Written by Paul Lane
The Word
“19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel. 21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will. 22 For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, 23 that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.”
John 5:19-23
24 How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
Psalm 104:24
Reflection
Often, I have heard people say things like, “well, you can’t help everyone” or “why not help me, you helped him?” And of course, there is the ever present, “that’s not fair helping her and not helping me!” Fair? How would you know if something is fair? Was it fair that Jesus healed some and not others? Or is it fair that children die, and parents have to morn them? If we follow human thinking, fairness is not found until we all are equally retched and impoverished.
But it is not so with God. When God makes something, He makes it using His providence and wisdom. God can weigh all the variables and compare all the possible outcomes and decide on the perfect compensation for each person. Given this perspective, Jesus says that He “…can do nothing of Himself, but what He see the Father do….” Jesus is pointing to God the Father as the perfect leader of the endeavors of life. So, the answer to one of my favorite questions “what do you want to be when you grow up?” is, “I want to be obedient to the Lord’s call.”
In this obedience I can list a bunch of benefits to obeying the Lord’s call. You live a more fulfilled life. You go to heaven. You get your heart healed. And those are all good and important outcomes. But ultimately, they add up to you get to abide in the presence of the Lord, which is a real thing. “The light of this world will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.”
Application
As fallen souls, we bring a beast to the party. This beast rules us and drives us to do things contrary to God’s will. As such, we are born of the first Adam. Jesus is the second Adam, who is incorruptible and is willing to lead us away from the rule of this beast. For this to be real in our lives we must bring the beast to the foot of the cross and accept Jesus as Lord. Jesus says that He, “the Son, gives life to whom He will.” So, turn to Jesus and ask Him to lead you in to the life He has planned for you.
Prayer
Dear Father, I thank You for Your presence in my life and Your desire to change my heart into one that follows You always. I pray that You continue to lead me into the life You have planned for me, and that I accomplish that which You sent me to accomplish, daily. Amen.
City Life Starter 
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