‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in Me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.’ (John 14:1-4, NIV.)
The whole world is shaking, whether that is political division in UK, USA, Europe and elsewhere, or the wars in Ukraine and now Israel; we are living in turmoil. I believe we are closer to the return of Christ than many imagine. Jesus opens chapter 14 saying, "Let not your heart be troubled - believe in Me - I'm going to prepare a place for you."
Peter, only in the previous chapter had said, "Lord, why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You." We all must lay down our lives for the call of Christ; to follow Him is to take up the cross. Taking up our cross is identification with Christ in His suffering and resurrection. It's not half-hearted commitment; it is full surrender in discipleship. It's the decision to live our lives as 'crucified with Christ'.
Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. (John 14:10-11, NIV.)
In this chapter Jesus is preparing the disciples for the work of the Church and for the Coming Kingdom. “You will have the same Power that I have” - Jesus is speaking here about Pentecost: whosoever will believe in Him, really believe, will do the same works and greater - WE CAN! When I look at the Church today, I don’t see this commission fulfilled; He healed the sick, raised the dead; it was the miracles which proved who Jesus was. “Whatever you ask in My Name, I will do it.” The purpose of Pentecost in the Church is so that we will do the same works Jesus did. He is our intercessor, living in Heaven, praying for us, so that whatever we ask in His Name, He will do it, this is so that the Father will be glorified through the Son.
These are the days of the harvest. Jesus told the parable of the Wedding Feast. There were so many empty places, the servants were instructed to go to the highways and byways. One of the lessons we learn from this story is that so few believers will be ready, that we must compel the sinners into the Kingdom.
I shall never forget the dramatic and exciting evangelism we held in Yambol, Bulgaria, before communism finally fell there. It was August. The music group Vinesong and I arrived the day before the opening. What could we do? Nothing? No!!! So without permission, we decided to hold an open-air service in the big square in front of the Communist Party Headquarters in Yambol! This city of 100,000 had never witnessed such scenes before! As darkness fell the beautiful worship music drew the crowds. But when Vinesong sang in Bulgarian, ‘I bow the knee to Jesus’ – the whole crowd, 10,000 strong, knelt in prayer with their hands raised in worship and acceptance of Christ! Even the communist police on duty took off their hats, and the Communist Party Flag, which until then had been fluttering bravely in the breeze, hung down limp as if it too was bowing before the Name of Jesus!
What a tremendous start it was to the conference and evangelism! The morning and afternoon teaching sessions in the sports stadium were filled with people hungry for the Word of God – and packed for the evening evangelism with 7,000 crowded in, people standing, 2,000 repenting… For four days, we witnessed the mighty Power of God, not only in conversions, but also in mighty miracles of healing. Night after night crutches were thrown onto the platform as people were delivered and walked out free. The blind, the deaf, the sick – all were healed. Revival swept from there – we travelled by road in broken down communist cars from church to church to church – the Power of God was falling – no time seemingly to eat, sleep or even drink a cup of tea! For two years the Holy Spirit moved across the whole of Bulgaria! Eighty new churches were opened as a direct result of that evangelism!
“YOU will do the SAME works and GREATER, NOW!” We’re facing things today that Jesus didn’t face, but our future is secured, Jesus said, “I will go and come again” - preach the Gospel of the Coming Kingdom. The troubles we see are the prophesied signs of the end. We need to win our families for Christ. Preach the Gospel; the Great Commission is not yet fulfilled; we have a Gospel of conversion, new life, everlasting life (John 3:16). There are so many religions, but only Jesus offers life.
Look at the Word of God, not at the world. It is so easy to say you love the Lord, much like Peter did in John 13:37, but our love must be demonstrated. For those whose love has dimmed, even though Peter denied Christ, He was the first to speak on the Day of Pentecost, winning 3000 souls.