Good Thursday morning! Our life group met last night, so I'm having a bit of trouble keeping the day straight. Last night we used our together time to help set up a whole bunch of chairs for a wedding this weekend. Big weddings remind me of a certain wedding that is in the future for all of us - the wedding of Jesus and the Church.
Today, John 1:20 - He came right out and said, "I am not the Messiah."
Umm, that wasn't one of the answers to "Who are you?" we talked about yesterday. John the Baptist had special understanding; a gift given to him by God for his role as the herald of Jesus. John knew what the Jewish leaders wanted to know and didn't mess around with trying to explain who he was. We find many examples of that in Jesus too, and will get to those in time as we move through John. Getting right to the point was something John did just as the coming Messiah would after him. John told them first that he was not the promised messiah. This is an important point for us.
One of the first things we learn after our salvation is that: God is God and I am not. That is even a line from a Christian song. We learn that God is the provider even when we are often given smaller parts to play in providing for a family or an organization. How many times have you felt the urge to take God's place in providing? You hear about all the Christian charities and ministries in need of funds and you think something like, "If I win the lottery, I'll give all of them more than enough!" Right, so you say now. But the worst thing about that is in trying to take God's place in being the provider of all needs.
We must remember Paul's advice to take an honest look at our own place and resources. I'm betting that no one reading this will have the ability to provide for all the needs of God's children throughout the world, probably not even close. Few of us could even provide all the funds needed to support one little church in a small town; it takes a lot to run a church financially. I think God did this to remind us that we need Him; we need a God with big resources who can provide for all needs and promises to do so. John knew from day one that he was special, but he also knew his place.
The cure for pride is humility. We have a tendency to think that humility is getting down on ourselves and acting lowly. John the Baptist didn't shrink back from the Pharisees, but neither did he claim to be what he was not. Stand up, you are a child of the King! But also remember that you are not Him.
What a friend we have in Jesus,
Bucky
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