Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 14:6

I AM the Way

Man was created with a need for worship: this is why there are so many world religions. The eye is not long satisfied with what it sees, nor the ear with what it hears, nor ambition with success, nor the flesh with gratification. No matter what we do, in the end there is always a vacuum that can be filled only by a higher power. We want to find a way to that higher power, that father-figure—but how? How do we touch God?

Because of sin, it would have been impossible to touch God, for God cannot endure sin in His presence. He is as infinitely holy as we are infinitely unholy. That is why He sent His Son to become a Man—God in the flesh. Jesus bridged the gap between God and man and became the Way to God.

I AM the Truth

The Old Testament saints had signs and symbols pointing to the sacrifice that would take away sins—the tabernacle, the shewbread, the candlestick, etc. Jesus Christ is the True Tabernacle, the True Bread, and the True Light. He fulfilled every prophecy and satisfied every foreshadowing, every symbol. He is the Truth for which all of those things were the image.

If we know God as He really is, then we have truth in religion. But how can we know God as He really is? Again, there is an infinite gap between holy God and sinful man. How can we know Him if we cannot ascend into heaven to see Him, hear Him, and talk with Him? The answer: God must come to us. And He did—in the Person of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is Emmanuel, “God with us.” When we come to God by Jesus, the Way, then He opens to us the truth, because He is the Truth.

I AM the Life

Coming God’s way and knowing God’s truth is not enough. There is one more essential element. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and everything contained therein. On the sixth day He made man, fashioning him from the dust of the earth. At that moment man already had the way to God, for he was in God’s hands. And he had the potential to possess the truth, for he was in the presence of God. But man was nothing more than a statue until God added the finishing touch, when He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. After the fall, which brought about the curse of sin and spiritual death, there arose a need for spiritual life. Jesus is that Life! As the only sinless Man, He gave His life a ransom for the sins of all mankind, shedding His blood to cover our sins once for all. Then He rose again in victory over death and hell, so that we too could live again.

Not Multiple Choice

Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He forms a complete package, as it were, not a contract with options. But there are those who want options.

Some people want the way of salvation, but they stop at the door and refuse to go on in the truths of God’s Word, choosing to remain as babes suckling on the milk when they could be chewing on the meat.

Others are so proud of their truths that they fall short of life. But their dead ritualism and formalism is an offense to God and a mockery to the world.

Still others seek life without truth, refusing to conform to any restraints. These look so much like the world that even the world cannot tell the difference.

The Order

Let us recognize the order in which these elements are presented to us, for the order is important. You must come God’s way to find Christ. If you first seek truth, you will be lost, for you will never find truth until you find Christ. If you first seek life, you will die in your sins, for again, you will never find life until you find Christ.

Conclusion

I’ll leave you with a quote from Thomas a Kempis:

Without the Way there is no going;
without the Truth there is no knowing;
without the Life there is no living.
I am the Way which thou oughtest to follow,
the Truth which thou oughtest to trust,
the Life which thou oughtest to hope for.

Thomas a Kempis

If you have not already, I invite you to come today to Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

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