Forcefully Advancing

Hey, everybody! I wanted to start a new blog that I can occasionally post in, and talk about what is going on in my life, and what the Lord is teaching me. First off, I want to explain the name of the blog, "A Branch".

In John 15:5-8, Jesus says, "Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father."

Now that you've read that, I don't have much explaining to do. As a follower of Christ, the Lord is our source of life. He is our Vine, and we are His branches; reaching out to do His work.

I, Dylan Black, am one of many branches. The Church, every other follower besides me, is a branch. We work together, as brothers and sisters, to spread the love of God to every person we meet.

Branches. That's what we are.

What I want to talk about in this blog is something simple, yet so powerful, that the Lord showed me recently.

In Matthew 11, Jesus has just finished sending out the twelve apostles when He gets word of John the Baptist's imprisonment. John sees that Jesus is doing nothing to bust him out of prison, and doubt begins to creep in. John sends his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we've been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” I feel like Jesus probably sighed for a second. But, then He replies with, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. And tell him, ‘God blesses those who do not turn away because of me.’”

I'm sure that wasn't the comforting reply that John had hoped for. He already knew all of the stuff that Jesus just said. He probably wanted Him to say something more along the lines of, "Yeah, man. I'm your guy. I'll get you out in a couple of days." But, that isn't what Jesus wanted to tell him. I think that Erwin McManus sums up what Jesus was saying perfectly in his book, The Barbarian Way:

"Jesus was saying to him, 'John, I'm not coming through for you. I'm not getting you out of prison. I'm not sparing your life. Yes, I have done all this and more for others, but the path I choose for you is different from theirs. You'll be blessed, John, if this does not cause you to fall away.'"

Sometimes the Lord has a plan for you that you don't expect. You think life sucks, and you start whining about your misfortune when everybody else has it "easy". But, really, the Lord has a plan. And if you keep pressing forward, even when it hurts, you will be amazed at the radical things the Lord will do in, and through, you.

Later on in Matthew 11, Jesus is speaking to a crowd about John the Baptist. After talking about how plain awesome he is, He says, "And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and violent people are attacking it."

Man... I thought that was awesome!

Forcefully advancing.

Guys, it's the truth that we all get lazy sometimes. We have jobs, school, families, etc., and things get so busy that we quit focusing on the Lord. It's understandable. But this verse says perfectly how we need to live our lives. This wasn't some Average Joe talking about John. This was Jesus saying that, because of him, "the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing".

It is our purpose in life to be disciples of Jesus; His branches. Our purpose is to reach out to the world, live in the way that Jesus did, and forcefully advance the Kingdom of Heaven with every step we take.

That verse says that "violent people are attacking it". The Kingdom of God is under attack by the Devil and the world, and we are being called to march into battle. We are being called to advance the Kingdom of Heaven, no matter the cost, and no matter the pain.

Walk in the Lord's steps, and He will lead you where you were made to be.

Have a good day!

- Dylan Black