“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you may also be.” (John 14:3)
A theme in John's Gospel is that Jesus had come from the Father and had to return to the Father. What would happen to the disciples, then? The words of today’s gospel respond to this question. Jesus invites them to remain untroubled and reassures them, “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.” He also provides the rationale. He departs from them in order to prepare “a place” for them.
He will, in fact, return in order to bring them along. So he is not leaving them orphaned but going to prepare a welcome for them. There is even more depth to this teaching than we can describe here. The essential theme is clear, however. Jesus does not abandon his disciples.
A theme in John's Gospel is that Jesus had come from the Father and had to return to the Father. What would happen to the disciples, then? The words of today’s gospel respond to this question. Jesus invites them to remain untroubled and reassures them, “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.” He also provides the rationale. He departs from them in order to prepare “a place” for them.
He will, in fact, return in order to bring them along. So he is not leaving them orphaned but going to prepare a welcome for them. There is even more depth to this teaching than we can describe here. The essential theme is clear, however. Jesus does not abandon his disciples.
Why do you think Jesus wants us to dwell with him? What can we offer heaven? Have you ever felt abandoned? What did you do to counter this feeling? Thank the Lord in prayer for knowing that you will never be abandoned by God.