“Do not let your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1). There are many words from our Lord that instill deep peace and these are some of the most eloquent. They remind me of the words of comfort spoken by a parent when a child is troubled. In the mind of a child everything is disproportionately large, and the loving duty of a parent is to return the child to perspective, where the problems of life are addressed reasonably and realistically. In so doing, the child is reassured of the safe and loving care of the parents. The child will always have a place in the home of the parents.
With this approach in mind, it is not surprising that our Lord reassures His followers that there is a place for them in His Father’s house. “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be” (John 14:2-3).
When Philip then asks our Lord how they can know the way where He is going, our Lord responds, “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:5-6). To know the Lord is to know the way because He is the way. Do you seek the truth? He is the truth. Do you seek life? He is the life. To have seen the Lord is to have seen the Father, because the Father is in Him and He is in the Father (John 14:11).
The answer to everything — our troubles, the quest for peace, the search for an eternal home, and ultimately our salvation — rests in Jesus Christ.