Well morning everyone, what a joyous occasion. Let me just tell you one of the many reasons why it encourages me this morning and I pray that it encourages you.
I was reading my own times this morning Psalm 145, wonderful Psalm. Right at the heart of it is one generation telling about the greatness of God to the next generation.
And God raising up a new generation of people to love and to worship him.
And one of the amazing things I thought as Beth is standing here, she was two when the Lord brought us to this church.
She was two. And yet here's somebody declaring she wants to follow Jesus.
Isn't that amazing? Just to see the Lord raising up the next generation of folks to love and to worship him.
So John 14 is where we are this morning. So please do what you can to get that open in front of you.
And track along with me.
I need love. But I don't trust it.
If I drop my game, my Chandler, and show you who I really am, you might notice me.
But worse, you might notice me and leave me.
And I can't have that. I won't survive that.
Now some of you might have got it from the name Chandler, but this is actor Matthew Perry writing in his autobiography.
I've just finished it. It is as funny as it is tragic.
And read it and this is what you'll see.
You'll see a man on the outside whose acting career keeps hitting new heights with friends.
But you'll also see a man who on the inside keeps hitting new depths as he struggles with addiction and finding his purpose and meaning in life.
And this quote out of the whole book really resonated with me.
Because on some level, I reckon all of us know what he's getting at.
Because it's what we do, isn't it?
We default to doing it as human beings.
We long to give the impression to the outside world that we have life sussed.
We know what we're about.
We know where we're going.
We know what we believe.
There's no trouble in my life.
And yet so often on the inside, we're this ball of insecurities and mistakes and hurts and secrets, sin and shame and worries about what tomorrow might hold.
And if truth be told, we don't have a clue what tomorrow is going to hold.
And yet we're caught in this tension between projecting to the outside world that we're sorted and yet inside we don't have the answers.
And I guess that's why people today talk about imposter syndrome.
We talk about faking it to make it.
What's incredible if you look at the history of both of those ideas, concepts, phrases that they aren't about until the 1980s.
It's funny, isn't it?
It's something about the way that we try and lift our lives as modern day people.
And it can be paralyzing at times, can't it?
Living with that tension, not knowing what to do to square that circle in our lives.
And if that's you here today, then Jesus has, in this passage, some life-alteringly good news for each and every one of us.
You know, I used to think Christianity was essentially God congratulating good people.
You spend enough time with Jesus and you learn that actually Christianity is God rescuing bad people.
Jesus specializes in being a savior to those who know they've got nowhere else to run but to him.
You look at him in the gospels, he's strengthening weak people, he's lifting up broken people, he's comforting troubled people.
And Jesus longs and is willing to be a savior to those who will accept him.
Do you know just how much he loves you today?
See, John 14, it contains within it some theological truths that I take it that we should never scale the, we'll never touch the bottom of.
It should blow our minds.
But at its heart is a really simple invitation that Jesus makes to all those who will read on.
And it's found at verse 1.
He simply says, believe in me.
See, chapter 14 finds its place in this section of John's gospel that runs right through to the end of chapter 17.
And this is often called the farewell discourse.
And this is Jesus preparing his disciples for what life is going to be like for them once he's gone.
He's explained, if you look at verse 33 of chapter 13,
he's explained that he's leaving them, that he's going.
And you can imagine the questions that are flying about their minds at that point.
How will we cope when Jesus isn't physically around?
I mean, what a tag team partner to have in life.
Talk about some kind of agony aunt.
To be able to tag in when you've got questions in life.
How will we cope when he's not around?
How are we going to stand for him when he's not by our side?
How will we experience the joy of knowing him when he's not physically standing right beside us?
And what we've got to see is that in John 14, the disciples are panicking.
But Jesus, troubled as he is, he isn't.
And here he is speaking, verse 1 and verse 27, which kind of bookend this chapter and what it's all about.
Here he is saying, do not be troubled.
And if you're troubled today, this is for you.
Especially this is for you.
You see, what does Jesus want them to know, troubled hearts?
What does he want us to know as we can eavesdrop in on this years, years later?
What does he want us to know?
We're going to see two things this week, two things next week.
As we think about the future until he returns.
Here's the first one.
And it's that our mistakes won't jeopardize the future.
So the Bible is the inspired word of God.
But make it clear in your mind that the chapter divisions aren't.
