God’s Intent vs. Man’s Intent

Gen.50:²⁰ “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good…”

Have you ever been betrayed; how did it go? This question is actually from John 18:1-40 [please read] and it is the focus of our study over the next few days. If it comes from the enemy, it is an attack. If comes from a friend, it is a betrayal – friendly fire. Even though the enemy meant it for evil, God turns it around for our good, but it does not change it from being a betrayal. Just like Joseph was saying to his brothers “… you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good…” He did not absorb them of the responsibility of the betrayal. They betrayed him but God turned it around for good. We are eating together, you have chicken in your back pocket but instead of sharing it, you turn around and eat it alone. There is something wrong with that and this is very common with the black man.

It is a challenge that the black man needs to overcome, the crab mentality. If everybody becomes a billionaire, does that make you poorer? But the black man wants to be the local champion that everybody bows to. There is something wrong with that. When everybody lifts each other up, praise God! We are better together. What is one thing about you people might not know about that makes you proud? Jesus was betrayed and when Pilate asked him mockingly, “Are you the king of the Jews?” He said, ‘You said so’, ‘You have rightly spoken.’ Who does that? This man can set you free on earth. But Jesus said, ‘I am not going to reduce Myself to please you, I am who God says that I am.’ Jesus did not reduce Himself to please man, He was confident in who God says He is. This is big for us; sometimes we feel we need to cut ourselves down but that is not God.

In John 18:1-40, we see a story of Jesus’ attack, betrayal, and denial. Jesus was attacked by his enemies. He was betrayed by a friend that had a personal agenda. When you have people in your life that are nursing personal agendas, they are going to betray you, it is just a function of time. And Jesus was denied by a friend based on his own weaknesses. Peter did not have a personal agenda, so it was a denial, not a betrayal. As we do life, we must recognize these three. Know how to respond to the high priests, who were direct enemies. Recognize how to respond to the Judas’ who were the enemies within. We must know how to respond to the Peters, who will let us down not because they are malicious but because of their own weakness. Do not confuse the three; our capacity to separate the three will make us have lasting relationships. You cannot treat a Judas like a Peter and you do not treat a Peter like a Judas, or like a high priest or vice versa.

After Jesus’ long prayer was over, it was time to pay the price, it was action time. You have talked, strategized, and prayed; it is time to stop praying, get up, and act. Jesus had paid the price in prayer, spoken to His disciples [cast the vision], but He had to get up and go to the cross.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, I ask for the gift of discernment; that I may discern the people around me, discern the times and seasons, and discern God’s will, in Jesus Name. Amen!