Daily Reading & Meditation

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Sunday (May 14): "Lord, show us the Father"

Scripture: John 14:1-12

1 "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 when 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 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, but by me. 7 If you had known me, you
would have known my Father also; henceforth you know him and have seen him."

8 Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied." 9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you
so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip? He who 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 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 in me; or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves. 12 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who
believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I go to the Father.

Meditation: Do you allow any troubles to rob you of God's gift of peace? As much as we try to avoid it, we inevitably
encounter challenges and trials that can shake our confidence and our trust in God. Jesus knew that his disciples
would be put to the test when their Master was taken from them during his suffering and passion - his arrest, trial,
and rejection by the leaders of his own people, and crucifixion by the Romans. Jesus encouraged his disciples to
put their faith and hope in God the Father and also in himself.

When adversity or trouble comes your way, does it make you lose hope or give into fear and despair, or does it
press you closer to the Lord Jesus and to the strength and help he offers you? When the people of Israel became
discouraged and grew weary during their 40 years in the wilderness, the Lord assured them that he would
personally bring them safely into the promised land.

"It is the LORD who goes before you; he will be with you, he will not fail you or forsake you; do not
fear or be dismayed" (Deuteronomy 31:8).

This land of promise was a sign that prefigured and pointed to the true heavenly homeland which God offers to all
who accept his gift of salvation through his Son, Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus, through his victory on the cross and
his resurrection, has opened the way for each one of us to live in peace and friendship with our heavenly Father.

A place for you in my Father's house

During Jesus' last supper meal with his apostles, he spoke in plain words to them about his approaching departure.
He tells them that he is returning to his Father to prepare a place for them in the Father's house. Jesus not only goes
to secure for his disciples a place of refuge, peace, and security, he secures for them the best the Father has to offer
- intimate communion, friendship, and joy with the Father at his table (Luke 12:37, Matthew 8:11) and place of rest
and refreshment.

Jesus promised his disciples - and each one of us - that he would return again to personally bring us to the Father's
house. Are you ready to follow the Lord Jesus wherever he wishes to lead you now and in the future? And do you
trust him to bring you safely to your home with the Father in his kingdom? Paul the Apostle reminds us that nothing
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in this world can compare with the glory of feasting with the Father in his house. "I consider that the sufferings of this
present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us" (Romans 8:18). Is your hope
securely placed in Jesus and his promise to raise you up in glory with him?

I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life

The disciples were surprised that Jesus was going to his Father's house and would return to take them with him. And
they were even more surprised when Jesus said he expected them to know the way to the Father's house. Jesus'
answer to there question, "show us the way", was both a reminder that his disciples should trust their Master and
Teacher to show them the way, and a challenge for them to recognize that Jesus had intimate knowledge of God
and where God came from. Jesus made a statement that invoked the very name which God had revealed to Moses,
"I am who I am" (Exodus 3:14), and he made three claims which only God could make. He stated unequivocally to
his disciples: "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life" (John 14:6)

Jesus proclaims: I am the Way (John 14:6). He alone knows the way to the Father because he has been with the
Father from the beginning - before time and creation ever existed. The Lord Jesus gives us more than a road map
and guide book. He personally is the way to the Father's kingdom, and we cannot miss it if we follow him. He
accompanies us on our daily journey and watches over us as the good shepherd who leads and sustains us each
and every step of the way. Are you in step with the Lord and do you trust in his guiding hand for your life?

Jesus proclaims that he is the Truth (John 14:6). Many can say, "I have taught you the truth." Only Jesus can say, I
am the Truth. He posseses in himself the fulness of truth. Jesus claims to be one with the Father and to speak the
truth which proceeds from the Father. Jesus promised his disciples that if they continued in his word, they would
learn the truth and the truth would set them free" (John 8:31). The truth which Jesus proclaims has power to set us
free from ignorance, deception, and sin. The words which Jesus speaks are true because there is no lie or
falsehood in him. Moral truth requires more than mere words or ideas because the person who speaks them must
be true - true in thought, speech, deed, example, and action. Jesus embodies the truth in his person.