Okay, so this is where the big number 14, if you've got it there in your Bible,
it doesn't really do us any favors here.
Because this really is a continuation of everything that's happened in chapter 13.
And particularly, if you have it there, where we left off in chapter 13.
Peter's reacting to the Jesus newsflash.
And the adrenaline kicks into his body.
Do you see it?
I'll never deny you.
They might scarper and run, but I'm going to be right here.
I'll never deny you, Lord.
That's what he says.
I'll never deny you.
Why can't I dine with you?
Don't underestimate me.
But Jesus, knowing the mess of things that Peter is about to make,
and to know that Peter is about to be almost crushed by his own failings and weakness.
He's saying, Peter, see when that happens.
See when you find yourself in that place of making another mistake.
Just remember what I said to you in this moment.
Do you know what I love?
And we reflected on this in small group, growth group this week.
Or last week even.
That I love that Jesus knows my mistakes before I've even made them.
I'm in what social scientists call the midlife years.
And do you know what that means?
That means I've got a cracking vantage point to two directions in my life.
And I look back the way.
And I see all the mistakes that I have made in life.
And I think, that is a weighty, weighty thought.
When I see all the mistakes, all the things I should have said,
all the ways that I should have acted,
all the things that I did and I didn't have a clue what I was doing,
the ways that I was naive to life.
And I look back and the weight of those mistakes.
And then what I also do is I look forward to all the mistakes that I don't,
I haven't even made them yet.
But Jesus knows them.
He knows the mistakes I'm going to make as a parent.
He knows when I'm going to lose my cool.
He knows the mistakes I'm going to make as a pastor.
He knows the mistakes I'm going to make as a neighbor.
He knows the mistakes I'm going to make as a friend.
And the thought of the sins ahead of me,
the mistakes I'm going to make, almost crushes me as well.
And that's why, dear friends, you need to take great comfort in the fact
that Jesus knows your mistakes in the past
and he knows your mistakes in the future.
And get this, none of it has changed his mind about you.
None of it has changed his mind about you.
You see, Chandler's worried about people getting too close
and seeing the real him.
But Jesus knows all of it.
And there are no sweeter words for our souls to hear
than Jesus saying to us,
don't be troubled.
And Beth, you hear this today.
Are you in?
Is she in?
You're there.
Great.
Because I remember getting baptized and thinking,
you know, my life is going to be plain sailing from here on in.
And just hitting the crash of my mistakes.
Come back to these words again, again, again, again.
We are saved by grace.
And what takes these words and makes them more than just a thinking of you
sympathy card from Clinton's?
What gives gravity to the words?
Do you see Jesus says that he's going to prepare a place for us?
And before he's talking about heaven,
Jesus here is talking about going to the cross.
And that's the place where he's talking about going.
That is the place where he is going to willingly die,
bearing the punishment that all my mistakes and my sin
and my rebellion against my creator deserve.
It's there that he goes willingly to make me right with God.
And it's there, that's the place where we become sons and daughters
of the living God because of our faith in him.
In other words, salvation is all of him.
It's all of him.
You ever had that experience when you,
maybe think of it like this,
when you go out with a friend for a meal
and it comes to the end and it's time to pay
and you both have that moment, don't you?
You both want to pay and you come out with that line.
What are you going to do with the bill?
You're going to split the bill, right?
Always love that.
My dad still does that when I go out for a meal for him,
gives it the whole thing.
She doesn't want your autograph, dad.
It's okay.
But he wants the bill.
That's what he wants, okay?
We always want to split the bill.
And here's the thing about salvation.
We don't split the bill with Jesus.
We don't split the bill with him.
It's all of him.
Jesus pays it all.
It's why we love singing that song here,
that old, old hymn.
Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe.
In the words of Sam Albury,
what is right in him,
talking to Jesus,
far outweighs what is wrong in you.
There is more grace in him
than there is guilt in you.
He is better at saving
than you are at sinning.
So he says right here as he goes to the cross,
he says, don't be troubled.
And because he goes to the cross,
he ascends to heaven.
Do you not love the intimate and homely language
that Jesus uses there to speak of heaven?
This is not the father's hotel.
This is not a place where guests check in,
they stay the night,
they have a breakfast,
they leave a review and trip advisor
and they check out again.
This is the father's house.
Children live there with their father.
And listen, as I say that,
I'm so conscious that for many of us here today,
your home growing up was not a safe place.
It causes you to shudder as you think about it.
