go on being selfish, continuing 00:40:09.920 --> 00:40:13.760 in some kind of sin. We presume upon the kindness 00:40:13.760 --> 00:40:17.119 of the Lord. We expect him to forgive because 00:40:17.119 --> 00:40:20.400 how could he even expect us to fulfill our end 00:40:20.400 --> 00:40:26.139 of the deal? Sometimes, friends, Jesus... He 00:40:26.139 --> 00:40:28.360 shows us exactly who he is and what he's doing. 00:40:28.820 --> 00:40:31.300 Like in the case of Lazarus, bring the dead to 00:40:31.300 --> 00:40:33.000 life. The case of his earthly ministry, healing 00:40:33.000 --> 00:40:37.559 the sick. Cleansing sinners. And we still, we 00:40:37.559 --> 00:40:39.860 still, we get this beautiful picture of his declaration 00:40:39.860 --> 00:40:44.860 from his lips, by his actions. And we still get 00:40:44.860 --> 00:40:52.519 lost. You know, the crowd wanted a good thing. 00:40:53.769 --> 00:40:56.250 They wanted their conquering king who would free 00:40:56.250 --> 00:40:59.429 them from a life of misery. But they didn't know 00:40:59.429 --> 00:41:03.070 what they were asking for. And go to the next 00:41:03.070 --> 00:41:06.869 slide, Josiah. And their excitement over Lazarus 00:41:06.869 --> 00:41:09.730 returning from the dead, they really forced an 00:41:09.730 --> 00:41:13.289 opportunity to crown Christ. But the crowd, they 00:41:13.289 --> 00:41:18.070 only crowned him for that day. They didn't crown 00:41:18.070 --> 00:41:22.880 him in their hearts. That's true. You know, sometimes 00:41:22.880 --> 00:41:26.159 we want the right Jesus, but for the wrong reason. 00:41:27.800 --> 00:41:30.400 We think our way is best. We want to usher Jesus 00:41:30.400 --> 00:41:33.719 into a situation to rescue it, to redeem it. 00:41:34.079 --> 00:41:36.400 And we miss that he didn't come to this earth 00:41:36.400 --> 00:41:38.519 and live a perfect, obedient life and suffer 00:41:38.519 --> 00:41:41.639 egregiously as an innocent one to be put to death 00:41:41.639 --> 00:41:45.320 and to rise again just so our situations could 00:41:45.320 --> 00:41:49.440 be a little bit better. He didn't come to make 00:41:49.440 --> 00:41:53.599 our pathway in life easier. He came to obey the 00:41:53.599 --> 00:41:57.239 father. He came to make a way for his people, 00:41:57.320 --> 00:42:01.239 the people that his father has chosen to be saved. 00:42:02.420 --> 00:42:07.920 And he did it. People want Jesus to be king in 00:42:07.920 --> 00:42:11.280 their hour of need, but people, people like us, 00:42:11.340 --> 00:42:14.320 we get lost. We lose our sense of direction, 00:42:14.460 --> 00:42:16.460 even when it's given to us. That's our heart. 00:42:16.639 --> 00:42:19.579 That's our struggle. That's why Thomas would 00:42:19.579 --> 00:42:23.099 even consider with Jesus, like, come on, dude, 00:42:23.199 --> 00:42:28.179 why would you argue with him? Right? But wouldn't 00:42:28.179 --> 00:42:32.679 we do the same? Haven't we done the same? But 00:42:32.679 --> 00:42:36.400 Lord, did you really say this? Can I really be 00:42:36.400 --> 00:42:41.940 saved from that? Will I endure and get through? 00:42:45.159 --> 00:42:47.840 So we find ourselves back in John 14 as we wrap 00:42:47.840 --> 00:42:54.820 up. Jesus responding, to Thomas. John 14, 6, 00:42:55.000 --> 00:42:58.800 Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth 00:42:58.800 --> 00:43:03.679 and the life. No one comes to the Father but 00:43:03.679 --> 00:43:07.860 through me. Throughout this morning, we've seen 00:43:07.860 --> 00:43:11.219 how we miss Jesus by focusing on merit. We've 00:43:11.219 --> 00:43:14.619 seen how we miss Jesus by demanding details and 00:43:14.619 --> 00:43:19.630 how we miss Jesus by getting lost. How do we 00:43:19.630 --> 00:43:28.250 see Jesus as the way? Believe. Trust and obey. 00:43:28.789 --> 00:43:30.829 Some of you know that song, There's No Better 00:43:30.829 --> 00:43:34.050 Way. You say, shouldn't there be more to it? 00:43:34.690 --> 00:43:37.030 Aren't there more turn -by -turn GPS directions 00:43:37.030 --> 00:43:43.070 to this? Look at John 14 .1. Do not let your 00:43:43.070 --> 00:43:47.289 heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also 00:43:47.289 --> 00:43:51.239 in me. The cure for a troubled heart that's wondering 00:43:51.239 --> 00:43:57.940 where Jesus is, what he's doing, trust him. Believe 00:43:57.940 --> 00:44:03.300 him. He's not only preparing the place for you, 00:44:03.360 --> 00:44:06.820 he's gonna come back and ensure that we get there. 