Mt. 9:27-29 Then He touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you."
Sometimes God has a perspective on issues that we don’t have
Mk. 8:22-25 When he had spit on the man’s eyes
As far as I know, there never has been a culture where spitting in someone’s face didn’t fly in the face (npi) of propriety.
Lk. 18:35-42 "Receive your sight; your faith has healed you."
Sometimes God’s direction isn’t as complicated as we expect it to be.
Jn 9:1-7 Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam".
Sometimes God gives us answers to the puzzle piece by piece.
The goal - help the blind to see
The method - it varied
Jesus could have used a tried and true method every time - "Let’s see, God directed me to spit on the man’s eyes and that worked. I think I’ll use that tried-and-true method from now on." What would have happened if he’d have done that?
Why didn’t he?
John 8:28-32
There’s some comfort in putting faith in a church constitution that is 40 years old and has guided the church’s actions well, but what if God would have us say "Receive your sight, your faith has healed you." rather than spit on the blind man’s eyes.
There’s some comfort in putting faith in a church leadership selection process that gives clear, step by step guidance for every contingency in the election of our ministers, but what if God would have us spit on the ground, make some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes rather than say "Receive your sight; your faith has healed you," to the blind man.
There’s some comfort in putting faith in Robert’s Rules of Order and allowing the whole church to be part of making decisions about how the church conducts its business, but what if God would have us ask if the man really wanted to be healed and tell him that according to his faith, he will receive healing.
There’s some comfort in conducting our worship services, classes and programs in the same manner week after week, year after year so that we know what to expect as we participate in the church but what if God would have us spit in the blind man’s eyes rather than ask if he really wanted to be healed and telling him that according to his faith, he will receive healing.
Mt. 5:4 Are we comfortable in our ability to do God’s work with tried-and-true methods. Or, do we mourn over our utter inability to meet God’s standard by who we are and what we do, no matter how tried-and-true. Are we uncomfortable enough to allow God to speak to us and work in, through and with us to accomplish His purposes in His way. Only then will we be comforted.
Experiencing God quotes.
Let us not be like those immature youths in Isaiah 40 who grow weary and faint because they rely on their own strength and wisdom, tried and true as they may be.
Instead, let us continually wait on the Lord who does not faint or grow weary and whose understanding is unsearchable. Let us accept God’s promise that we who wait on Him will renew their strength and mount up with wings like eagles. We shall run and not be weary. We shall walk and not faint because we rely on His strength and His wisdom as He works in, with and through us to give clear vision to those who are perishing because they have no vision of God’s magnificent purpose for their lives.
Let us not choose to be comfortable and disobedient rather than choose the "discomfort" of waiting on, hearing and heeding God.
Invitation Jer. 3:12-25
Benediction Ps. 130
