John 13:21-14:31: Where are you going?

Presented to Warehouse Mission 614 Toronto on 10 June 2018 and Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army on 03 May 2015 by Captain Michael Ramsay  

This is the 2018 version, to view the original sermon click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2015/05/john-1321-1431-where-are-you-going.html

Recently in The Salvation Army we had move announcement day. All the Officers who, like ourselves, are moving were told we are going to farewell and our farewell service will be in a couple of weeks, on June 24^th. Appropriately enough the scripture we are looking at today has been referred to as 'the farewell discourse’.

In our text today, Judas leaves the room and when he does the eternal moves are announced. Jesus lets his disciples know that very soon – as they knew would happen someday - Jesus is being transferred from his current appointment. He then gives them some instructions about what to do when he leaves and a number of his disciples ask him some questions. They enquire about where he is going and Jesus tells them also about who is coming when he goes. We don’t have time today to get into the details of the one who is coming: the Advocate, the Paraclete, the Helper, and the post-resurrection role of the Holy Spirit but we will address some of the other questions the apostles have about Jesus’ pending move.

Picture this with me. Jesus and his disciples are having their farewell dinner upstairs in a rented room – probably no bigger than this room here where we will be having dinner soon. Jesus has conversations with John and Judas and then Jesus knows, allows; even enables, prompts or provokes Judas to do what he is going to do. This will be Jesus’ last evening with his closest companions in ministry. After Judas leaves, Jesus turns to his friends and he breaks the news to them, among other important things that, v. 33-35: “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Jesus is moving and he tells his disciples what he wants from them when he is gone is that they love each other. And I think this is important. I know that as we are moving this is the same thing we want for all of you: that you love each other. I know that when I see pictures on Facebook, receive emails, or a visit from Toronto here, that will be one of the first things I will ask: how is everyone getting along? Are we still a good little group fighting together for the gospel of Christ? Who has visited someone we haven’t seen in a while here this past week? Have we called them not to lecture them saying, “haven’t seen you in church in a while” but rather to say that we have been praying for you and would like to offer you a word of encouragement. “By this everyone will know you are my disciples”, Jesus says, “if you love one another.” I love you guys and I will miss all of you and there is even more to this command that Jesus has for us to love one another. As part of this same farewell discourse Jesus says that greater love has no one than to lay down his life for his friends. That is what Jesus did for us. That is what the apostles did for him. That is what we must do for each other. Call or visit someone from our flock here this week and spend some time with them – especially someone you haven’t seen in a while. Jesus says, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Simon Peter cues not as much on the instruction to love his comrades and colleagues as the fact that Jesus is leaving. He asks Jesus, in essence, ‘Where are you going? What do you mean that we can’t come with you? Why not? I’d die for you!’ Jesus response to this is really quite interesting; he tells Peter in essence, ‘Really? You’ll die for me? I tell you the truth even before tonight is over you will deny me not once, not twice, but three times. You say you’ll die for me’? This is not the sort of response one expects to give to a grieving person who is coming to terms with the impeding move. It is certainly not the response that we are instructed to give in the ESC courses I have taught. Now, of course, we know that Peter is later repentant of these actions and Jesus, after he rises from the dead, forgives, reaffirms, and/or reinstates Peter and we know that according to tradition Peter is good to his word and God does award him his martyr’s crown. And this exchange isn’t as lacking in pastoral care as it appears. As you read on, verses, 14:1-4, Jesus says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many mansions; if that were not so, would I have told you that 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. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

As Peter and the others try to figure out Jesus’ somewhat confusing answer to this simple question, ‘where are you going?’ Thomas tries to help get a clear answer. He re-asks, re-phrases, re-articulates, adds to Peter’s question his own words, Verse 5, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus answers, Verse 6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him.”

Thomas was trying to help, by rephrasing Peter’s simple question ‘where are you going’? And now Thomas, like Peter, is left to ponder Jesus’ somewhat less straightforward responses. Jesus answer to, ‘how do we get to where you are going?’ is ‘I am the way to where I am going’. This probably isn’t all that helpful for Thomas and Peter.

Jesus does give them some very important information though. He says point plank that the ONLY way to get to God the Father is through Jesus Christ. There is no other way. There is no other truth. Jesus is the only way to life and the only way to the Father. This is important and while Thomas and Peter may not understand this in the moment they do later and we should now, right? Basically in layman’s terms: if your mother, brother, son or daughter do not enter into a relationship through Jesus Christ, they are not going to inherit eternal life with the Father. This is significant. Jesus is telling Thomas, Peter, and the others that there is no other way to be a part of the Kingdom of God than to come through Jesus Christ. So, for us here today, if there is someone you claim to love and you don’t tell them about Jesus, do you really love them? If there is someone you claim to like and you don’t tell them about Jesus, do you really like them? If the only way to not perish is to go through Jesus Christ, and there is someone that you do not loathe and despise, if you do not at least try to introduce someone you know to Jesus, is it not true that in reality you do loathe and despise them? This is what Jesus is saying – salvation is easy. There is only one way but that way is easily accessible. Jesus provided salvation for everyone and if you love Jesus and if you love your friends then you will point them to the way.

