From the desk of Pastor Ben
Unbelief Blurs the Obvious – Part 1
They were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?”         (Matthew 13:54b)
The Jews’ unbelieving attitude against Jesus remained the same. Their skeptical question revealed again their refusal to recognize the obvious. We have to ask how they could for a second time reject their Messiah when it was obvious God had empowered Him. To this point, the Lord had taught the truth about everything pertaining to spiritual life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3), and demonstrated an unrivaled, omniscient, and omnipotent mastery over it all.
Our Lord did not study at an elite rabbinical school or have any more formal Bible training than the average layman. So when He taught the people, the religious leaders were amazed, saying, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?” (John 7:15) In spite of having no academic credentials, Jesus’ spiritual and moral wisdom was so credible and profound that His critics could not refute Him.
Nicodemus immediately conceded that Christ had “come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless god is with him” (John 3:2). Later, Jesus urged a group of Jews who wanted to stone Him, “If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the father” (10:37-38).
How could the Jews not embrace the obvious that Jesus was God, when that was the only explanation for the extraordinary things He did in His ministry?
Ask Yourself:
What continues to mystify you as to why people can’t see the hand of God in creation, the hand of God in world events, the hand of God in people’s lives who are so obviously changed by his presence in their hearts? How have you seen the hand of God on display in recent days?