|
Sermon 20
Sermon by John Metcalfe at Wonersh on 6th March 2005
I Am the Way, The Truth and The Life
Readings: John 14: 1-14 (p.1082)
Let’s pray: “May the words of my mouth, and the thoughts of all our hearts, bring us closer to you, our Lord and Saviour. Amen.”
Good evening. A couple of years ago the Algerian President Muhammed Boudiaf was assassinated by Moslem fundamentalists. And according to Newsweek, seconds before he was murdered he said this, "The life of human beings is very short. We are all going to die. Why should we cling to so much power?" It’s a good question. And isn’t it a pity that he didn't have enough time to find an answer. But we have. Life’s a journey – it has a beginning and an end – birth and death. That much is certain … and what happens in between is the unpredictable, exciting part. For some of us the bit in-between is now relatively short … but for others, it is a lot longer. Except that no-one can be sure of that. We’re all travellers somewhere on that journey – forever on the move, learning, growing, changing.
Some people treat life like a mystery tour. They don't care where they’re going … as long as the journey is long, and there’s lots of fun along the way – to travel is more exciting than to arrive. You can call me boring, but I do like to know where I’m going before I set off! … I feel safe out here, so I’ll tell you a story, even if it is Mother’s Day! Once upon a time, my wife, with her friend Sue Legg, took daughter Bex over to Tipton in the West Midlands, where she was working at a church with Oasis. The journey there went fine, but on the way back there was a certain amount of talking going on, but the motorway home was easy to follow, even though they weren’t sure which exit lead to Sue Legg’s home. But a decision had to be made when the M42 joined the M40 – do we go North and South? Well one of them had to be right, so an urgent debate lead to a rapid decision. But it was the wrong one, and so they headed off north up the east side of Birmingham when home sweet home lay to the south. It was a few miles before there was an opportunity to stop and call home, and some very heated words were exchanged when their request for directions was met with gales of laughter – “you’re where?” Which just goes to show that it helps to know where you’re going. It’s good to know how to get home. Jesus tells us in this reading that our home is heaven, but we’ve forgotten how to get there – we’ve lost our way.
That was one relatively short journey. For most of us, life is a far longer journey, and it’s even more important to know where we’re going. Jesus told his followers that He must soon leave them – that He was going to die. He tells them where heaven is and how to get there … he seems to assume that his friends knew where heaven is. But they didn't, and good old Thomas, always one to voice his misunderstandings and doubts, was honest enough to ask: "Where are you going? Why can't we follow you now? And Jesus replies: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 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."
Have you ever been tempted to buy one to those little global positioning receivers – you often see them at airport shops? It’s about the size of a portable telephone and it’s linked to satellites orbiting the earth. It has a little screen which displays a map showing your exact location anywhere in the world – not bad for less than £400 … You need never get lost again. In this passage Jesus is explaining the way to heaven. He describes heaven as if it’s a splendid stop-over on a journey, like a caravanserai at an oasis on a camel route, or a staging inn like the Angel in Guildford on the old stagecoach routes. Jesus was pinpointing heaven as somewhere as real as any place on a map. "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." He was giving us a roadmap – “the way and the truth and the life” – they’re like three grid references on a map, or the satellite co-ordinates on a global positioning receiver – they show us the way to heaven. Let’s stop and think about these great claims for a few minutes.
1. I AM THE WAY Life is a journey, and we’re all travellers, and in the course of our long journey we pass through many different places. Sometimes it’s safe; sometimes it’s scary; sometimes it seems we’re in a desert – perhaps you feel that way right now. And sooner or later we all get lost … and then we need someone to show us the way. In verse 2, Jesus tells his disciples that he’s going to prepare a place in heaven for them – he’s going on ahead to show them the way – he’s a trailblazer. One of the recurring thoughts in the New Testament is that Jesus goes on in front for us to follow. One of the Greek words used to describe Jesus is prodromos, which in this version of the bible is usually translated as “the one who went before us” – in the Authorised version it is “forerunner”. In the Roman army, the prodromoi were the reconnaissance troops who went ahead of the army to blaze the trail and ensure that it was safe from ambush for the rest of the troops. In another example – the harbour of Alexandria had a very difficult approach, so when the big corn ships approached it, a little pilot boat went out to guide them along the channel into safe waters of the harbour. That little pilot boat was called the prodromos – it went first so that others could follow in safety. Jesus is our prodromos – he showed us the way to God so that we might follow in his footsteps.
Have you ever been lost in a strange town – it often happens to me, I’ve been lost all over the world – usually in a hired car, looking for a hotel, and it’s always dark. You find someone and ask for directions, and he might say something like: “take the first right, cross the square and go down beside the pub, then take the second left, third right, go through 4 sets of traffic lights, turn left by the supermarket and it’s 100 yards down on the right.” “You can’t miss it!” And it’s even worse if it’s in a language that you don’t understand. … Wouldn’t it be so much easier if he said: “I’m in no hurry, let me get in beside you and I’ll show you the way.” That’s what Jesus does for us – he doesn’t just give advice and directions, but he takes us and guides us. He doesn’t tell us about the way; he is the way.
