Daily Devotional

A Ministry of the Kerwin Baptist Church

October 4, 2018

by Pastor Hawtree

I AM PERSUADED THAT HE IS ABLE:

TO STAY FOCUSED

Matthew 12:14 Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him.
15 But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all;
16 And charged them that they should not make him known:
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.
19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.

The religious Pharisees were always against Jesus. The religious establishment has always been against Jesus. Religion has always been against Jesus.

In the verses preceding these, Jesus pretty much puts the Pharisees in their place. They obviously did not like that, so they met together against Jesus. The Bible says, “when Jesus knew it”. Jesus always knows. So many times, in God’s Word, when there were people meeting against Jesus, you will find that Jesus always knew. Jesus was always one step ahead of the Pharisees, one step ahead of the disciples, one step ahead of the crowd, one step ahead of Judas, and one step ahead of Satan.

Not only did Jesus know it, but Jesus did not let Himself become paralyzed with it. The Bible says Jesus went on and healed people and ministered to them. Jesus was not going to let a little thing like religious leaders meeting against him, to get in His way. You and I would do well to make sure that, just because there are people and things that come against us, we must make sure that we stay focused on what is important. It is very easy to get distracted by trivial things.

If we are not careful, we can end up spending so much time concerned with those things, that we forget our true purpose. The Bible says Jesus withdrew himself from it. Are there some things in your life today that you need to withdraw yourself from? Are there some things that are taking your time, your effort, your energy, and your focus away from what is important? Are there good things for God that you are failing to do because you’re busy fighting battles that really don’t matter? Then maybe it is a wise move to withdraw ourselves from the commotion, and refocus on the critical.