Dear Father, there has been a lot on today and it’s beginning or catch up with me. The day is almost done with just a bit more to wrap up. Guide my heart and thoughts toward You. Amen.
Luke 24:44-53 (<<click here to read the passage)
When I was younger it was a “hip” thing to leave what you had known for the better part of your life to go “find yourself”. I would think that would still be a viable life-goal, though I’m not sure that I’ve heard anyone label it that way recently.
Yourdictionary.com defines it this way: To learn, or attempt to learn, what kind of person one is and what one wants in life.
Some people know from an early age what they want to do with their lives and their lives just seem to go that way. And in the end, all is well and good.
Others pursue the same path but eventually discover that the end result wasn’t all that they thought it was going to be. Then they feel sort of stuck, not knowing what to do or where to go.
And yet others, have no clear direction at all but flit from one thing to another never really getting anywhere. A job here, a project there but when all is said and done, they had nothing to show for all their efforts.
The study Bible* note on verse 53, the last verse of Luke’s Gospel, sums up Jesus’ life and goals pretty well.
Luke’s Gospel portrays Jesus as a perfect life lived according to God’s plan. As a child, he was obedient to his parents and amazed the religious leaders in the Temple. As an adult, he served God and others through preaching and healing, and finally, as a condemned man, he suffered without complaint. This portrayal of Jesus was well suited to Luke’s Greek audience, who placed high value on being an example and improving oneself, and who often discussed the meaning of perfection. The Greeks, however, had a difficult time understanding the spiritual importance of the physical world. To them, the spiritual was always more important than the physical. To help them understand the God-man who united the spiritual and the physical, Luke emphasized that Jesus was not a phantom but a real human being who healed people and fed them because he was concerned with their physical health as well as the state of their souls.
As believers living according to God’s plan, we, too should obey our Lord in every detail as we seek to bring wholeness to people’s bodies and souls. If others want to know how to live a perfect life, we can point them to Jesus.
Jesus’ life and goals were pretty well laid out. He knew what needed to be done. He knew how to do it, but it didn’t make it any less grueling for Him. He was determined but…well, honestly, it still hurt. It hurt physically. It hurt emotionally. It hurt spiritually. I cannot begin to comprehend how the One who created every single thing in the universe took everything that was literally thrown back in His face. But He did…no hate, just love. Not rejection, just forgiveness.
Yes, we are most definitely not God, but we are called to be like Him. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 5:1-2 states,

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. NLT

You may know exactly where you are going, you found yourself long ago. You may have no clue where you’re going – you may not even know where you’re at! Either way, you can only truly find yourself in Christ. Ans regardless of where you are, He is the only Way.

*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation

Jan 27th, 2021, Wed, 7:27 pm