“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. — John 14:12
One of the things formal Biblical scholarship, I have often witnessed, robs o many of us is the ability to just take God at His word. Many a time, we have been quick to point out; “Well, that’s not what He meant” even when the immediate and wider context begs a literal interpretation. When cornered, such skeptics have reverted to ‘experience’, saying, “Well, we don’t witness it happen today, so it’s not possible He meant that.” What an inconsistency!
As believers in Christ, we often read John 14:12 in awe and marvel, “Really, Lord? Greater things than You did?” His statement seems almost too good to be true. Yet, He assures us that our faith in Him will enable us to accomplish extraordinary feats. It is that simple, no eisegesis. With a faith akin to that of a child just taking Him at His word. What is faith, then? “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb. 11:1). The invisible manifest, the immaterial materialize, and the impossible become possible.
It takes absolute trust, confidence and reliance upon the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 14:12, Jesus is saying that our faith will empower us to do two fundamental things:
● Continue His work, that which He began to do and teach, on earth
(cf. Acts 1:1)
● Perform miracles, signs and wonders that glorify God.
But how do we access this faith? By immersing ourselves in His word, spending time with the Lord in prayer, and practicing obedience to His commands. Legalistic, someone may say. No, I beg to differ. It is as scriptural and Christian as any diligent student of the Bible can faithfully unravel from its pages. As we grow in our relationship with Him, our faith grows, and we become bolder witnesses of His power.