True Nature
But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all. Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased! I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles. He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets. A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory…” Matthew 12:15-20 NKJV
After Jesus healed the man with the withered hand on Sabbath the Pharisees plotted to kill Him, and when He learnt of their scheme He left the area. He continued to do good and warning people not to tell, and through this a prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled. The Jews expected the Messiah to be a warring Saviour, who was always confronting His enemies (the Gentiles), ruthless, merciless to the weak and feeble (the weak and feeble in the society were always the target of kings as they were deemed as useless to the nation; the fewer they were the stronger the nation was) and so on. This, of course, was their own thinking. Jesus was everything they didn't expect; humble and gentle, meek and quiet, non-confrontational, merciful and supportive to the weak, poor and feeble, a friend of the sinners and Gentiles withdrawn and a behind-the-scenes Person.
This shows us what can happen when we allow our minds and reasonings to shape for us the image of God and not His Word (Isaiah had told them what to expect); we will miss out on God. Jesus was so unbelievably amazing as a King, and all these qualities should make us stand in awe of Him and also show us how we should be and live, as His disciples and brethren. Because of His humble nature, His disciples some of who were naturally confrontational, attention-seeking, power-hungry and so on also changed and became like Him. At first, since their perspective of Jesus was skewed, their behaviour was contrary to His (rowdy, attention-seeking etc.); later on we see them also being more humble, non-confrontational and behind-the-scenes people. The same is true for us; the more we behold Christ’s nature and image as in a mirror, we are transformed into the same image by God's Spirit from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18). In prayer and God's Word is where we see Jesus’ clear image and thus are transformed into the same image. This calls for us to avoid reading the Scriptures with a preset mind, image and knowledge of God but with an open one, seeking to see His clear image and nature so that we won't miss out on Him as the Jews did.
Reflection:
Does your behaviour and approach to life reflect that of Christ (meek, gentle, associating with the poor and humble, behind-the-scenes, non-confrontational) or that of the world (proud, rough, “rolling with the high and mighty”, attention-seeking, confrontational, power-hungry etc.?) How much time do you spend in God's Word, seeking to know and see Christ and let His image be formed in you?
Grace and peace to you!
After Jesus healed the man with the withered hand on Sabbath the Pharisees plotted to kill Him, and when He learnt of their scheme He left the area. He continued to do good and warning people not to tell, and through this a prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled. The Jews expected the Messiah to be a warring Saviour, who was always confronting His enemies (the Gentiles), ruthless, merciless to the weak and feeble (the weak and feeble in the society were always the target of kings as they were deemed as useless to the nation; the fewer they were the stronger the nation was) and so on. This, of course, was their own thinking. Jesus was everything they didn't expect; humble and gentle, meek and quiet, non-confrontational, merciful and supportive to the weak, poor and feeble, a friend of the sinners and Gentiles withdrawn and a behind-the-scenes Person.
This shows us what can happen when we allow our minds and reasonings to shape for us the image of God and not His Word (Isaiah had told them what to expect); we will miss out on God. Jesus was so unbelievably amazing as a King, and all these qualities should make us stand in awe of Him and also show us how we should be and live, as His disciples and brethren. Because of His humble nature, His disciples some of who were naturally confrontational, attention-seeking, power-hungry and so on also changed and became like Him. At first, since their perspective of Jesus was skewed, their behaviour was contrary to His (rowdy, attention-seeking etc.); later on we see them also being more humble, non-confrontational and behind-the-scenes people. The same is true for us; the more we behold Christ’s nature and image as in a mirror, we are transformed into the same image by God's Spirit from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18). In prayer and God's Word is where we see Jesus’ clear image and thus are transformed into the same image. This calls for us to avoid reading the Scriptures with a preset mind, image and knowledge of God but with an open one, seeking to see His clear image and nature so that we won't miss out on Him as the Jews did.
Reflection:
Does your behaviour and approach to life reflect that of Christ (meek, gentle, associating with the poor and humble, behind-the-scenes, non-confrontational) or that of the world (proud, rough, “rolling with the high and mighty”, attention-seeking, confrontational, power-hungry etc.?) How much time do you spend in God's Word, seeking to know and see Christ and let His image be formed in you?
Grace and peace to you!
Comments
Post a Comment
Thank you for taking your time to comment.
Blessings.