Jesus is the Way
How and why do you look to Jesus?
Verse of the Day
‘Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.’
Today’s Devotional
Today’s verse is somewhat of an echo of yesterday’s discussion of the narrow gate and the difficult road. This verse is iconic in the Christian faith. But when I look at the context of this verse, I have compassion for the disciples who heard Jesus say these words.
Imagine that your friend is going somewhere you have never been. In this scenario, you don’t really know whether or not you want to go to this unknown location, but you are CERTAIN that you want to be wherever this friend is going to be. So you ask how to get there. That seems logical, right? But your friend’s answer is confusing.
That is the context of today’s verse. Jesus tells the disciples that there is plenty of room in His Father’s house for everyone, that He is going to prepare a place for them, that He will come get them when everything is ready, and that they already know the way to get to where Jesus is going. Thomas, in a beautiful statement of honesty and authenticity, says something like, “Jesus, we have no idea how to get there. We don’t even know where you’re going, much less how to get there.” (That’s my paraphrase.)
Jesus’s answer to Thomas’s statement is, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” That’s a bit confusing, right? It’s not actually an explanation to Thomas’s quandary. Or is it?
According to the commentaries, this is one of the more controversial statements made by Jesus. Non-believers say that this statement is very exclusionary. Believers accept it as fact. So what do you think about this verse?
It makes me think of John 1:51 where Jesus refers to himself as the stairway between heaven and earth. If I am in point A, and I want to get to point B, and there is only one path between A and B, then it seems pretty obvious that I will take the given path.
But we humans have a way of over-complicating things like this.
One of the things I learned when studying this verse is that people in the days of the early church saw Christianity as way too inclusive. Anyone could become a Christian, no matter their station or position in society. Christ was available to everyone, so anyone who believed was welcome.
Jesus does not just show us the best way, He is THE way. Jesus does not just point us to truthful teachings, He is THE truth. Jesus does not just show us how to have a better life, He IS life itself. From John 1:3, ‘God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him.’ Everything that exists only exists because of Jesus.
Whether we understand the directions He gives us or not, that does not make them any less true. If we are in doubt of which way to go, we look to Jesus because He is the way. If we are confused about anything, we look to Jesus because He is the truth. If we are struggling with this life, or a lack of abundance in this life, to look to Jesus because He is life.
The question for me becomes: How much am I looking to Jesus for which way to go, what is truth, and how to live fully? The next question for me is: am I living in a way that makes Jesus attractive to anyone and everyone. Because He says there is room for all who believe.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
What is your initial reaction to this verse?
How can you look to Jesus as the way?
How can you look to Jesus as truth?
How can you look to Jesus as life?
How can you live in a way that is attractive to others in order to point them to Jesus?