Today's passage, John 7-8: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%207-8&version=NIV
As Jesus revealed more about who He is, where He came from and where He was going, opposition from the Jews continued to increase. In John chapters 7 & 8, although they sought to arrest Him, they had not yet seized Jesus. Why is this? Jesus answers in 7:6 when he says that His “time has not yet come”. In 7:30 they were “seeking to arrest Him, but no one laid a hand on Him because His hour had not yet come”. Basically, God wasn’t finished yet. God had a plan and His plan would unfold on his perfect timeline.
Jesus came to earth to walk as a man, be tempted as a man, to serve as a minister of God’s love, and to train up his disciples. He came to feed the hungry and heal the sick. Most importantly, He came to serve as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. It wasn’t enough for Jesus to rot away in jail or be silenced in some other way; Jesus had to be crucified as a perfect, unblemished sacrifice for our sins. But in John 7-8, His hour had not yet come. God’s timing would allow for just the right amount of opposition to build up, while at the same time allowing just enough time for Christ to fulfill His ministry on earth.
It’s amazing to think that this infinitely wise and unfathomable plan was devised way back in Genesis. God’s not making this stuff up as He goes along. He knew exactly what second, of what minute, of what hour that Jesus’ time would come. And in His amazing providence He moved in the hearts of believers and non believers and orchestrated the details of His plan so that Jesus would not be seized until his hour had come. Every second of Jesus life was precious and had purpose. We would do well to remember this about our own lives. As Christ followers, our lives are precious and purposeful as well. We were not put on earth to be useless, but to be useful in His infinitely wise and unfathomable plan. Take some time to talk with God and ask Him to open your eyes to the specifics of your part of that plan. Ask Him to open doors for you to be useful. Ask him to reveal to you opportunities to take part in changing lives and populating heaven. This is a prayer that He loves to answer!
today's post submitted by Kelly Coxe
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Self-righteous religious people have always opposed Jesus and His ministry to save sinners. John 8 gives a classic example how people addicted to religion over the grace of God oppose the things of God. They are unable to see their own sin.
ReplyDeleteEven us believers can fall into this self-deception. I had a wonderful talk with a single mother. She grew up walking the line. She saved herself for her husband whom she married at 26. The was blameless.
The problem was she was full of self righteousness. She always looked down on single moms, 'They got themselves into this mess" , "They didn't follow God's ways and now they are reaping what they have sown" "Thank God, I'm not like them", she said in her heart.
As the conversation progressed she mirrored this story in John 8 but as a pharisee. Jesus like here in John 8, Jesus was showing her what was in her heart. The fires of life had now arrived in her families lives. But praise God, instead of walking away from Jesus like the Pharisees did, she did the opposite. She ran to Jesus' feet with a broken heart. "I hate what is my heart" she told the Lord. "Help me!"
Now this is a good place. The Lord picked her up out of the ashes of life and said, "I will cause you to see people as I see them" "Through eyes of mercy and compassion"
She is now in the battlefield for men's minds. Right in the middle of self-righteous people to show them the grace of the living God!
Like this young mother, I too sometimes don't want to look at what Jesus is writing on the ground. I would rather point out someone else sins! "Look at them, Lord" I can find it so easy to see others people's sins while ignoring mine.
ReplyDeleteLove covers a multitude of sins.
I fully believe this for myself. My problem is believing it for you! "Help me Lord"