Missing the Obvious

Fifty2 Sunday’s ~ Listening for God

          The text for Sunday’s sermon was Mark 9:30-32, a parallel text can be found a chapter earlier in Mark 8:31. The focus of the sermon was the last verse 32: “But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it” (NIV).

‘They’ are the twelve disciples who weren’t prepared to hear that Jesus was going to be betrayed, killed and three days later rise (from the dead). After nearly three years with Jesus; listening to him, watching him, praying with him and being sent out by him to do good works (Matthew 10:1-15) they still didn’t get what he was talking about. It was not the way it was supposed to go. Perhaps Peter’s challenging words to Jesus (Matthew 16:22) embodied their belief that glory was just around the corner? Jesus doused any such thoughts when he rebuked Peter telling him he did not have "… in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns” (Mark 8:33).

I don’t fault the disciples—I think I might have responded much the same- in disbelief and fear. I think this is a common reaction –whether it is intentional or subliminal – there are times when we do not want the reality of a situation to rise to the level of our consciousness. Once it gets there we more or less have to respond to it. Each of us has blind spots-areas where we are not aware or tuned in and can miss something due to any number of legitimate reasons, and sometimes the obvious is not so apparent. As a health care provider I have observed on numerous occasions how some benign health issue causes a person to see their health care provider and in the process a more serious concern is discovered. 

It is not God’s will that we be confused or fearful; in fact the work of the Holy Spirit is to enable us to understand spiritual matters (I Corinthians 2:6-16). Matthew 7:7 reminds us to “ask, seek and knock” in order to find the truth and the answers we seek and if we do so in faith we can have confidence that God will grant wisdom  (James 5:1).