Expectations. We all have them. We expect others to do things the way we would. We even expect ourselves to do things better than we do. Jesus is speaking to the Jewish people who didn’t believe that He was the Son of God. He spends quite a bit of time explaining what they should have already known. Testimonies or happenings needed witnesses to validate they were true. Jesus explains the writings of Moses (Scriptures), the Father, John, along with His works validate He is the Son of God. This long explanation was because Jesus healed a man who had been lame for 38 years ON THE SABBATH.
“Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath. The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.”” John 5:8-10
They had an expectation of how the Messiah would do things and Jesus did not meet their expectations. They had built a box of how the Messiah would and should work and weren’t up for accepting anything outside of that. They had built a whole life on expectations.
Maybe you have expected the Lord to do things certain ways and only accept certain people. Maybe the box you have made for Jesus has actually boxed Him out of your life in places. You might not be recognizing the work of the Lord in your life today. Even with unbelief it didn’t stop Jesus from doing the Father’s will, it just stopped some from receiving from Him. The Lord is always at work, and He knows best, so it’s best we don’t put Jesus in our own expectation box.
- To Know Jesus. To Live on Mission.