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Today’s reading is John 17:1-18:40.

This may be a bit of an odd thought today, but something came out of left field today and smacked me as I was reading. It was one of those V8 moments.

I know a lot of people have struggled with issues surrounding God’s knowledge and times when He asked questions like “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9) or “Who told you that you were naked?” (Genesis 3:11). They struggle with God’s interactions with man like Abraham’s bartering with God in Genesis 18:22-33 or Moses “convincing” God not to wipe out Israel and start over with him in Deuteronomy 9:13-29. How do these interactions mesh with God knowing everything.

A verse in today’s reading brought some resolution to my mind. John 18:3-4 says:

So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?”

My conclusion from this verse is not really new to me. I just hadn’t seen it so clearly demonstrated as in this verse. Look at what happens here. Jesus knew what was going to happen to Him. That means He knew exactly who they were coming to seek. They were coming to seek Him and He knew it. Why the question then? It was not because He needed information. This question was asked for the benefit of the seekers. This question was asked to make them think about who they were actually coming to get. This question was asked to set up the situation of freely giving Himself over. A situation that shocked the seekers so badly they fell back at first.

Here is the point. This passage demonstrates that when God asks questions, it is not because He needs information. He asks questions for our benefit. Adam and Eve needed to think about where they were. Adam needed to give consideration to how he knew he was naked. Even the exchanges between God and Moses and God and Abraham can be interpreted in light of this. God didn’t need convincing. These men needed to do some convincing. God’s foretold plan had been to bring the Messiah through Judah. He couldn’t possibly do that if He wiped out Israel and started with Moses. God knew that wasn’t going to happen. This exchange wasn’t really for God’s benefit. It was for Moses’ benefit. He needed to see how important it was for God to preserve the people. He needed to intercede on their behalf because there would be days when he didn’t want to. God didn’t need Abraham to barter with Him. Abraham needed to see that God would do what was right. 

Jesus knew who they were coming to seek, but asked the question anyway. God’s questions and exchanges with man aren’t for His benefit; they are for ours.

***Question: How has God benefited you?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

"They shall mount up with wings like eagles..." (Isaiah 40:31, ESV)

One of the great things about the world wide web is that it is world wide. I don’t want to make the mistake of acting like everyone who reads this is American like me. However, American is the framework from which I come. I hope that folks from other countries don’t have the problem I’m about to describe. I think we American Christians sometimes allow our American citizenship to dictate our approach to life more than we do God’s word.

In the good ol’ U S of A, we are taught to be independent. We are taught to pull ourselves up by our boot straps and make it through the tough times. If we are going to rely on God it is only for the really tough times when we just need Him to give us a little push to get us over the hump we just can’t seem to climb. I recall being in the family conference area in the emergency room of a local hospital where one of my dear sisters was grieving the loss of her husband. This was on top of several other life tragedies she and her family had faced in the past year. A friend and co-worker, who was also a Christian thought he was helping this sister by telling her, “Sister, you can do this. You’re strong enough. You can make it.” Then he prayed, “God, our sister is going through a tough time. She just needs a little help. Help her see she is strong enough to make it through this.”

I couldn’t contain myself. As soon as this well-intentioned brother left, I knelt beside my grieving sister and said, “I know this brother meant well. But he is wrong. You aren’t strong enough for this. We’re not strong enough for this. We can’t make it through this stuff. But we have a God that is strong enough to get you through.” And then I grabbed the little Bible they had on the side table and read II Corinthians 12:8-10.

Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong (ESV).

The reason so many American Christians struggle is because we have this idea that we are really strong enough for most things and that we only need to rely on God for a little nudge on the really tough stuff. The fact is, we need to recognize apart from God we can do nothing. I remember in a series I presented on prayer another well-meaning brother commenting that one of the problems we have in prayer is asking God to do things for us that we can do for ourselves. My question is which things are those? After all, it is through God that we live and move and have our very being (Acts 17:28). If our very life and ability to move comes from God, which thing is it that we can accomplish all on our very own? 

We need to get over this idea that we are strong enough for anything. We need to recognize that we are weak and powerless. The only way we can have any victory at all is to simply surrender ourselves to God and His will. We need to just throw ourselves on His grace because it is sufficient. 

Consider one great contrast–Moses. When Moses simply supposed that everyone would understand he was God’s chosen vessel to deliver the Israelites, he ran from Egypt in fear with his tail tucked between his legs. However, when he believed he was too weak and couldn’t possibly be the man to lead Israel, God brought great victory through Him. We have to realize we are only able to stand because of the legs God has given us and simply surrender to Him. His grace is sufficient, our strength isn’t.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC