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Confident Trust...John 14 Jesus Prepares a Place

Posted: Tue Oct 31, 2017 1:25 am
by shalom-dodi
Welcome to the Monday Night Bible Study. This is Shalom Dodi over mic. I will be hosting tonight. So glad you are all here.
Our format is welcome, song, prayer, lesson, closing.
Song : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IN4e1o9WwEc
Look at the first verse: If my heart is overwhelmed
And I cannot hear your voice
I hold on to what is true
Though I cannot see
If the storms of life they come
And the road ahead gets steep
I will lift these hands in faith
I will believe
I'll remind myself
Of all that you've done
And the life I have
Because of your son

Prayer: Lord thank you that you did already come and rescue us but also that you are WITH us and will return one day to take us “home” to be with you. Father we lift up those who need healing of every sort, comfort and also conviction. We love you, Lord and we choose for this time, to set aside the worries and cares of life and simply “be” with you. Father have your way in each of our lives tonight, in Jesus name amen.


We have been in a series called Confident Trust. I am using verses from a poster someone created with that title. Last week we took a detour to Psalm 113. While preparing for this week, I went back to the original poster andJohn 14 was next. I looked to see what it was about and my heart said, “Perfect”. So tonight we are going to ponder John 14.

According to Matthew Henry, This chapter is a continuation of Christ’s discourse with his disciples after supper. When he had convicted and discarded Judas, he set himself to comfort the rest, who were full of sorrow upon what he had said of leaving them, and a great many good words and comfortable words he here speaks to them.
The general scope of this chapter is in the first verse; it is designed to keep trouble from their hearts; now in order to this they must believe: and let them consider:
I. Heaven as their everlasting rest (v. 2, v. 3).
II. Christ himself as their way (v. 4-11).
III. The great power they shall be clothed with by the prevalency of their prayers (v. 12-14).
IV. The coming of another comforter (v. 15-17).
V. The fellowship and communion that should be between him and them after his departure (v. 18-24). VI. The instructions which the Holy Ghost should give them (v. 25, v. 26).
VII. The peace Christ bequeathed to them (v. 27).
VII. Christ’s own cheerfulness in his departure (v. 28-31).
And this which he said to them is designed for the comfort of all his faithful followers.
(from Matthew Henry’s Commentary)

How many of you need comfort?
Hope?
Endurance?
Deeper faith?
To ”remember what you know, but forget”?
I know I do and fairly often.

For me it was exactly a year ago, on a Monday that my husband passed over to heaven. This weekend began difficult but then as I processed my sorrow with God and a few others, it got better. I can look back now and say it was actually a good weekend. I had fun. I also sorrowed. I made a neat poster, one of my favorites which reminds me of the awesomeness of God.
INSERT POSTER

Let’s go to John 14 and listen in as Jesus and the disciples are talking. As usual we will read the entire thing first. Hearing the Word read stirs our heart, mind and imparts to our Spirits.

I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life
14 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.
2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
4 And you know the way to where I am going.”

5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”
9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.
13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,
17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.
20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.
21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”
22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?”
23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.

25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you.
26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.
29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe.
30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.



I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life
This is the title for this passage.
If we know the “way” we know the path and how to get to our destination, right?
But we also know the path, the road which we travel to get to that destination.
When we “know” Jesus, we know the way to travel through life on earth, don’t we? Because Jesus IS THE WAY.
And if/when we know Jesus, we know TRUTH. Our life’s choices can be made based on what is true. Jesus is Truth and the Word reveals truth or the true and right way to travel that way, called life.
Life is not always easy, nor is life always hard. Some moments or seasons are “easy” others are “hard”. Jesus, who is the LIFE is the one constant. He is always with us. Hard times, easy times, Jesus is the Way, Truth and Life.

1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.
Dodi Note: The disciples are troubled. Jesus, who they thought was going to save them from the Romans has informed them that he is leaving. Can you just imagine the thoughts in their hearts?
“Say WHAT?!? You are supposed to save us from this hard stuff? And you are WHAT??? Leaving us?
Alone? and so on”. Of course I don’t actually know for sure what they were thinking, but I know what I and my friends sometimes feel like when we forget the truth. I bet you do too.
And yet, does Jesus condemn them? Does he condemn us when we get all upset? No. He offers to comfort us and remind us of the truth.
Can you trust God, who understands, does not condemn you even when you “forget” and become troubled?

AMP says it like this: “Do not let your heart be troubled (afraid, cowardly). Believe [confidently] in God and trust in Him, [have faith, hold on to it, rely on it, keep going and] believe also in Me.
I rather like the clarity of that version.

Then He goes on to explain a bit. This portion is special to me because the morning my husband died, I felt God prompting me to go read/recite it to him and tell him that when Jesus came, he could go with him.

