John 14: The Radical Claims of Yeshua

Published 2025-10-29

By Christopher Howard

Jesus said to [Thomas] "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me. — John 14:6 (NASB 1995)

I was meditating on John 14 over several days, and something that struck me was the numerous radical claims of Jesus (heb. Yeshua) in this chapter. Some scholars, including some of our dear Jewish friends, have taken the position that Jesus was a typical Jewish rabbi who was misunderstood or misrepresented by his disciples. But looking at the some of the claims of Jesus, that position is untenable. Either Jesus was making radical claims about himself, or his disciples were simply making it all up. If I told you that I wanted eggs and steak for breakfast, and you went around telling people that I was planning to bomb a subway, we can hardly chalk that up to a bit of confusion or exaggeration about what I said.

Here is a list of some of the claims in John 14:

In verse 1, Jesus claims that putting trust in him is equivalent to putting trust in God.
In verse 2, Jesus stated that he would be personally preparing homes for his disciples in heaven.
In verse 3, Jesus claimed to be the only way to God, the "way, the truth, and the life".
In verse 7, Jesus stated that knowing him is equivalent to knowing God.
In verses 10 and 11, Jesus indicated that there is some special relationship between him and God where he is "in" the Father and the Father is "in" him.
In verses 14 and 15, Jesus claimed that he could and would fulfill any request that was asked by his disciples. As theologians, we might want to put various qualifications on that statement, like what we are allowed to ask for, and who is allowed to make the requests. But even with such qualifications, the statement is a very bold one.
In verse 16, Jesus indicates that he can grant people the eternal presence of the Holy Spirit.
In verse 19, Jesus promises eternal life and resurrection to his followers.
In verse 21, Jesus states, basically, that loving him and keeping his commandments is our highest purpose in life.
In verse 23, Jesus promises that he himself, and God the Father, will abide within his followers.
In verse 27, Jesus promises to give his disciples a peace that can dispel all anxiety and fear.
In verses 30 and 31, Jesus states, without qualification, that he always does what God his Father commanded him to do. Essentially, this is a claim to sinless perfection, something echoed by multiple other passages in the New Testament.

We might, for a few of these examples, be able to point to some pagan teachers whom made some similar claim or promise. But there is no parallel in the Hebrew scriptures. Moses, Isaiah, and so forth, always instructed us to put our trust in God, not in themselves. All the Hebrew prophets delivered God's word, and some reflected God's glory — for example, the glowing face of Moses — but none claimed to be a revelation of God incarnate. In general, the prophets and saints were also cautious about making promises about what God would do, or what they could do, absent a specific revelation from God (e.g., Exodus 32:30).

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom he appointed heir of all things. — Hebrews 1:1-2 (NASB 1995)

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