John 14, Morning Praise (3)

In one paragraph

This message walked through John 14:1-6, one of the most well-known verses in the entire Gospel, paying close attention to what Jesus was actually doing when He said it. Pastor set the verse inside the farewell discourse Jesus gave to His believing disciples in the upper room, arguing that understanding who was in the room and why changes everything about how the verse lands. The farewell...

Read together

1. John 3:16 named as probably the most famous verse in John
2. John 14:6 the main verse of the sermon: Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life
3. John 12:36 identified as the turning point from public to private ministry
4. John 13 end of chapter 13 where Jesus foretold Peter's denial
5. John 14:1 let not your heart be troubled, you believe in God, believe also in me
6. John 14:2 in my Father's house are many mansions, I go to prepare a place for you
7. John 14:31 Jesus tells disciples to rise and go, beginning the walk to the Mount of Olives
8. John 8:58 before Abraham was, I am, cited as the I am statement without a predicate nominative
9. John 8 Pharisees reacted when Jesus said my Father, accusing him of making himself equal with God
10. Colossians Paul says Christians can make up that which was lacking in the death of Christ, meaning spreading the message

Talk about it

1. The pastor described Jesus's private conference with the disciples as preparation for life without him physically present, and noted that even after it, they went back to fishing. What does that tell us about how hard it is to let go of what we knew before following Jesus, and where do you see that pull in your own life?
2. The pastor pointed out that John 14:6 is often used as an evangelistic verse, but in context Jesus was speaking to believers, reassuring and equipping them. How does knowing Jesus spoke these words to his own friends, out of love and concern, change the way you hear 'I am the way, the truth, and the life'?
3. The pastor was careful to show that John separates 'the way,' 'the truth,' and 'the life' with the word 'and,' making each one a distinct claim rather than one idea. Which of those three, the way, the truth, or the life, feels most personally significant to you right now, and why?
4. The pastor said the exclusive claim of John 14:6 can sound harsh, but that it only makes sense when it is motivated by love for dear friends. How do you hold together the boldness of that exclusive truth with genuine love for people in your life who believe differently?
5. The sermon closed with the observation that the disciples, equipped by this conversation, went out and changed the world, and that none of them turned back even unto death. What would it look like for you personally to live as if the way, the truth, and the life were as real and urgent as Jesus was telling his disciples they were?