2. I AM THE TRUTH Then Jesus said “I am the truth”. Have you ever had someone stop to ask you for directions, and you know where they want to get to, but you can’t think of a route that you can describe adequately to get them from here to there. You feel that you want to say: “If I was goin there, I wouldn’t be starting from ere!”. If the way is like the road, then the truth is like the route map. You can be on the right road, but be going in the wrong direction, like Sue and her friend Sue on the motorway. You can believe in Jesus, give to charity, attend church, try to live a good life, even be a vicar, but that’s not the same as following Jesus. So where do we find the route map to heaven?
The road to heaven starts at the foot of the cross. Jesus is the way, and His teaching in the Bible is the truth – it’s our map, and the cross is like our compass, which makes sense of everything else. Did you know that the average shelf life of books these days is 6 weeks – of course the best sellers stay for longer, but the rest have their chance … and then get pulped … and forgotten. But this book is still a best seller and has been going strong for many hundreds of years in one form or another. Why do you suppose that is? … It’s because eternal truth is always contemporary – it doesn’t have a sell-by date – it’s always relevant. And that’s not only because Jesus is the Way to Heaven. But also because He’s the Truth – the right route to Heaven. And Jesus promised us more than that. He didn’t say "Follow my example, read my book, bye for now, see you there, hope you make it." … Jesus said "I am the Way, and the Truth and the Life."
3. I AM THE LIFE So, what does Jesus mean when he says: "I am the Life"? Jesus was distinctive and he was able to do what no one else could. All of the major world religions agree that the world is in a mess, and most say similar things about how we should live our lives, … but each has its own way of trying to deal with our desperate situation. Imagine we have a problem that we can represent as having fallen down a deep well.
First comes Mohammed, who looks over the top of the well and applies the Muslim prescription to life: "Keep the five rules of Islam and then you’ll be able to escape from the well – pray five times a day, eat no pork, drink no alcohol, keep the feast of Ramadan, and make a pilgrimage to Mecca." The trouble is, we only have own strength to keep these commandments, and after a few steps we fall back again and continue our cries for help.
Then along comes Buddha, who looks over the top of the well and in a similar fashion says: "I see you’re in a mess; the problem is a result of pain and desire. If you follow the noble eightfold path you will ultimately escape into Nirvana." But we’re still stuck down the well!
Christianity is unique, because when God comes to the top of the well and looks down, he says, "I can see you’re in a mess; and you’ll never get out through your own resources. I’ll let down a rope and come into the well myself to rescue you. And I’ll hold you firmly because you don’t even have the strength to hold on to me yourself." Do you ever see that Rescue program that’s on TV at 7 p.m. each week – the lifeguard goes into the water to make the rescue, and the helicopter winch man goes down on his rope to pluck you from the waves or the cliff. Only Christianity speaks of a God becoming one of us to rescue us, because he recognises our weakness. Other religions say we must work hard to deliver ourselves. They are all effort … Christianity is all grace. Jesus promised his disciples: "I will come back and take you to be with me." And He did, and He continues to. Jesus has shown us by his death and resurrection that death is not the end of the journey. We were created for eternal life, a living relationship with God as our Father. “No-one comes to the Father except through me.”
Well? Is it Foolish to believe? … Or Foolish to ignore? The answer is yours. It’s for each of us to make our own decision. I started off by quoting Muhammed Boudiaf: "The life of human beings is very short. We’re all going to die. Why should we cling so much to power?" Perhaps it’s because we’re insecure – there’s no absolute proof that Jesus will save us – we have to believe it – it depends on faith. Do you remember the missionary, Jim Elliott, who was murdered along with five other young men trying to help the feared Acuwa Indians in South America? Before he was killed he wrote this in his diary: "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose." You might feel a fool for thinking about becoming a Christian, afraid of what your friends or colleagues might say – but think about the consequences. Maybe you’ve been a Christian for many years … but only half-heartedly. Think of what Jim Elliot said: "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose." Following Jesus involves entrusting our life with all its warts and wrinkles to Him, a life which we cannot keep anyway, and in return receiving Jesus’ life, his wisdom, his values, in ours, and that’s a life we can never, ever lose. Jesus is the one through whom we can experience the life we were created for, destined for, both now and for eternity. In the midst of life's uncertainties, joys and tragedies, as well as the sheer tedium of daily existence, Jesus comes alongside us with His arms open wide with this promise: "Come unto me all who are weary from life's journey, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." May you find that rest today.
Let’s pray: “Loving Lord Jesus, we know that we can’t get out of the well in our own strength, we need you to come in and help us out. We’re in all sorts of situations that we want to put behind us, but when we try to start over, we fall back into the well. Please help us – we bring before you now those things that we would like to change in our lives, but we don’t have the strength to do on our own. We thank you that you’re there for us, for the promises that you’ve made to us, … and we ask you for the faith and devotion that we need to follow your way, and your truth, that we may have your life, both temporal and eternal. We are weary from life’s journey, so grant us your rest. Amen”
www.wonershchurch.com