Preparing for Easter: The Word of God

Today’s Reading: John 17:14-19

You may have heard it said that followers of Christ are in the world but not of the world.

What this means is, through a relationship with Jesus Christ, we realize that this world is simply a stop on our way to the Kingdom of Heaven, our final destination.

A quote from an 1855 religious text reads:

“All life is a journey not a home; it is a road, not the country; and those transient enjoyments which you have in this life, lawful in their way,-those incidental and evanescent pleasures which you may sip,-are not home; they are little inns only upon the road-side of life, where you are refreshed for a moment, that you may take again the pilgrim-staff and journey on, seeking what is still before you-the rest that remaineth for the people of God.”

Although most of us no longer use the word ‘remaineth’ or journey through life with a pilgrim-staff, those words written above are just as true today as they were in 1855.

This world is not our final destination.

Every night around 10:30 pm, my wife and I lie in bed and listen to the train as it runs by our house. There is something peaceful about hearing the whistle blow and the train rumble past. I have no idea what the train is carrying and the many twists and turns it will take, but I know it has a purpose and an end destination.

In a way, the life we live here on earth is similar.

John 17:16-17 says, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”

Consider for a moment that Jesus is the train and God’s word is the train tracks.

In John 14:6 Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” It is by the blood of Jesus Christ that we are set free, in order to glorify God every waking moment of our lives. We live in Christ. His sacrifice carries us to our final destination.

God gave us His word so that we may study it and see His standard for absolute righteousness, driving us to the gospel of Jesus Christ for salvation. God’s word is the train tracks. When we want to veer off of the track He has set for us, Jesus’ saving grace keeps us traveling toward our final destination.

We don’t know all the twists and turns that our individual journeys will take, but by faith in Jesus Christ we are certain of our purpose and end destination.

1 Peter 2:9 - “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

This world is simply a stop on our way to the Kingdom of Heaven, our final destination.