"I am the way and the truth and the life.” - John 14:6
Jesus doesn't offer this as a theological statement. He offers it as an answer to a frightened question.
Thomas had just said, out loud, what everyone else in the room was probably thinking: Lord, we don't know where you're going. How can we know the way? It's one of the most honest moments in the Gospels. Jesus doesn't correct him or explain himself. He just says - I am the way.
It is not a map. It is not a doctrine. It is a person.
The way forward, in Jesus' telling, is not something you figure out and then follow. It's someone you stay close to. Which means the question isn't really "do I know the right path?" - it's "do I know him?"
And that changes things. Because most of us, when we feel lost, go looking for clarity, for a sign, for something that finally makes sense. But Jesus keeps pointing back to relationship. Stay close and follow me. Where I am, you will be also.
How do we notice that relationship? We often notice in small ways. We notice a moment of unexpected peace. It is the sense that you are being held even when you can't explain it. It is the quiet conviction that nudges you toward truth, toward kindness, toward the courage you didn't know you had.
The way of Jesus rarely announces itself. It just keeps showing up - closer than we think, steadier than we feel.
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You know the way.
Grace and peace to you, Pastor Erin
