Luke 9:43 (ESV)
And all were astonished at the majesty of God.
In Luke 9 the group of people who watched Jesus rebuke a demon and heal a boy were astonished by the majesty of God. Here is a group of people that have been blind to his majesty. The word as
tonished literally means thunderstruck. They were speechless, dumbstruck, and overwhelmed by God’s majesty. The word majesty (megaleiotes) means greatness, magnificence, or majesty. And yes, the mega at the beginning of the word means mega, large, or great, in the widest sense. In this miraculous healing the crowds see the extreme magnificence of God.
Their response is to marvel. They were astonished at everything he was doing. Let those words sink in … If they understood who Jesus was they would not have marveled at his actions. They would have expected it. They were with Jesus, but they did not understand who he was.
Have you ever seen one of those paintings with mountains and trees, and maybe some cowboys around a campfire, but there are hidden aspects to the scene? If you look closer you see animals hiding in the trees, or Indians sneaking up on the cowboys’ camp stealing their horses. I love that painting where the cowboys are enjoying a meal around the campfire, totally oblivious to the danger right behind them. If you don’t look close, you can look at the painting and see trees and mountains, or a cowboy camp, and miss the real story. That is exactly what the crowds following Jesus had been doing.
Their response is to marvel. They were astonished at everything he was doing. Let those words sink in … If they understood who Jesus was they would not have marveled at his actions. They would have expected it. They were with Jesus, but they did not understand who he was.
Have you ever seen one of those paintings with mountains and trees, and maybe some cowboys around a campfire, but there are hidden aspects to the scene? If you look closer you see animals hiding in the trees, or Indians sneaking up on the cowboys’ camp stealing their horses. I love that painting where the cowboys are enjoying a meal around the campfire, totally oblivious to the danger right behind them. If you don’t look close, you can look at the painting and see trees and mountains, or a cowboy camp, and miss the real story. That is exactly what the crowds following Jesus had been doing.
They were overwhelmed by the power of the demon shattering the boy, but they were oblivious to the power of the one in their midst. They saw the campfire and missed the real story. Standing before them was not just an interesting teaching and amazing healer. Standing before them was the one and only Son of God. Standing before them was God in the flesh. How often do we talk good theology, but miss the power of God?
2 Timothy 3:5 talks of those who are “having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.” I wonder how often that describes me. Do we say our prayers, or do we pray? Do we sing, or do we worship? Do we read our Bibles, or do we hear from God? Do we say we trust God, or do we trust him? Are we like the crowds who are surprised by the power of God, when we should be resting in his power?
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