Day Fifty-Five: Let’s Process It!
“He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James. When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was.” (Mark 5:37-40, NIV)
Yesterday, we discovered the power of ignoring what people are saying. Today, our text will teach us the necessity of quarantining unbelief. If you take a cursory look through the Gospels and Jesus’ encounters with people, almost every time He becomes angry is when He is addressing unbelief. Unbelief is cancer to the supernatural promises of God. No, it does not have more power, but unbelief does convince us not to agree with God. “Agreement” is where God’s power is revealed and released.
I’d like you to notice from the text above what Jesus does in verse 37. He refuses to allow anyone to join Him in the miracle except for a select few. Why? Without question, I am convinced He was quarantining unbelief. He was creating an atmosphere of faith, reliance on God’s love and power. Again, He had to push past the fear within the crowds by addressing their disbelief. Now, we must pause to observe how He did so. Through Divine truth, He confronted their limited and logical perspective. This revelation is imperative to understand! Once He did so, He shifted His focus and addressed the concern.
As a side note, I am always afraid of misinterpreting the scriptures or trying to create a precept that dismisses the desperate need to rely on Jesus. What I mean is that there are no precepts or principles that will ever free you from the risk of trusting Jesus – the sacrifice of your reputation, relationships, finances, and life. What Jesus did will have to be done over and over again to see the fulfillment of His promises, as well as to experience the demonstration of His power. Therefore, I am suggesting that God routinely walks His children through a process to transform their perspective and approach from natural to supernatural.
So, consider that maybe the circumstances you are facing are part of the gracious process He is using to transform you? Perhaps what is confronting you is an invitation to follow Jesus. So, FOLLOW JESUS!
Blessings,
Andy Smith