Jesus proclaims that he is the Life (John 14:6). He not only shows us the path of life (Psalm 16:11); he gives the
kind of life which only God can give - abundant life that lasts forever. Is there any trouble, fear, or distracton that
keeps you from the perfect peace and joy of a life surrendered to Jesus Christ?

Knowing God personally

One of the greatest truths of the Christian faith is that we can know the living God. Our knowledge of God is not
simply limited to knowing something about God, but we can know God personally. The essence of Christianity, and
what makes it distinct from Judaism and other religions, is the knowledge of God as our Father. Jesus makes it
possible for each of us to personally know God as our Father. To see Jesus, the only begotten Son of the Father, is
to see what God is like. In Jesus we see the perfect love of God - a God who cares intensely and who yearns over
men and women, loving them to the point of laying down his life for them upon the Cross. Jesus is the revelation of
God - a God who loves us completely, unconditionally, and perfectly for our good. Jesus also promises that God the
Father will hear our prayers when we pray in his name. That is why Jesus taught his followers to pray with
confidence, Our Father who art in heaven... give us this day our daily bread (Matthew 6:9). Do you pray to your
Father in heaven with joy and confidence in his love and care for you?

Doing the works that Jesus did

Jesus told his disciples that they would do the same works which he had done - and even greater works! While
Jesus was physically present to his disciples in Galilee and Jerusalem, he was subject to the physical limitations of
time, space, and circumstances. Now as the Risen Savior who is glorified and seated at the right hand of the Father
in heaven, the Lord Jesus makes his presence and power known to every place on earth through the power and
presence of the Holy Spirit who lives and works through all the members of the body of Christ on earth.

Theresa of Avila (1515-1582) wrote: Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours
are the eyes through which he looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good.
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Yours are the hands through which he blesses all the world. Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the
eyes, you are his body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

Wherever we go the Lord Jesus wants us to bring the good news and blessings of his kingdom to as many people
as we can. The Lord Jesus calls us the salt of the earth. He wants us to bring the flavor of his goodness and
holiness into every area of society we are engaged in. Christ calls us the light of the world. He wants us to make him
known and loved by helping people to see the radiance of his love and truth and the beauty of his kingdom. That is
why Jesus continues to commission his followers throughout every age to make disciples of all nations(John
17:18, Matthew 28:19).

"Lord Jesus, you fill us with the joy of your saving presence and you give us the hope of everlasting life with the
Father in Heaven. Show me the Father that I may know and glorify him more fully."

Psalm 33:1-5, 18-19

1 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright.

2 Praise the LORD with the lyre, make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!
3 Sing to him a new song, play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.
4 For the word of the LORD is upright; and all his work is done in faithfulness.
5 He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.
18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,
19 that he may deliver their soul from death, and keep them alive in famine.

A Daily Quote for the early church fathers : The Father Works Together with the Son, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-
430 A.D.

"The Father was not born of the Virgin, and yet this birth of the Son from the Virgin was the work of both Father and
Son. The Father did not suffer on the cross, and yet the passion of the Son was the work of both Father and Son.
The Father did not rise again from the dead, and yet the resurrection of the Son was the work of both Father and
Son. You have the persons quite distinct, and their working inseparable. So let us never say that the Father worked
anything without the Son, the Son anything without the Father. Or perhaps you are worried about the miracles Jesus
did, in case perhaps he did some that the Father did not do? Then what about 'But the Father abiding in me does his
works'?" (excerpt from Sermon 52,14)

Meditations may be freely reprinted for non-commercial use - please cite: copyright (c) 2017
Servants of the Word, source: www.dailyscripture.net, author Don Schwager

Scripture quotations from Common Bible: Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1973, and Ignatius
Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 2006, by the Division of Christian Education of the
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Citation references for quotes from the writings of the early church fathers can be found here.

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