John 10:40-42


John 10:40-42
40 And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was first baptizing, and He was staying there. 41 Many came to Him and were saying, “While John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this man was true.” 42 Many believed in Him there.

The methodology of Jesus must have been confusing and, at times, frustrating to those who followed Jesus.  People who believed He was the Messiah were constantly wondering when He would begin His process of liberation and overthrowing the Roman government.  Clearly, the most strategic place for this to occur was Jerusalem.  Yet, Jesus is constantly wandering out to the outlying areas and even going out to the middle of nowhere.  His plans and methods were far different than those He was expected to follow because His purpose was not what the people imagined it to be.

THE WITHDRAWAL TO THE WILDERNESS: Jesus had healed the woman on the Sabbath, defended Himself brilliantly in the face of His critics and the people were rejoicing in His demonstration of power and wisdom.  Had Jesus been intent upon creating a political climate of revolution, this would have been a golden opportunity.  The crowd was on His side!  Instead, Jesus withdraws to the wilderness where His public ministry had started.  It was a place that was isolated from the large population centers where He could find solitude where He could pray and invest in the lives of His disciples.  Too often, we become convinced that we must constantly be “on line” we have the feeling that if we ever take a day or a week off of work, the world will stop spinning.  Time to escape from the hustle and bustle of our daily schedules seems to be unattainable.  We need to remind ourselves that none of us are irreplaceable and that more can ban be accomplished through prayer and intimacy with God than the works of our flesh.

THE FAITH OF HIS FOLLOWERS: The people followed Jesus to the wilderness and remembered the testimony of John about Him and were convinced that all John said about Jesus was true.  The miracles He performed, the truths He taught and the love He showed were all in accordance with what John has said about Jesus and what the Scriptures prophesied about Messiah.  The people believed in Him.  It seems as if the location in the wilderness somehow facilitated their belief.  Perhaps it was because in the wilderness there were not so many people and circumstances that distracted them from the truth about Jesus.  Perhaps it was the location that reminded them of John’s testimony.  Perhaps it was the more individual attention Jesus could give them in the wilderness.  Whatever the case may have been, many people believed that Jesus was the Messiah.  There are times where it is good for us to “get way” to a place where we can spend time with the Lord, learn from Him, reflect on Him and strengthen our faith in Him.

APPLICATION: Make sure we are promoting the kingdom of God and not our own kingdoms.  Take some time off to rest, reflect, recharge, recreate and most of all relate with God.  Contemplate the works of the Lord and the promises of His Word.  Allow what you learn of Him and from Him to grow your faith.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Isaiah 54:1-17

Hope is a wonderful blessing from God, without which we would be vulnerable to all kinds of destructive tendencies in our lives.  Today’s society is marked by depression, anger, fear, anxiety and self-righteousness, in large part, because of the sense of hopelessness that prevails in our culture.  Isaiah writes to a people who are about to be taken into captivity because of their sin.  God knows that they will feel rejected, threatened and hopeless so He reveals His future plans for the nation in order to give them hope in the midst of the coming trial.  Hope is the expectation of good based upon the promises of God.  Many times when our lives are marked by the sins mentioned above it is because we have forgotten or failed to focus upon the promises of God’s Word. THE PROMISE OF GOD: From the very first day that God revealed His plan for the nation of Israel, He promised numerous descendants.  God chose Abraham, not because he was more righteous than a...
Read more

2 Timothy 1:3-7

I thank God   whom I serve, as did my ancestors,   with a clear conscience, as I remember you   constantly in my prayers night and day.    As I remember your tears,   I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.    I am reminded of   your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and   your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.    For this reason I remind you   to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us   a spirit not of fear but   of power and love and self-control. It is easy for us to forget many important things especially in the face of difficulty or danger.  Paul is in prison and Timothy is facing difficult times in ministry so there are important reminders that Paul wants to make sure that Timothy understands.  God has given us everything we need to face the difficulties He allows i...
Read more

2 Timothy 1:8-14

Therefore   do not be ashamed of   the testimony about our Lord, nor of   me his prisoner, but   share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God,   who saved us and   called us to a holy calling,   not because of our works but because of   his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus   before the ages began, and which now has   been manifested through   the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus,   who abolished death and   brought life and   immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But   I am not ashamed, for   I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until   that day   what has been entrusted to me.  Follow   the pattern of   the sound words   that you have heard from me, in   the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. ...
Read more