“But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man.” John 2:24, 25.
I could not help notice that “them” here refers to the many people who “saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name” (John 2:23). Now imagine a big church (500 members and more)and the Holy Spirit saying about them that Jesus would not entrust himself to them…..
Please note, what Jesus knew about all men and what is in a man informed his response to them. He would not entrust himself to them accordingly.
Could he entrust himself to me? The answer to the question depends on what is in me, the same apply to you too! Here is where his divinity manifests. No one knows what is in another man or woman except God.
Hence, we tend to entrust ourselves to people who often turn out to be betrayers and backstabbers. Also, some of us do not even know what is in us, but our behaviour (deeds, thoughts, words) often reveal it.
Accordingly, we need God to help us see/know what is really in us and help us deal with it because what is in us can/does undermine us in many ways. It can decide whether or not we are a blessing or curse to others. More importantly, what is in us determine whether or not the Lord Jesus entrust himself to us.
I want him to entrust himself to me, what about you?
Psalm 139: 23, 24 come to mind:
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
The psalmist knew that only God can reveal the real condition of his heart to him. Man is desperate in this regards without God. Jeremiah the prophet stated the same truth/fact, Jeremiah 17:9,10: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” Clearly no one can cure the heart unless he understands it. Interestingly, the prophet continues in verse 10, “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” In other words, only the Lord can cure the heart of man.
Note that prophet Jeremiah highlights the link between the condition of one’s heart and her conduct and deeds. This truth runs throughout the bible. It is important to note that fellow human beings will draw near you or keep away from you based on your conduct or deeds, but God looks at what is in you, that is, the condition of your heart.
What is in you?
