Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.” Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times.

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 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? And if 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. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is 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. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 13:36-14:26).

If I had a great teacher who was getting ready to go away, I’d be wanting to ask him all sorts of questions–picking his brain for any knowledge he could pass along to me. We’ve all known people like that, those people we’d love to sit with for hours and glean their wisdom. The disciples of Jesus had such a chance–and one wonders what they were thinking! They clearly still had little to no understanding of Jesus’ mission to the world–or to them.

Context

The time has come for Jesus to complete His mission. Before doing so, He spends some last few moments with His disciples–instructing, encouraging, and answering questions. This “Q&A session” takes place immediately after Judas Iscariot departs. Jesus and the other disciples are now alone, as He continues His teaching to them. This particular scene can be broken up into a few questions by the disciples:

• Peter’s Questions (13:36-38)
• Thomas’s Question (14:1-7)
• Philip’s Question (14:8-14)
• Judas’s Question (14:15-26)

Peter’s Questioning of Jesus

Peter, responding to Jesus’ earlier comment, asks for clarification on where He is going. Jesus does not tell him specifically, but John makes it clear in other passages that He is referring to His return to the Father. Jesus assures Peter (and the rest) that they will follow Him, only “later” (v. 36). Peter, as impulsive as ever, objects: “Why can’t I follow you now? I would give up my very life for you” (emphasis added)? Jesus replies simply, “Will you really give up your life for Me? Actually, Peter, you will deny that you know Me three times before the rooster crows in the morning” (paraphrase). Jesus concludes that little conversation with this, making no more comments about it.

Of course, we know that Peter did indeed deny Christ three times before the rooster crowed. The difference between Peter’s denials and Judas’ betrayal lie only in the fact that Peter experienced godly sorrow and repented when questioned by Christ (21:15-17, compare 2 Cor. 7:10), whereas Judas’ betrayal seems to have placed him beyond the point of repentance–instead he went out and hung himself, realizing that he was now hopeless.

Thomas Asks about the Way

Jesus now begins to teach and encourage the disciples. In an oft-quoted (but often misquoted) verse, Jesus says, “In my Father’s house are many rooms.” Though the thought of mansions is a pleasant thought, the Greek literally is rooms or dwelling places. Jesus is bringing to mind the traditional Jewish wedding. In that time, after the betrothal, the groom returned to his father’s house to prepare a place for he and his bride to live, this would have been a room in the family home, or a house within a compound, where the groom’s parents also lived. (On a side note, the groom would return for his bride only when his father was satisfied with the preparations. This is why Jesus often said that no one knows the time of His return except for the Father–but that’s another topic for another post.)

Since Jesus is going to prepare a place for them, the disciples can be assured that He will return for them, so that they will be together. This is not a statement referring to a general resurrection; rather, just as the bridegroom returns personally for his bride, Jesus will return personally for His children. Jesus reminds them that they know the way to where He is going.

Thomas disagrees: “Since we don’t know where You are going, how could we know the way?” His question indicates that the disciples have no more understanding of Jesus’ mission than do His Jewish antagonists. The reply of Jesus seems to suggest surprise at the lack of understanding (of course Jesus, as God-incarnate, is never surprised): “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” The first part of this reply is no doubt the definitive statement of the Christian faith. Whereas others might see Jesus as a great teacher, a great example, He Himself claims to be the answer to all:

● The way – Literally “road,” Jesus is here proclaiming Himself the “highway,” the only route to the Father. If one seeks to find the Father, he must go through Him (and also according to His way), or be eternally frustrated, hence “no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
● The truth – Note here that Jesus says He is “the truth,” not a means to discovering truth. He is the very source and embodiment of truth. It means more than just being “truthful;” rather it means that no truth exists independently from Him.
● The life – As with “truth,” Jesus asserts that He is the source and embodiment of all life. Indeed John wrote that He created everything and gave life and light to men. As with “truth,” there is no life independent of Christ.

This statement settles any argument about Jesus versus other religions. Many other religions teach that there are many ways to God (some even include Christ). Yet, Jesus says that there is only one way–through Himself. Therefore, one side must be right and one wrong. If Jesus is right, then all other religions fail to deliver. If “all roads lead to God” is correct, then Jesus Himself is a liar since He claims to be the only way, and thus Christianity is not true.

Philip Continues the Questioning

Since Jesus is the way, and since they know Him, they also know the Father. In fact, having seen Jesus, the disciples have seen the Father (v. 7). Jesus asserted that He has provided an adequate presentation of the Father in His own being. Philip, however, seems to think differently. His question–or demand–to see the Father seems to suggest that he wants to have an experience of God similar to Moses and Jacob. In his question, Philip shows the lack of understanding that Jesus is in the Father and the Father in Jesus.

Jesus reminds them that He had been with them for a long time now, and that anyone who has seen Him (this would be better translated as “has had an experiential knowledge“) has seen the Father since 1) His mission was to show the Father to the world; 2) He was only speaking and working as the Father commanded Him–indeed it is the Father doing the works. As He told the Jews, the disciples should at least believe the works He had done to show that He and the Father were one.

One Final Question

Jesus now returns to His task of teaching the disciples (at least He attempts to return to it). He promises to send them another Helper, the Spirit of Truth to both be in them and help them. Like Jesus, the Holy Spirit is the embodiment and Source of truth (thus the united nature of the Godhead). Though the world cannot recognize Him or His work, the disciples will know Him intimately, as He will indwell them. Because of the Holy Spirit, the disciples will not be left alone as “orphans.” Jesus will come to them through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. And because of the Spirit’s ministry, the disciples will continue to see Jesus, even when the world no longer sees Him.

Though they may not understand now, when the Spirit comes, the disciples will realize the nature of the intimate nature of the relationship between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit–and now to include the disciples. Those who are in this intimate relationship are the ones who keep the commands of Jesus, and in turn experience the love of the Father and see the Son (through the ministry of the Spirit). Though obedience may be said to be a condition of experiencing God’s love, obedience is not the cause of His love. Obedience flows from a love for God and that obedience is the proof of our love for Him, and that obedience leads to an experiential knowledge of His love for us.

We know little of the Judas who asks the question in verse 22, except that he is identified as “not Judas Iscariot” by John (and since Iscariot had already left, that would be unlikely anyway). His question to Jesus again focuses on the physical senses: “Lord, how can You show yourself only to us and not to the world?” The question indicates that he is only thinking in the physical realm, rather than the spiritual.

Jesus’ answer supports this, as He indicates that those who love Him (obeying His commandments) will see Him through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. As He had already said, the world cannot recognize the Spirit–because of being outside of that relationship. In fact, the ministry of the Spirit is to be the representative of Jesus to the disciples, just as the disciples are the delegated representatives of Christ to the world (“in My name,” v. 26, cf. vv. 13, 14). The Spirit’s function is to instruct believers, and will bring to mind the teachings and commandments of Christ (v. 26).

The Q&A session is over, Jesus prepares to leave the upper room for His destiny.