Would you like to amaze Jesus?

Good morning, everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Sound doctrine, strong faith”

Our Bible verse for today: “Jesus heard this and was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found so great a faith even in Israel.” Luke 7:9 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Would you like to amaze Jesus?”

Is there anything we can say or do that would amaze Jesus? Don’t be too quick to answer that. The answer most of us would likely give, and the one that is certainly most theologically accurate is, “No. Jesus is God and therefore He is omniscient. He knows everything. So, no, Jesus cannot be amazed.” And that would be a theologically correct answer. In that application of the word, amaze means to startle, surprise, stun, astonish.

But a couple of synonyms for amaze, and therefore another meaning of the word is to dazzle and electrify. This form of being amazed is the equivalent of being joyfully pleased on the positive side, or deeply disappointed in a negative sense. “I am amazed – exceedingly pleased, with how good and beautiful this is.” Or “I am amazed and very disappointed at how bad this is.”

The reason I ask if you think it’s possible for Jesus to be amazed by us is because the Bible tells us it is possible. There are two times in the Gospels when we are told that Jesus was amazed. Once He was amazed in a positive way and once in a negative way, and both instances had to do with faith.

In Luke 7:9 the Scripture says that Jesus was amazed at the faith of the Roman centurion who asked Him to heal his servant. He believed that Jesus could and would heal him. In that case, it wasn’t that Jesus didn’t know in advance that the centurion had such faith, He knew. And since Jesus is God, He also knew in advance that the centurion was going to display that faith. So, when the verse says that Jesus was amazed at such a display of faith, it means that Jesus was exceedingly pleased by such a pure and beautiful demonstration of faith.

But then in Mark 6:6 we read that when Jesus returned to His hometown of Nazareth it was revealed that many there were hardhearted and unbelieving and they refused to believe in Him. Verse six says that Jesus was amazed at their unbelief. That obviously doesn’t mean that it caught Him by surprise. It means that He was disappointed and distressed at that lack of faith and at the hardness of their hearts.

So, is there anything that you and I can do that would amaze Jesus in the ways I have just described? The answer is “yes” we can amaze Him by our strong, pure, and beautiful faith, or we can amaze Him by our lack of it as He sadly shakes His head (as with the people in His hometown), and thinks to Himself, “How can you not have faith?”

This is the issue the Apostle Paul will have us think about as we dip into the main lessons of Romans chapter four over the next several days. For today, I encourage you to amaze Jesus with the depth and sincerity of your great faith.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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