Welcome back to Summit Life with J.D.
Greer. As always, I'm your host, Molly Vidovich. Today's claiming there's such a thing as absolute truth isn't exactly popular. How many times have you heard the phrase, well, that's not my truth. My truth is this. And if you really want to fire people up, try saying that absolute truth is found only in Jesus.
That's even more countercultural. But thankfully, today, Pastor J.D. walks us through one of Jesus's boldest claims. I am the way, the truth, and the life.
And here's the thing. It's about knowing him, the one who has the answers. It's about real relationship with the Savior who offers us the only way to true life. We're nearing the end of our teaching series, so if you need to catch up, visit J.D.
Greer dot com. But right now, let's join Pastor J.D. in John 14. Specifically, John 14.
John 14. I had a friend who was a pretty good track athlete in high school. He finished in the top three of every event he ever ran, except for one event where he came in dead last. Physically, he said he was ready for that race, probably the best athlete, he said, in his humble but accurate opinion of the bunch. Mentally, he said he was ready also. It was an away meet.
Of course, he'd never run before. He said the whole bus ride there, he had his headphones on, getting his game face on, which, by the way, in those days, that meant a Sony Walkman with a mixtape that your girlfriend had made for you the night before. He kept those headphones on the entire ride up there.
He kept them on when they got off the bus. He kept those headphones on when they were going through the entire warmup. He said, I remember at one point during the warmup, my coach was up talking to all of us, and I remember him getting really animated about something and pointing and gesticulating with his arms, but I figured it wasn't that important. I mean, it's cross country. You basically just run a 5K, right?
What's there to talk about? He said, well, the race started, and I shot ahead. It was shaping up to be my best race yet. By the halfway mark, he said I was a couple hundred meters ahead of the entire field. At that point, the course started its last 1K leg down this little trail through a section of the woods. Well, feeling really good with only one kilometer to go now and now out of sight from the second place runner, he said suddenly in the middle of these woods, I came to a fork in the trail. One direction, he said, had a blue arrow. The other had a yellow arrow, and he had no idea which way to go.
And then he realized what his coach must have been so excited about and waving about so wildly back there. But here was his dilemma now. If he waited for the next runner to catch up to him to see which way to go, he would squander his amazing lead. But if he guessed and chose the wrong road, well, you can probably figure out how that's going to turn out. He did not want to squander his lead, and so he chose the path that looked and felt right to him, and he took off with undaunted high school confidence. He said, but tragically, it did not leave me down the last kilometer to victory.
Instead, it put me on a separate 7K loop through the woods, back and forth, he said, around a lake. When I finally got back to the finish line, the stadium was completely empty. All the fans were gone. My coach was the only person standing out on the field.
He said, I ran right by him. I didn't even make eye contact. I climbed up onto the bus. Our bus was the only vehicle left in the parking lot. The whole team was already on the bus. I spoke to no one.
I made eye contact with no one. I made my way back to my seat and put back on my headphones. There is nothing worse than feeling lost, except perhaps the sneaking feeling that you're on the wrong path. We are on our last week of our study through the 7 I Am statements that Jesus made in the Gospel of John seven times, that Jesus takes for himself the loftiest name of God in the Old Testament. I Am, a name that Jewish people would not even write out in its fullness.
I Am Yahweh in Hebrew or Jehovah in Latin. Then Jesus connects that glorious name to one of our greatest points of brokenness and need. When you think about the transcendence of God, you don't get more transcendent than the name I Am.
When you think about his closeness, his intimacy, you don't think about anything more intimate than our brokenness and need. And here Jesus takes I Am and he connects it to our points of brokenness. Today, we're going to come to the last one of those I Am statements, one that connects to all of us. John 14, six, Jesus said, I am the way.
I'm the truth and I'm the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Let me set the context before we dive into what Jesus is saying here.
It was the night before Jesus died. Jesus has gathered his disciples together with him in the upper room one last time to eat and drink with them and to share instructions with them about what is to come. He speaks urgently and passionately about what's going to happen when he goes away. And the more he talks this way about going away, the more confused and frightened the disciples become. And they're like, going away?
What are you talking about? And they're not articulating it yet, but they're wondering, have we made a mistake? Is Jesus about to abandon us? Is he not going to deliver us after all?
Has he been the wrong one to follow? Jesus, sensing this, says to them, John 14, one, look there in your Bible if you have it. Let not your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house, you see, are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I'm going to go and prepare a place for you?
Of course not. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again. And I will take you to myself that where I am, there you may be also.
