God's purposes will be accomplished no matter how much we think our labors are failures or mistaken or wrong. In what the world views as failure, God often accomplishes His will for the good of His people!
This fact creates puzzles for the saints, as we ask ourselves, what was the point of our labors, or how can God accomplish good from the mess we find ourselves in.
Three portraits of puzzled saints are painted.
First, John the Baptist had a stellar anointing and mission to prepare the way for Messiah. He blurted out the truth about Jesus when he proclaimed Him to be the Lamb of God that takes away our sin.
Yet John was imprisoned, and ultimately murdered by Herod. John became discouraged when he didn't see Jesus taking His kingdom and purging the wickedness from the land.
Jesus reminded him of the gospel being preached - salvation through Messiah for poor sinners!
John the Baptist forget that the most valuable thing about the Savior is He is God's Lamb for us! This overcomes anything wicked men can do to us! Jesus' sacrifice trumps everything in its inestimable value to us! If we have Jesus, we have it all!
Isaiah was given a ministry of death, when God told him that Israel would refuse to hear and would be destroyed from the land. Indeed, Isaiah's ministry was successful in its failure, for nobody listened and the people were taken away.
Yet Isaiah was given glorious prophecies about Jesus, how He would rule, and yet would be rejected by Israel, mutilated as our Savior, and put to death by God. How this must have puzzled and confused Isaiah!
Peter explained that Isaiah was ministering to us the glories of Christ's Gospel!
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John Pittman Hey was born in 1961 in Jackson, Mississippi, to Godly parents who from the beginning raised him in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. With child-like faith he came to Christ on his fourth birthday at his mother's knee. He received his education at church...
