When Jesus walked and taught as He passed through Israel, He always drew a crowd. People pressed near to hear His wisdom and see the miraculous deeds which caused His fame to spread like the light of the sun when it rises over hills dotted with flocks of sheep. Jesus went to the lost sheep of Israel to seek and save the lost, to people who had entered into a covenant with God. Through the Law of Moses and the prophets the God of Israel was revealed and known.
What I find fascinating is how people familiar with the scriptures didn't recognise Jesus though they could have. This was all part of God's divine plan, that unbelief in Jesus would cause blindness in the Jews and salvation through the Gospel would come to both Jew and Gentile. Just last night I read concerning how the glory of God would break forth with salvation in Isaiah 35:5-6: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert." Jesus did these things with regularity: He caused people born blind to see, opened deaf ears, healed the lame, and at His command the mute spoke plainly.
Beyond the physical healing Jesus ushered in a spiritual revival by offering the Living Water of the Holy Spirit to those who trusted in Him as Messiah and Son of God. Souls that were parched wastelands would be flooded with the presence of God who brought eternal life and spiritual fruitfulness. This scripture also has a future fulfillment in the millennial reign of Jesus Christ after His return in person to Jerusalem, having taken vengeance upon His enemies. Water will flow from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea and cause it to become an oasis teeming with life (Zechariah 14:8; Ezekiel 47:8-10). The waters of the Dead Sea are currently receding at a great rate, but this trend will someday be miraculously reversed.
What we see foretold in scripture is what can be the spiritual reality right now in the hearts, minds, and lives of people through the Gospel. The spiritually blind, deaf, lame, and mute can be miraculously made to see, hear, leap with joy, and praise the LORD with song. Only God knows times and seasons which are in His own power concerning the future, but in a spiritual sense blind eyes and parched hearts need wait no longer: Jesus Christ has come and offers Living Water to all who thirst springing up into everlasting life (John 4:13-14). He provides salvation for the condemned and heals the brokenhearted. May God open our eyes to our need for Him, that He is the only means of quenching our thirst for love and belonging, and Jesus is the Messiah we have long sought. Like the old song goes, "Flow, river flow. Flood the nations with grace and mercy. Send forth your word, LORD and let there be light."
What I find fascinating is how people familiar with the scriptures didn't recognise Jesus though they could have. This was all part of God's divine plan, that unbelief in Jesus would cause blindness in the Jews and salvation through the Gospel would come to both Jew and Gentile. Just last night I read concerning how the glory of God would break forth with salvation in Isaiah 35:5-6: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert." Jesus did these things with regularity: He caused people born blind to see, opened deaf ears, healed the lame, and at His command the mute spoke plainly.
Beyond the physical healing Jesus ushered in a spiritual revival by offering the Living Water of the Holy Spirit to those who trusted in Him as Messiah and Son of God. Souls that were parched wastelands would be flooded with the presence of God who brought eternal life and spiritual fruitfulness. This scripture also has a future fulfillment in the millennial reign of Jesus Christ after His return in person to Jerusalem, having taken vengeance upon His enemies. Water will flow from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea and cause it to become an oasis teeming with life (Zechariah 14:8; Ezekiel 47:8-10). The waters of the Dead Sea are currently receding at a great rate, but this trend will someday be miraculously reversed.
What we see foretold in scripture is what can be the spiritual reality right now in the hearts, minds, and lives of people through the Gospel. The spiritually blind, deaf, lame, and mute can be miraculously made to see, hear, leap with joy, and praise the LORD with song. Only God knows times and seasons which are in His own power concerning the future, but in a spiritual sense blind eyes and parched hearts need wait no longer: Jesus Christ has come and offers Living Water to all who thirst springing up into everlasting life (John 4:13-14). He provides salvation for the condemned and heals the brokenhearted. May God open our eyes to our need for Him, that He is the only means of quenching our thirst for love and belonging, and Jesus is the Messiah we have long sought. Like the old song goes, "Flow, river flow. Flood the nations with grace and mercy. Send forth your word, LORD and let there be light."
As the Rapture draws ever closer (and every day IS one day closer) I find myself taking risks to share Jesus like never before; but this reflection is a beautiful reminder of the need for prayer. Prayer is powerful! Along with our sharing we need God to do what we cannot: to open the eyes and ears of those deaf and blind to God's truth. Lately I've been watching some retro TV from the seventies and it's been refreshing to engage in stories which have no agenda. Almost everything written for TV today has a left wing and atheistic agenda: it's monotonous and exhausting, but at least, by God's Grace, I can SEE there is an agenda. I'm watching people I love completely taken in by this 'programming' and it creates very powerful strongholds in people's minds. Only God can break those strongholds! So thanks for this reminder, Ben, that we must pray for the deaf to hear and the blind to see... before it's too late!
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