Tuesday, December 3, 2024

JOHN 2:1-25. THE MESSAGE OF THE GOSPELS

 




Jesus with His disciples were invited to a wedding. The wine ran out and His mother told it to tHim and Jesus asked Him, Woman, how does that concern us? His mother left and said to the servants that whatever He told them, to do it. 


Here we learn that as Jesus waited until the wine ran, even today He waits until our run out of our strength in doing what we are doing for Him. He waits until we come to the end of ourselves. After we struggle in our own strength and fail Him numerously, He waits until we give up and realise that by our strength we cannot produce wine, that is, the life of God in us. God has to do it for us and our lives will be filled with divine wine; divine life which will be a blessing to all around us. 


We also learn that to go to Jesus through Mary is not a reliable way as some teach. It's better to go Jesus by ourselves and speak directly to Him. He didn't call her mother, but "Woman". This name must have shocked Mary to the core and left hurt by His Son, who at that time seemed to have disrespected me.


This being the first miracle teaches that God can change water, which is the natural nature of man to wine which is the divine life of God. Only Jesus can do that.


Have you given up trying to please God with your own strength and wisdom. Have you come to the end of your strength and wisdom or do you still need more failures to convince you that you cannot please God in your own strength?


Jesus later on went to the temple and found people selling sheep, oxen and doves.


He made a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables.


This people were selling this things for the sacrifice offered by the people in the temple. It was to help those who came from far who need to offer sacrifice. People came with different currencies and there was only one type of currency accepted in the temple, and the money-changers came solve that problem; of course with a profit. Also, these people had permission from the chief priests and of course they must have been giving them some commission.

     All these reasons though acceptable to our natural mind could not convince Jesus. He made a whip and drove them all away. 


We may outwardly have good actions and be serving God but God is not convinced. He looks at the motives of why we do the good thing. No matter how good or how spiritual an action is, God will not accept it if the motives are evil. The aim of the businessman in the temple was to make profit. The church is is a place of making profits for yourself or gaining honour or some respect or to cover some sin; all your good actions are worthless and a burden to God. See Isaiah 1:11-19


Jesus businessmen in the temple were more in numbers and could have ganged up against Jesus but they didn't. Why, because Jesus lived a pure life that in the presence of Jesus all were convicted of their crimes. Desire to walk with Jesus in a more intimate relationship that wherever you are, His manifest presence will convict people of sin and bring them to a decision.

An intimate relationship with Christ that will bring God's manifest presence is God's will for you. Seek for it.


The zeal for God's house consumed Jesus. His house was to be a house of prayer but it turned out to a place of making profit. That disturbs Jesus even today.


We have to see things in a heavenly perspective. Ask God for a heart that will only be disturbed by the things that disturb Him and that will never be disturbed by things that don't disturb God. For example, if a song is sung out of tune, that doesn't disturb God but it disturbs many, but if there is hypocrisy in an individual, that disturbs God but not many people especially if one has a good reputation among them. Many have only one command to live by, "Thou shall not be caught".


He was asked the sign for cleaning the temple. He said His death and resurrection. Unfortunately we don't hear much about the death, and much more about the resurrection, yet it's the sign Jesus gave us. 



Many believed Jesus when they saw miracles but Jesus didn't entrust Himself to them.


We learn that though many claim to be Christians, Jesus have entrusted Himself to many and thus does not back them up.


Yes you claim to have believed and are born again, but, have Jesus entrusted Himself to you? Does He back you up?


You are blessed to be a blessing 

Feel free to share 

@Blessed Mshindi Mambo

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