Who likes it when a great evening turns not so great, when a situation arises that places a negative spin on what was a positive experience? Not me!
Unfortunately, this happened to Jesus too many times. The following are just two examples from scripture.
Luke 5:17-19, 21:17: “One day while Jesus was teaching, some Pharisees and teachers of religious law were sitting nearby. (It seemed that these men showed up from every village in all Galilee and Judea, as well as from Jerusalem.) And the Lord’s healing power was strongly with Jesus. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to take him inside to Jesus, but they couldn’t reach him because of the crowd. So, they went up to the roof and took off some tiles. Then they lowered the sick man on his mat down into the crowd, right in front of Jesus. … But the Pharisees and teachers of religious law said to themselves, “Who does he think he is? That’s blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!”
Luke 5:27-30: “Later, as Jesus left the town, he saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at his tax collector’s booth. ‘Follow me and be my disciple,’ Jesus said to him. So Levi got up, left everything, and followed him. Later, Levi held a banquet in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor. Many of Levi’s fellow tax collectors and other guests also ate with them. But the Pharisees and their teachers of religious law complained bitterly to Jesus’ disciples, ‘Why do you eat and drink with such scum?’”
In the first passage, Jesus heals a paralytic. In the second passage Jesus is dining with a tax collector and a room full of what would have been thought of as sinners. In both passages there’s something cool going on; a miraculous healing and a dinner with Jesus.
But then a challenge presents itself. The Pharisees! These were men devoted and focused on obedience to the law. They stayed away from sinners. Looking through their own lens, they did everything right. Referring to the scripture, everything is sweet and calm until they enter the scene, then BAM they suck the coolness out of the situation.
I love riding motorcycles, and I thought, man, I can compare these scriptures to a motorcycle ride. I can take off on a beautiful evening with a group of friends, have dinner and great conversations. But then the warm air turns cool, and the bugs enter the scene. What was a perfect evening turns into a bug-infested ride as they start splattering all over my face.
Those bugs are like the Pharisees; however, they may not judge or have questions. But they sure do put a negative spin on an amazing evening.
How often do we find ourselves acting like those religious leaders? When anything or anyone challenges us, everything becomes negative, and we become that storm of bugs.
Let’s not be like the Pharisees who couldn’t see the positive impact Jesus was making. Let’s not be focused on the storm of bugs hitting us in the face. Instead, stay focused on the truth of his miraculous healing power and the miracle of God’s creations.
We are all given the same opportunity to choose his truth. Choose the one who will lead us through all the pesky bugs and give us eternal life.