Life Spark: Do you know that you don’t know? (John 7:25-36)
I got lost once, late in the day, out in the wilderness in Eastern Oregon. The night before, the temperature had dropped to ten above zero, and as the sun set, the mercury was headed to the sub-zero. New to the area, I was totally disoriented. Thank God, a friend found me just in time.
The reason I got lost was that my GPS batteries had died. I have a very weak sense of direction, and I need all the help I can get.
Unlike me, Jesus knew exactly where He came from (from God the Father) and where He was going (back to the Father).
The Jewish leaders thought Jesus came from the devil, that He was a spiritual Pied Piper, leading the crowds down the wrong path. Some of those marching behind Him thought He might be the Messiah, but there was one thing that puzzled them. Tradition had it that the Messiah would just show up out of nowhere and they knew Jesus came from Nazareth. It was ‘Know where’ versus ‘Nowhere.’ “The miracles Jesus does appear to be a real sign of special, divine life,” they said, “But we know where this man is from; when the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.” (John 7:27, NIV)
What they thought they knew barred the door to what they needed to know. Jesus replied, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him, …” (John 7:28, NIV)
Read between the lines. Jesus: “It is sad you don’t know where I’m from. It’s tragic you don’t know Who sent me here. If you really knew God the Father, you would recognize me, His only begotten Son. You don’t know I was with the Father in heaven before I was born into humanity in Bethlehem. And you’ll never know what you need to know until you admit what you don’t know.”
“And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.” (John 17:3, NLT)
Point is, if you think you have life all figured out, ‘knowing’ may actually be a detriment to experiencing full aliveness. It helps to have some help in locating life. Ask God for help. Without help, you might freeze to death.
Life-question: Think of one thing you don’t know, but know He knows. Tell Him.