“Cherish This Moment…!”

“Cherish This Moment…!”(Jn.7:32-36).
The chief priests and pharisees sent temple guards to arrest Jesus because of the whisperings of the crowd. These enemies of the gospel could not bear the contents of such whisperings, which wondered if the coming Messiah would do more miraculous signs than Jesus.
Jesus changed the topic of miracles to one referring to his death. He said,“I am with you for only a short time, and then I go to the one who sent me. You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.”
The Jews wondered amongst themselves where he intended to go where they won’t find him abd where they couldn’t come? Was he intending to go and teach the Greeks who were in the diaspora?
Nothing made sense to them. They didn’t understand that Jesus was talking about his death when his glory will be fully revealed. Jesus was at the same time mocking their idea of arresting him at that point in time. He had only a short time of physical presence, and then his glory will be fully revealed.
In the opening of his gospel, John already points to the glory of Jesus. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth”(Jn.1:14).
Jesus the Christ revealed his glory to his disciples through the miracles he performed and through his death and resurrection.
It is the second part of revealing his glory, which the Jews did not understand.
Wanting to arrest Jesus at this early stage was a fool’s ambition. God’s timing is perfect timing. What he has planned happens only at the time he had planned for it to happen. Human beings cannot rush God, and they cannot delay God.
When we work in tune with God, we will run the race of faith in alignment with God’stime.
The guards went back without arresting Jesus. When those who sent them asked why they had not arrested him, they had a simple declaration:“No one ever spoke the way this man does.”(Jn.7:46). This declaration by the guards was a slap on the faces of the chief priests and the Pharisees who sent them. Here is another way of putting the declaration of the guards:“None of you here ever spoke the way this man does.”
My friend, the glory of Christ is revealed so that we should believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that by believing we may have life in his name. Do you believe this?
Prayer: Holy Spirit, inspire us to cherish the time the Lord Jesus Christ is with us. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.
14/02/2025.