John 14:2–3 (NIV)
“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.”
Jesus tells his disciples that he is leaving, and that he has to leave. He speaks about preparing a place for them and promises that he will return so that they can be together with him. I always interpreted that like Jesus is talking about construction in heaven, as though something still needed to be built. But now I’m thinking that I was wrong about that.
What Jesus was preparing was not a location, at all. His preparation was his work on the cross and, later, the giving of the Holy Spirit. He was not saying that heaven was unfinished. He was saying that access to God was. His departure was not primarily about going to heaven. It was about doing what only he could do so that his people could ultimately be with him.
That reframes this promise for me. It shifts my focus away from speculation about heaven and back to gratitude for what Jesus accomplished. I need to remain thankful that Jesus did what was necessary so that being with him was even possible at all.