S166P5 – The good disciple: stopped in our tracks
Mk. 8:27-30
Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, “Who do men say that I am?” So they answered, “John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.” Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.
The first recorded miracle of Jesus Christ occurred at a wedding. [Jn. 2] We might expect that this first display of divine power would have been a great healing or an exorcism, but it was something much less compelling. The issue that caused his mother to ask him to perform a miracle was simply that they had run out of wine. Mary must have thought that this was important for some reason, perhaps to save face for the hosts or to please the guests. Whatever the reason, she made this request, and Jesus responded in a similar way to this passage here. Although He obeyed her request and turned the water to wine, He also reminded her that his time had not yet come.
If you are like me, it seems rather backward that Jesus would want to keep his power or identity hidden from anyone. After all, the great commission tells us to share the gospel story so that people can come to know him. Yet, He gave this instruction to his disciples to keep quiet about who He is for at least a time. God has a timing and planning that we might not understand at times because it does not fit our reasoning. We might want to take that step in faith, and He might prompt us to hold back. Whether we want to say something or do something or even intervene in prayer, God might have other plans for us. He even instructed Jeremiah not to pray for his own people Judah. [Jer. 7:16; 11:14; 14:11]
Jesus warns us elsewhere in the Gospels that we are not to cast our pearls before swine who will trample on them then come after us. [Mt. 7:6] We must trust that the Spirit will guide us in when we should speak and when we should be silent, when we should act and when we should remain still. The good disciple wants to fulfill God’s will instead of his own. The good disciple is spiritually discerning enough to know when this instruction has come. Sometimes the challenge of obedience is not doing the thing we think should be the right thing to do. Father, help us to discern and obey when You want us to wait, hold back, or remain quiet because that is your good and perfect will.