John 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me. I. To come UNTO THE FATHER MUST BE REGARDED AS THE CHIEF CONCERN OF MAN. 1. The nature of this coming to the Father. It is — (1) To obtain an accurate acquaintance of His character and His will. We are said to be distant from an object when we are ignorant of it. In the Sacred Writings, on the one hand, ignorance of God is mentioned as being a crime; and, on the other, to attain an accurate acquaintance with Jehovah is the highest human blessing. It is, therefore, desired for men that they may have the spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of God and His Son. (2) The enjoyment of reconciliation with Him. Reconciliation was the grand theme which Christ preached, as well as the grand work which He came to accomplish. 2. The importance of thus coming to the Father. Adopting the most general assumption that God is the Governor, and that man is a subject, and that the sanction by which the government of God is vindicated, over the retribution of eternity, then it must follow that nothing can be of importance at all compared to the attainment of a state by which the infliction of the Divine anger may be avoided, and by which the enjoyment of the Divine favour may be secured. II. THE WORK OF THE LORD JESUS AFFORDS A METHOD BY WHICH MEN MAY COME UNTO THE FATHER. In the whole of the series of verses, with which the text is connected, our Saviour speaks of Himself as being one who had been introduced for the purpose of accomplishing a work, through the agency of which man might be made possessor of all that is desirable in the state we have endeavoured to describe. Let us notice — 1. The nature of the work which our Lord Jesus has accomplished. (1) Christ is invested with the office of a teacher. One object of His incarnation was to remove those awful shades of ignorance which had overshadowed the nations of the earth; and to inculcate all those principles of spiritual truth which were necessary for man to know and believe. (2) But we must contemplate the work of our Lord as that which also furnishes a positive atonement for sin. 2. The extent to which this work is intended to be applied. The merit of the work of the Saviour is intrinsically sufficient for the world. The means of access and acceptance with God, under the Levitical dispensation, were restricted to a small nation; but under that dispensation of grace and truth, which came by Jesus Christ, it announced that the party walls were to be broken down, and the distinction of Jew and Gentile known no more; and that whomsoever, of any age, nation, rank, or character, would come unto the Father through the work of the Son, should find in the work of the Son a ready plenitude of Almighty energy and grace. There is no limit to that promise — "He that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out." III. TO COME UNTO THE FATHER, EXCEPT THROUGH THE WORK OF JESUS, IS PERFECTLY AND ETERNALLY IMPOSSIBLE. 1. No other being possesses the characteristics which are possessed by our Lord Jesus, and which are necessary to constitute a sufficient mode of access to the Father. For, what is Christ? He is God, and He is Man. The way to God would be shut if it were not for the humanity of Christ; the way to God would be imperfect if it were not for the Divinity of Christ. Humanity is what gives to the work of the Saviour adaptation; Divinity is what gives to the work of Christ efficacy, plenitude, and power. 2. The Sacred Writings distinctly and solemnly declare that the work of Christ, as the Medium of access to the Father, stands exclusive and alone. "Neither is there salvation in any other," etc. "Other foundation can no man lay," etc. Conclusion: 1. Have you come to the Father? 2. Will you come unto the Father? (J. Parsons.) Parallel Verses KJV: Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. |
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