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Matthew 28:16-20; II Kings 17
We try to put God in a box and we assume God is going to do things our way. Just like us, the disciples were human, so they tried to put Jesus in a box. They assumed he had come to change Judaism because he was a Jew and because he taught in the temple and because he was a preacher and spiritual leader.
They figured after the death and resurrection of Jesus that they would continue his ministry right there close to home. Jesus surprised them when some of his last words as recorded in Matthew 28:16-20 and in Mark 16:15 were commands that they preach his resurrection in the uttermost parts of the earth including Samaria. This meant that Jesus didn't come just to change the Jews or Judaism, he came to change every human being and religious believe and practice.
This was shocking and very inconvenient. In II Kings 17 we learn that the Jews who were taken captive by the Assyrians melted into the Assyrian way of life. Maybe some Jews still tried to worship Jehovah God but in addition they took on the customs of their captors. This happened on the land that in Jesus' time was called Samaria. So when Jesus told his disciples they were to go preach to the Samaritans they were horrified. This was not their plan for how they would live out the rest of their lives. They wanted to stay with their Jewish family and friends who had never become tainted by the false gods of foreigners.
Has God asked you to do the unthinkable? Are you open to God's direction knowing that it is probably not what you think is the logical direction for you? We know from history and from people whose lives we admire that running from God will cause pain and stunt your growth. And, running to and with God will give you great joy. Take God out of your little box and start experiencing all He has planned for you.
Speaking of taking God out of a box, my brother-in-law, Bruce Camber, is a math whiz and he is trained in physics. More than once he has substituted for one of our math teachers and in preparation for one of the classes, Bruce created a teaching tool he calls, The Big Board for Our Little Universe. The tag line for it is, It's time to take God out of a box and put science in one. He is teaching kids to see the bigness of God and the smallness of science. He wants kids to stop being afraid of science and to start seeing the vastness of God's creation.
For a complete discussion of The Big Board, Click Here.