00:44:07.679 --> 00:44:11.820 So why are you so worried? Why are you so troubled? 00:44:13.039 --> 00:44:16.219 Think about it like this. Our friend, he left 00:44:16.219 --> 00:44:19.230 here to go get his place ready. And you're so 00:44:19.230 --> 00:44:21.289 worried he's not going to come back. But don't 00:44:21.289 --> 00:44:24.329 you know him? Don't you know him? He always tells 00:44:24.329 --> 00:44:28.309 the truth. He never lies. He cares for his people 00:44:28.309 --> 00:44:32.329 more than we care for ourselves. We can just 00:44:32.329 --> 00:44:34.510 start walking in the direction. We know it's 00:44:34.510 --> 00:44:37.489 that way. Let's just start walking because before 00:44:37.489 --> 00:44:40.389 we know it, he's going to be coming back, picking 00:44:40.389 --> 00:44:43.090 us up, and we're going to arrive at the right 00:44:43.090 --> 00:44:49.599 time, at the right place, by his purpose. Now, 00:44:49.599 --> 00:44:52.860 even if trouble befalls us along that way, even 00:44:52.860 --> 00:44:55.860 if that journey has all kinds of twists and turns 00:44:55.860 --> 00:44:58.320 that we didn't anticipate, we can trust that 00:44:58.320 --> 00:45:02.239 he will help us see it through to the end because 00:45:02.239 --> 00:45:08.119 he's faithful. Because he's faithful. When you 00:45:08.119 --> 00:45:10.760 think about Jesus as the way, I think it's that 00:45:10.760 --> 00:45:15.079 last part of John 14, 6 that necessarily explains 00:45:15.079 --> 00:45:19.400 it well. He says, No one comes to the Father 00:45:19.400 --> 00:45:23.659 but through him. And so if you've heard none 00:45:23.659 --> 00:45:25.719 of those three main points that are on the screen 00:45:25.719 --> 00:45:28.360 today, that's fine. I labored very hard on those. 00:45:28.500 --> 00:45:32.219 I want you to know. But for the Lord, if you 00:45:32.219 --> 00:45:35.179 just want that simple tagline to understand that 00:45:35.179 --> 00:45:38.019 Jesus is the way, it's the one that I preemptively 00:45:38.019 --> 00:45:42.059 showed you already. Jesus came to show us the 00:45:42.059 --> 00:45:47.019 direction to secure our destination. Or in other 00:45:47.019 --> 00:45:50.440 words, Jesus is the way to the Father's eternal 00:45:50.440 --> 00:45:55.159 glory. Now I know some people struggle with the 00:45:55.159 --> 00:45:59.320 exclusivity of Jesus as the only way. And maybe 00:45:59.320 --> 00:46:01.599 they want multiple options for their loved ones 00:46:01.599 --> 00:46:05.380 who do not know Jesus as Lord. But the exclusivity 00:46:05.380 --> 00:46:08.980 of Jesus should not bring fear or a troubled 00:46:08.980 --> 00:46:13.079 heart. It should bring hope. Think of how overwhelming 00:46:13.079 --> 00:46:17.219 a menu like Cheesecake Factory is. is like so 00:46:17.219 --> 00:46:20.059 many things. What do you choose? You don't know. 00:46:20.780 --> 00:46:22.880 If you haven't been, go, and then you'll see 00:46:22.880 --> 00:46:26.099 what I'm talking about. Now, maybe you have less 00:46:26.099 --> 00:46:28.179 risk of getting it wrong if you go to In -N -Out, 00:46:28.320 --> 00:46:32.719 right? You're narrowed, right? But with Jesus, 00:46:32.760 --> 00:46:38.039 it's even more clear. There is one way. One way. 00:46:38.940 --> 00:46:41.340 Do you wonder how one can be saved and rescued 00:46:41.340 --> 00:46:43.519 from this world? You want that answer? Wonder 00:46:43.519 --> 00:46:46.150 no more. Wonder no more, it's through Christ. 00:46:46.730 --> 00:46:50.230 Do you long for all the wrongs to be made right? 00:46:50.969 --> 00:46:53.010 Are you yearning for that day? You don't need 00:46:53.010 --> 00:46:57.289 to long anymore. Turn to Jesus. Do you want to 00:46:57.289 --> 00:47:00.090 see eternal days without any sin? Is that what 00:47:00.090 --> 00:47:04.329 you want to aim for? Such a desire is fulfilled 00:47:04.329 --> 00:47:11.429 by the Messiah. Come, follow him. The uniqueness 00:47:11.429 --> 00:47:14.190 of Jesus is the only way. That's a safeguard 00:47:14.190 --> 00:47:17.409 for all hope. There's only one way to the everlasting 00:47:17.409 --> 00:47:23.869 Father, and it is through Christ. As we've gone 00:47:23.869 --> 00:47:26.050 throughout this morning looking at the disciples 00:47:26.050 --> 00:47:28.670 struggling with his departure, which will be 00:47:28.670 --> 00:47:31.670 very soon, and the crowds being so fickle with 00:47:31.670 --> 00:47:34.070 their demands, I really pray that you've considered 00:47:34.070 --> 00:47:37.250 yourself. I know I have. I know I saw myself. 