Amazed!

It has been a busy day, Father, and unfortunately, I did not get right at it bright and early this morning. I thank You though for the opportunity to spend some quality time with Karen and for a productive day at work. Help me to listen to what You have for me in our time together. Amen.

Matthew 8:5-13 (<<click the green)

In my mind, I don’t come close to being any kind of trained Biblical scholar. What God has graciously given me, I have mainly gleaned from reading and listening to His written word and then being open to what He has to share with me about it. And I willingly acknowledge that every time I do so, God lovingly has more to share, taking me deeper and deeper still.

In this passage, it has never registered with my brain that “Jesus…was amazed.” v10 I don’t think He was surprised – how can one surprise Someone who knows absolutely everything! But as I did a bit of research I learned that Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance defines the word “amazed” to mean “to wonder; by implication, to admire:–admire, have in admiration, marvel, wonder.” (#2296)

Can you imagine causing the Creator of the entire universe – in all of its beauty and awe-inspiring diversity and intricacy – can you imagine causing Him to admire, marvel and wonder at something you did? Now, this is relatively early on in Jesus’ ministry but already He had seen more than enough faithless hearts. People who should have known Him and who He was and what He was all about were either oblivious or in outright opposition to Him. And here out of the blue, an obvious “enemy of the state” by virtue of his position in the oppressive regime now ruling Israel, comes forward and shows that he totally gets who Jesus is! As the NIV Quest Study Bible Notes puts it “Jesus was amazed that this Gentile seemed more spiritually aware than most Jews seemed to be.”

Lord, I would ask that I might become more spiritually aware. I would ask that You would help me exclaim with the desperate father in Mark 9:23-25, as he “said with tears, ‘Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!’” So many need to know of You, use me to do Your will today and every day! Amen and Amen!

Feb 21^st, 2018, Wed, 9:06 pm