If that's you here today,
let me just say,
I'm so sorry that that was your experience.
I'm so sorry that was your,
maybe the first place,
the things you think about when you think of home
aren't positive.
Let me just say,
this will be everything
that you and I could ever hope for in a home.
A place of warmth,
a place of protection,
a place of communion,
a place of delight.
Of course,
it's everything in a Bible story
that Adam and Eve had with God
before sin entered the human equation.
How often we think of heaven
as a place where our dreams come true,
like heaven will be some kind of
never-ending game of golf
up in St. Andrews,
or it'll be a week-long shopping trip in Milan.
But what makes heaven heaven?
Do you see it in the text?
It's what Jesus says at verse 3.
Is that one day he will return
and he will take us to who?
To himself.
What makes heaven glorious
is not so much what is there,
it's who is there.
Jesus says,
I will return
and take you to myself.
And no longer has that sentence finished
and Thomas chips in
at verse 5.
And this guy always strikes me
as a bit of a pragmatist
when you meet him in the Gospels.
Just wants stuff to make logical sense.
It's why at the end of this Gospel,
he's going to say,
unless I see the scars,
I'm not going to believe,
which is a legitimate thing to say.
Right?
He's the kind of guy
who cuts his grass in straight lines.
He's the kind of guy
who labels different spices
in his food cupboard.
He's the kind of guy
that we see here
won't set out on a journey
without knowing
where he's going
and without knowing
how he's going to get there.
Do you see?
He says,
how?
How will we get to that place?
And Jesus says,
unashamedly and unreservedly,
that he is the way to God.
And with these words,
let me just say really quickly in passing,
Jesus poses a real problem to pluralism.
You know,
the belief that all roads
kind of lead to God,
that all religions
are like different paths
up the same mountain.
One path is called Buddhism,
another is Islam,
another is Christianity,
but ultimately,
whatever path you're on,
we're kind of all going to reach
the same summit.
So we don't have time
to examine the holes in that claim,
but the next time
someone tells you
about a mountain,
let me encourage you
to listen to love
and then reply
respectfully and graciously,
which is, of course,
is always the way
that true tolerance should be,
that I hear what you're saying,
but I don't think it works.
As I heard someone put it recently,
if everyone is right,
that means Jesus is right.
And if Jesus is right,
not everybody's right,
only he is right, right?
Let me do it again.
If everyone is right,
that means Jesus is right.
And if Jesus is right,
then only he is right
and not everyone's right, right?
That's what Jesus is saying here.
I am the way,
the truth,
and the life.
He's the only way to the Father.
Make no mistake
that that is an exclusive claim,
but also make no mistake
that that couldn't be
a more inclusive claim
to anyone who comes to him,
anyone who believes in him,
shall not perish,
but will have eternal life.
But that said,
see in the context,
this is not about apologetics.
We've got to understand
that this is about assurance.
Jesus doesn't give Thomas
a postcode.
Neither does Jesus give Thomas
a personal trainer routine.
Eight steps to follow
to get the perfect room.
Five rules to follow
to get to heaven.
No, no, no,
he doesn't say that.
Doesn't give him a postcode.
Doesn't give him
a personal trainer routine.
He gives him a person.
And he says,
look at me.
Look at me.
Friends,
our mistakes will not
jeopardize the future.
And secondly,
our limits won't hinder
the mission.
And here's what I love
about Philip.
As he chips in here,
I love that he gets
what the greatest privilege
and joy in life is.
And we always love
the God's great story,
guys,
you will know this quote
because we start off
every single session
that we have
as we think about
God's purposes
and the Bible story.
We always start with this.
From Augustine,
to fall in love with God
is the greatest romance.
to seek him
the greatest adventure,
to find him
the greatest human achievement.
So often in the Christian life,
we lose that,
don't we?
But it's so true.
Philip wants to see
the glory of God.
The privilege that Moses had,
the one that Isaiah had,
and maybe the one
with Jesus still around,
Philip senses
that he can get in
on the party as well.
So he says,
Jesus,
almost before you go,
could you just let us see,
even a glimpse,
just let us see
the glory of the Father.
And Jesus says,
you have seen him.
In fact,
whoever has seen me
has seen the Father.
As Jesus,
as it were,
allows us to be
that little child
who stares in the keyhole
or cup to the wall,
whatever your thing was,
at the greatest
and most joyous relationship
that has ever existed.
