Do All For God
“When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.” (Jn 8:28)
When I was growing up, the stories of the lives of the saints always impressed me.
What impressed me at a very early age, most especially, were the stories of the saints who gave up all sorts of fame or fortune or power in order to follow the Lord, to dedicate themselves to community, to found religious orders, et cetera.
I would think to myself, “That person could do anything he or she wanted to do. Why pick that?”
It is incredible to see people dedicate themselves to others in ways that are so contrary to the ways of the world. Look at Mother Teresa of Calcutta. She could have had many things in her life. However, she felt that reaching out to Jesus in the poor, the needy, and the dying was most important. She did it without apparent hesitation and made a huge difference to the world.
However, what really blew my socks off was to hear Jesus say, “I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me.”
Say what?!
Jesus is the Son of God. He is the One with “the power”. He is the One who can heal the sick, restore sight to the blind and sound to the deaf, and raise the dead. There is nothing that He cannot do.
But He indicates that He can do nothing but what the Father taught Him.
How obedient. How loyal. How humble.
If only we could be more like Him this day!
FAITH ACTION: Ask the Lord to give you the grace and the courage to do nothing on your own but to do everything you do for the greater honor and glory of God.