00:47:37.690 --> 00:47:41.230 I know I saw my shortcomings, how I miss Jesus. 00:47:42.860 --> 00:47:46.940 The question is, how will you follow him? So 00:47:46.940 --> 00:47:48.699 to the fellow church members and believers here, 00:47:48.840 --> 00:47:53.480 let's help one another keep our compasses pointed 00:47:53.480 --> 00:47:57.099 the right direction. Let's encourage one another 00:47:57.099 --> 00:47:59.880 when we don't have the MapQuest turn -by -turn 00:47:59.880 --> 00:48:03.400 directions. Let's remind one another where we're 00:48:03.400 --> 00:48:08.559 going, who we're following. Now, if you're new 00:48:08.559 --> 00:48:10.300 here this morning, new to our church, or new 00:48:10.300 --> 00:48:12.880 to the idea of Jesus is the way, Please, come 00:48:12.880 --> 00:48:14.559 talk to one of our elders. They're the really 00:48:14.559 --> 00:48:22.000 tall, older guys. Myself, Jeff, a younger, tall 00:48:22.000 --> 00:48:25.599 guy over here. Come talk to any church member, 00:48:25.699 --> 00:48:27.840 too. Please, church members, be willing to talk 00:48:27.840 --> 00:48:30.659 to anyone new about this. Because today could 00:48:30.659 --> 00:48:33.639 be the day that you begin to walk in Jesus' way. 00:48:33.739 --> 00:48:36.880 And I would pray that that would be the case. 00:48:37.820 --> 00:48:40.000 Now, you guys have gotten used to it in Ecclesiastes, 00:48:40.039 --> 00:48:42.039 so I figured, why not? Why not give you some 00:48:42.039 --> 00:48:44.460 questions at the end? Because it's fun, right? 00:48:44.980 --> 00:48:46.780 So there's some questions on the end for you 00:48:46.780 --> 00:48:50.420 to consider. Take a screenshot or memorize it. 00:48:50.599 --> 00:48:52.619 But think about what we've walked through today. 00:48:53.019 --> 00:48:55.159 And in a moment, I'm going to pray for us as 00:48:55.159 --> 00:48:57.659 we transition to songs of response and praise. 00:49:36.489 --> 00:49:42.210 All right, friends, let's pray. God, we ask that 00:49:42.210 --> 00:49:45.610 you would help us see how we miss Jesus. We know 00:49:45.610 --> 00:49:48.469 the disciples struggled similarly and we are 00:49:48.469 --> 00:49:51.510 no exception. So please, would you help us? Help 00:49:51.510 --> 00:49:54.530 us with our blind spots. Help us with what we 00:49:54.530 --> 00:49:57.969 don't see and allow us to see. Allow us to see 00:49:57.969 --> 00:50:02.829 the Savior rightly. And more than seeing even, 00:50:02.949 --> 00:50:08.110 Father, help us. to trust when we don't see. 00:50:09.130 --> 00:50:12.110 Help us to believe when we don't have the ability 00:50:12.110 --> 00:50:16.289 to touch and to see right here, right now. Help 00:50:16.289 --> 00:50:19.469 us to take you at your word and to believe you 00:50:19.469 --> 00:50:24.369 at your word. Help us to be more okay going your 00:50:24.369 --> 00:50:27.210 direction than knowing all the twists and the 00:50:27.210 --> 00:50:31.050 turns of our lives. Help us to faithfully walk 00:50:31.050 --> 00:50:33.309 towards Christ because we know where he's going 00:50:33.309 --> 00:50:37.599 to lead us. to that eternal dwelling. So would 00:50:37.599 --> 00:50:40.719 you grow our faith this Passion Week that we 00:50:40.719 --> 00:50:43.840 would be more confident in Jesus than we ever 00:50:43.840 --> 00:50:46.739 have been, not because of us in spite of us, 00:50:46.820 --> 00:50:51.500 but because of him, he is able. Break our hearts 00:50:51.500 --> 00:50:54.280 from our sin and those things that tear us away 00:50:54.280 --> 00:50:57.699 from your way and then build us up in Christ. 00:50:58.699 --> 00:51:02.599 Strengthen us by your spirit. Instruct us by 00:51:02.599 --> 00:51:07.940 your word. And help us to hope, to hope in Christ. 00:51:08.019 --> 00:51:10.900 We will not be put to shame if our hope is in 00:51:10.900 --> 00:51:14.320 him. So help us now even to allow our tongues 00:51:14.320 --> 00:51:17.460 to confess. But more than that, may our lives 00:51:17.460 --> 00:51:22.739 show that Christ indeed is king. And he's king 00:51:22.739 --> 00:51:26.380 according to his declaration, not our perception. 00:51:27.280 --> 00:51:30.000 May we learn what that means, that he is the 00:51:30.000 --> 00:51:34.340 only way to an eternal hope. We pray this in 00:51:34.340 --> 00:51:35.800 his name. Amen.