By Judy Villanueva

Matthew 11:2-6

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

John’s was the voice that cried out in the wilderness “Prepare the way of the Lord!”  He is in the guy who wore camel hair shirts and ate locusts with wild honey.  We definitely get the impression that he was sold out for Jesus, and bold in his message to repent and be baptized! Yet, here in this passage, we find him in prison sending his disciples to Jesus to ask a curious question.  “Are You the One, the Messiah or should they wait for another?”  It seems to imply that John might have been off balance and in need of reassurance.  It makes me wonder if he wasn’t scratching his head trying to make sense of the life unfolding around him. Was being in prison part of the plan or did something go wrong?  No doubt, his circumstances were not what he had expected!

John the Baptist might seem like  a hard guy to relate to, but as I witness him straining toward Jesus in need of strength and direction, I feel an immediate connection!  John’s question is my question and was my question this very morning!  I ask it often during times of disappointment or fear, and certainly, whenever I cannot make sense of how the pieces of my life fit together.  You know those times when life is not how we imagined, or when it seems like God is taking forever to answer our prayers?   I’m afraid we might find Jesus’ response to John less than comforting.  He doesn’t say, “Hang in there, cousin!  I’m on my way to break open the prison doors!”  Instead, Jesus tells John that the blind see, the lame walk, the dead are raised and the good news is being preached to the poor.  In other words, “Take heart.  I am He!  I am the One!”

Jesus’ words might feel both reassuring and disconcerting to the hearer because while it announces His reign as Messiah, it does so right alongside John’s plight in prison.  This is always the case!

Jesus is Lord and Messiah, always AND right alongside the life that is ours…the life that we may love, as well as the life that may include the hardest trial we’ve ever faced.

It was John’s challenge, as it is ours, to hear Jesus announce His reign and to trust beyond his own understanding.  I need to hear Jesus say, “I am the One!” when life has caused my heart to falter…and allow the reality of His reign to strengthen and remind me, that despite present conditions or anything I may not understand, His kingdom has arrived!  It’s already here!  That’s what Jesus was telling John!  That’s the good news being preached to the poor and that’s the blessed Truth that sets us free today.  Take heart.  He is the One!  Look no further!

“Lord, help me to hear you announce that You are healing, raising  the dead and reigning over all!  It gives me strength to wait with hope and trust You rather than lean on my own understanding.  Help me to lay down my need to know everything and instead, to bow in faith.  Thank you that you are the One!  Amen”

What about you? 

When do you feel off balance and in need of reassurance?

What does the arrival of God’s kingdom mean to you?

Are you able to rest, knowing that Jesus reigns?

Above and beyond whatever circumstances you find yourself in,  God is good and He reigns!

Worship