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The Pharisees, therefore, said among themselves, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!” John 12:19 NKJV
Nevertheless, even among the rulers, many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees, they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. John 12:42-43 NKJV
Trash or Treasure…to which are you clinging?
Surprisingly, many choose to cling to utter trash and cast away that which is the true treasure of eternal value.
I have read and reread the Bible many times.
Likely, you have as well.
Sometimes, though, the Lord brings you a new thought or a new way to consider the passages of His Word that you are reading.
That happened again to me the other day.
The Gospel of John, chapter 12, contains two verses that made me think of our current age and choosing.
In verse 19, we read that the Pharisees are discussing Jesus and His popularity. They are angry. If He is popular, the Pharisees will hold less esteem from the masses.
They exclaim, “Look, the world has gone after Him!”
The Pharisees were observing Jesus in the flesh. They saw His love and compassion. They realized that the healing power He possessed was real. Perhaps, they even thought of the prophecies foretelling of Christ and realized they fit this man. Yet, to acknowledge Christ was to walk away from their own popularity.
Later, in verses 42-43, we read that many rulers believed in Jesus but knew that confessing their belief would cause them to be cast out of the synagogue.
Wouldn’t Jesus in your life be better than synagogue membership, you think, and rightly so.
Yet, the passage goes on to tell us the reason they stayed where they were and turned away from Jesus.
Such sad words are these: “for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”
Do you cast away the idea of being a follower of Christ and obeying Him, because you love the praise of your friends more than you care about the praise of God?
Do you realize that the crowd you seek to please in high school, or college, at the office, or in the neighborhood will not accompany you to hell at the end of your earthly life?
It is only Jesus Who will be with you always if you are His.
If you confess Him, believe in Him, follow Him, obey Him, and live your life joyfully for Him, you will have an eternal reward. You will be saved from your sins, given eternal life with Him in Heaven, and know the inexpressibly glorious joy of being in fellowship with Christ forevermore.
Instead, we cling to our filthy rags.
We clutch our sordid lives, our sins, and our sorrows when God offers us forgiveness through our belief in Jesus and confession of our sins.
When we know Him, when we have full fellowship with Him and know what that means, we can’t get our minds around the idea of others rejecting Him for the paltry pleasures of this earth.