Think about the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. (Read John 11:1-44)
It is a truly remarkable story, and in this miracle Jesus reveals His greater glory! He reveals that He truly is the Christ, and more than that is the Son of the Living God who came to bring life to all who believe!
And that is the challenge we all have to face. Do we really believe Jesus is WHO He says He is? And if so, how can that belief make a difference in our lives?
Certainly that belief has changed our eternity ("I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." - John 5:24), but what about our everyday lives? How can this belief change our everyday lives?
I am anxious to hear your thoughts, as I too am wrestling with this question along the way ...
This may be a little unrelated, but it made me think of it: I find it personally easier to reason the existence of God than the Godliness of Jesus.
ReplyDeleteWhen I see the earth and life, I can simply not believe it could've evolved out of its own.
For Jesus this is a lot harder, because he was (also) 'just' a human being. It's a lot easier to think of him as an inspirational person.
However, an inevitable next step is then to accept him truly as the Son of God.
Once you realize that, it's actually comforting to know that such a strong person is behind you.
Just my 0.02$
Thanks Coen for sharing your 2 cents. I agree. Believing the Godliness of Jesus is difficult and has been for many folks over many years. I think that is why John felt the need to write his gospel (of course the Holy Spirit directed him to do it as well). He saw that believing in Jesus was the key to salvation because of WHO Jesus really is (Eternal Son of God made flesh). Thanks again for your comment.
ReplyDeleteOne other thought I had this morning, and I think it is a question we could all wrestle with: "Do I cling to Jesus more because He frees me from the penalty of hell, or because I truly love Him and want to do as He asks?" That might be the key to transformation, and the difference between simply believing and becoming more like Jesus.