Acts 13:27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath.

  

      

These words come as a scary warning. Look at the back part first. Every Sabbath in the synagogue the scrolls would be brought out and part of the Prophets read. Within the prophetic writing of the Old Testament were frequent references to the ‘coming one', the Messiah. The idea of the Messiah was well and truly entrenched in their minds. He was their future hope, the One who would come and deliver them and make them great once more. Of course what they tended to forget was that greatness was equated with being the people of God, God's holy people, distinct people.

 

But then Jesus came and the idea couldn't be translated into actuality in their minds. The crowds saw him and translated their teaching into “delivering king” who would throw out the Romans. The religious leaders weren't so convinced and he showed up their spiritual deadness, and he was also a threat to their dead traditions.

 

Do we have wrong ideas about Jesus? Do we prefer to keep him as an idea, but feel threatened when he comes to change our lives. Do we have fixed ideas about ‘religion' that we don't want to see changed? Is our religion a mind thing – with a Sunday service that just makes us feel nice? Is Jesus free to come and be the ‘alive' Son of God who can speak, guide and direct us, who is free to come and do things through us?