BAGS ARE PACKED!
“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. Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:1-6)
We see in the Gospel written by John that Jesus, at the Last Supper, takes the opportunity to talk about his impending death and gives some advice on what will come next and how they should act. In this passage, we can clearly understand that Jesus is saying that He would be leaving. And, in fact, the saga of the crucifixion took place the next day.
Moments before this dialogue, Jesus had a series of actions that showed He was preparing to end His journey here on Earth. He taught, healed, warned about the betrayal He would suffer and the abandonment that would precede His death. He guided those He loved, ate with His closest friends, and had moments of communion and love. In this passage, He continues to do this, showing that the journey He was about to take, we would all take one day... After all, He was going first to “prepare a place.”
Jesus was preparing (and preparing us) to TRAVEL!
Let’s talk about travel then. I think everyone here understands a bit about that. What was your favorite trip? What was your last trip? What was your most stressful or tense trip? How long before do you usually pack your bags? Do you like to travel? Who usually accompanies you on your travels? How was your trip to here?
When we left Brazil for here in September 2023, everything indicated that it would be a one-way trip (as it has been so far), so we organized everything a month in advance. Our 23 years of life together had to fit into just 8 suitcases. So, we selected everything based on what was really essential or special to us.
When we travel, at least two things are essential: packing the bags we will need and want to take, and knowing the route.
To pack our bags, we need to know where we are going, what time of year it is, and how long we will be there. This way, we will know if we need clothes for cold weather, clothes for warm weather, shoes for what type of occasion, and how many things to take.
And as the day of departure approaches, we prepare everything in advance so that we are not caught off guard or forget something.
Some people like to pack their bags a week in advance, a day in advance, or even a month in advance. It also depends on the size of the trip.
Now, if I told you: you're going on a long trip, one way (or return), but I don't know when... we have no way of knowing. What would you do?
The best option, probably is: to do like pregnant women who, unsure of when the baby will be born, already pack their suitcase and the baby's suitcase with all the essentials so that when their water breaks, they can run to the hospital!
How do we get our bags ready to travel to where Jesus promised to take us? I don’t know where it is, what the weather will be like, what the people will look like there, what we will do, how we will live...
The Bible left clear signs of what to put in the bag, saying what we cannot to put: “For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.” (1 Timothy 6:7). Nothing we have here will be taken there.
There, we will only take the memories of the love stories we lived in our relationships and the good we planted in the lives of others.
So, preparing the bag means: FORGIVING, LOVING, SERVING, CARING, VALUING PEOPLE MORE THAN THINGS, RELATING TO PEOPLE AND TO THE LORD. If you do this, your bag will be ready when the time comes.
But where are we going if we don’t know the way? He answered that to Thomas: “I am the way, the truth, and the life...”
So we just need to follow Him... Following Jesus means believing that He is God and died for you, recognizing that He is your Lord and Savior, living a life learning from Him and trying to follow His example in everything and relating to Him.
Last week, Pastor Eric spoke here: recognizing that Jesus is Lord, Savior, Teacher, Example, and Friend. Are you already following Him?
Are you ready to travel? I am not just referring to the journey we will make individually, which we call death. The day is coming when He promised to come and take us all, all at once. Believe me. He has already prepared our home. He is coming back. The signs confirm this.
Just keep your bag ready and your GPS connected to Jesus!
Dani Caldeira