Once was enough.

How many times have you read through the gospels?  There is always something refreshing about hearing the story of Jesus again.  I am astounded at the blaring contrast between the steadfastness of Jesus and the wavering opinions of those around him.  I find it remarkable that the very same crowd of people that yelled,  “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" and threw their cloaks and palm branches at His feet as he rode into town, a week later yelled, "Crucify him!" as Pilate offered to release Jesus.  Jesus's own inner circle was not free of this type of behavior.  Peter cut the ear of a guard arresting Jesus, and denied knowing him just hours later.

The question that comes to mind is "Why?"  Why would these people change their tune so drastically in such a short period of time?  Why would Jesus's own disciple disown him?  I believe that the answer to both questions is the same: Jesus did not come to earth to please men, but to save them.  He could not be what they wanted Him to be and fulfill God's plan.  The people of Jerusalum and Jesus's own disciples could not see Him through the eyes of God, but through their humanity, therefore their expectations of him were very carnal.  They wanted an actual king, a political figure, who would rule with the strength of God, but would fulfill their worldly ideals.

Are we really any different two thousand years later?  As much as any one of us loves God, we have certain expectations of how He should or should not act in our lives.  Children should never get sick.  Loved ones should never die.  We should never have to go through a rough patch if God really loves us.  We may not say these things out loud, but we think this way.  I have heard it all from, "If you have faith, God will answer all of your prayers, no matter what they are" all the way to, "If your prayers were not answered, it must have been the result of some sin that you committed."  Many a person has lost faith traveling down this path of thought. 

I think that it is important that we reflect upon Jesus's promises in scripture in light of what His ultimate goal was.  In John 14:13, Jesus says, "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son."  You must read the first part in light of the second part.  He did not say that He would do what ever we asked so that life would be easy.  He said it was for the glory of the Father.  If we truly pray the way that Jesus taught us to, asking that "Thy will be done," we can find peace, whatever the outcome.  Furthermore, sometimes God's answer is "no."  Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12,  "Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “ 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' ”  This very same man was beaten, stoned, imprisoned and shipwrecked on more than one occasion.  His faith increased in light of these hardships simply because his life was built around the belief that "to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21

I say all of this to get to the point that once was enough.  Jesus should only have to save us once.  He should only be crucified once.  If He did nothing else throughout our entire lives, His salvation is already more than we ever deserved.  He has a love that no man could comprehend, a love that held Him to a cross as he was beaten, mocked, and spat upon, all the while having the power to remove Himself, but refusing to do so.  As Christians, and more specifically as first world Christians, we demand more than salvation! And the most astonishing part is, if we are honest we'll admit that He gives us more.  He gives us laughter, joy, provision, and so much more.  I thank God daily for the salvation that He gave me through Jesus Christ and I ask that He would remind me daily of the cost of that salvation.  Finally, I ask God that He would grant me peace in times that I may feel as though He has not answered my prayers, or has not answered them in the way that I would have expected Him to. 

I'll leave you with these words from James chapter 1:

 "¹⁶ Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ¹⁸ He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created."