The Father is in me
and I am in the Father.
Which means
that if you are here today,
and I know some of you are,
you're thinking about
this Christianity stuff.
What's it all about?
How can I know
what God is like?
Right here is your answer.
You want to know
what God the Father is like.
You need look no further
than to Jesus.
You need to spend your time
getting to know him
as you read the Gospels.
And as you do that,
you will perfectly see
what the Father is like.
How often we think about God
like that crazy uncle
who comes to Christmas dinner
with full of non-PC opinions
and behavior.
And Jesus comes along
almost as the cool cousin,
almost apologetically
making up for his misdemeanors.
That couldn't be any further
from the truth.
No, Jesus, friends,
in all his beauty,
in all his captivating glory,
reveals a Father
who is eternally worthy
of our affection
and of our attention.
Jesus shows us
a picture of God
who is far better,
who is far more holy,
who is far more loving
and kind towards us
than you and I
would ever believe possible
if it wasn't for the fact
that Jesus said
it was true.
And as we thought about last week,
and if you weren't here last week,
if you haven't listened to this sermon,
get involved.
It just stirred my soul
for the glory of God.
We thought about last week
that to gaze at Jesus
is to be taking in
the greatest view
in the universe.
You pick up your Bible
tomorrow morning.
It's cold and wet outside.
We're almost at December
in Scotland
and it's Baltic.
You do that tomorrow
in all your weaknesses
and tears
and all your questions
and doubts
with all your fears
and anxieties
and niggles
as you look at the day ahead.
The call is not
to tick the box.
The call is to still yourself
in all the busyness
of modern day life
and behold Him.
That to be a Christian
is to be caught up into
by the power
and the presence
of the Spirit
that we will so wonderfully
think about next week
and that's why
I want you to come back.
It's to be caught up
into the very life
of the Father,
the Son
and the Spirit.
What is evangelism
if it's not just
telling others
about the beauty
of this God
who longs to save
and thrill us
with the person
of His Son?
Always,
sorry,
and I take it
that's precisely
the greater works
that the disciples
will do
if you're asking
that question
of the text.
Because Jesus goes,
this is exactly
what they will do,
greater works.
It's always a wonderful
question to ask
with the bits
of the Bible
that are more difficult
to understand
is to ask of them
what they can't mean.
Well,
this can't be
Jesus promising
that His disciples
will do better miracles
than He did.
Like we're going
to be able
to turn water
into better wine.
I can't really
comprehend
what that would look like.
Or that we're going
to be able
to raise the dead.
I think in the context
of John,
the works
and the words
of Jesus,
they work together
as signs
to help us see
that true life
is to be found
by believing
in His name.
And in the context
of the story,
after Jesus' death
and resurrection
and as He ascends,
the Spirit
is going to be sent,
the very presence
of Jesus,
not being geographically
tied anymore
as it was
when He was physically
on earth.
And the greater work
must be tied up
with the fact
that people
the world over
will come to find life
in Jesus' name
as they respond
to the message
of His life
and work.
Now,
if that was a mouthful,
let me just put it
like this.
Because Jesus
goes to the Father,
people are going
to become Christians
and meet God
and savor Him
and God is going
to move
in ways
far greater
than what the disciples
have seen up
until this point.
Now,
some of you
might have seen
the news
this week
about the rising
migration levels
in the UK.
Did you see that?
I'm trying to put this
into context.
The rising migration
levels in the UK.
Now,
let me encourage us
to put politically
thinking about that aside
and to think about that
theologically.
As people
from all over the world
come to our country,
find their home here,
friends,
what an opportunity.
What an opportunity.
You know,
I was particularly,
I was taken
by the fact
that the majority
of people
in that percentage
rise are now
coming from
out with Europe
to settle
in the UK.
You know,
I was speaking
to my friend
Wayne from Crubbers
the other day
who was telling me
how they have seen
at Crubbers
an influx of people
coming from
Hong Kong.
Some people
were already Christians,
some people
coming to hear
about Jesus
for the first time.
Just had this
lovely moment
when I thought
about this
enthusiastic pastor
from New York
is telling me
about the church
that he pastors
in Edinburgh
and now in his words
one-tenth of his
congregation
are from Hong Kong.
