“After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand. So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” For not even his brothers believed in him. Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” After saying this, he remained in Galilee.” John 7:1-9
I love more and more about Jesus as I get to know Him better while reading through the book of John. He’s so at rest in the Father’s plan and timing. He doesn’t let the rush of the world and other people’s expectations sweep Him along. He doesn’t entrust himself to people’s approval or disapproval. He’s not the least bit distracted . . . ever.
Basically, He’s nothing like me.
In the passage above, Jesus’ unbelieving brothers try to push him into a role He isn’t ready to pursue. It’s unclear His brothers’ motives in the passage. They don’t believe He is the Son of God at this point, so maybe they only want to see Him fail. Other followers are more believing, but want a conquerer, a political deliverer, a king. They want freedom from the oppression of the Roman occupiers.
But they have all set their sights too low. Jesus has come to save their eternal souls from themselves. He has come to reunite God and man. He has come to die . . . on a specific day, in a specific year, at a specific time.
He says to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here.” Something about that view of time really strikes me. It pokes at the heart of my own struggles.
Aren’t we, as humans, always ready NOW for whatever we want at that moment.
We want a great marriage now.
We want our kids to mature and learn everything they need to know now.
We want our business or career to take off now.
We want to be spiritually mature now.
We want the house clean now.
“Your time is always here.”
It seems silly to have to remind myself that my ETERNAL God sees time differently than I do. What if I slowed down enough to listen to Him and think of things from His view?
We all need to be trained to walk beside Him in trust, to realize that everything does not have to happen now–the big things of life just as much as the small (including the messy house).
Just as the moment of the cross came for Jesus, there will be a time when God tell us, “NOW” and we go because we recognize His leading. Unlike Jesus, we are not privy to the “master plan,” (what a burden that would be!) so until our “now” moment, we’re probably not going to understand everything happening in our lives.
“A man’s steps are from the LORD; how then can man understand his way?” Proverbs 20:24
That also means that we’ll need to walk alongside our friends and family, and not push “our time” on them either.
I created a free printable Scripture coloring page of Isaiah 55:9 to help you meditate on these thoughts. Are you into the adult coloring page craze yet? I’m just hearing about it. I’ve always loved coloring and coloring helps my kids focus when I’m trying to teach them, so I’m all for it! You can grab some crayons, colored pencils, or even watercolors and have fun with this page!
Don’t forget to listen to what God might be saying to you about ways you can focus on His time rather than yours.
You can download the file here! It is free for your personal use. Any other uses, please ask!
Off to print some for my kiddos!
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I was hoping to share it with my sons Sunday school class. Would this be ok? There are about 10 kids.
Yes! Please do. ❤
I too want to use some of these for kids at church to color. Maybe 30ish kids.
Would that be OK?
Yes! 😁