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A Little Less Talk, A Lot More Action Charles Mims Consider this: The Lord's Prayer contains 56 words; the Gettysburg
Address, 266; the Declaration of Independence, 300; and a recent I read this the other day, "We all talk to ourselves at a
rate of approximately 1,200 words a minute. That's 'self-talk' or
thinking." 1 No wonder we don't listen today, no one can get a
word in! I've met men of many words as well as men of few words. The power
of persuasion is in the words themselves, not in the amount. Jesus was a man of
few words, or at least in comparison to the volume of words that have been
written and spoken about His life. The power of His words rests not in the
amount but the truth they convey. In the words of the gospel writers what do we see? I believe we
must see Jesus. We must see a face of love shining through, not merely ideas, not
just doctrines, but Jesus Himself ... sufficient for all our needs) John shows us Jesus in the 6th chapter of his gospel. · Jesus' concern for His
immediate 12. · Jesus' concern for the
multitudes. · Jesus' miraculous meal
feeds 5,000. · Jesus' control over
nature ... walks on water and calms the sea. Side Line Note: What was the purpose of
these miracles? Was Jesus just showing off? Was He merely meeting needs? I believe these miracles . . .
Only God was attributed to feeding the
hungry and calming the raging sea in the OT. Psalms 146:7 Who executes justice for the oppressed, Who gives food to the
hungry. The LORD gives freedom to the prisoners. Psalms 107:29 He calms the storm, So that its waves are still.
God through Jesus reveals what He longs to do in the human heart.
Jesus longs to bring a spiritual
revolution to our hearts and lives. He poses the Inescapable Challenge ... you
can't sit on the fence forever! The miracles of Jesus challenge us to change. The life of Jesus was often marked by controversy because many who
heard His words found them hard and difficult to accept. The Religious Leaders were uncomfortable with Jesus'
self-designation of the "Bread of Life ... Living Bread from Heaven."
(vs. 48,51) Many of them already saw Jesus as bad news and these words were
icing on the cake. They saw Jesus as a threat to their "theology" and
their way of life. Do we see Jesus as a threat to our lifestyle, desires, demands, or
even our theology? When Jesus reveals Himself to us is He upsetting the apple
cart? WORDS HARD TO ACCEPT Even some of the followers of Jesus found His words disturbing and
offensive. It was just too much when He spoke of having to eat His flesh and
drink His blood, for the establishment of eternal life (vs.53-58). Jesus
recognizing their displeasure asks, "Does this offend you?" The value of Jesus' words are not found in the amount of words,
but in the truth they proclaim. Jesus seeing those who were have trouble with
His words proclaims His words are spirit and life (vs. 63) filled and many
would not believe in them. John 6:66 From that time many of His disciples went back and
walked with Him no more. They went back to the same old life, same old religion, and the
same old hopeless situation Jesus was striving to save them from. "Time
and again it is not the intellectual difficulty which keeps men from becoming
Christians; it is the height of Christ's moral demand." 2
A pastor once said he met a Hebrew
Textual Scholar while visiting the city of To this day many refuse to follow Christ, not because of
intellect, but because He challenges them to get off the fence of indecision
and to come and follow. They find it hard to accept the truth of Jesus being
God in the flesh, and dying for their sins, and their need of faith in Him.
When the truths of Christ are pressed many people turn away from Him. WHAT ABOUT YOU? Watching so many walk away, Jesus turns to the twelve asking a
penetrating question . . . "DO YOU ALSO WANT TO GO AWAY?" Peter so
eloquently states the obvious. "Lord where would we go? You hold the words
of eternal life." Peter understood Jesus to be speaking about spiritual
matters and not literal flesh and blood. Peter knew of no other person who
could speak the words of life and back them up, like Jesus could. He saw the
miracles, works, and words of Jesus as positive claim to being the Son of God
(vs. 69). What about you? What about me? Do we find the demands of following
Jesus repulsive and offensive? Is the demand of surrender too much? Does His
high moral standard cause us to shrink away? "The claims of Christ are still tests of faith. They are
still producing crises in the lives of His followers. They are dividing the
false from the true." 3 Christianity is not a philosophy to be
embraced, nor a theory to be tested. It is a personal response to Jesus Christ.
How are you responding to the life and words of Jesus? FEW BUT Jesus not only speaks the words of life, He hold the words of life
eternal. When Jesus speaks in John 14, "I
am the way, the truth, the life and no man comes to the Father accept through Jesus is a man of few words. Do not judge them by the amount but the
truth they contain. Are you willing to admit your need of Jesus and come to the
Savior? Are you willing to admit, Christians Jesus still holds the words of
life and you need to come to Him for refreshment? Let me challenge you with the words of Peter ... "Lord, to
whom shall we go?" Who else do you know that can speak words of life and
back them up? If you know of no one, you need to come to Jesus. Prayer: Lord we listen to too many words. Words that often take us
further away from you than we will admit. Help us confess listening to those
other words, rather than Your words. Your words are life. Let us choose life in
this day by listening to You. Speak Lord for Your servants are listening. Amen |
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