Jesus was always trying to get people to see that he God incarnate. In the Gospel of Mark we find:
MK 10:17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
MK 10:18 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone.
And in Matthew:
MT 16:13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"
MT 16:14 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
MT 16:15 "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"
MT 16:16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." MT 16:17 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.
Finally he stood before the Sanhedrin being charged with blasphemy.
LK 22:54 Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest.
LK 22:63 The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and demanded, "Prophesy! Who hit you?" 65 And they said many other insulting things to him.
LK 22:66 At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. 67 "If you are the Christ, " they said, "tell us."
Jesus answered, "If I tell you, you will not believe me, 68 and if I asked you, you would not answer. 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God."
LK 22:70 They all asked, "Are you then the Son of God?"
He replied, "You are right in saying I am."
LK 22:71 Then they said, "Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.
The Sanhedrin Did not recognize Jesus as their God and Messiah. Perhaps because they did not see him in his garment of glory. They were spiritually blind and could not see it..
Before the same Sanhedrin Paul, full of the Holy Spirit did not recognize the High Priest not wearing is robes. Paul having spiritual eyes saw only rags. I think it was a snub by God saying, "he no longer recognized the authority of the High priest to be the spiritual leader of the Jews. For Christ has been made our High Priest forever. What a turn of events, reversal of position:
AC 23:1 Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, "My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day." 2 At this the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, "God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!"
AC 23:4 Those who were standing near Paul said, "You dare to insult God's high priest?"
AC 23:5 Paul replied, "Brothers, I did not realize that he was the high priest; for it is written: `Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.' "
Here we have instances of people people being given revelation of Jesus as God, people being left blind to that same revelation, and finally a man being allowed to see another man the way God sees him.
I recently had an email conversation with a man about predestination. It seems that our destiny is predetermined by according to the disposition of your heart.
And the judging criteria is whether of not we are found to love truth!
Pilate did not believe in truth. He was an everything is relative kind of guy.
JN 18:37 "You are a king, then!" said Pilate.
Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the TRUTH. Everyone on the side of TRUTH listens to me."
JN 18:38 "What is truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out
Then there are those who just don't want to know truth. These are the types that want to see themselves as a god, master of their own destiny. It is a sin as old as Eve and the Serpent.
RO 1:20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
RO 1:24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the TRUTH of God for a LIE, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen.
RO 2:5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 God "will give to each person according to what he has done." 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the TRUTH and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
Finally considering the day we find ourselves in, we know that the end is coming soon, and we struggle to get men to see Jesus. We wonder why some are so vehemently against all things God and true, while others seem to be open discussion. Those that are willing to listen and think, we have hope that they will see the light. To the others we sadly shake our heads and pray for them hardly believing that those prayers will be answered. I think it all comes down to whether or not we love TRUTH!
"The coming of the lawless one (the AntiChrist) will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the TRUTH and so be saved. For this reason GOD SENDS THEM A POWERFUL DELUSION so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.(2Thes 2:9-12)
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