John chapter 8 is another familiar passage that contains one of the most talked about stories of the Bible- the story of the woman caught in adultery. I believe because it so beautifully displays the character of Jesus.
In the aftermath of the interaction with the pharisees, scribes, and the adulterous woman a long and tedious conversations ensues about the validity of Jesus’s claims. Amongst the many statements that went back and forth between the religious and Jesus more of the humble character of Jesus is revealed.
John 8 <— Link Here
In our culture we like to show off. Often times we make much more of ourselves than what is really there. For example, we say things like, “When I went fishing last week I caught a ton of fish, one of em’ was a mile long and it about broke my fishing rod.” Or we display a bunch of fancy books in our dining room to appear intelligent. And or we buy the most flattering clothing to make people notice how attractive we are. You get the point? Because we both know I could go on.
This is how we are, but this is not how Jesus is. In His ministry on earth Jesus often fled when people wanted to make Him King. He told others to tell know one of the miracles that He did. He went to the biggest social gatherings unnoticed and flew under the radar. Jesus worked secretly so that upon completion of His actions everything in the universe would have been changed. And it has.
Jesus taught in the sermon in the mount (Matthew 5-7) “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ in front of others, to be seen by them.” And many other places Jesus spoke about giving secretly and praying in secret. I believe Jesus was well aware that for us to be impactful in our world we were going to have to operate differently than the common religious folks -who in Jesus’ time loved praying in the synagogs to be heard by men and to be noticed for their piety.
For us to see the change that God intends for our world we have to commit to being faithful and fruitful. We have to make decisions in the secretive moments that will favor our walk with Christ. We have to pray for others and not tell them “we’ve been praying for you.” We have to choose to be Holy when only God is looking. And then in due time and season God will reveal our union with Him and He will say “Well done good and faithful servant”. He is the one who will make your impact great and lasting, and as a result of resisting religious fame God will protect you from all the winds that would of battered you.
Be faithful and humble and He will lift you up in due time. This is the gentle, humble, and fruitful way of Jesus Christ.
Collision of Kingdoms 