“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
It had been an eventful evening for Jesus and His disciples. Gathered in the Upper room to celebrate the Passover feast, Jesus had shown them an example of humility as He washed their dusty feet. He reminded them that the time was very near when He would be betrayed by one of them. It had been hard for them to accept that this was true, but Judas had been pinpointed and had left the room.
Jesus then reminded them that He would soon be leaving them and that they must love one another. Peter was adamant that he would be willing to lay down his life for the Lord, and Jesus told him that before morning, he would deny that he even knew Jesus.
Now in Chapter 24, Jesus told them that He was going away to prepare a place for them and that one day He would receive them there. After spending three years with Jesus, they still had not fully grasped the purpose of His coming. John asked Jesus to explain where He was going and the way to get there. It is then that Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Philip asked Jesus to show them the Father. Can you imagine how Philip felt, when Jesus asked him, “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.”
It is hard to understand that after following Jesus for three years, seeing all the miracles He performed, and listening to His teaching, that these men had not fully grasped that the Mighty God had clothed Himself in human flesh and come to dwell among men. Now Jesus spent these last hours before His arrest, explaining it to them once again. He told them that He would die and rise again and then ascend into the heavens. But He promised He would send them a comforter, the Holy Spirit to guide them, direct them, and reach the world through their ministry.
The I AM, Jehovah, of the Old Testament, existed from the beginning. At Bethlehem, He took on a human body, so that He could go to Calvary and die for the sins of the world. He rose from the dead, defeating the power of the grave, and now His Holy Spirit abides within our hearts.
People may say that all roads lead to heaven and that each one must find their own way, but Jesus said “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Before His ascension, Jesus told His disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they received power from heaven to fulfill their ministry. On the Day of Pentecost, Peter, as spokesman for the rest, preached about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. When people asked what they should do, Peter replied: “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” Acts 2:38-39
The message preached then is still the message today. There is only one way of salvation, and each of us has to make our decision to obey His Word.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, that you purchased our salvation, and that you made it plain in your Word the steps we should follow to obtain it.
Devotion by Anne Johnston
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