Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine.’ John 12:30 (NIV)
A thundering Voice booms out of nowhere. Jesus glorifies the name of God. The voice confirms that it has been glorified and that it will continue to be gloried. Those who hear it are moved. Wouldn´t we be too? Jesus turns to them and says that this marvelous expression of God is not given to bolster the Son. He says it is for us! Jesus knows His Father. He knows what pleases Him. He knows if what He is doing is what God wants. He does not need to hear His Father´s approbation for what He is working on. He is so close to Him that it goes without saying. But us? Do we need to hear it? Is there still some distance left between us and our Heavenly Father? Can we already see His face? Are we so close that we sense His every wish for us? Are we already close enough to God that we hear Him speaking to us?
A.W. Tozer used the analogy of metal and fire. He likened a person to metal which is one substance until it is so heated in the fire, that the fire enters the metal. The two become one. In our God there are so many wonders which we could discover each and every day throughout eternity. He is that amazing. This filling, this blending, this unity of man and his God is something worth seeking. It would forever change the individual who seeks it. If a man wants something more out of his life, could there be a higher purpose than this? If a person could find him or herself this deeply bonded to the Almighty, would all else in our earthly walk seem small and insignificant?
Jesus came teaching. He came to bring lost people unto their God. He came to set an example. There are many things He tells us. But do they all lead us in one direction? Do they all take us to One unified Source? Does Jesus break down one by one all the lesser things we cling to? Does He always try to place us each one of us before God? He is so dedicated to this service to His Father that He allowed men mistreat Him. Did He offer up His whole life and His very life, to accomplish His immense task? The Voice, the plan, this complete sacrifice of self, who is it all for? He says it is for us! It is so that God can have us with Him as God intends.
The story of the human race is amazing for this reason. The loving God has gone this far to bring a selfish and wayward people back into His embrace. He makes a Way for us to come into a relationship with Him. The Bible gives us no less of a purpose for our existence. We get lost. We are experts at it. But Jesus still works towards His mission. There is less every day that stands between us and His triumphant return. Jesus uses thundering Voice one day to show us that what He holds out for us is real. Some have set their hope in His offer. Some of us will sense the deep burning within our hearts. Some of us will want to be one of those privileged few that the Saviour will able to place before God. Will we be one of these few? Is it for us?
Dear Jesus, You work so hard and so focused on bringing us near to God. Please help us to drop our desperate grip on this world where we live. Let us turn and look to a new purpose. Let us look up beyond the skies! Let us gaze towards Heaven! Let us strain all our senses to see where You are leading us! Do not let us miss one single blessing. Do not let us miss a single Word. Let us hear the voice of God today! Let us hear that He will be glorified! Let it be for us!
Amen
Searching For Christ 