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Blindness
"Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover." (John 18:28).
This verse sends a chill down my spine because it speaks of how blind human beings-religious human beings-can be.
They didn't want to be ceremonially unclean while they plotted the death of the One who could cleanse them for eternity! They wanted to be able to eat the Passover not realizing it was they who would shed the blood of the Lamb that Passover pointed to! They were so proud of their observance of the Law, so proud of their knowledge of the Scriptures, that they never stopped to consider the possibility that they were wrong. They hated the very God they claimed to worship, and they didn't see it.
Apparently, these Jews will not be the only ones to be so dead wrong:
"Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy
in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?'
Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you ... III (Matthew 7:22).
I never knew you ... What a thing to hear at the end of your life! It
is a
sobering thought. How do we keep from making the same mistake? "Not
everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." (v.
21). And what is that will? "... What does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."
(Micah 6:8). Simple, beautiful, deep.
As we walk humbly with our God, we learn to act justly and to love mercy. We allow His Word to transform the way we think, the way we act, who we are. And if we have sought His Face every day of our lives, there will only be joy when our eyes finally meet His ... Because He knows us.
-Maria Lund