You know the way to where I am going. Thomas said to him, Lord, we don't know where you're going. How can we know the way if we don't know the place you're going? Thomas assumes Jesus is referring to some fortress of solitude that he's building in the woods somewhere from which he can launch his kingdom in the future. So Thomas is looking for actual physical instructions on how to get to a place. Jesus said to him, Thomas, I am the way. I'm the truth.
I'm the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. What Thomas is looking for is a map.
He's looking for a set of directions or instructions that ensures that he's going to be taken care of. What Jesus offers to him instead is relationship. Philip, another one of the disciples responds, watch this, it's almost an identical question. Verse 8, Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father and that'll be enough for us. Jesus said to him, have I been with you so long, Philip, and you still don't know me?
Whoever's seen me has seen the Father. What Philip wants is some kind of intellectual certainty. Thomas wanted a map. Philip wants intellectual certainty. Let us see ultimate reality, Jesus. Let us get our minds fully around theological mysteries. Let us see the Father and that will be enough for us. Then we'll know everything's going to be okay. Then we will feel confident about whatever is to come. Jesus responds again, not by giving to Philip that vision, but he responds again with relationship.
Whoever sees me, Philip, has seen the Father. The longer you go in the Christian life, the more you realize that from start to finish, this whole thing is about a relationship with Jesus. Christianity is not primarily a set of instructions about a better way to live, nor is it even a comprehensive set of answers to all of life's mysteries. Christianity is a relationship with a person who has all those things in himself.
Knowing him is the way to those things, which is what makes the imagery that Jesus employs here in John 14 so significant. You might not immediately have picked up on it, but Jesus was using overtly marital language in those verses and they all would have recognized that. Let me tell you a few things about Jewish marriages that you may not know. First, we often wrongly assume that all marriages back then were arranged, as in the parents just decided who you were going to marry and that was that.
But that really wasn't the case. Here's how it usually went down. A boy and girl notice each other. Hebrew boy, Hebrew girl notice each other. She catches his eye. He likes the way she smashes grapes or whatever, and he feels like she is sending groovy vibes back his way. They exchange a few flirty glances.
They have some good conversations. So the boy talks to his dad, and if his dad approves, then his dad approaches the girl's dad. And if the girl's dad also agrees that this is a good pairing, then the girl's dad throws a big party inviting the groom's family and a bunch of their friends. At this party, the groom-to-be, the hopeful groom-to-be, offers the bride-to-be a cup of wine. Now at this point, she's got a legitimate choice. If she takes the cup of wine and she drinks it, that means yes. And then the party really begins. But if she declines, then the party gets awkward. The band starts to play Taylor Swift breakup song, shake it off, shake it off.
We are never ever getting back together. I knew you were trouble when you walked in. One of those, and everybody just mows his home.
Now here's the important part. If she said yes, then after the party is over, the young man returned to his family home. It was called an insula in Hebrew, an insula. And he began construction, listen, on a new wing in that home or a new set of rooms. He's attaching this to the family house that he and his future bride will live in. You see, in those days, families lived on these big compounds. Family property was their most valuable asset.
It was handed down from generation to generation. And each new generation would just add on a new set of rooms onto the family insula so they would all live in that one complex together. And some of you were thinking, that sounds awesome.
Others of you were thinking, that sounds like a nightmare. I'm sure they had both emotions back then also. Well, when the groom-to-be was finished with construction of his rooms, he would return to pick up his bride. But here was the thing. Only the groom's father could determine when the rooms were sufficiently completed.
I mean, young men back then were not that much different than they are today. And if it were up to him, they'd just slap a few boards together, put a LeBron poster up on the wall, stack a couple of box crates up for tables and call that home. He'd just be so excited to consummate the marriage. So the father of the groom, he determined when the rooms were ready.
Since ultimately this is gonna be his house too. And he alone gave permission for the young man to go back and get his bride. By the way, how many men do we have in here listening to me who have ever served as the father of the groom?
Raise your hand. Have you ever been the father of the groom? Back then, the father of the groom was the single most important person in the wedding ceremony except for the bride and groom themselves. Today in American weddings, he literally does nothing. He just pays for the rehearsal dinner.
And after that, he basically just shows up to the ceremony like any other guests, gets a seat on the second row, smiles and waves like he's the queen of England. But in those days, in those days he controlled everything. So every day this young man worked on the new rooms and every night the bride would wait. She didn't know when he was gonna come. He couldn't post pictures of the project on Facebook. He couldn't send her a text message.
They couldn't Snapchat or FaceTime. And so as a symbol of her anticipation, she kept a candle lit in the window sill hoping that this might be the night that he returned for her. She didn't know when he would come. In fact, he didn't even know when he would come.
