March 25 Overcoming Familiarity
The saying goes, "Familiarity breeds contempt." It is another way of saying that we take for grantide that which we have all the time. That is also true in matters of faith.
The longer a person is a Christian, the easier it is to take for grantide who Jesus truly is. That is especially why I am intent on growing closer to Jesus, as we listen and read through the Four Gospels or accounts of Jesus in the Bible. The challenge of this is to listen/read well-known Bible passages with new ears/eyes.
Today's reading (John 5-6 (ESV)) is overwhelming with descriptions of the identity of Jesus. Clearly, this is no mere human being. Jesus does superhuman things, like heal a 38 year invalid with His words (John 5:8), feed 5,000 men by multiplying bread and fish (John 6:6), and walks on water (John 6:19). These miracles testify of His divine origin (John 5:36).
But Jesus' own words also indicate that He is superhuman. He declares that He is equal with God (John 5:18), who alone has been granted by God the Father authority to judge (John 5:22), who is to be given equal honor as God the Father (John 5:23), who gives eternal life (John 5:24) and will physically raise the dead (John 5:25), and who claims to be the only one to have seen God the Father (John 6:47).
Indeed, as Peter exclaims (John 6:69), Jesus is "the Holy One of God!" And this fully God became also fully man and paid the price for us to be children of God (John 1:12). How awesome is that!