Pam Padgett - teacher
In Matthew 27 we read of those who reviled and mocked Jesus as He was on
the cross, telling Jesus to prove Himself by coming down from the
cross. The chief priests even said they would believe if Jesus came
down from the cross.
Matt. 27:39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their
heads, 40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it
in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from
the cross. 41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the
scribes and elders, said, 42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If
he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we
will believe him. 43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he
will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. 44 The thieves also,
which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.
But Jesus was not turned from doing the will of God by what others said.
Before being taken and knowing what lie ahead, Jesus had prayed asking
the Father if this might pass from Him. However Jesus also sought the will
of the Father, not His own will, and it was not removed. (Matt. 26:39-42)
Jesus did the
will of the Father, accomplishing HIS purpose, paying for our sins and
providing the way of salvation.
And God powerfully proved that Jesus is the Son of God, as HE willed ...
Matt. 27:50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice,
yielded up the ghost. 51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in
twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the
rocks rent; 52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints
which slept arose, 53 And came out of the graves after his
resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. 54 Now
when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw
the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly,
saying, Truly this was the Son of God.
As we deal with various matters in our lives, thoughts may come or people may speak to turn us from the way the Holy Spirit is leading us. But by clinging to what God has said, led by HIS Spirit, we do the will of God in the matter.
Last summer my mom was very ill in a hospital several hours from where I live. It seemed to me (and I'm
sure to others in my family) that surely I should go there. But when I
prayed, I heard in a thought that everything needed was already provided
and that for me to go there would be like stepping into an ant hill of
fire ants. I tried this thought and believed it was from God. So I
stayed home.
My mom recovered and was able to return home, and
she told me later on the telephone how well she had been taken care of
at the hospital and how many people came to see her. My
dad also had the help he needed. Everything needed had been provided, and hearing of those who had been there, it is clear that I would have been
continually "stung" (as by fire ants) by what they did and said.
My staying home was not according to my own wisdom nor the will of others, but was the way the Holy Spirit led me which showed the will of God and accomplished HIS purpose in the matter.
Only the way we are led by the Holy Spirit is the way of salvation and life.
John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the
flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are
spirit, and they are life.