John 13:7 Understand
Food for Thought
An all-creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living

By Marni Montanez

John 13:7 Common English Bible

Jesus replied, “You don’t understand what I’m doing now, but you will understand later.”

As human beings, we have the ability to make decisions and set things in motion.  It is difficult, if not, nearly impossible to surrender control and not try to figure things out.   

There is a certain sense of security when we understand why things are happening the way they are.   For some of us, not knowing or understanding, is akin to being dangled over an emotional cliff.  

Jesus, often, spoke in parables that were difficult for the apostles and disciples to comprehend. Many times they questioned Him and He readily made it clear, what He was saying to them; other times He allowed time to reveal what they would be able to understand.  These followers of Christ, learned to trust Jesus and His wisdom.  

Needing to understand all that is going on in our lives can cause anxiety and even fear.  This happens when we try to figure out things that are impossible to figure out; like our future.  

Here, Jesus is asking us to let “it” go.  Let go of worry, of doubt or trying to figure things out in our life.  He is not only well aware of each and every situation, but He already has the answer to whatever we are facing or will face. He knows where the road will lead us and how to get us where we need to be.  If we do not allow God to be God, we are making a difficult situation more difficult by allowing stress to enter and take away our peace.

When we learn to trust Him, we give up our right to have the answers at our fingertips.   In His infinite wisdom, God knows what we need to know and when we need to know it.  He even knows when we don’t need to understand something.

We make decisions based on guesses and past experiences.  God makes them with clear understanding.

Since God is always doing a new thing, our guesses and experiences of the past will most likely  be an inadequate interpretation for understanding the present situation.

Only God knows our future and only God knows what future He designed for us.    

Challenge:  When the urge comes up to try and figure things out do what the bible says;

Philippians 4:6-7 Amplified Bible

6. Do not be anxious or worried about anything, but in everything [every circumstance and situation] by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, continue to make your [specific] requests known to God.

7. And the peace of God [that peace which reassures the heart, that peace] which transcends all understanding, [that peace which] stands guard over your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus [is yours].

God Bless

Marni

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The purpose of this series is to encourage people to live as loving, compassionate, and peacemaking children of God: Jesus tells us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God tells us through Micah (6:8), "He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God." And we know from Revelation 21:4 that there will be no more mourning, or crying, or pain, or death. Thus, Christian living requires us to set the standards of these conditions here on earth for our fellow human beings, and for the other animals, as a witness to the rest of the world. To do otherwise is not Christian.