Insight and understanding needed!

John 7:21 – 52

The title of this devotional should be a sign that we post everyday. As I am reading the Bible I ask for insight and understanding each step of the way. It is easy for my mind to wander and at times confusion to creep in. When we are reading and confusion tries to overcome us we must take the time to either compare scripture to scripture or ask people that have insight and understanding.

There are things that people believe that are simply misunderstanding, myth, or simply ignorance. One example I have run into is that many believe that when people die they turn into angels. Angels were beings created by God to be His messengers, we humans go to be with the Lord the scripture tells us that we will judge angels, we do not turn into angels. There are many little things like that.

Jesus is telling the people He will need to suffer and die on the cross, He is being a little cryptic, however He had told them this before. He has also inferred to them that He is the Messiah. The people were looking for an earthly King that would raise the nation of Israel to its former state of glory. God sent a Savior to restore people bound by sin to a relationship with Him, establishing a Kingdom of people from everywhere.

The people were also confused in two different directions about what we know about Jesus and the Messiah in specifics. Some in the crowd were saying, “This can’t be the Messiah, we know where he has come from!” others were saying just the opposite, “Can the Messiah come from Galilee, the scripture says He must come Bethlehem?” If they had taken the time to ask questions rather than making assumptions they would have found the answers. God does not want us to be ignorant, He is not hiding His love, grace, or mercy from us. He is the “truth”! The enemy would like us to walk in deception and lies, leading us to frustration and a sense of hopelessness and depression. The “truth” sets us free.

The Sanhedrin guards heard the truth, they said, “no man ever spoke like this man.” They saw something and heard something in Jesus that they had never experienced before. They lived with the Pharisees and Sadducees and yet were amazed by Jesus.

God is looking for men and women of understanding to live that life before men. People are hungry for truth, they have had enough of the trappings of religion and are looking for something that is real and someone that is real. It is also very easy to cross the line trying to shake off all the things of religion and lose aspects of faith. God’s insight and understanding keeps us walking in the truth and enables us to bring the freedom so many are seeking.

You are a light in the darkness, salt in a flavorless place. You can ask the Lord for wisdom, insight, and understanding and you will be able to help bring the truth to others, a truth that sets them free.