Man on a Mission
Scripture Reading — John 5:16-27
“The Son … can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”
John 5:19
“It is finished,” Jesus cried from the cross (John 19:30).
But what was finished?
For one thing, his life would soon be finished. The powers of death and hell had done their worst, and he would soon breathe his last.
For another thing, Jesus’ mission was also finished. The assignment he had been given to accomplish was now complete.
We can’t read the Bible without getting the sense that Jesus was a “man on a mission.” Even as a boy of twelve, he was deeply conscious that he ought to be tending to his Father’s interests (Luke 2:41-49). Later in life, it remained clear that his Father’s interests were the motive for every word he spoke and every deed he did. “The Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” Nothing in life or death seemed to shake Jesus from that mission.
Do we live with a similar sense of mission and calling? Even before we were born, God prepared a mission for us (see Ephesians 2:10.)
Jesus never strayed from his calling. He came for a purpose, and with his words from the cross “It is finished” he declared that his purpose was fulfilled.
God in heaven, thank you that Jesus was resolute in his calling. Fill me too with a clear sense of your purposes for me, and help me to live out my calling to the very end. Amen.
About the author — Shawn Brix
Rev. Shawn Brix has served as pastor in several Ontario churches. He and his wife, Jenny, have three children.
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