City Life Starter

Written by Stefan Johnsson

The Word

⁴² When it was day, He went out and made His way to a deserted place. But the crowds were searching for Him. They came to Him and tried to keep Him from leaving them. ⁴³ But He said to them, “I must proclaim the good news about the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because I was sent for this purpose.” ⁴⁴ And He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee.

Luke 4:42-44 (HCSB)

¹³ So they collected them and filled 12 baskets with the pieces from the five barley loaves that were left over by those who had eaten.

¹⁴ When the people saw the sign He had done, they said, “This really is the Prophet who was to come into the world!” ¹⁵ Therefore, when Jesus knew that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He withdrew again to the mountain by Himself.

John 6:13-15 (HCSB)

Reflection

The Jews, living under the oppression of the Roman Empire, was seeking and waiting for the Messiah promised by God. Though, the Messiah that they were looking for was the one who would come to judge the world. Yes, Jesus would do this, but first He was coming to save the world. Before final judgment, Jesus had to complete the work of salvation and ascend up to heaven, as explained in Daniel 7:13 (You cannot descend unless you have first ascended). So when Jesus came and proclaimed the Kingdom of God, doing miracles and feeding thousands, they believed that their salvation had come, in the form of a king to free them from the Roman oppression.

Jesus knew His mission on earth and did not succumb to the glory that comes from man, but sought only to do the will of God the Father. Because of this, he often went out to deserted areas and moved from town to town to preach and share the good news instead of accepting the praise and glory of man.

Application

How often do we seek the glorification that comes from others rather than to glorify our Father in heaven? We care too much about what others think and how they may perceive us. If all Christians only sought to do God’s will, our world would change drastically and people will see how we love one another and sacrifice our own selfishness in order to serve others and God.

Spend your time in God’s word and do as Jesus did. Early in the morning He went out alone to pray to God (see Mark 1:35). It prepared Him for that day and the work that was to come.

When you align your day with God’s will, your focus will change from yourself to Him and that should always be a daily practice.

Prayer

Father in heaven, too often I seek after my own glorification rather than glorifying You. Help me to seek Your will and align myself with what You want me to accomplish each and every day. Help me to obey Your will in humility and to love others as You love them. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.