Dear COA Family,
And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me” Matthew 11:4-6.
What the key signs that the Kingdom of God has come among us?
Some point to wise sayings or convincing teachings as proof of the kingdom of God. They will say that good preachers and preaching are very important to have in proving that God’s presence is in the church. This is because captivating speakers can attract big audiences to hear them.
But this is not what Jesus referred to as the most important factor.
He said the blind recover their sight, the lame are able to walk again, the sick receive healing and even the dead are raised. In other words, God’s power at work among us to perform miracles that cannot be replicated by human effort is the most important factor. This shows the God’s kingdom has come.
Do we believe that the Holy Spirit can accomplish the same miracles in our midst as he did in the time of Christ? If we experience them today, many like John the Baptist will be convinced that the kingdom of God is real and that Jesus is truly the Saviour!
Yet Jesus continued to say to John: “Don’t be offended by me.” What does he mean by that?
It means that just because Jesus did not do what John the Baptist expected him to do (like overthrow the Roman Empire and re-establish Jewish self-autonomy), John may not want to accept Jesus as the Messiah. John may be feeling especially discouraged that he was imprisoned at this time by the Roman authorities unfairly for standing by what is right.
Jesus exposed this as wrong thinking.
We cannot expect God to work according to our desires and expectations alone and reject other ways he may choose to act. We cannot insist on our own ways only. God is God alone and his ways are higher than ours.
If God does not act according to your expectations, will you still choose to yield to his will and glorify him? Or will you choose to be offended?
Jesus says, “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
Let us be willing to put our trust in Christ in all things and not be easily discouraged nor fall away when we do not have things our way.
God bless,
Revd Ian