Who Is In Control?

One of the things people seem to struggle with is whether God is in control.  There are extremes where people believe God is a puppet master versus others believing He is a distant grandfather type who barely pays attention to us.

This week I take on John 18.  I believe that this can help us understand who is in control of our lives and the world around us.

John 18 begins with Jesus and His disciples leaving the room where they had their last supper before His crucifixion.  They end up in a garden.  John does not name it, but we may learn from the other Gospels that this is the garden of Gethsemane.

Judas shows up with a contingent of soldiers and court officials to arrest Jesus.  They confront Jesus and He identifies Himself.  He agrees to go with them, but Peter isn’t too happy about it so he decides to slice and dice a servant’s ear.  Again, in the other Gospels we would find that Jesus would heal that injury.

You can read about all of this in John 18:1-11.  But what can we learn from this?

Jesus Is About To Make All Things New

I don’t know if Jesus had the Garden of Eden in mind, but he winds up in a garden to be arrested.  When he dies and is buried in chapter 19, He is buried in a garden.  Regardless of the thought or intent, Jesus is taking a huge step to restoring His people and the world back to their original status.

Jesus Is Not Hard To Find

Judas and those arresting  Jesus come in the night with torches to arrest Him.  Perhaps they thought they would have to search high and low in the garden for Him.  Instead, with lights they came searching for the Light.  Jesus did not hide.  Instead, he stepped out for them to see him.  Christ will not hide from those looking for Him, whether they want to arrest Him or follow Him.

Jesus Does Not Hide Who He Is

There are three ways that Jesus identifies Himself as God:

1. Jesus identifies Himself as God (I Am He)
2. Jesus commands that His disciples be let go.
3. Jesus heals the servant.

Who is in control of this entire situation?  Jesus is about completing His purpose.  He is does not hide from us.  He does not hide who He is.  He is honest and upfront about the control He has in life.

Is God in control of your life? 

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