My WhatsApp groups
with pastors
up and down
the country
at the minute
are filled
with stories
about how people
from Iran
have been coming
to churches
in the UK
and being introduced
to Jesus
and it's been great
to get to know
Pedram
as he's been
with us recently
reading the Bible
together
and learning so much
from Pedram.
There was a stat
this week,
did you see it?
I read it,
about how the fastest
growing church
in the UK
is the Chinese-speaking
church.
In fact,
experts reckon
that by 2030
the number of
Christians in China
will surpass
the number of
Christians in the US.
Some even put that
as early as 2025,
which is barely
around the corner.
Do you see it?
The greater works
that Jesus is talking
about is he's no longer
geographically tied
as the Spirit
takes the message
and as it were
just fans it
into flame
around the world.
People from all
over the world,
down the generations,
coming to know
Jesus for
themselves.
Friends,
our mistakes
won't jeopardize
the future.
Be so clear
on that today.
And our limits
won't hinder
the mission.
And that's why
Jesus ruling
and reigning
in heaven
for us
is better
than Jesus
walking and talking
on earth
beside us.
What comfort
and confidence
that we can take
from him
and his
words today.
And I take it
as we finish,
this should free us
to be faithfully
witnessing
wherever we are.
and this is
where I finish
just as we close
with my friend Luke.
And I bumped
into Luke
at a conference
I was at
a few weeks ago.
I've not seen Luke
in 10 years
since we did
the Cornhill course
together 10 years ago.
And he was telling me
just one of those
questions when you
haven't seen somebody
in so long.
You just say,
what have you been up to?
You know,
kind of keep it
really narrow like that.
Yeah,
what have you been up to?
And he told me
about how
after he graduated
he spent some time
working at B&Q
in Aberdeen.
And in his first week
he accidentally
sent a brand new
kitchen
due for a family
in Oxford
to a family
in Aberdeen.
Right?
Big mistake.
And I texted him
this week
and said,
how did that go?
And he simply said
it was a great day
for all involved.
Mistake.
But he kept on going.
Loving his colleagues,
speaking to them
about Jesus.
But the same questions
that I know so many
of us here today
when you're witnessing
in your place of work
wherever you are
you ask as well.
Do people see?
Does anybody even notice?
Is anybody listening?
Is this making
any kind of difference?
Eventually God calls
Luke back
to church work again
and it comes to
his final day
on the job.
And those questions
that he's been asking
well,
they kind of get answered
because everybody
in his workforce
chips in to get him
a gift.
And they buy him
a pastor's key ring.
They buy him
a bag of pasta.
They buy him
an Amazon voucher.
And they buy him
I love the things
that people buy you
by the way
when it's their last day.
And they buy him
a really nice
leather Bible.
They've all signed it
with his initials
stamped on the front.
And it wasn't so much
the gifts
I think got him.
It was what people
said that meant
the world to him.
They just said
thank you.
Thank you.
And so through Luke
and his witness
knowing Jesus
and walking with him
personally
as folks
as he dealt with them
and he was trying
to be as honest
as possible
about his faults
and failings
but as honest
as possible
about the forgiveness
and life
that he's found
in Jesus.
I love the fact
that there's a whole
bunch of folks
in a warehouse
at B&Q up in Aberdeen
who've heard the gospel.
And let's not
underestimate
the things
that God can do
as we just
sow the seed.
Do you know
and just as we close
there is no freer
place for our hearts
to be
than resting
in these words
of Jesus
right here
when he says
do not let
your hearts
be troubled.
And just hear
that today.
Do not let
your hearts
be troubled.
You believe
in God
believe also
in me.
Let's pray
will we?
And so
heavenly father
I'm so conscious
that so many
of us
will be coming
at this
from different
places today.
And lord
I ask that
your spirit
that he would
be at work
in our hearts
bringing the
comfort
and the
challenge
the reassurance
that comes
from Jesus'
words as we've
heard them today.
We just thank
you for the
celebration
that today
has been.
Father we
thank you
for the
gift
of new
life.
We thank
you for
the gift
as it were
of spiritual
life.
And father
I pray
that you
would just
stir our
hearts
with a
greater
affection
for the
Lord Jesus
as we
leave here
today.
Fully
confident
in the
truth
of his
promises
and the
beauty
of his
person
and work.
So father
we thank
you for
your commitment
to us
your people
today.
Be with
us for
the rest
of this
Sunday
we pray
in Jesus
is worthy
and in
his
wonderful
name
we ask.
Amen.