2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
4 And you know the way to where I am going.”
Dodi Note: Isn’t that comforting? Jesus told them, and he is telling each of us, reminding us that He has gone ahead of us to PREPARE a place for us and that one day, He will come for us and we shall be with Him in a different way.
The Hebrew wedding tradition is what Jesus was reminding them of. Let’s explore that. My resource today is Bible Study Tools.
Jewish marriage included a number of steps: first, betrothal (which involved the prospective groom’s traveling from his father’s house to the home of the prospective bride, paying the purchase price, and thus establishing the marriage covenant); second, the groom’s returning to his father’s house (which meant remaining separate from his bride for 12 months, during which time he prepared the living accommodations for his wife in his father’s house); third, the groom’s coming for his bride at a time not known exactly to her; fourth, his return with her to the groom’s father’s house to consummate the marriage and to celebrate the wedding feast for the next seven days (during which the bride remained closeted in her bridal chamber).
First, the father of the groom made the arrangements for the marriage and paid the bride price. The timing of the arrangement varied. Sometimes it occurred when both children were small, and at other times it was a year before the marriage itself. Often the bride and groom did not even meet until their wedding day. The second step, which occurred a year or more after the first step, was the fetching of the bride. The bridegroom would go to the home of the bride in order to bring her to his home. In connection with this step, two other things should be noted. First, it was the father of the groom who determined the timing. Second, prior to the groom’s leaving to fetch the bride, he must already have a place prepared for her as their abode. This was followed by the third step, the wedding ceremony, to which a few would be invited. Prior to the wedding ceremony, the bride underwent a ritual immersion for ritual cleansing. The fourth step, the marriage feast, would follow and could last for as many as seven days. Many more people would be invited to the feast than were to the marriage ceremony. In the Marriage of the Lamb all four of these steps of the Jewish wedding ceremony are evident.2
The major steps of the Jewish wedding analogy are summarized below with related Scriptures:
Marriage Covenant The father pays for the bride and establishes the marriage covenant. Acts Acts 20:28; 1Cor. 1Cor. 6:19-20; 1Cor. 11:25 Eph. Eph. 5:25-27
Bridal Chamber Prepared The son returns to his father’s house and prepares the bridal chamber. John John 6:62; John 14:2; Acts Acts 1:9-11
Bride Fetched At a time determined by the father (Mtt. Mat. 24:36), the groom fetches the bride to bring her to his father’s house. “Although the bride was expecting her groom to come for her, she did not know the time of his coming. As a result, the groom’s arrival was preceded by a shout, which forewarned the bride to be prepared for his coming.” John John 14:3; 1Th. 1Th. 4:13-18
Bride Cleansed The bride undergoes ritual cleansing prior to the wedding ceremony. 1Cor. 1Cor. 3:12-15; Rev. Rev. 19:7-8+
Wedding Ceremony The private wedding ceremony. Rev. Rev. 19:7+
Consummation In the privacy of the bridal chamber the bride and groom consummate the marriage. Rev. Rev. 19:7+
Marriage Feast The celebratory marriage feast to which many are invited. Mtt. Mat. 22:1-14; Mat. 25:1-13; Luke Luke 12:36
The first step in the wedding has already taken place. The marriage covenant was established at the First Coming of Christ. Whenever a person places their faith in Jesus Christ, they enter into this covenant (the New Covenant) and become part of His bride. Since the ascension of Jesus following His resurrection, He has been at His Father’s house preparing the bridal chamber:
Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions (μοναι [monai] , dwelling places); if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. (John John 14:1-3)
In John John 14:1, Jesus indicates a heavenly destination for believers. He returns from His Father’s house to fetch them and to bring them to heaven. There is an emphasis on intimacy: “that where I am, there you may be also” (John John 14:3).
Isn’t that fun information? I remember the first time I heard this and how exciting it is to compare our relationship with Jesus and the actual wedding tradition of those times.




5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?”
Dodi Note: Thomas has “forgotten” what he should know. Jesus does not get angry at him for his doubt, does he? Rather Jesus gently explains it again.

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
Dodi Note: Verse 6 AMP explains it: 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the [only] Way [to God] and the [real] Truth and the [real] Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
That about sums it up for us doesn’t it?
If you do not yet know Jesus as your personal LORD and Savior. Tonight is the first day of the rest of your life. If you do and would like a simple reminder or a link to share with another, I will post it at the end.

8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”
Dodi Note: Now Philip is questioning. He either has forgotten or has not fully understood too. And again, Jesus is NOT angry. He is gentle, kind, loving.

9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.
Dodi Note: Let’s read in AMP 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words I say to you I do not say on My own initiative or authority, but the Father, abiding continually in Me, does His works [His attesting miracles and acts of power].
11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe [Me] because of the [very] works themselves [which you have witnessed].
These are the same reasons/ways we come to know Jesus. We choose by faith to believe that the Bible is true. Jesus is real. And God loves each of us personally.
Then there is an outcome in the next verses.

12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.
13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
Dodi Note: This does not mean “name it claim it” as in a fancy car or house. It means ASK in Jesus name, in alignment with the will of God in order that the GLORY and honor go to God. Point to God and reflect the heart of God.
AMP makes that clear: 12 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, anyone who believes in Me [as Savior] will also do the things that I do; and he will do even greater things than these [in extent and outreach], because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in My name as My representative], this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified and celebrated in the Son. 14 If you ask Me anything in My name [as My representative], I will do it.
See? the full meaning? As His representative.

I hope you enjoyed this passage as much as I did.
https://peacewithgod.net
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWSBraKK8nQ&t=196s video reminder short, 6 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KyfDioLYE4 excellent like a movie :)