FAMILY IT! — Wednesday Family Devotional — “Thirst Things First”

What’s your dream vacation?  Where’s the one place you would love to go more than any place else?  Maybe it’s so amazing you haven’t even told anyone, because you’re so certain you’re never actually going to get to go.  Where is it, where is it, where is it?  Share!

Knock, knock.  There's someone standing at your front door with free tickets to your dream vacation place.  Seriously, some dude with a briefcase and a big cheesy grin is handing you the plane tickets…or train, boat, rocket, etc.  They’ve got your name and your family members’ names on them, and the destination is [insert dream vacation location].  Your family is smiling ear to ear.  He’s handing them to you.

Here's the question: do you believe him?  Do you think this is for real?  Or are you more likely to think it’s a scam, or maybe some kind of practical joke?  Are you the one looking for the hidden cameras?  

We live in a pretty suspicious world.  “There’s no such thing as a free lunch,” after all.  Everyone loves to catch someone getting spoofed, especially with the chance that the video might go viral.  So it’s no surprise we carry doubt around.

And yet, sometimes great things really do happen.  So what would it take to convince you that the trip was real?

What if your parents said it was a surprise that they’d been planning for?  Would that do it?  (Probably depends on your parents.)

What if your best friend shows up, all smiles?  Your parents told them and he/she wanted to be there to celebrate with you.  Now are you buying it?

How about if the president of the theme park/cruise ship/airlines/resort got out of the car and came up to congratulate you.  Is that enough?  I’m hoping that would convince most people, although some are skeptical enough that even the CEO wouldn’t be enough.  

But what about this?  In addition to the tickets in front of you, you see a stack of luggage sitting by the garage door ready to go.  You remember that your parents have been working a lot of extra hours “to save money” they say.  You realize the dog is gone, already at the kennel.  You see a slip of paper on the counter saying that the mail has been placed on hold.  It’s right next to the stack of make-up work for the days of school you’re going to miss.  How ‘bout now?  

Testimonies from people are a tricky thing.  Sometimes they’re convincing, but sometimes our doubt is too strong.  When we see that testimony repeated or confirmed in how someone is acting or the choices they’re making, then we’re much more likely to believe.

Jesus struggled with this same idea.  No one wanted to believe He was the Son of God, especially not the church leaders.  It seems kind of funny, because these guys were supposed to be the experts on the Messiah, but when He actually showed up, they thought He was a big fat liar.  

Jesus told the religious leaders what He thought in John 5:31-47.  He points out that they read about the coming Christ in the Scriptures.  They had the verses memorized about God’s special Savior.  But when Jesus came, fulfilling every prophecy, they didn’t believe him.  (v. 39-40)  They sent a messenger to John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin (who they also didn’t like), so see if he’d confirm the story.  John replied with a huge thumbs up, but they still refused to buy it.  (v. 33)  Jesus points out that even God himself vouched for his Son, but the religious leaders wouldn’t even listen. (v. 37)  

I think Jesus drives it home the most in verse 36: “But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.”

Ok, so maybe they didn’t believe that all the prophecies in Scripture applied to Jesus’ life.  And maybe they figured John was to biased—or too delusional himself—to tell the truth.  And maybe they figured “God’s testimony” was just a flashy magic trick.  But look at Jesus’ life!  Everything He did—healing, teaching, ministering to the lost and the broken, talking constantly about the love of God and his Kingdom, helping the neediest people—no one does that kind of thing just for fun.  That’s a mission that only comes from God.  

That should have been testimony enough, don’t you agree?

So what about you?  My guess is that if someone asked, you’d tell them you believe in Jesus.  Maybe you even share on your own that you are a Christian.  You’ve got some t-shirts with cool God-quotes on them or your church logo or something like that, and you wear them proudly.  That’s great!

But here’s the real question: do people believe you?  Does your life—your actions, your speech, your attitudes—line up with a Jesus-serving life?  If someone took a look around at your day today, would it confirm that you are all about God and his mission?

That may seem like a hard question, but it’s an important one.  We don’t want to focus on living our lives based on what others think, but we do need to step back from time to time to make sure we are who we think we are.  After all, if you have your “Jesus ticket” but don’t have your bags packed, so to speak, then maybe there’s a problem.

Spend some time talking as a family.  Is there something you can do today, this week, to live more like a Jesus-lover?  Is there something your family can do or needs to do to live out your faith?  Talk about it then close in prayer, asking Jesus to help you take these steps.  Let’s make sure the best testimony we have to our relationship with Jesus is not our words, but our way of life.