Text: John 1: 35-42
Focus: John 1: 37
Why do we follow Jesus?
Do we follow Him for the purpose of glorifying Him in our lives, or do we follow Him for our own good? Our motive is extremely important because if it is not right, we tend to fall into sin.
We see the reality of this in John.
John realised that Jesus was the pathfinder and therefore he put Jesus' interest above that of his own. The result was that when two of his disciples left him to go after Jesus, he did not question their motive or become angry because they had left him.
In contrast, we often experience similar situations as rejection. We tend to remain angry with the person for a long time, because our own ego comes first.
Parents feel rejected when their child leaves home which may even lead to parents possibly rejecting their child's spouse. A loved one dies and we rebel against the Lord. You may make a lot of effort to take someone under your wing, just for that person to leave to work for someone else. What about that inheritance you had set your heart on and then did not receive?
The result of these and other similar situations is that we feel angry, jealous and abused. Why? We may feel that we have done so much for the person and now he / she has let us down.
Unlike John, our own ego and needs come first. We pursue our own ambitions and ideals, and this always becomes visible in the fact that we feel as if we are being indoctrinated.
When we think of Jesus, we realise that He had so much more reason to feel abused. His own people left Him and rejected Him. Even His own Father left Him on the cross (also see Matt. 27:46).
Yet Jesus goes through it all because He loves us and wants to give us a better future. He wants to free us from eternal death.
Therefore, our salvation in Jesus Christ will always remind us that we are loved. The jealousy and feelings of rejection will only disappear if we see who Christ is and what He has done for us.
He did not die for Himself but was humiliated, rejected and forsaken by God to build and save the kingdom of God (of which we are a part). Everything He does, He does for us. If this is our outlook on life, we will look at the circumstances in our lives very differently.
God has a purpose for each of us. When it's my child's time to leave home to work in the kingdom, that's okay, because that's how the kingdom is built.
The time and energy we invest in people's lives is never in vain, even if they leave us. They can go to work elsewhere and make a difference in the kingdom. If I do not get the heirloom on which my heart was set, I will be at peace with it, because it is the will of the Lord. He knows what is best for his kingdom.
Let us live for the Lord and not for our own ideals and needs.
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