Why are we so resistant to change? Why are we so hostile toward new things?
When the Pharisees came face-to-face with Jesus, they were challenged by his miracles and threatened by his teachings. They could not see who he really was, yet they knew he was changing everything. He was upsetting the established order; and these religious leaders, more than just about everyone else at the time, realized that. Yet they could not disentangle themselves from the power and comfort they had accumulated.
Indeed, when they came face-to-face with Jesus, they could only think of themselves. They could only worry about their careers, prestige and possessions. They became self-protective and began looking for ways to trip him up. They knew if they could just convict him of blasphemy, they could get rid of him and get back to their comfortable lives.
Jesus was a game changer. There is no doubt about that. He, with all that he represents, is the new wine, and he does not fit into their old wineskins.
How often do I clutch my old wineskins? How often am I like the Pharisees, so desperate to hang onto the trappings of my own comfortable life that I push Jesus away?
Today, I will embrace the change God is working in my heart, grateful and confident in the face of the unknown, the uncomfortable, and the darkness.
When the Pharisees came face-to-face with Jesus, they were challenged by his miracles and threatened by his teachings. They could not see who he really was, yet they knew he was changing everything. He was upsetting the established order; and these religious leaders, more than just about everyone else at the time, realized that. Yet they could not disentangle themselves from the power and comfort they had accumulated.
Indeed, when they came face-to-face with Jesus, they could only think of themselves. They could only worry about their careers, prestige and possessions. They became self-protective and began looking for ways to trip him up. They knew if they could just convict him of blasphemy, they could get rid of him and get back to their comfortable lives.
Jesus was a game changer. There is no doubt about that. He, with all that he represents, is the new wine, and he does not fit into their old wineskins.
How often do I clutch my old wineskins? How often am I like the Pharisees, so desperate to hang onto the trappings of my own comfortable life that I push Jesus away?
Today, I will embrace the change God is working in my heart, grateful and confident in the face of the unknown, the uncomfortable, and the darkness.
No comments:
Post a Comment