The Greatness of the Father
8. Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it will satisfy us.”
9. Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long time with you and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He that has seen Me has seen the Father; and how do you say then, ‘show us the Father?”
10. “Believe Me that I Am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The Words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwells in Me, He does the works.”
11. “Believe Me that I Am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works’ sake.”
12. “Verily, verily I say to you, He that believes on Me, the works that I do shall He do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father.”
13. “And whatsoever you shall ask in My Name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”
14. “If you shall ask any thing in My Name, I will do it.”
John 14:8-14
The Things Jesus Loved to Talk About
Reading the Bible is a wonderful journey of discovery wherein the believer can visit the lives of people who were transformed by the Power of God. This Bible journey is even more thrilling as we turn to the four Gospels and explore the life of Jesus and the awesome miracles He performed. Yet, we are not only introduced to the life of Jesus and His original Disciples, but we also have the opportunity to discover the things that Jesus loved to talk about and what was on His heart.
Our Lord and Savior loved to talk about His mission from God. In John’s Gospel He states this mission with the ‘I Am’ statements that reveal who He is as well as what He will do in the lives of people. I Am the Light of the world. I Am the Bread of Life. I Am the Truth. I Am the Way. I Am the Life. I Am the True Vine. I Am the Good Shepherd Who lays down His life for the Sheep. I Am the Resurrection and the Life. Jesus loved talking about His mission because of the tremendous needs. He summarized His mission by stating, I Am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. John 10:10. So, yes our Savior loved talking about His mission.
While His mission was certainly of utmost priority, Jesus also loved to talk about the Kingdom of God. His parables would introducing such wonderful details of what it was like to live in the Kingdom of God and to enjoy the benefits of being a citizen of Heaven. Our Lord was not merely describing a world to people, but He was also giving them faith to believe in Him so that they would inherit that Kingdom. Jesus was not merely talking about the Kingdom in a remote manner, He was literally issuing an invitation for people to follow Him to that Kingdom. In John 10:9, our Lord stated very plainly, I Am the door: by Me if any one enters in, they will be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture. The multitudes of people were so intrigued by His Word that they followed Him and as the Bible states, many put their trust in Him. We too, can become His followers by simply taking His Word to heart and allowing the Spirit of God to transfer us from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of Christ.
There is still the third thing that Jesus loved to talk about more than anything else. More than the Kingdom of God, and more than His Mission of Salvation, Jesus talked about His Father. Jesus not only wanted people to know His Father, but His plan was for everyone to become a child of God.
The Gospel of John alone records Jesus referencing His Father more than one hundred thirty times. That is amazing! In the fourteenth chapter of John, Jesus referred to His Father twenty three times to let us know that The Father should be the center of our focus and the center of our very life. So what is it about the Father that Jesus would have us to know in order that we might also glorify God? We can take an even deeper dive into Jesus’ discussion about The Father and find that God is the absolute Greatest of Fathers and has set the mold for fatherhood.
The Essentials of Fatherhood
John Fourteen opens with an announcement that The Greatest Father of all has a home that He has prepared for His children. Jesus said, In My Father’s House there are many mansions, if it were not so, I would have told you. Some have interpreted the word ‘mansion’ as a room, and in our limited mind, we think of a singular room of limited space. But the language of the verse does not support that idea. The word actually means ‘abode’ and lends itself to the interpretation that all of God’s children will be living with Him in His House. Where ever God is, there His children will be also and will dwell with Him eternally. Jesus told this great truth that we would have the comfort of knowing that when our earthly house can no longer afford us a home, God Almighty has provided another home for us. So there is the first essential of fatherhood of providing a place for your children. We can learn a valuable lesson from this regardless of whether one has great riches or few resources. A godly father has an overwhelming desire to provide a place for his family and will do all he can to make it happen. Please notice that Jesus preferenced the statement about His Father’s house after acknowledging that people have a ‘troubled heart’ when they don’t know where they are going to stay. In the Father’s Kingdom, there will be no such thing as homelessness and children being uncared for. God will provide for their every need because He is the greatest of all.