Again, only the father of the groom would determine when he could come. By the way, it might be dawning on you as I explain this, that this is the same imagery behind some of Jesus's other teachings also. For example, when Jesus said, nobody knows the day of my return, not even me, only my father in heaven knows. He's invoking the same imagery of a wedding. He's not giving you a technical explanation of the nuances of Trinitarian omniscience. Or when Jesus tells the story about the 10 virgins, some of whom kept their candles lit so they were ready when the groom returned and some of whom didn't so that when their groom came back, there was no candle in the window because she's out partying with her other friends and he gets his feelings hurt and returns home without her. That's the imagery that Jesus is using. The point here is when, listen, when Thomas and Philip want to know the how and what of the Christian life, Jesus points to a relationship.
And not just a relationship, but a deeply romantic, intimate relationship. I am the way, the truth, and the life. You want these things, you know me. You are listening to Summit Life with Pastor J.D.
Greer. To learn more about this ministry, including how to partner with us financially, visit jdgreer.com. We'll get back to our brand new teaching in just a moment, but dream with me for a second. Imagine a world where everyone has access to the life-changing truth of the gospel, where God's word is proclaimed without cost getting in the way. That's our huge vision here at Summit Life. With your prayers and generous financial gifts, we are able to produce broadcasts, podcasts, devotionals, and more to help spread the gospel both deeper into our lives and wider into a world in great need. But we can't do it alone.
You noticed I said with your support. You're an integral part of the team, helping to spread the good news of Jesus all around the globe. And trust me, you're helping to make an eternal difference with your gift each month. Would you join us in advancing this God-given mission today? Become a gospel partner right now by calling us at 866-335-5220 or visiting jdgreer.com. Let's fully embrace the good news of the gospel together and share it with your world. Now let's finish up today's teaching.
Once again, here's Pastor J.D. So here's our outline for today. Number one, the Christian life from start to finish is a relationship with Jesus.
Number two, if you're taking notes, here's going to be our second point. Knowing Him is the way, the truth, and the life. And then number three, claiming He is the only way is not born out of cruelty.
It's born out of love. Let's do this one at a time. Number one, the Christian life from start to finish is a relationship with Jesus. The Christian life, as I said, is not primarily advice. Listen, I know you think you know it, but you don't.
So many of you got this backwards. The Christian life is not primarily advice about a better way to live. It's not about gaining wisdom and understanding on all of life's mysteries. The Christian life is about relationship with a person. And please note, in saying that, I am not downplaying the importance of Christian practices or theology. Following Jesus leads to a set of lifestyle changes or a way. Knowing Him involves learning good theology.
That's truth. You can know a lot about theology and still die and go to hell. You can tithe.
You can memorize verses. You can live with healthy rhythms, take regular Sabbaths, lead small groups, save sex until marriage, and die without a relationship with Jesus. Salvation is not granted because of a score you get on a theology quiz. It's not given because you get a series of gold stars in Christian practices. Salvation is found by knowing and trusting a person.
Full stop. One of the things I fear we don't talk about enough is the unsaved church member. The unconverted Christian. In Matthew 7, Jesus said, not everybody, listen, not everybody who says to me, Lord, Lord, is going to enter the kingdom of heaven. In fact, on that day, many, doesn't that word many bother you? On that day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name? Cast out demons in your name?
Do many mighty works in your name? Y'all look, these people have the right theology. They know to call Jesus Lord. They understand the deity of Christ. They're earnest about it also.
Whenever you repeat something in Greek, like Lord, Lord, that's a literary way of saying that you're passionate about it. These people know when to raise their hands in church. They know when to shout hallelujah. They got experience in ministry. They testified in Jesus's name. They did miracles in Jesus's name. They even cast out demons in Jesus's name.
I mean, if you get picked in our church to be on the demon exorcism squad, that means we consider you varsity, just FYI, okay? In other words, these are experienced Christians. But I'm going to declare to them, Jesus says, I never knew you.
Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. That verse sends a tremor of terror down my spine. Why does Jesus turn these earnest church goers away from heaven? And all their Christian activity and all their behavior, he never knew them. They knew all about him. But they never really trusted in him.
They never had a personal relationship with him. By the way, this passage doesn't have to scare you. It doesn't mean that you have to get yourself in some super spiritual state before you can be sure that you are going to go to heaven.
In fact, it means the opposite. Salvation doesn't come from getting yourself into some spiritual state. It comes from leaning on Jesus.
That's not something a child can do. It comes from trusting in him personally as your savior, as your help, as your guide, as your life. Charles Spurgeon, after preaching on this passage, Matthew 7, he said, Oh, but Jesus could never say to me, I never knew you, for he has known me for years as the beggar at his door. I would say to him, never knew me, Lord, never knew me. I depended on you as my forgiveness. I leaned on you when I felt weak. I looked to you when I felt lost.
