1 "Do not let your hearts be troubled.
Believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father's house there are many
dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare
a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again
and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And
you know the way to the place where I am going." 5 Thomas said to him,
"Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?"
6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one
comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you know me, you will know my
Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him." 8 Philip said
to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied." 9 Jesus
said to him, "Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do
not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say,
"Show us the Father'? 10 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; but
the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father
and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the
works themselves. 12 Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will
also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these,
because I am going to the Father. 13 I will do whatever you ask in my name, so
that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If in my name you ask me for
anything, I will do it.
Whoever has seen me
has seen the Father. How can you say, "Show us the Father'?
·
Who here understands the concept of
“Division of Labour”? It can mean “everybody does their part”, and it can also
mean specialization. Some cook, some repair, some do the books – all depending
on their individual talents and gifts. That’s how human organizations work.
There is little more troubling than being thrown into a situation you are
unsuited for and don’t have the skills for. It is instantly “sink or swim.”
·
This applies to human life, but not
to God. Now, there are some Christians to apply the concept of Division of
Labour to God. They say God the Father creates, Jesus, God the Son redeems, and
the God, the Holy Spirit inspires and sustains. Some even divided history up
into what some call “dispensations” or even “modes”, each interpreting the
Scripture in a certain way. (I could be a bit off in this; it is more complex
than I could explain in the time we have here, and I’m not sure I could.)
·
I suppose this is a really good way
to do things… if you’re forming a corporation or a limited liability
partnership. It doesn’t seem to work in understanding God.
·
We want to understand God. As humans,
we are uneasy with things we can’t explain, even to ourselves. This is why
Philip said to Jesus "Lord, show us the Father, and we
will be satisfied." Who of us wouldn’t?
·
Jesus answer is definitive and
possibly confusing: Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. To see Jesus is
to see the Father; they are that united, even though Jesus does not say that he
is the Father.
·
If seeing Jesus is to see the Father,
we might ask what we see in Jesus.
·
In Jesus, we see one who is willing
to be like us and stand in the middle of ordinary life with a blessing. His
birth was like ours, even with all the special circumstances that the Gospels
tell us surrounded his birth. He lived a life surprising like the lives of
those around him. The death he endured was one that could be said was reserved
for enemies of the state that considered itself almighty. This what the Father
is like.
·
Jesus preached good news to the poor
and took their part, even to living as a poor person without property and
status that we know of. His message gave hope to the poor, direction to the
lost, forgiveness to sinners, and an ear to those unheard. That is what the
Father is like.
·
Jesus was willing to give up all
honour, all glory, all power, and even all life in order to show the love of
God to all those to whom he was sent to proclaim his message. This willingness
is what the Father is like.
·
Jesus is quite clear in his answer to
Philip, that to see him is to see 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; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. When
we, who have not seen Jesus with our own eyes, hear his words, we are hearing
the words the Father has given him. The Psalmist says in Psalm 119:105 - “Your
word is a lamp to guide me and a light for my path” The creation
story in Genesis tells us that God’s word is powerful and it alone is enough to
create.
·
Today we have heard God’s Word and
seen that Word used in tandem with water, a simple element of the earth, to
grant new and eternal life in the Baptisms we’ve all witnessed. Even to this
day, God’s Word makes things happen.
·
In Jesus, the Father showed Himself
to be willing to be poor, humble, and part of the creation He loves. New hope
is proclaimed and love is spoken and lived out. That is just as true today as
it was when Philip asked Jesus to be shown the Father.
·
Even today, Jesus says to us Whoever
has seen me has seen the Father.
[I also added the following quote from N.T.Wright]
If you want to know who God is, look at Jesus. If
you want to know what it means to be human, look at Jesus. If you want to know
what to know what love is, look at Jesus. If you want to know what grief is,
look at Jesus. And keep looking until you’re no longer a spectator but part of
his grand story.
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