31/07/11: Revealing but Concealing?!
Luke 9:44-45 “Jesus said to His disciples ‘Let these words sink into your ears: the Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.’ But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask Him about the saying.”
Now how in the world are we to understand this?! It seems very contradictory. Why would you say something and also conceal it at the same time? And particularly, why would you say to let the words ‘sink into your ears’ and then hide the message?! It is like Jesus wanted them to listen but didn’t want them to hear.
Why would I tell a person something I did not intend for them to understand? Anyone who majors in Communications would recoil at the thought. Do I sometimes tell patients things I don’t expect them to comprehend right away? Perhaps to lead their thoughts in a direction or towards an interpretation as they mature?
Was God planting an idea for the disciples to pull up later under different conditions? Was Jesus revealing factual information while concealing emotional insight? Was the whole purpose for them to look back later and remember it – perhaps for them to feel comforted and reassured that His life being delivered over to men was a pre-ordained and expected event, and not the result of chance colliding with evil? That regardless of their confusion, pain, and loss – Jesus had NOT been taken by surprise or become powerless over the devil as it appeared.
Any onlooker would assume Jesus had been defeated and many of His followers would conclude the ‘hope of Israel’ was annihilated, the dream of good triumphing over oppression dashed. But His disciples were given the secret early on, even if they did not entirely comprehend it. Jesus was not one who merely reacted to circumstances – He ordained them! He was here on a mission and the disciples were privy to it on a ‘need to know’ basis. The longer they were with Him, the more they knew and ultimately the more they understood.
People were thinking too small. If they saw Jesus as the ‘miracle man’ come to fix their day to day lives they would be done with Him once He was done fulfilling their earthly expectations. But what was the message of Jesus’ life? His plan was much grander and required rebuilding of a foundation for God’s glory to overshadow the planet with mirroring echoes from His children.
Clearly He had an agenda of what got known when. Is that why Jesus rebuked and hushed the spirits who were revealing His true nature too early? He came to “seek and to save the lost”, “not to condemn but to save”, not to “lord it over but to serve”, not to topple earthly governments but to conquer the kingdom of darkness and usher in a new realm. Such ‘mind-blowing’ plans were dosed in quantities His disciples could absorb in due time. Selah . . .
Now how in the world are we to understand this?! It seems very contradictory. Why would you say something and also conceal it at the same time? And particularly, why would you say to let the words ‘sink into your ears’ and then hide the message?! It is like Jesus wanted them to listen but didn’t want them to hear.
Why would I tell a person something I did not intend for them to understand? Anyone who majors in Communications would recoil at the thought. Do I sometimes tell patients things I don’t expect them to comprehend right away? Perhaps to lead their thoughts in a direction or towards an interpretation as they mature?
Was God planting an idea for the disciples to pull up later under different conditions? Was Jesus revealing factual information while concealing emotional insight? Was the whole purpose for them to look back later and remember it – perhaps for them to feel comforted and reassured that His life being delivered over to men was a pre-ordained and expected event, and not the result of chance colliding with evil? That regardless of their confusion, pain, and loss – Jesus had NOT been taken by surprise or become powerless over the devil as it appeared.
Any onlooker would assume Jesus had been defeated and many of His followers would conclude the ‘hope of Israel’ was annihilated, the dream of good triumphing over oppression dashed. But His disciples were given the secret early on, even if they did not entirely comprehend it. Jesus was not one who merely reacted to circumstances – He ordained them! He was here on a mission and the disciples were privy to it on a ‘need to know’ basis. The longer they were with Him, the more they knew and ultimately the more they understood.
People were thinking too small. If they saw Jesus as the ‘miracle man’ come to fix their day to day lives they would be done with Him once He was done fulfilling their earthly expectations. But what was the message of Jesus’ life? His plan was much grander and required rebuilding of a foundation for God’s glory to overshadow the planet with mirroring echoes from His children.
Clearly He had an agenda of what got known when. Is that why Jesus rebuked and hushed the spirits who were revealing His true nature too early? He came to “seek and to save the lost”, “not to condemn but to save”, not to “lord it over but to serve”, not to topple earthly governments but to conquer the kingdom of darkness and usher in a new realm. Such ‘mind-blowing’ plans were dosed in quantities His disciples could absorb in due time. Selah . . .