#26: “Words of Comfort to Believers”
SCRIPTURE: John 14:1-14
INTRO:
I couldn’t say it any better than my late friend, Paul Butler, said
it in his commentary on the gospel of John:
“Chapter fourteen has been read, quoted, and preached for
nearly two thousand years at times of sorrow, stress, and
bereavement. It has been a constant source of strength and
consolation. This is exactly the purpose it was intended to serve
when Jesus uttered it.
“These are words of tenderness from a loving Father to His
soon-to-be bereaved children. He is about to leave them, suffering a
shameful and agonizing death, and they will be scattered like lambs.
The tenderness of Jesus is revealed here as nowhere else. Although
He knows that they will soon desert and deny Him, He very patiently
and tenderly explains that in His going He will not leave them
desolate, but He will send the Strengthener. He explains that even in
His leaving them He is going to prepare a place for them” (p.238).