It is Because of Them

And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief  (Matthew 13:58).

The things we go through in life (and I mean the stuff people go through when they obey God, not the stuff that happens as a result of consequences of stupid life choices) are supposed to help us relate to what Jesus went through when He walked the earth.

It gave me a lot of peace today to realize there was a point where even Jesus stopped. I am sure there were some people who even said behind His back, "Wow, look at the condition he left this town in. Look at all the people who were not healed, look at all the people who were not delivered ... look at everything He did NOT do. Wow, did He FAIL. They beat Him and killed Him. He must have been wrong." Then there were others who said, "Yep. He was innocent. He is the King." And they let Him go anyway ... some even participating in his death (like Pilate). In other words, Jesus came with a mission, and He handled it perfectly. He did what He was sent to do. There were further things He did NOT do because of the response and lack of reception at the hands of others. Sure He could have done more and gladly would have, but when He perceived those things were not going to be believed and accepted, He did not do them.

Jesus would walk away when people did not believe Him. He did not chase them, and He did not beg.  The point of whatever He did was about repentance and reconciliation with God. The miracles and "cool stuff" were just to stamp the message with a "See! There is something to this! Listen and learn. Repent, be reconciled with God, and get your soul in order." People want the miracles while their soul remains in jeopardy. The temporal is more important to most people than the eternal. And here is the kicker: This was not all for Jesus. He already had everything He needed with the Father. His place in eternity was secure. His joy was already before Him! He was only giving others the opportunity to come along with Him and have all the blessing that comes with being where He is. He did not need His ego boosted or more check marks in His success column. He knew He had already won.

People are building on a sandy foundation that will not make it when the first winds hit. They wanted the miracle (the result, blessing, deliverance, ... whatever), but they did not care about the message. Not enough to truly listen and take it to heart, then make true and lasting change. They wanted to choose what their lives looked like instead of submitting to Him and letting HIM choose. They continued in their cycles, treating others badly, being selfish, lacking integrity, not keeping their word, digging their heels in, standing with abusers. Their hearts remained hardened, and they did not repent. And Jesus said, "Okay. Next."

And it is okay to walk away when someone responds that way to me, too.