READ: JOHN 3: 27-26
John replied, “God in heaven appoints each person’s work.” (V. 27)
Unconcerned about home security systems, the robbers entered in the pre-dawn hours awakening sleeping residents by putting the cold steel of a 9-millimeter handgun to their heads. Faces covered like commandos; they employed false British accents to further disguise their identity. This gained shock therapy quickly gained the residents attention, and they were ordered to produce valuables. They knew there were valuables as their targeted homes were in an extremely upscale community where median incomes were in the high 6 or even 7 figure range. As the number of events steadily multiplied, media coverage moved from the back to the front page. The suspects were dubbed the “British Bandits” in an attempt to romanticize their exploits. However, to those of us charged with ending this string of serious violent crimes, these men represented a serious life-threating danger to the community—Robin Hoods they were not!! Many of us silently thought, “Can we stop them before one of their exploits turns tragically deadly?”
Prior experience had shone that the best way to deal with these crimes was through the formation of a Task Force whose single concentrated mission would be to quickly end this volent crime spree. A Captain was selected as the Task Force Commander and empowered to obtain the resources and make all operational decisions necessary to successfully complete the mission. Based on his initial assessment of the problem, he assigned personnel to administrative, support, investigative and tactical roles. Within a remarkably short period of time, the one hundred men and women assigned to this operation brought it to a successful conclusion—the so called “British Bandits” were apprehended shortly after the commission of a residential robbery. It was a great day, when I faced a bank of more microphones than I had ever seen in my life, announcing their arrest to the community and the world. The task was accomplished because each person on the team knew their exact role and fulfilled it to the best of their ability.
John the Baptist knew his exact role in the advancement of The Good News. He was part of the “Heavenly Team” dispatched by God to prepare the way for Jesus. He was designated as the Team Leader, for a short period of time. However, he quickly relinquished this role to Jesus as directed by God, the master planner. Salvation, in the form of forgiveness and eternal life, could only come through Jesus. Knowing this, John did his duty serving as a vital link in the chain between God and his creations. Well done, John, “mission accomplished!”
PAUSE FOR REFLECTION AND PRAYER
What is your role as part of God’s team on earth? Time to give it some thought.
Thank you, God, for assigning me a role in your earthly kingdom. Help me discern its nature and empower me to do it to your Glory.