The Other Side of God Working

It seems counter intuitive, but when God works, people often do not respond in gratefulness.  What comes to mind when you think of God working in your church or amongst people you know?  Usually, I think we imagine folks getting saved, people getting healed, the oppressed released from their captivity, churches exploding in growth.  In essence, we think of "positive" or even happy things.

The truth, when we read scripture, is that when God works...when miracles happen...not everyone is drawn closer to God.  In fact, often enough, more folks look upon God with hardened hearts than turn their hearts to God.  Starting in Genesis and running all the way to Revelation there are example after example of men and women turning their hearts from God in the midst of His miracles.  Shoot, Adam and Eve literally walked in the midst of the miraculous, and with the One who makes miracles happen, and they still turned their hearts away.

While there are many examples of this human phenomenon, the one I am going to focus on is the Gospel of John, chapter 9.  This is the same story we looked at in the previous post.  In this story, Jesus heals a man who was born blind.  The Bible does not tell us what the blind man's name was.  So, to keep from writing "the blind man," which seems pretentious, awkward, and impersonal, let's go ahead and call the guy Bubba.  I like Bubba.  Good name.  When someone calls you "Bubba," they never are being mean to you.  Even if they are being critical, its not a mean critical.  Its the kind of critical that is in your best interest.  Like, "Hold up there, Bubba.  You don't want to use that blow-torch while standing in that puddle of diesel."  Someone calling you "Bubba" has a sort of paternal, watched over feel.

Anyways, Bubba was born blind.  Jesus tells His disciples about the reason Bubba was blind, and then makes some mud out of His spit which he puts in Bubba's eyes (Sure its gross, but Jesus can put spit-mud in my eyes all day long for whatever reason He wants to and you won't find this guy making a fuss about it), and sends him off to the pool of Siloam to rinse out the mud.  The result is that Bubba, born blind, can see.

It must be a pretty amazing thing to go from being blind, to being able to see.  What I always notice when I read this story, however, is how Bubba seems to take it in stride.  And, I notice how everyone else does not seem to take Bubba's healing in stride.  Bubba returns with sight after doing what Jesus told him to do.  His neighbors are amazed (they freakin' ouuuut) and start debating whether or not Bubba is actually Bubba (the blind guy).  When Bubba finally convinces everyone that he is Bubba who was formerly known as blind, the neighbors ask how he ended up with his sight.  Bubba tells them what happened without embellishing or adding to the story.

Jesus did "A" to me and told me to do "B", so I did "B" and now I can see (no pun intended.)

What comes next is for sure on the list of most idiotic statements found in the Bible.  The folks all ask, "Where  is He?"  Bubba answers, "I don't know."

REALLY?!  I wonder why Bubba didn't know where Jesus was.  Could it be because Jesus sent him off WHILE HE WAS BLIND and went on His own way?  I mean, seriously folks, you give a terrifically sad example to "keep on hearing, but do not understand" (Isaiah 6:8b).  For all you folks who are like, "Ashton, I know you'd be just as stupid as these people if you were there.." to you I respond, "Yes, and I too would deserve to be made fun of."

But, seriously there's an important lesson here.  It is a human tendency to hear only a portion of what is being said, then run with it.  The tendency, moreover, is to question the legitimacy of the miracle.  It was not enough for them to see Bubba with his sight.  They needed to see the one who gave him sight in order to believe.  Consider the complete irrationality of this.  The proof stands before them, but it is not enough for them.  For some people, miracles don't answer questions...they raise more.  We humans are so strong willed.  In the Gospel of John chapter 6 we see an example of how folks can walk with Jesus (literally), see His signs, eat the food he miraculously creates for them, but when push comes to shove it is not enough to keep them from walking away (literally) from Him.  Miracles are not done by God for us.  Miracles, rather, are done by God for Him.

If someone is looking to God for their own pleasure, appeasement, comfort, they will not find Him.  He will not be used or mocked.  Thus, when they see God working, it brings discomfort.  A true working of God reminds everyone, but is for the benefit of the faithful, that God is Who He is and works according to His purposes (Romans 8:28) not ours.  And, if we are poured out for His sake and His glory, then all we can do is rejoice while we remain in the situation we find ourselves in with the hope that we will be found in the resurrection (Philippians 3:8-10).  We are supposed to be citizens of the Kingdom of God.  That is an easy title to take, but do you really take on the role?

The last time God worked, were you humble or mocking?  Did you make excuses for your friends or loved ones who rejected God's work because its more comfortable for you to believe that we all just have a different perspective?  Because, God is clear.  Either you are for Him, or you are against Him.  That doesn't mean we need to judge folks who harden their hearts against God.  It ain't our job.  But, it should affect how we walk through life.  It should affect who our friends are.  It should affect where we go to church.  It should affect our conscious, because easily can we let our own comfort and understanding cause us to be the next ones to resist God's movement.  No one gets salvation unless they partake of Jesus as the bread of life.  When Jesus taught that, a huge crowd of disciples left leaving only twelve (John 6).

Regarding the workings of God, our attitude must be like Peter's in John 6.  "Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life..." (John 6:68).  The other attitude is one exhibited by the disciples who left Jesus, who we find earlier in the chapter were more interested in food than anything else (here's an interesting parallel I'll let you look up for yourself, but I think is worth the time.  Philippians 3:18-19).  That is symbolic of their highest priority being their own comfort.  Jesus tells them that even if they saw Him ascending to where He was before, it would not be enough.  It is the Spirit that enables us to know Him.

Remember the phrase "faith like a child?"  Jars of Clay did a song about it.  At the end of the song they play sounds from a playground, and some kid screams "give it back!" which I always thought was an ironic end to a song about childlike faith (its kind of a peaceful song).  Anyways, in a sense my baby loves me because I provide for her.  But, that's not the whole story.  She loves me when I walk in the room even after she has been fed, changed, and played with.  Even at 8 months, I can tell her highest desire is just to spend time with daddy (and mommy).  As a father, I hope this never changes.  I can't imagine what the Heavenly Father feels when He looks at us.  He provides for our needs, which is a working of God, but humanity has made its highest desire what God does for us.  Man's highest desire is not God Himself.  Our hearts are twisted.  And, just because we and the people next to us at church say we're okay, it doesn't mean we are.  Hell (literally, it leads there), its not even biblical to say we're okay.  Paul tells us in Philippians 3 that we have not even attained perfection, though we press on in hope toward it.  Why bring that up?  Because, in over 10 years of ministry and going on 15 years of being a Christian, I have seen time and again the very strong correlation between people whose highest desires are the things God gives them and saying those same people saying "okay."  A weed filled field will only produce so much grain.  Fact.  End of story.  No way around it.

So, the (un)pleasant summary?  God working edifies the faithful, and brings judgment down on the tares (weeds).  It may not be good to pull the tares up in order to protect the wheat, but that doesn't change the fact that the tares are what they are.  The new testament cautions us over and over again to avoid false teachers, prophets, and the ones who follow them.  So, be careful.  Give testimony to the good things God has done in your lives no matter what, let it affect how your light shines, and let no one...by any sort of rationalization or argument...put a bucket over that light or a mute in that horn.