Peter’s simple question ‘where are you going?’ still seems unsatisfied though even as Thomas has re-stated it as ‘which way do we go?’ So now Philip takes a crack at getting an answer as he asks for further clarification, Verse 8, “Lord show us the Father and that will be enough.” Jesus’ answers here are hardly any more straightforward and concise but Jesus does give them more important information: Jesus offers them a free introductory course - Trinity 101 [5] - so to speak. Jesus says that he is in the Father and the Father is in him. Jesus speaks about the coming of the Advocate, the Paraclete, the Helper, as well as the post-resurrection role of the Holy Spirit and the importance of obeying Christ.[6] He says that they will know that Jesus is in the Father and that we will be in Him so long as we simply obey His commandments and then He will reveal himself to us as he is in us.

So we are starting to make some ground in the conversation here. Remember that this is after dinner and Judas Iscariot has already left. And this has led to a long conversation as the disciples are repeatedly asking Jesus, ‘where are you going?” So now we have Judas (not Judas Iscariot, the other Judas), as they are starting to understand the answer to ‘where are you going’? He ultimately asks, 14:22, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” Jesus then more fully explains to his disciples that He is going away but He will come back (15:28) and when He comes back those who love Him and keep His commands will be eligible to receive that mansion that He has prepared for us (14:2).

So the answer to the question, ‘where is Jesus going?’ After dinner, Jesus and his disciples will leave and then this very night in our text, Jesus will be arrested. He will be tried. Jesus will be executed. Three days later He will rise from the dead and come to his disciples, then later he will ascend to the Father.

That is where Jesus is going now in our text and then sometime very soon now in our world he is coming back and before that happens we will all need to answer a most important question and that question is, where are WE going? Jesus is going to the Father and the ONLY way to the Father is through the Son. Everyone who loves Jesus (as shown by obeying His commands) will go to be with Jesus in our eternal mansion. So the question for us today is not where is Jesus going – we know that - but rather the question for us today is where are WE going? 

Let us pray.

www.sheepspeak.com

daily blogs at

www.blogspot.salvogesis.com

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[1] The Salvation Army, Boundless: the International Bible Reading Challenge (2015). Available on-line: http://www.salvationarmy.org/biblechallenge

[2] Gail R. O’Day, The Gospel of John, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 9, ed Leander E. Keck, et. al. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1995),740 also  N.T. Wright, John for Everyone Part 2 (Louisville, Kentucky, USA: WJK, 2004),58.and Colin G. Kruse,  John: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), S. 292

[3] Cf. Lincoln, 390.

[4] Cf. Gerard Sloyan, John, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, ed. James L. Mays, et. al. (Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1988),179.

[5] Cf. Gerard Sloyan, John, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, ed. James L. Mays, et. al. (Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1988), 185ff.

[6] Merrill C. Tenney, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:John/Exposition of John/III. The Private Ministry of the Word (13:1-17:26)/B. The Last Discourse (13:31-16:33)/1. Questions and answers (13:31-14:31)/e. The promise of the Spirit (14:16-21), Book Version: 4.0.2

Matthew 5:43-38, 18:1-5 and Hosea 1:21-23: Lessons from Star Wars.

Presented to Warehouse 614, 03 June 2018 by Captain Michael Ramsay

Last Sunday after church my daughters and I went to see SOLO. Has everyone who wants to see that movie seen it yet? If you haven’t I may need to remember to give you a couple of spoiler alerts in the sermon here.

My two eldest girls and I have seen most of the newest ones in the theatres. ROUGE 1 was definitely the best of the newest ones but all of them are surprisingly good. I say surprising because I remember watching the prequels. Before I was an Officer, one of the businesses that I ran was publishing the Journal of International Education. One of our sponsors was the IMAX; so we often were able to watch shows fro free on these great big screens. I remember watching the first prequel on the big screen and walking away wondering what just happened. Some things seemed not quite right. I was working in the field of international education at the time and I was even left wondering: was this racist? There have certainly been those who have suggested that Japanese and Jamaicans cultural stereotypes were exploited for the film.

Even given the fact that the original 3 films are classics and all of the latest films have been very good, I still head out to any new Star Wars movie with a little bit of hesitation.

SOLO, however, was a good movie. It can even be seen as a stand alone movie for people who like action-adventure movies, of course. There was one scene in the new movie that stuck in my mind. Han was emigrating from his home planet and a customs official asked him his name and he said, ‘Han’ and then he asked Han who his people were so he could assign him a last name. Hans replied that he didn't have any people; so, after the customs official though for a while, the surname 'Solo' was awarded to him. Thus we have Han Solo.

LESSON 1: WHO ARE MY PEOPLE?

Hosea 1: 21-23

“In that day I will respond,”

declares the Lord—

“I will respond to the skies,

and they will respond to the earth;

22 and the earth will respond to the grain,

the new wine and the olive oil,

and they will respond to Jezreel.

