Strengthen Our Faith: Jesus as The Way, The Truth, and The Life

My Reflection:

The Way

1. The Gospel begins with Jesus comforting the disciples by assuring them that He is going to prepare a place for them in His Father’s house, or Heaven, and that He will return to take them there.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.”

~ John 14:1

2. In John 14:5, when Thomas says, “Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?”, he is expressing confusion and uncertainty about Jesus’ impending departure and the path that the disciples should follow after He is gone.

3. Earlier in the passage, Jesus tells the disciples, “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). Jesus is preparing the disciples for His imminent departure from them, which includes His Crucifixion, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension.

4. Thomas, like the other disciples, does not yet fully understand the significance of these events or the spiritual implications of Jesus’ words. He is seeking clarification about the physical destination Jesus is referring to and how they can follow Him there. Thomas’s question reveals the disciples’ limited understanding of Jesus’ mission and the true nature of His kingdom at this point in time. That’s why even with the assurance that He will take them with Him, Thomas still felt the anxiety of not knowing the way to their destination.

5. In response to Thomas’s question, Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). With these words, Jesus emphasizes that He is not only the one who shows the way to the Father but that He is the Way itself. By having faith in Jesus and following His teachings, the disciples (and all believers) can find their way to eternal life with God the Father.

The Truth

6. Philip then said to Jesus, “Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us. (John 14:8)” My personal interpretation of this is that Philip might have thought that to go to Heaven, it’s already enough to know the Father alone. In other words, he might have believed that a direct relationship with the Father was sufficient for salvation, without recognizing the essential role of Jesus in this relationship.

7. This interpretation suggests that Philip may have believed that by seeing and knowing the Father directly, he could gain access to Heaven without Jesus playing any role in it. However, Jesus gently rebukes Philip, saying, “Have I been with you for so long a time, 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? (John 14:9-10)”

8. To better illustrate this point and help the readers understand the relationship between Philip’s request and Jesus’ response, let’s consider a hypothetical dialogue between friends. Imagine your friend asks you, ‘Hey, do you know someone who can be a kind friend to me?’ In response, you say, ‘Then you mean, I’m not a kind sort of friend to you, and that’s why you desire for another friend?’

9. This analogy mirrors the exchange between Philip and Jesus, highlighting the idea that Philip’s request to see the Father can be seen as indirectly implying that Jesus isn’t enough or that He isn’t a clear representation of the Father. Just like in the friend analogy, the person seeking a kind friend doesn’t realize that they already have a kind friend in front of them. Similarly, Philip doesn’t realize that in seeing and knowing Jesus, he has already seen and known the Father.

10. The conversation between Jesus and Philip can serve as a reminder for all of us to reflect on our own understanding of the relationship between Jesus and the Father and the importance of Jesus in our spiritual journey. By deepening our faith in Jesus and following His teachings, we can grow closer to the Father and ultimately find our way to eternal life in Heaven.

11. Jesus’ response to Philip underscores the Truth—the necessity of recognizing and embracing Jesus’ essential role in our relationship with the Father. The analogy with the friend dialogue helps to clarify the interaction between Philip and Jesus, emphasizing the importance of acknowledging the existing relationship and not seeking alternatives when the answer is right before us. As we deepen our faith in Jesus and follow His teachings, we can grow closer to the Father and find our way to eternal life in Heaven.

12. This is another reminder that even for those who claim to be ‘spiritual but not religious’ or who believe in the God of Abraham without accepting Jesus, they may be missing the essential aspect of the Christian faith. While Christianity, along with Judaism and Islam, is part of the Abrahamic faith tradition, and all three religions share a belief in the God of Abraham, the understanding and interpretation of God’s nature and the relationship with the divine differ among these religions. It is essential to recognize that the Christian understanding of God includes the belief in the Holy Trinity—the Father, the Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit— which sets it apart from Judaism and Islam. While these religions deserve respect for their shared belief in the Abrahamic God, the rejection of Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the Savior is a significant difference that separates their beliefs from the Christian faith. They might have their own ‘truth’ about their concept of God, but for Christians, there is only one Truth, and that is Jesus Christ.

The Life

13. The Father, who resides within Jesus, is the one performing the miraculous works through Jesus. The miracles are evidence of the Father’s power and presence within Jesus.

“The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.”

~ John 14:10

14. Jesus is asking the disciples to trust in the unity between Him and the Father. He is affirming that He and the Father are one, and the Father resides within Him.

“Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.”

~ John 14:11

15. If the disciples find it challenging to believe in the unity between Jesus and the Father based on His words alone, they should consider the miraculous works He has performed as evidence of that unity.

“Or else, believe because of the works themselves.”

~ John 14:11

16. Jesus is emphasizing the truth and importance of what He is about to say: those who have faith in Jesus will be empowered to perform the same miraculous works that He has done, such as healing, casting out demons, and even raising the dead.

“Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,”

~ John 14:12

17. In addition to performing the same works as Jesus, those who believe in Him will also accomplish even greater works. This is due to the empowerment they will receive through the Holy Spirit, which Jesus will send after His Ascension.

“And will do greater ones than these,”

~ John 14:12

18. Jesus is explaining that these greater works will be possible because He is going to the Father, which will lead to the sending of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will empower the disciples and all believers to continue Jesus’ ministry and perform even greater miracles in His Name.

“Because I am going to the Father.”

~ John 14:12

19. As I emphasize my personal reflection, I believe that from the time of the disciples to us faithful Catholics today, our life on earth is meant to serve God and others through good works done in Jesus’ Name, just as Jesus served the people during His time. By striving to know Jesus in this life, as discussed in my previous article, we partake in His promise that He will return and take us to Heaven, where we will receive our portion in the next life.

Conclusion

As Jesus said, “In My Father’s house there are many dwelling places,” there is space or room for everyone in Heaven, and all are invited to go there. Accepting this invitation, however, requires our free will. Jesus promises us that He Himself is preparing a place for us—what could be more special than that?

In our life experiences, we know that stumbling blocks and intrusions from the devil, his minions, and those under his influence can make it challenging to accept our Creator’s loving invitation. The world is rapidly changing due to innovation and increasing sinfulness, and a variety of conflicting ‘truths’ are presented to us. These circumstances may cause anxiety for some faithful individuals, as keeping up with these changes can be difficult.

One of my favorite quotes from various saints is by St. Augustine, who said, “My heart is restless until it rests in Thee.” This quote reminds us that various forms of anxiety will be experienced by the faithful in this life.

In times of confusion, we must find consolation in Jesus’ words: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” The disciples faced similar feelings of confusion about what they would do after Jesus’ Ascension to Heaven.