1 Jesus said to his disciples, “Don’t be worried! Have faith in God and have faith in me. 2 There are many rooms in my Father’s house. I wouldn’t tell you this, unless it was true. I am going there to prepare a place for each of you. 3 After I have done this, I will come back and take you with me. Then we will be together. 4 You know the way to where I am going.”
5 Thomas said, “Lord, we don’t even know where you are going! How can we know the way?”
6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Jesus answered. “Without me, no one can go to the Father. 7 If you had known me, you would have known the Father. But from now on, you do know him, and you have seen him.”
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father. That is all we need.”
9 Jesus replied:
Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don’t you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father? 10 Don’t you believe that I am one with the Father and that the Father is one with me? What I say isn’t said on my own. The Father who lives in me does these things.
11 Have faith in me when I say that the Father is one with me and that I am one with the Father. Or else have faith in me simply because of the things I do. 12 I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things that I am doing. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father. 13 Ask me, and I will do whatever you ask. This way the Son will bring honor to the Father. 14 I will do whatever you ask me to do.
Read John 14:1-14 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
I have often wondered about a phrase that we find in this journal entry’s passage. In the last paragraph and specifically in the last two verses, Jesus clearly states, “Ask me, and I will do whatever you ask. This way the Son will bring honor to the Father. I will do whatever you ask me to do.” (verses 13-14)
This phrase seems like a blank check that Jesus promises to each of us as His followers. On the surface, this seems like a no-strings-attached offer.
Like many of Jesus’ teachings, these two verses have often been used to paint Jesus (and God) as a genie in a bottle, here to grant whatever you wish for – though since God is better than a genie, there is no limit to the number of wishes we get.
However, on the other side, there are those who push back against this idea saying that this is not a limitless offer. Instead, we must ask for things off of a predetermined list of “God-approved” actions. “After all,” those using this argument say, “God wouldn’t murder someone if you asked Him to, and He has yet to answer your request for winning the lottery.”
There are big problems with both the genie view, as well as the list view. The genie view paints God as being impersonal, and subject to our will. Seeing God with genie-glasses makes God out to be lower than us, and that He simply exists to do our bidding. The list view also has problems, because it limits Jesus’ words. There is nothing Jesus says in this passage to even imply a limit to what He would do for us.
But there is one key ingredient that Jesus does give immediately before saying these words. Verses 11 and 12 have one big central theme: “Have faith in me when I say that the Father is one with me and that I am one with the Father. Or else have faith in me simply because of the things I do. I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things that I am doing. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father.”
Three times in these two verses, Jesus says the phrase, “Have faith in Me”. Looking back to the very beginning of this passage, we also see the idea of faith being shared: “Don’t be worried! Have faith in God and have faith in me.” (verse 1b)
In this context, faith doesn’t mean a religion or set of doctrines. In this case, it simply means “complete trust or confidence in someone or something”, and in this case, that Someone is Jesus, who is one with God.
So then what does Jesus’ promise to us mean?
Sandwiched in the middle of Jesus’ promise to us is the reason behind His promise. Jesus says that His actions “will bring honor to the Father”. This tells me that the goal of everything Jesus does is to bring honor to the Father. There is no limit to what we ask of Jesus, but Jesus will always answer us in a way that brings honor to the Father.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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