I trusted you to fix what was broken in me. No, he could never say to me, I never knew you, for he will recognize me as one who depended on him for everything. So let me just ask those of you sitting in church this weekend, do you actually know Jesus? I know you got your theology and I know you got your Christian practices down, but do you have a relationship with him? And if you do, are you growing in that intimate knowledge of him? You see, just like salvation comes from knowing him, spiritual maturity comes from knowing him more intimately. And I'm saying intimately because I don't mean just knowing more facts about him. I'm talking about knowing him more personally.
You see, there are different kinds of knowledge of somebody. When I walk into a crowded room, stuffed with people, I can immediately recognize my wife. It would not matter if I did not know what she was wearing that day, or if I did not know how she had styled her hair that morning. I could still pick her out immediately.
In fact, if for some reason she had dyed her hair, or even if it were all shaved off, I could still pick her out immediately. I could do it, I could do it, if all I could see were the shadow of her silhouette walking across the room. In fact, if somebody just walked up to me and put their arm around me, and stood by me, and I could not see them, I'm pretty sure if I would know if it was her or not. After two and a half decades of closeness to her, I know the feel of her touch. I know what it's like to be in her presence. I know the rhythm and the sound of her breath. In group conversations, I know how she's going to respond before she does. I know what makes her laugh. I know when she's laughing just to humor you. And I also know when she thinks something's really funny. I know her. But how do I describe those things to you?
If I'm trying to tell you how to pick her out of a crowded room, I've got to resort to physical characteristics because that's all you can see. But those aren't even the most important ways that I know her. The question is, which one better describes your knowledge of Jesus? Do you know him more in the height, what he's wearing, what color his hair is since? Or do you know him more in the personal knowledge sense? You may know him theologically, but do you know him personally? What it's like to cling to him in pain and disappointment and confusion?
What it's like to trust him when you don't know how to see your way out of a problem? Do you know what it's like to feel him moving in the depths of your soul, comforting, assuring, convicting, and guiding you? This kind of knowledge, Jesus said in John 17, this kind of knowledge is the essence of eternal life. And this kind of personal intimate knowledge is precisely what many miss in the Christian life. That's why your spiritual life is so dry and cold and dead. I know a lot of seminary students and professional Christians who have a great deal of knowledge about God, but very little knowledge of him.
I know because I was one for a while. And this shows up in how little they pray in private. They can get a perfect score on a theology test, but ask them about their prayer life and they'll get really quiet. It shows up in how passionless their heart for worship is, how anxious they are about the future, how dependent they are on the validation of others, or how little of the fruits of the spirit you see in their lives, even with their vast theological knowledge. They may have PhDs in their theology, but they're still infants in the fruits of the spirit. You say, well, pastor, how do I develop this intimacy with Jesus? It doesn't happen all at once, I'll tell you that, where you get flooded with a wave of warm fuzzies.
That's the artificial cheap way. It takes time and patience and consistent choices to trust him and be like him in the big and small things. And then you start to look back at your life and you see his hand of faithfulness. And you realize where and how he's guided you. You start to realize what his warnings and his convictions were like and how you trusted him and you see his hand of faithfulness.
Do you know him? That's what John 14 is all about. Thomas, it's not about a way. Philip, it's not about truth, it's about me. Knowing him is the way, the truth, and the life. That kind of clarity that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life is why we do what we do here.
Summit Life is here for you every day on your radio station and online thanks to the generosity of listeners like you who donate because they want to reach more people with the hope of the gospel. That's why we're excited to offer a new resource that helps you dig even deeper into who Jesus is in his own words. Jesus said, I am the Good Shepherd. I am the way, the truth, and the life. I am the light of the world. And these are just a few of the seven I Am statements he made in the Gospel of John.
But what did he really mean? This month's featured resource called I Am, Seven Weeks in the Gospel of John explores each of these statements. Each week you'll dive into a different statement, gaining fresh insights into the life and teaching of Jesus in his own words.
With insightful commentary, scripture passages, and thought-provoking questions, this study will enrich your faith, deepen your understanding of the gospel, and draw you closer to Jesus. Ask for your study guide when you give a gift today by calling 866-335-5220 or get the study when you donate online at jdgrier.com. If you'd rather mail your donation, our address is J.D. Greer Ministries, P.O. Box 122-93, Durham, North Carolina, 27709. While you're on the website, you'll also want to subscribe to Pastor JD's blog.
The articles go in-depth with many of the topics we cover here on the broadcast. Sign up online at jdgrier.com. I'm Molly Vidovitch, inviting you to join us again next week when we continue unpacking this message about Jesus. Be sure to join us next time on Summit Life with JD Greer. ...
