Observation:
Phillip and Thomas wanted to know God. Jesus tells them that they have already seen God in Him. That everything Jesus did and said came straight from His/our Father in heaven. His heart was turned and tuned into the Father all the time. Without having Christ in their hearts, I.e. the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, they must have been terribly confused and overwhelmed by this statement.
What Jesus was saying to them was mind blowing because no one had a direct access to God. Priests had to prepare their whole lives to enter the Holy of Holies just once and if their hearts weren't right they would be killed by God. In fact they use to wear bells to enter the temple so that those outside could hear if something had happened to them. So a direct line to God, wow, it must have seemed impossible. But because of Christ it is not.
Application:
The question that I must ask myself is, who empowers my actions? As I look back on this last week there were a few occasions when I was empowered by a little weak and selfish me, and not a Big, Strong, Loving God. Yesterday my heart was so sad to see that ugly truth. I can easily make excuses for it, like "I'm only human". But the truth is I'm more than human, I am infused with the nature and power of Christ. I don't have to ask someone else to talk to God on my behalf, I have a direct line to Him. I can ask for His intervention, His wisdom, comfort, will, and provision. And I, like Jesus, can live for His glory and not my own. It is the greatest desire of my heart to do this, yet sometimes I still miss connecting and reflecting Him. Today I'm grateful that God is not done with me yet (Philippians 1:6).
Prayer:
Father, there is no one like You. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to connect directly to You. I'm amazed that the God of the universe makes time for me anytime I want. Please forgive me for ignoring and even taking this sweet gift for granted. Like Jesus, I want everything I do to be empowered by You and for Your glory.
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