“Now” (NIV) = “But now” (KJV) = indicates different circumstances. A change is about to occur: Jesus is about to go to the Father.

The disciples had previously asked the Lord where he was going (John 13:36 14:5), but their questions were not serious inquiries into the place where Jesus was going to be. They were concerned about Jesus departing from them and not about what was going to happen to Him. Their question was selfish and could have been stated as, “What will your departure mean to us?” The question they should have asked was, “What will this departure mean to you?” which would have expressed love and concern for their Master.

John 13:36  Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”

John 14:5  Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Self-interest blinded them to the bigger picture and it still does so today. Strachan reminds us that, “We cannot understand Jesus, and the mind of Jesus, unless we take into account that He Himself did not regard His earthly life as a sufficient revelation.”

What do your conversations with Jesus (prayer) show you about your love for Him? Are you always asking for things and showing concern for yourself or are you treating Him with love and expressing care for His feelings and the accomplishing of His desires?