John 14:1–14

¹"Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.

²In my Father's house are many rooms (dwelling places). If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

³And if 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.

⁴And you know the way to where I am going."

⁵Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?"

⁶Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

⁷If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him."

⁸Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us."

⁹Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?

¹⁰Do 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 authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

¹¹Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

¹²"Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.

¹³Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

¹⁴If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

From the time you are born you have an eternal home set aside for you with your name on the door. It is not here on earth. This is just a temporary dwelling place. Three funerals in our congregation in the past four weeks make that pretty clear.

At the time of your birth, your eternal dwelling place is not in heaven either. For you were born a sinner. At the time of your birth you are separated from God: "you are sinful and fall short of the glory of God." "You are dead in your trespasses and sins." "You are by nature children of wrath." Yes indeed, "At birth every intent of the thoughts of your heart is only evil...You are corrupt in the sight of God." The eternal dwelling place reserved for you, which you fully deserve, and which you have earned by nature is in hell. That is where we belong by nature. That is what we deserve. That is what we have earned for ourselves. And unless God does something about it, that is where we will live eternally. God is the only one who can change that.

For God is a jealous God "visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generations of those who hate him." This is not a popular topic to talk about today. We try to ignore the topic of punishment and hell. We invent our own gods according to our liking, gods who do not punish. A god who loves us and wants us to get along with everyone and play nice together, but who does not hold anyone accountable for what they do. A god who makes us happy, successful and prosperous without any obligation on our part. A god who closes his eyes to our sin.

But that is not the God who created us. The God who created the heavens and the earth is a holy, righteous God who "visits the iniquity of the fathers to the third and fourth generation." Why do you think he caused a flood to wipe out sinful mankind? Why did he destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? Why did he send his own children into exile? Why does Jesus say that "if your eye or hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It would be better that one of the parts of your body perish than for your whole body to be thrown into hell."

God takes sin seriously. So should you. There are consequences to sin. If you find that you are living still in sin, turn from it and flee to the cross. Since we are sinful by nature, the only way to be saved from these consequences is if God does something radical and drastic.

Indeed, God has done something radical and drastic. That's why Jesus said: "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me." "In my Father's house are many dwelling places...I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." Jesus has prepared another home for us. A permanent, eternal dwelling in his Father's house.

Jesus prepared that dwelling place for you by his death and resurrection. When he said on the cross: "It is finished," your new home was ready. A home which you do not deserve, but which Jesus made for you out of his pure, undeserved love. It is a new and radical thing that God has done because it defies nature. It is contrary to the way things are. It is an anomaly. For the home we deserve is in hell, but he has given us a gift; a new home, in his Father's house. God has done a new and drastic thing. God himself became a human being. God laid down his life for you on a cross. God paid for your sins in hell. That is a new and drastic thing. That has changed the whole course of mankind.

Jesus himself is that new home. He is our eternal dwelling place, for "in him we live and move and have our being." Dwelling in the Father's house means to be in him and him in us. "You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you." "In that day, you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you." "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him."

When Jesus spoke these words in our Gospel reading, it was in the context of him telling his disciples that he would die and be taken away from them for a time, and then be raised. They could not follow him into death, but he was going to prepare a dwelling place for them and that he would return to take them with him.

How do we get to that dwelling place? Only Jesus can take us there. "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me." He is the only way to the Father's house. He comes to take you with him. In Baptism God did something radical and drastic... in you. In Baptism He took you to your new dwelling place! In Baptism you were united with him in his death and will be united with him in his resurrection. You are united with God. In baptism he seized you and snatched you out of your native dwelling place by birth and deposited you into a new dwelling place in his Father's house. You dwell in him. He dwells in you.

You now dwell in the house of the Father. It is a present reality. Yet, it is incomplete and imperfect because you are still in the sinful flesh.

But in the future it will be complete and perfect. On that day when your mortal flesh dies and is buried; on that day you will be raised with an immortal body, your fellowship with God will be complete and perfect. "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever." "Let me dwell in your tent forever, Oh Lord! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! (Ps 61)." "God will save Zion...the offspring of his servants shall inherit it, and those who love his name shall dwell in it."

Those who love his name will dwell in it: Jesus says, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him." "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him."

However, "Whoever does not love me does not keep my words." Whoever does not keep his commandments does not dwell in his Father's house but in the devil's. There is no in-between. There is no middle ground; no demilitarized zone. You either dwell in the house of the Lord, or in the house of the devil.

"He who believes in me will also do the works that I do." His works are works of righteousness; forgiveness and love. His works are works of compassion and mercy. He laid down his life for you. He heals you when you are sick. He comforts you in your sorrow. He supplies your food and shelter and clothing. These are his works and these are the works of those who believe him, because we dwell in him and he in us. If our dwelling place is in the Father, the love of the Father dwells in us. We put away sin, immorality, sexual impurity, prejudice, pride, strife, divisions, selfishness. If we do not put these away from us, it is because he does not dwell in us. We have turned away from him and departed from this dwelling place.

But where the Holy Spirit dwells, there is renewal, there is truth, there is peace, there is love. There is the dwelling place of God. If your body is the temple of the Spirit, use it not for works of unrighteousness. Use it for peace, love, forgiveness, compassion and mercy.

For such is the dwelling place of the Father. Where the Father dwells there is harmony, love, peace and life. "Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many dwelling places. I go and prepare a place for you and I will come again to take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." Amen.