5 Easter

1* ¶ "Let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me.
2* In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
3* And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
4* ¶ And you know the way 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, but by me.
7* If you had known me, you would have known my Father also; henceforth you know him and have seen him."
8* Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied."
9* Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip? He who 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 in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.
11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me; or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves.
12* ¶ "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I go to the Father.
13* Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be glorified in the Son;
14 if you ask anything in my name, I will do it.

One focus of this gospel lesson can be on the idea that Jesus is the guide for us as we walk our faith journey.

That if we focus on Christ, then no matter what happens on our journey, we will have the assurance that He is with us giving us His grace and comfort on the way.

Professor Gerhard Frost of Luther College explains this idea very well in the following:

'Imagine you are walking through your neighborhood and you pass a house where the family is loading the car to go on vacation. There are three children all under the age of 5 in the mini van waiting eagerly for Mom and Dad to finish the last minute details.

You walk up to the mini van, poke your head in the window and ask: "Where are you going?" They don't know. "What highway are you taking?" Wide-eyed they say they have no idea "Where are you going to have supper tonight?" Again no idea.

Then you ask: "With whom are you going?"

Their eyes brighten, "With Daddy and Mommy, of course!!" They answer!!

Living a faith life is in deed that simple. We don't know exactly where we are going on the road of life, we don't know about all the stops we are going to make on the way, and we don't even know all of the highways and byways we are going to take, but we know one thing, Jesus is with us. We are going with Him. And that is all the assurance we need to know.

Tim
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