[2] "When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples [3] to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
[4] Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: [5] The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. [6] Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”
I love how Jesus answers John's question. He answers with experiences, and activity reports. He doesn't go into the theology, the prophesies, or scripture to build a case to state who He is, He merely states what He has demonstrated. This is the exact same approach He used for the proclamation of the Kingdom, proving what He said was true by demonstrating it. Wouldn't that be an interesting way to describe church, if we could?
It is my belief that this is the call of the church, to continue the ministry of Jesus, for we are His Body. How can we for a minute be satisfied with anything less than the full ministry as described by Jesus? The world needs to see that the Kingdom of God is real and present. They need to see that we are more than talk and good intentions and programs. They need to see the reality of the Kingdom of God present on the earth, as demonstrated by healing, signs and wonders and miracles.
Jesus came to seek and save the lost. He came to fulfill the law, and open a way for us to have relationship with the Father. He came to represent the Father. He came to pay for our sins, and break the power of sin, death and the evil one in this world. He came to establish the Kingdom of God which was the demonstration of everything I just listed.
As I write this, I am reminded of an old English saying - 'the proof of the pudding is in the eating'. We have shortened this in our day, but the meaning is quite clear. It is in the experience that one evaluates or tests the claims made. The best hamburger in the world can only be decided by eating one, after trying many others. In the case of a hamburger, the rating would be subjective and highly dependent on one's preferences. This is not the case with Jesus' proclamation of the Kingdom of God, or His role as Messiah, or His identity as the Son of God. Anyone can say these things about themselves, but only One can offer the proof. That is what we are called to continue to do, to offer the proof of what we believe. How else will the world be able to determine which of the competing messages is true?
Jesus understood this completely, and that is why His answer to John is so perfect. There were many who had claimed to be the messiah, but only Jesus was able to demonstrate this claim with proof. There were many rumors of things that were amazing, so He offered fact to put rumors to rest. His list of miracles, healings and signs and wonders are part of His glory - for they illuminate Him for who He is. They are meant to be part of the glory of the body of Christ, as well, for how else could the Body of Christ be rightly discerned.
So let us pray that we could once more demonstrate the truth of what we believe by experiential proofs. Let us pursue the truth in the saying - 'the proof of the pudding is in the eating'! Our invitation will truly be - 'come and hear and see'.
Amen!
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