Today would have been my dad’s 97th birthday. He lives with Jesus these days. I have now lived more than half of my life without my dad around, unable to speak with him or ask him questions, unable to listen to one of his terrible jokes or ask his advice, unable to sit and play dominoes or some other silly game with him. I was blessed to have him as my father, my spiritual mentor, and my friend.

There were a couple of times in my life when mom said, “Your Father would like to have a word with you.” That often meant I was in trouble, but not always. I like that phrase, especially when you use it in connection with your Heavenly Father:  “Your Father would like to have a word with you.” That is a good thing to hear.

I’m going to spend some time over the next few says thinking about that phrase as it is played our in John 14. These are some of the words Jesus spoke to His disciples just before He was betrayed. I’m going to go through this chapter and share a few of my thoughts and observations with you.

John 14
¹ “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. ² In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. ⁴ You know the way to the place where I am going.” ⁵ Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

The Father’s house is where we want to be, and where we will be thanks to Jesus. He has prepared everything for our arrival. And there is plenty of room there. Jesus is the one who has given us access to the Father. We get to be with our heavenly Father because He had a Word with us, His Son, Jesus. We get to the Father through the Word made Flesh. He paid our entry fee with His life of perfect obedience to God’s Law, being our Sacrificial Lamb to earn our forgiveness, and conquering death by rising from the dead. We get to the Father through His Word with us.

To be continued.