To Encourage You

John 14:22 “Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not to the world?”

What kind of questions do you have about spiritual things, about the Bible, about Jesus, about God?  It’s interesting that in the above passage the Scriptures point out that the question being asked here was not being asked by Judas Iscariot but by the other apostle named Judas.  Judas Iscariot didn’t ask these kinds of questions.  He didn’t really want to know more about Jesus and his teaching. He didn’t really care to know.  His questions were mocking, condemning, faithless, and loveless. For example, when Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with costly perfume, “Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, ^“Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denariiand given to the poor?” He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it.” (John 12:4-6). 

The questions we ask and the motives behind them say a lot about us.  When we ask questions of the Scriptures, is it because we really want to know the answers, or because we really don’t want to know.  Do we just show our unbelief by our questioning?  The Pharisees were like that.  They asked Jesus lots of questions, but usually only to try to trap him with his answers.  They really didn’t want to know the truth. 

What about you and what about me?  Are our questions sincere or insincere?  Do we really want to know, or do we just want to question, to be skeptical, to doubt? God loves to answer the true seeker of truth.  To the true seeker, Jesus promises “ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Luke 11:9).  May we be such people.