Good morning everyone,

Luke 5:21-And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

What is fascinating and disturbing is how they questioned from their preconceived notions who the Messiah is and should be like! But as sinners I have noticed that this is our problem as well. That we second guess and even deny a person the dignity of their character, all based upon a preconceived notion of what that person is supposed to be like to us. They saw Jesus as blasphemous for pronouncing such a thing, but never considered that He was genuine and true and able to do whatever He pleases as God’s Son!

This shows us that if our desire to be believed in and respected on a certain level from people antagonizes us, then we are looking to people to get our identity, and their approval as the goal of our accomplishments. But here Jesus knows exactly who He is so He isn’t doing any of this! Ironically they don’t know who they are (sin sick) because they don’t know who He is (Savior of sinners)!

Jesus doesn’t respond to their denial of who He is by seeking to prove Himself. Jesus had the individual brought to Him and in the midst of fulfilling His purpose, to show them at this moment that the Son of Man has the authority to forgive people of their sins, He heals the man! All in the context of fulfilling the Father’s purpose as God’s Son.

Jesus knew that an opinion had nothing to do with His purpose. When the focus is on the Father and His call on our lives, we should not be bothered by people’s unbelief and negative assessment of us. So if the time comes where they do in fact begin to believe in who we are then they will blessed by our ministry. But to try and get people to respect and believe in us before they do the same for Jesus, is to invert the Kingdom of God and make it about us not Him!

In His Love, Ld