Today’s Scripture: Luke 9:51-10:24; SOAP / Luke 10:23-24
23 Then Jesus turned to his disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
Luke 10:23-24 NET
The Prophets, The Disciples, and Us
The Old Testament patriarchs and prophets had angels, burning bushes, and visions. They knew about the One to come and, as Luke points out, they longed to see and hear what these 12 Disciples and others with them were experiencing, but it did not happen in their day. The disciples in the New Testament Church were blessed to hear and see what Jesus taught and showed them. This is especially true of the 12, who were with Jesus the most. They were eyewitnesses day in and day out to Jesus’ life, His work, and more; they learned first-hand what it meant to truly be His followers. For all of the modern day conveniences, I sometimes find myself wishing I could have walked and talked with Jesus like the 12 did, or even be one of the many that followed – learning from Him as He taught or seeing even one of the miracles He performed. While we can’t turn back time and have Jesus with us in the flesh; however, as Jesus explained to the Disciples shortly before His ascension into Heaven – “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” We are blessed to have His Spirit with us which as Jesus explained is in a sense even better. His statement is explained by Bibleref.com and I believe is most helpful and relevant to our discussion today. “The Holy Spirit, the Helper, provides the ability for each Christian to have constant, personal, immediate, indwelling contact with God. Instead of relying on someone “outside” of themselves, believers in Christ can focus on the voice of God “inside” their hearts, as He dwells with them (John 14:17). That doesn’t make Christians infallible or all-knowing (Colossians 2:8; 2 Corinthians 13:5). It does mean that we have the advantage of His influence, so far as we’re willing to submit to it (1 Corinthians 2:14–16).
John explained that the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, was given to us by God to teach us all things and remind us of everything Jesus said, (Jn 14:26). We must not take this gift lightly though, but rather – as the prophets and disciples did before us – we must be responsible with what He has given us, living by it and sharing it with others. Following Him in this way will come with challenges because the message of the cross is not understood or received well by everyone and it may upset some – actually Paul said it is foolishness to those who are perishing – but it is God’s power to us who are being saved (1 Cor 1:18). May we never take for granted Jesus’s presence nor His teaching but faithfully use it to encourage, equip, and empower others with the message and hope of Jesus.
Because we are privileged to know so much about Christ, we must be careful to follow Him
NIV New Life App – commentary
Response to God’s Word
Father – knowing Christ is indeed a blessing. To see Him for who He is and to hear His still small voice – through Your Spirit in me – is like nothing else in all the world. May I never forget or treat carelessly this gift from You but ponder it and treasure it in my heart even as Mary did. May I love it enough to share it with others and may I faithfully pray for their eyes and ears to be opened to understand and receive the message, that they too might share in the blessing of Your WORD for salvation comes through hearing and hearing through Your Word. – In Jesus’ Name – Amen!
Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus,
to reach out and touch him, and say that we love him.
Maranatha Music
Open our ears, Lord, and help us to listen.
Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus.