Directions to Christ

John 14:4 "And where I go you know, and the way you know."

Maps have become sort of obsolete in these days of on-line address locators, direction-finders, and GPS systems. These days all you need to know is an address, and you can instantly get exact driving directions including mileage and time of travel and stops along the way.

How fortunate we are to be living in these days. I can remember when maps were a big deal, especially as you needed to travel across the country. A whole business was built on providing travelers the maps they needed, (that being AAA.)

In terms of eternity, the Bible we hold in our lap is just like that. A map, that is.

This is why Jesus could properly proclaim to His disciples that not only was He going away - but they already knew where He was going, and they already knew how to get there.

Thomas, however, (in all probability along with the other disciples,) failed to comprehend all that Jesus was alluding to in this case.

It seems no matter how many times Jesus had told them He was going up to Jerusalem to be crucified, they failed to grasp all He was saying – as if the news was so bad they didn’t want to think about it. As if they refused to think about it.

So Thomas, on behalf of the remaining 11 disciples risked being perceived as impertinent and uninformed – and he asked the question they all needed an answer to. (I’m glad he did.)

John 14:5 Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?"

When Moses encountered God in the burning bush in Exodus 3, he asked God to tell him Who it was that was sending Him to be the leader of the Israelite people? God’s reply: “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, “I AM’ has sent me to you.”

To Thomas, Jesus responded in a very similar way: John 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I AM the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Just as Moses had led God’s people to the Promised Land, and no one else could claim that right of leadership but Moses alone - Jesus Christ is leading God’s people into the Kingdom of Heaven, and NO ONE else can claim that right of leadership. There is indeed only one way to be where Jesus Christ is. Follow Him there.

- Pastor Bill