Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” John 10:31-32 (NIV)

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What's Your Excuse?

 

The presence of Jesus overwhelmed the Jewish religious leaders of the time. He did not fit their previously held conceptions of what the Savior would be like. Since Jesus didn't fit their mold, in their defiant confusion these men picked up rocks to stone him.

 

Obviously, these religious leaders believed they had good excuses for not believing Jesus. But what about us? What is our excuse for not following Jesus with abandon? Is it because his speaking the truth bothers us? Is it because we take his free offer of eternal life for granted? Is it because he doesn't correct us immediately when we stray, so we think we can get away with sin? Zig Ziglar once wrote:

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My brother, the late Judge Ziglar, loved to tell the story of the fellow who went next door to borrow his neighbor's lawnmower. The neighbor explained that he could not let him use the mower because all the flights had been canceled from New York to Los Angeles.

 

The borrower asked him what canceled flights from New York to Los Angeles had to do with borrowing his lawnmower. "It doesn't have anything to do with it, but if I don't want to let you use my lawnmower, one excuse is as good as another”

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When it comes to our excuses for not closely following Jesus, one truly is as good as another. But when we take our eyes off our own rationalizations and look at Jesus himself, we find that for every excuse we have for not following him, there are many more and better reasons to follow with

abandon.

 

Oh God, may I never focus on my excuses, but only on you.

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Taken from “Devotions for Men on the Go” by Stephen Arterburn and Bill Farrel May 24