Wednesday, June 4, 2014

John 5:43

“Think about it—I am here with the backing of my father, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes with nothing but his self-appointed credentials, you will undoubtedly accept him.  How does that make sense?”  John 5:43 EFP

What applies to this band of non-believers can easily apply to us—to me.  The truth is we will go to extremes to defend a personal position or to reject a point of view that threatens our personal conviction, our comfort zone, or our personal status quo.  Once we have set the standard of what is true as equal to that which we believe we risk overlooking truth in favor of our personal preference.

What is at stake here is basically, “Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God”?  Their silent response is clear.  They do not, and nothing he says or anything they see will convince them otherwise.  They will defend their rejection to the death…of Jesus.  There is too much at stake personally for them to even consider the possibility that their understanding of Scripture is not infallible. 

The question still stands before all seekers of truth—“Do I believe?”  Jesus is not asking me for mental assent; he is asking me for a life-changing decision to internalize and live out my belief in him.  Having faith in Jesus as the Son of God is a leap that requires a willingness to let go of what I may consider most precious.  There is no such thing as “sort of believing” in Jesus.  It only makes sense, since there was no holding back of anything by Jesus when he entered the human experience.  Do you believe?

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