Are Your Hands Full?

By Gobel Brockman


     "In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” Now John wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins." - Matthew 3:1-6

     John the Baptist was sent to prepare the way for Jesus Christ, the Messiah, to enter into His ministry. He preached to the people of Israel about their need to repent of their sins and turn their hearts toward God. He was mightily used by God to usher in the fulfillment of the promised Savior. Sadly, however, soon after Jesus began His public ministry, John was arrested by Herod for preaching the truth and calling out Herod's sin. In Luke chapter 7 we read that John heard about all of the miracles that Jesus was performing. The Bible says that he sent two of his disciples to Jesus to ask Him an interesting question:

     "Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?" - Luke 7:19

     The Bible tells us earlier that as John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River, he saw the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descending like a dove upon Jesus. Now John is questioning whether or not Jesus was even the promised Messiah. What had changed John's perspective? He was doing everything right - everything that God had called him to do - and he was in jail as a result. At the same time he was hearing about all of the people who were being healed, blessed, and having the gospel preached to them. I'm sure it all seemed very unfair to him - so much so that he questioned whether or not Jesus was who He said He was. 

     There are many times as Christians when we may be tempted to feel the same way. We're doing everything we know to do to live for Jesus. We attend church, do our best to follow and obey the teachings of Scripture, give of our resources to help further the gospel, and try to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in everything that we do. There are times in our lives, however, that even when we are trying to please the Lord with our lives, it may seem like everything in life is going against us. Just like John the Baptist, we may even be tempted to question whether or not what we believe about Jesus is really true. John asked, "Are you the one who is to come?" and sometimes we may feel like asking the same question! What we need to know is that in those times, the answer Jesus gave to John is the same answer He will give to us as well:

     "Blessed is the one who is not offended by Me." - Luke 7:23 

     What I believe Jesus was saying to John is the same thing that He will say to us today in the midst of our doubt and uncertainty: "Don't give up, and don't doubt My love for you. I haven't brought you this far to leave you now. My call to you is simple: take up your cross, follow Me, and trust that I know where I'm leading you." Jesus proved to John the Baptist that He was indeed "the one who was to come" and He's still proving it today. The question is, will we choose to believe it? Jesus told John not to be offended by Him, and He says the same to us today. As I was thinking about this, a thought came to me, and I will close this week's devotional with that thought: My life - and the lives of all who have acknowledged Jesus Christ as Savior - have been forever blessed because Jesus had His hands full when He carried His cross. Jesus now calls us to take up our cross and follow Him. 

     If my hands are full from carrying my cross, I won't be able to pick up an offense.