Life-spark: Ask questions that help you stay young as you grow up. (John 16:16-33)
When my daughter Kara was three, she became a Gatling gun of questions. Worn out by her relentless inquisitiveness, I finally said, “No more questions for ten minutes.” She smiled, paused, and then said, “What’s a question?”
One day Jesus stirred up a hornet’s nest of questions with His disciples. (John 16:17, MSG) He began to talk about leaving, about going somewhere they couldn’t go. “What’s he talking about?” A big transition was coming for them. Transitions raise questions. ((new job, new school, new season, new experiences.)
The disciples acted like kids. They asked a lot of questions. Studies have shown that kids ask ten times more questions than adults. Why do you suppose that is?
“What’s going to happen when you leave?” they asked? “You’ll be sad, very sad, but your sadness will develop into gladness.” (John 16:20b, MSG) They still didn’t get it, so Jesus gave them an example. “When a woman gives birth, she has a hard time … But when the baby is born, there is joy in the birth.” (John 16:21, MSG)
“Bingo! Now we get it.” (see vs. 29) One question was answered for them, but hundreds more would rise up in the days ahead. Many of those questions would be answered when Jesus rose from the dead, when He ascended to heaven, when they were filled with the Spirit on Pentecost. Some will not be answered until the Second Coming.
Revelation must be like one of those time-release capsules of medicine. It comes in stages. Things about God, things about what God is doing, things about ourselves, and what God wants us to know and do – these things become known to us in stages. I guess that is part of the eternal adventure. Eternity will be a huge treasure chest of questions and answers.
I’m so glad God doesn’t get annoyed at our questions. He is more patient with me than I was with Kara. I hope to ask more questions along the lines of “What are you doing that I can be involved with?” and less along the lines of “How will you help me with what I am doing?”
Life-question: (Aha! Two more questions) If you could ask Jesus one question today, what would it be? Will you wait for a time-released answer?