Good Morning Yamon Ki Yesepar and Nevim Arith Hayomin:
John 14:2: “In my father’s house are many mansions, if it were not so I would have told you.”
George, my 84 year old former Greek professor and mentor and Laura, my study partner and I have put our heads together on this verse and have come up with some ideas from the original Greek.
We automatically assume that when Jesus said “In my Father’s house.” he was referring to heaven. Actually, he only used that phrase one other time and that was in reference to the temple. George pointed out that the word for house in the Greek, “oikia” refers just an average size house and you can’t put a mansion in an “oikia.” The word “mansion” is “monai” is simply a dwelling place, which could be a tent or a house. If we were referring to a mansion the text should have said “In my father’s mansion are many “oikia.”
My study partner suggested the word “oikia” could mean God’s heart. George said the word “oikia’ itself would not mean a heart, but if it is a reference to the temple, then it could mean a heart allegorically speaking.
George added one very important point. The word “monai” for mansion or places is in a singular form. That is strange as it preceded by the word “many.” It does not make sense to say “many place.” George felt that if we are looking at this allegorically as a picture of God’s heart, then there are many places in His heart, but each place contains only one person. I expand on this to mean that we each have a special place in God’s heart that we share with God alone and no one else.
Let’s put this verse in context. A disciple follows a rabbi for one reason only, he hungers for knowledge of God. Knowledge of God for Jews in that day was referred to as the kingdom of God. Throughout Jesus’ ministry on earth, He kept pointing toward the Father, doing only the Father’s will. If you see Him you have seen the Father. If you know Him you have known the Father. If there was one thing the disciples wanted more than to be with Jesus it was to see the Father, to know God.
As disciples were always fighting to spend time alone with their master, they longed for that one on one. They longed to ask questions, personal questions without other disciples listening in. Jesus was getting ready to leave but He left them with a great promise. He was only going to prepare this special place from them, this special place in the Father’s heart where they would not only have one on one time with Jesus, but with the Father as well. Jesus was going to prepare this place by dying on the cross and raising from the dead. In that act the sin barrier would be broken and we could enter into that one on one relationship with God.
Ok, here’s the kicker. This does not have to take place after we die. The whole conversation suggest that once the work of the cross is finished, our place is prepared. Jesus is not up there in heaven with hammer and saw building us a mansion, the work is completed, it took three days to do it, from the time of his death to his resurrection three days later. We can have that dwelling place right now and we do have it if we have accepted the free gift of salvation.
Mansion in heaven? If you know me, you know how much I hate yard work and housework. Besides, if I had a mansion Jesus could be in the study while I am in the bedroom. No way. I want just a “place” a “monai” where no one else can enter except the Father. Mansion? No siree bob. A closet would be perfect, I would be that much closer to the Father.
My study partner and I drove by Al Capone’s mansion in Oak Park the other day. Too big, too much maintenance, too many rooms. I will bet that the jail cell he ended up in would have been more satisfying than that mansion, if he had invited Jesus to join him in that cell.
No, I want no mansion, I just want a special place in God’s heart. If your place in God’s heart is bigger than mine – tough nuts. I just get to enjoy a closer contact with the God I love.
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