Verse of the Day 10/6

Through the Bible - Isaiah 35-37, Colossians 1   Good morning, As I mentioned yesterday, today marks 10 years since our son Jeff's tragic car accident.  During the days that followed we received many cards of encouragement, but one that gave us comfort came from one of the girls in the youth group at our church.  The verse that it referenced was John 14:27, it would be a verse that we would turn to time and time again.   John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.   NKJV Yesterday on my way to the airport for a business flight I was listening to a sermon by David Jeremiah on the radio, it was from John 14 and focused on the first few verses of the chapter which contained the same encouragement "do not let your heart be troubled".  It will be our verse for the day.   John 14:1-  "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  2 In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.   NKJV In his sermon Jeremiah pointed out three things that we need to believe in as spelled out in these verses.  Believe in God, believe in Jesus, and believe that He is preparing a place for us.   People believe in God, the Jews believed in God, the disciples belived in God.  Jesus was a person, God incarnate.  He was calling them to believe in him.  What Jesus was telling them was that He was the exact image of the Father (see today's NT reading Col. 1:15) and the way to the Father (John 14:6) and to the place that was being prepared.   The same applies to us.  We've believed in God, we have the testimony of all of the witnesses and history itself that tell us that Jesus lived, died, and rose again to give us confidence in the place being prepared for us.   On the plane today I was reading a book on the parables of Jesus, "The Waiting Father" by Helmut Thielicke.  Regarding the parable of the prodigal son, he wrote: "Now the kingdom of God is among you, now the Father's house is wide open.  And I - I am the door, I am the way, I am the life, I am the hand of the Father.  He who sees me sees the Father.  And what do you see when you see me?  You see one who came down to you in the depths where you could never rise to the heights.  You see that God "so loved the world" that He delivered me, His son, to these depths, that it cost Him something to help you."  Thielicke concludes, "the ultimate secret of the story is this: There is a homecoming for us all because there is a home."   Knowing that we believe in God, believe in Christ, and believe in the place we can take courage.  It can change those things that used to bring us down to bring Him praise.  We still hurt, our hearts still ache at times for what might have been.  But we can also praise God for what He has done and for what He will do in and through Jeff.   My wife Jean corrected me about what Jeff had said regarding hope.  It wasn't as simple as I put it.  He wasn't respoonding to a question, she did not ask him what his favorite thing was.  He simply  said "Hope is my favorite thing to have".  The hope is possible because Jeff believes in God, believes in Jesus, and believes in the place that is waiting for him.   What do you believe? In Christ, Mike   John 14:1-7 The Way, the Truth, and the Life 14:1 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  2 In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.   3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.  4 And where I go you know, and the way you know." 5 Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?" 6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. NKJV