November 30, 2024 Devo

One of my favorite stories is about the first-grade class who was asked by their teacher to draw a picture to practice their art skills. They could choose to draw whatever they wanted. As the teacher walked around checking their work, she came to a little boy named Johnny. Peering over his shoulder, she couldn’t get a good look at what he was working on. So she asked, “Johnny, what are you drawing?” “I’m drawing a picture of God,” Johnny proudly declared. The teacher smiled. “That’s nice, Johnny, but no one knows what God looks like.” Johnny smiled back and said, “They will when I’m done!”
Sometimes we miss this key piece in the arrest and crucifixion of Jesus. He wasn’t charged with drawing big crowds. He wasn’t charged with preaching bad sermons. He wasn’t charged with healing people on the wrong days of the week. He was charged with blasphemy because He claimed to be God. It was this claim that brought about His demise. And it was this truth that ushered in God’s beautiful plan of salvation.
Take another look at the passage today, and let the full force of its impact hit you. Philip tells Jesus, “Show us the Father.” The Father—The One from the beginning who was the Creator of all that is. The One who walked with Adam in Eden, who commanded Noah to build an ark, and who struck a covenant with Abram. The One who spoke to Moses from a burning bush and led His People out of bondage and into the Promised Land—THAT Father. Philip wanted to see the Father. Jesus simply said, “I’m here.”
Everything you ever wanted to know about God you can discover in the person of Jesus Christ. How does that change how you SEE God? How does that change how you APPROACH God? How does that impact what you EXPECT from God? You don’t have to go looking for or wondering about God anymore. We don’t even need Johnny to draw us a picture. The perfect image of God lived among us. The Father is here. That’s God’s Word for you today.