There Also
Day 210
October 12, 2020
Have you ever asked God, “What do you want me to do?” or “Where do you want me to go?” Let’s look at the example of Jesus.
Jesus came to preach the good news. What was that news? He said it this way, “The time has come, the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:45)
Sadly, when the word “repent” is part of a message, many people don’t necessarily see the news as being good. John 3:19 tells us, “Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.” But this is exactly what makes the good news good in the first place. We the people live in darkness and have now seen a great light...and his name is Jesus. Just as the prophet Isaiah foretold, the promise to be rescued from the powers of sin and darkness, would not only be for God’s chosen people Israel, but would extend to the Gentiles, even to the ends of the earth. Repentance is turning away from that darkness and following Jesus who by His blood, offers us access into God’s kingdom for eternity.
If you know this already, is this the good news that is on your lips? Where have you shared it?
Wherever he went, Jesus preached this news, he healed the sick and he cast out demons. He traveled from place to place, often finding solitary places to be alone, to listen to the Father and learn what his next assignment would be. In the eyes of many people, his ministry was very successful as in many of the villages he entered, the people welcomed him because they recognized his power and authority. Even the demons cried out, “I know who you are--O Holy One of Israel!” (Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37)
But despite this frenzied activity and commotion, Jesus always found his solitary place with the Father and was never distracted by the successes, or the rejections (as he experienced in his own hometown of Nazareth). After one particularly successful round of ministry in the area of Galilee, his disciples said to him, “Everyone is looking for you,” but he responded, “Let us go somewhere else...so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” (Mark 1:38)
Have you been discouraged at the lack of response or rejection to the gospel that you have experienced somewhere? Go somewhere else and preach the good news there also. Have you been excited by the enthusiastic response to the gospel somewhere? Go somewhere else and preach the good news there also. We must always be in search of the “there alsos” in the world, for that is why He came. To preach the good news “there also.” To go to the places no one was going.
You know what to do and you know where to go. Therefore, as the Church of Jesus, His hands and feet today, find the “there alsos” and whether the people there receive the message of hope or reject it, you will know that you are being faithful to the Father’s mission.
Read Mark 1:14-45 today.