04/16/2022
At this time of year Christians are celebrating Easter. Within the historic and heroic story of Jesus’ passion we can find many lessons for life, whether one is a believer or not.
One of these inspiring lessons is his determination to finish his task and complete his goal despite severe opposition.
Here is the account of the story:
At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you.” He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.’ In any case, I must press on today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem! - Luke 13:31-33
Herod was a very powerful man. He wanted Jesus dead. At this point I ask myself, “Is anyone so opposed to what I’m doing that they’re literally trying to kill me - or even figuratively trying to kill me by saying bad things about me?” That’s probably not the case for most of us.
Jesus was not phased by Herod. Being a holy man Jesus would not say a bad thing about anyone, but in this case it’s interesting that he calls him “a fox”. He put the threat in its proper context or perspective. He called Herod (the problem) what it was. Have you ever watched one of those nature shows that shows animals surviving in their natural habitat? Though predators often prowl around and stalk their prey, they don’t always get what they want. Jesus knew this to be true about Herod. He would not get the better of Jesus.
Jesus had specific plans for each day. Despite the opposition his attitude was “in any case I must press on”. In other words, “whatever comes my way, it will not deter me.”
Ironically, I also read the 33rd chapter of the Tao Te Ching this morning. In it was a line that said, “Those who persist will reach their goal.”
What’s interesting is that phrase “reach my goal” has been translated from the greek word Teleioō in many ways, such as “accomplish my purpose, finish my course, complete my work” and more interestingly “be perfected”.
