Jesus—our way

TODAY’S SPECIAL: John 14:1-14

TO CHEW ON: “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’” John 14:6

Jesus’ statement here is rich with meaning. Today let’s drill down into just one part of it. How is Jesus the way? To what? To where?

Jesus is the way through…

In the Old Testament an Israelite priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year. He entered through a protective veil that separated the Holy of Holies (where the ark was kept) from the rest of the tabernacle and later the temple.

This was a dangerous place to enter, for it was the very presence of God and His holy righteousness. No one but a priest could enter. He went in with the blood of an animal yearly to atone for the sins of the people. He entered only after he and the other priests had fulfilled all the rituals needed to do this ceremony correctly.

The book of Hebrews explains how when Jesus died, He passed through that veil the final time. His blood (death on the cross) was the final sacrifice needed to atone for the sins of all mankind past, present, and future. At His death the literal temple veil tore (Matthew 27:51). Because of Jesus and through Him we can come to God without blood and without fear (Hebrews 10:11-14, 19-21).

Jesus is our way, through the veil, to God.

Jesus is the way in…
John 10 records Jesus describing his followers in picturesque language as a flock of sheep. Any legitimate shepherd entered a sheepfold by the door. The sheep knew his voice and followed him (John 10:1).

Then Jesus declared Himself the door to that fold. Any sheep who wanted to be part of His flock must enter by (or through) Him. That person would be in His flock and under His care (John 10:1,7-9).

Jesus is the way into His flock.

Jesus is the way to…

In our passage, Jesus talked about going to His Father’s house. There He would make ready a place for His followers to join Him.

He told them (and us) plainly that He was (and is) the way there - John 14:4,6.

Jesus is our way to heaven.

We need to ask ourselves...

• Have we trusted Jesus’ sacrifice as our way through the veil that separates our sinful selves from a holy God?

• Are we in Jesus’ flock, under the care of and following our shepherd?

• Are we anticipating the place to which we’re headed—the Father’s house where we will join our Sacrifice (the Lamb of God, John the Baptist called Him - John 1:29), our Shepherd?

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank You for passing through the veil between God and me with Your blood as the sacrifice for my sin. May I never take this lightly. Help me to live each day listening to Your shepherd voice and in anticipation of joining You in the Father’s house. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.