not yet

There’s a point in Jesus life where I wonder about God’s plan, and his timing. It’s recorded in John 4:1-3: “Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John — although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.”

If Jesus’ purpose on earth was to die, then why did he avoid a confrontation with the Pharisees at this point? It’s not like he’d be a better sacrifice later on. As a young man, he’d lived a perfect life, not one sin or shortcoming in three decades of living. He had every attribute necessary to be the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.

And he wasn’t like us, so in love with this world that he was reluctant to leave it. Jesus already knew what living with God was like; he left something far better to come to earth. 

For some reason, it wasn’t time. Why not?

One reason may have been that Jesus hadn’t yet finished explaining his purpose on earth. Just prior to this point he’d had his clandestine meeting with Nicodemus, the first of the discourses recorded in John whereby Jesus revealed who he was and what he was doing. Immediately after these verses, he gives his second discourse, to the Samaritan woman at the well. It may be that in addition to sacrificing himself, he intended to be sure he fully explained what was going on so that we could understand it.

Along with that, there were many other teachings he had yet to leave us not related to his upcoming death, sermons where he would teach about faithful living. All those red letters in our Bibles are critically important.

Additionally, he had lives to touch yet. There were people to heal, and children to raise from the dead. There were men and women to convert. By all these signs and through all this teaching, he proved himself and taught us how to do his work. 

I’m amazed once again at the intricacy of God’s plan, and the thoroughness of Jesus’ work. What point the sacrifice if we don’t understand it? And, understanding it, how are we to take advantage of it? And then, how do we join Jesus in kingdom work? It’s all there, unfolded day by day in Jesus’ walk on earth. 

No wonder Jesus went into Galilee; his love for us is so strong that he had to be sure. It seems to me he may have stayed to enable as many of us as possible would get it, would see what happened and why. Probably God had every word and gesture of this living testament choreographed from the beginning.

It’s a reminder that God’s timing is always right, and his plans cover everything and never fail. God’s actions are always about more than one thing; in helping one he leads others into prayer and witnesses to still others. I’ll never understand either the timing or the plan, but it’s an immense comfort to know that both are perfect.