Just Unlock The Cage

We give the disciples a hard time for their lack of faith. An easy passage to 'laugh' at the disciples is found when Jesus feeds the 5,000 in Matthew 14 and the 4,000 in chapter 15. Jesus just did an incredible miracle and in the next chapter, verse 33, the disciples ask Jesus, "Where are we going to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?" I said laugh earlier because you could look at this and totally blame the disciples for their lack of faith. How could they ask Jesus that question right after He fed the 5,000!?! I lost sleep over this topic the other night because how often do you find yourself doubting God or questioning Him when He brought you through something similar in your past? Or we have examples of God always giving someone His best after a period of waiting and trusting in the Lord to deliver. God never changes and He is perfect and compassionate. Where is our faith? He will always supply our needs according to His riches (Philippians 4:19).

To make matters worse, the disciples didn't know that Jesus was the Christ until after His last breath on the cross. They didn't truly know who Jesus really was until after the resurrection. We have a cheat sheet and already know the outcome when we read the Gospels. Mark's first verse tells us that Jesus was the Son of God but they didn't know that until later. Even the centurion, who mocked Jesus and helped literally nail Him to the cross explains in Mark 15:39 that truly this was the Son of Man. That was after Jesus took His last breath and the curtain tore from top to bottom. We are so quick to make light of the disciples' lack of faith but after Jesus' death and resurrection, they went on to preach to thousands, sacrificing their entire 'freedom' and life for the message of God. These guys believed even when they didn't know what they really were believing in. What are we doing with what we know about God? We have a choice, we can continue to carry the message of the cross as a witness and an example or we can continue to live life in a state of unconfessed sin, selfishness, and lack of purpose. "Trying to prove God is like trying to defend a lion...it don't need your help, just unlock the cage!"