People spend their lives searching. We search for success, love, hope, and peace. We spend years, even decades, searching for purpose, meaning, and direction.
To find these we often turn to other people, jobs, education, or our own minds. Those things, however, are only temporary and cannot provide anything that truly lasts.
As I read today’s passage, God reminded me that when it comes to life, the things we need to have joy, hope, peace, love, salvation, etc., are in Christ alone.
Here’s today’s passage:
14 “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 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. 4 And you know the way to 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 had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
– John 14:1-7 (ESV)
In this brief passage is recognition of how we live life and an assuring reminder of how we should live.
We Often Live for Ourselves
Humans are naturally selfish. We do things for our own joys and satisfactions. We also tend to live within our own minds, whether it’s the ego or especially the worry (Jesus addressed the latter here).
Jesus recognized this and told us not to be stressed out, overburdened, and or worried.
When bad things happen, it’s easy to become distressed or depressed. It’s easy to worry about things, especially things we can’t do anything about.
To solve the problem, we often turn to ourselves or other people. Why? Because we often look and live inward: we often are all about ourselves.
However, Jesus reminds us that there is more to life than the problems of today, the stresses of the moment, and the worries of tomorrow. Jesus tells us that there’s more to our existence than our own little individual worlds, and that reality should be encouraging.
What We Seek is in Christ Alone
As we seek answers and as we go about living, we need to look beyond ourselves and to God. “Believe in God,” Jesus said (v. 1).
He went on to make promises of preparing a place in eternity for his followers, and promised to come back to bring us to that place. All we need to do is look beyond ourselves and realize that Jesus is the answer to our questions about life.
Feeling stressed? Turn to Jesus.
Feeling overwhelmed? Turn to Jesus.
Feeling prideful? Turn to Jesus (for a reality check).
Lacking in faith, hope, love? Turn to Jesus.
Looking for life beyond the grave? Turn to Jesus.
Jesus gives peace, comfort, hope, and love. Jesus gives us faith. Jesus shows us who we really are and saves us.
Instead of worrying, wandering aimlessly, and wishing for something better, remember that Jesus alone is “the way, the truth, and the life.” All we need is in Christ.
Bringing It Home
Everybody is seeking answers to something. Whatever the specific question, they are all about finding hope beyond ourselves. Sadly, though, we often look to ourselves and our world for answers.
When those answers don’t come, we sink into worry and sometimes disenchantment. This need not be.
Rather than looking to ourselves or any mere human for hope, faith, and love, we should turn to the one that is the giver of all three: Jesus. Not only is he the giver of them, Jesus is our faith, our hope, and our love.
So, whatever you’re going through, turn toward the one who laid his life down for others, and who then rose again. Look to Jesus, because it is all in Christ alone.
