“Knowing The Messiah Through Actionable Love!”

“Knowing The Messiah Through Actionable Love!”(Lk.7:18-35)[18/12/2024].
Luke introduces Jesus’ ministry by ending John the Baptist’s ministry as he was locked up by Herod.
John, as a herald, prepared the way for Jesus. While John was in custody, he might have heard of Jesus, but he was not too sure Jesus was the man he had talked about.
John sent two of his disciples to find out if Jesus was the man he had talked about, or the one was still to come. Jesus did not give them a direct answer to affirm or deny his messiahship. Rather, he told them to go and report back to John what they had seen and heard. The life-saving activities of Jesus were enough evidence from which to confirm who he was.
Later on Jesus took time to talk about John and that of all born of women “there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
This is a rich and lengthy pericope, suffice to say let us take the next verses for our take-home message: “All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptised by John. But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves because they had not been baptised by John.”
The choices are always before us. Choices have consequences. We must be ready to live with the consequences of our choices.
Detractors often say that we have been so brainwashed to believe in a dead man we have never known. According to Luke, even John the Baptist, who prepared the way for that man, did not know him.
When we are baptised with the Holy Spirit, we acknowledge that God’s ways are right.
The testimony of service is the visible results; which of course are intangible. Jesus did not tell John’s disciple to go and tell him how much he achieved in putting up buildings and investments.
Jesus told them in ascending order, “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.” This is what the presence of Christ achieves – actionable love!
Prayer: Holy Spirit, dwell in us that we may acknowledge that God’s way is right. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you! Merry Christmas!
Rev Babila Fochang.