As Jesus made the announcement that He was going away to get the Father’s House prepared for the arrival of His children, He shared with them that they should have known the Father because He had made the Father known to them. If you had known Me, you should have known My Father also, and from no on you know Him and have seen Him. At that point, Philip interrupted and asked Jesus to show them the Father. Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long time with you and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He that has seen Me has seen the Father; and how do you say then, ‘show us the Father?” This brings us to the second essential of fatherhood: sharing with the children your true identity. For Jesus, He and the Father were one and the same because of their nature. God is Powerful, so was Jesus. God was Good, so was Jesus. God was Merciful, Jesus was Merciful also. God was Wise, so was Jesus. As a matter of fact, everything the Father did, Jesus would do also. It wasn’t just imitation of the Father’s actions; it was expressing the Father’s identity by performing the same actions that He performed. If God raised the dead, then Jesus did the same. If the Father opened blind eyes and healed lepers, then Jesus would do the same and each time that would bring glory to the Father. Whenever we, as children of God, duplicate the Father’s actions, we are bringing glory and honor to Him.
So, how do earthly fathers share their identity with their children. First, you already give them identity through your DNA. But there should be the sharing of identity by speaking life into them as the greatest Father of all has spoken life into the lives of His children. You also share your identity by teaching them the value of living a good life and pursuing righteousness. Remember, those are the things that the Father has passed along to us so that we may reflect His character. God said, “You be holy for I Am Holy.”
Jesus went even further to express how the Father’s Words and the Father’s Works were manifested through Him. “Believe Me that I Am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The Words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwells in Me, He does the works” … “Believe Me that I Am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works’ sake.” Jesus used the “believe Me” statements three times in John 14. He opened His discussion of the Father’s House with the words, You believe in God, believe also in Me. In verses 10 and 11, He is inviting the child of God to believe Him. First believe that He is in the Father and the Father is in Him. That is to believe that the Father is working in His life. God the Father is again, giving an example of what it means to be a Father. A father is to inspire life and purpose in their children. That is what God the Father does. Life has no meaning without God, but when God is speaking through us and better yet, living in us, we are alive and flourishing with purpose. This life goes beyond identity and now expresses power. While humans do not have the power to transfer to another person, they can certainly inspire their children to live godly lives. What a wonderful thing for the life and purpose of the father to be in their children!
In the Old Testament, there was a group of people who followed the teachings of their father so closely that God honored and blessed them as a result of their faithfulness. They were called the Rechabites. During the days of Jeremiah the Prophet, the Rechabite descendants still held on to the strict guidelines that were given by their father. They did not keep the commands out of legal obligation. The children of Rechab loved their father and wanted to honor him by following the instructions he had given. That is what it means to have God living inside of you. We want to obey Him because we love Him and He loves us by giving us His commands that lead to life.
Finally, the essentials for fatherhood can never be complete without teaching the children through works. Jesus said, “Believe Me that I Am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works’ sake.” How did Jesus know to do the things that He did. It is quite simple, He learned from the Father. With humans fathers there are three possibilities. One, you can teach the children to do the wrong things that leads to destruction. This will include teaching the children to break the laws, live reckless, and fail to show respect and responsibility. Two, you can teach the children through abandonment. In doing so, children are taught not to care and certainly not to share with others. Or, three, you can teach the children through your own actions, the right way to live. Jesus expressed that He learned “the works” from His Father. All that the Father had done, Jesus watched and was able to do the same.
Some fathers may ask, how am I going to teach my children when I need to learn myself? Here’s where Jesus gave access to the Father’s instructions. In the opening verses of Chapter 14, Jesus gave us access to the Father’s House. In verse 12-14, Jesus gave access to His Father’s Instructions. “Verily, verily I say to you, He that believes on Me, the works that I do shall He do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father” … “And whatsoever you shall ask in My Name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son”… “If you shall ask any thing in My Name, I will do it.” Thank God, He not only tells us to be good fathers, He gives us the power to become great fathers like Him. Amen.