Consider The Source - 12/17/07

John 3:31-32, "'…The one who is from the Earth belongs to the Earth and talks about things on the Earth. But the one who talks about Heaven is greater than all. He tells what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts what He says.'"

"Hindsight is 20/20." How true that adage is. When we look back on our life and on history, we can see perfectly what was done and what should have been done differently; we have the benefit of hindsight.

Fortunately, God's foresight is 20/20, while we are blind in that area. He can look ahead with perfect clarity and warn, direct, or encourage us. According to this scripture in John though, people didn't accept what he said. They killed him instead. Of course, after He rose again and proved everything He said, we believed. Hindsight is 20/20.

People who heard Jesus speak often did not consider the source of His knowledge - which more often than not surprised His listeners. As He taught, people would ask, "Who is this man who speaks with so much authority and knowledge?" He told them about Heaven because He is from Heaven. We talk about the Earth and the things in it because we are from there. We dwell on what we know - cars, books, people. When you listen to somebody, it doesn't take long to figure out where a person's experience lies.

So what if a man talks only about Heaven, God, spirituality, fulfilled prophecies, angels, and perfect living? What if our hindsight proves His foresight to be true?

Then we should consider the source. We should seriously consider the likelihood that great truths have been revealed by a man who experienced them firsthand, even had a part in their original design. We should also then make an effort to accommodate those truths in our lives - we should adjust our lifestyle accordingly. If everything that He prophesied would happen did in fact happen, save for a few last major events at the end, then our 20/20 hindsight should be enough to trust His vision of the future rather than our own. Consider the source of the speaker's knowledge - while also considering that the speaker perhaps is the source of all knowledge.