23 I will plant her for myself in the land;

I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’

I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people’;

and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”

Who are your people? When I was studying restorative justice at Simon Fraser University, my instructor asked us the same question for one of our papers. I pondered this for a while and wrote a long essay claiming many people as my people: my family, the people I grew up with, those in The Salvation Army, those in the community in which I lived at the time and all the communities in which I had lived previously, people in the courts and the prisons where I have and was ministering at the time, my colleagues, associates, friends, clients, neighbours; anyone I could think of I claimed as my people. And now of course, if I were asked that question today, ‘who are my people?’ the first thing to come to my mind would be all of you. You are my people. You are my friends.

I am your people. Furthermore, as we submit to the Lord, we are all His people. We are part of the family of God. Even if at one point in our lives we were not part of God's family, He wants us to be part of His people and when we accept Him as Father we join his family. When we accept Him as Lord we become one of His people. When this is the case, we are no longer solo but we always have the Lord to turn to and to lean on in times of crisis, Therefore, if you haven't already, I invite you to accept the LORD's invitation to be one of His people today.

When we do become his people, He will transform us from darkness to light, from secrets to honestly and from hatred to love.

LESSON 2: LOVELY LIGHT SABERS

Matthew 5:43-48:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

These days we see a lot of hatred in the news and in social media. People hate this person. People hate that person. People hate this person for hating that person and people hate those people because they all hate these people.

Harbour Light has been showing a number of the original Star Wars films this past moth. The Lieutenants there are big Star Wars fans. Rebecca, Sarah-Grace, Heather and I joined them to watch Star Wars. Heather even dressed up as Darth Vader and the day we joined them fo see a movie was on the ultimate Star Wars day. Do you know when Star Wars Day is every year? May the fourth – May the Fourth be with you.

There is a pivotal moment in the original movie franchise, where Darth Vader is trying to turn Luke from good to bad, from truth to secrecy, from the Light to the Darkness; how does he try to do this? He tries to do this by making him hate. He tells Luke that only his hatred can destroy his enemy: this is a lie of Darth Vader and this is also a lie of our enemy, the Enemy, the devil. In the real world, hate cannot defeat evil; hate can only become evil. Hate is what turns a good person, bad; it is love, Jesus’ love, which redeems us.

Martin Luther King Jr said, “Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.” “Let no man pull you so low as to hate him.” “I have decided to stick to love...Hate is too great a burden to bear.”

‘Do you know what the stupidest expression in the world is?’ - a firefighter once asked me - ‘fight fire with fire;’ ‘you don’t fight fire with fire; that just causes a bigger fire!’ It is the same with hate. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that. If I get drawn into hating someone because they hate something or someone than I have just caused love to shrink and hate to grow. If on the other hand we love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, then even we may be called children of our Father in heaven. If we love more than just those who love us than indeed we may even be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. Therefore let us resolve to love one another and let us wish each other well - even those who may wish us ill.

What does it look like to love our enemies?

LESSON 3: NEW REVISED EDITION

Matthew 18:1-5:

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

Our life can't be edited. It can be changed. I remember watching the original Star Wars in the theatre in 1977. In 1981 one of my friends had this neat new machine: a VCR. It was really quite something. We could actually pause shows and even rewind parts of them and watch them over and over again. I saw Star Wars and The Empire Strikes back more than once or twice.

Many years later, early this century, a friend lent me DVDs of the trilogy. I couldn't believe it. The movies had actually changed! They weren’t the same movies that I saw in 70s and 80s. I was sort of in shock: Why was Jabba the Hutt in Star Wars? Who was this new Darth Vader at the end of Return of the Jedi? I don't remember Storm Troopers on lizards and I am pretty sure that Hans shot first in that very famous bar scene. I asked my friend why the movies were different from when I first saw them; he replied that he hoped that the changes didn't ruin the movies for me.

A while later, when I was able to look on-line for movies, I looked for copies of the Star Wars movies as I would have seen them in the 1970s or 1980s. I couldn't find them anywhere. I tired every way I could think of to find them but I could only find the revised versions of these movies. The originals are forever in my memory and have made an impression on me; the original versions of the movies have left significant impressions on many people. The movies, however, are no longer like that.

This is like our life. There are things that some of us may have done that we wish that we had never done. Maybe our actions have caused someone physical injury that has not healed. Maybe our actions have caused someone emotional or psychological pain that has not healed. Maybe our actions have changed circumstances in such a way as nothing will ever be the same again. There is now a new normal. The repercussions of past actions may stick with us and others like the memory of an original version of a movie or an old song that we cannot find anymore. We cannot change what has happened or how it has affected us.

However, we can be changed so that these things from the past never happen again. God can take all the bad things in our life and make sure that they never replay again. God can change us even more than George Lucas can change his movies. God can forgive our sins, transform our stories, and make us brand new today. He can take out the parts that hurt and hinder us and rewrite our script so that we are a blessing to others. So, to that end today, If there is anything that we want rewritten in our story, if we haven't offered our life up to the Lord for changing yet, I invite us to do so this very day.

Let us pray.

www.sheepspeak.com  

daily blogs at

www.blogspot.salvogesis.com