Frustrating Jesus

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Scripture

Sighing deeply in His spirit, He said, “Why does this generation seek for a sign? Truly I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.”
(Mark 8:12 NASB)

Observation

Jesus physically stood in the very midst of the people of Israel. Day after day He walked among them. Miracles were performed in almost every town and city that He visited. The lame were walking, the deaf could hear, the blind could see, and even the dead were raised to life. Jesus was preaching the Good News about the Kingdom of God to everyone who would listen, and yet, there were those who came to Him and asked Him for a "sign." We can probably relate to Jesus' response. Jesus signed deeply! Can you just imagine the frustration that Jesus felt. He probably wanted to cry out, "Hello!!!! Who do you think I am and what do you think I've been doing?"

Application

And I'm guessing that there are many times today that Jesus is doing the very same thing from heaven above. Day after day He is working in this world and transforming peoples' lives and yet, we ask Him -- "Can you show us something?" And Jesus sighs deeply in His spirit and wonders what in the world it will take for us to realize that He is living and active in our world every single day, but just as the religious leaders of His day couldn't see the signs, if we are not paying attention, we will miss them as well.
It's time to open our eyes to the work of God in our world. Let's not frustrate Jesus, instead, let us be one of those who asks Him whether we can join into the work of His kingdom here on earth. Let us be a part of His company, and may our actions be a "sign" to the world around us that Jesus is here now!

Prayer

Lord, lead me to someone today that needs to see a sign that You are real! Amen.

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