JOHN 5:19-21: “Jesus said to the Jews, “I can guarantee this truth: The Son cannot do anything on his own. He can do only what he sees the Father doing. Indeed, the Son does exactly what the Father does. The Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing. The Father will show him even greater things to do than these things so that you will be amazed. In the same way that the Father brings back the dead and gives them life, the Son gives life to anyone he chooses.” (GW)‭

OBSERVATION: Why was Jesus so effective in His ministry? Why were people instantly healed, raging seas calmed, and thousands miraculously fed? Was it simply because Jesus was God? Or, was it something else entirely?

These are questions I have often asked myself, and have been asked by others. As we read the above verses in John, we gain insight into the power and success of Jesus’ ministry. It was not because Jesus was God, because Philippians chapter 2 clearly tells us that He laid down all of His godly attributes when He came as a man. Jesus utilized the same resources and provisions that each one of us have available to us each day – the Word, the Spirit, and prayer. Yet, even with these, there is a marked difference between Jesus’ ministry and ours.

Jesus did have one significant advantage over us in all that He did. He was born without sin. It is sin that hinders and keeps us from walking after the Spirit in the same way that Jesus did. There were no impediments in Jesus’ life that kept Him from hearing the voice of the Father. And, herein lies the key to Jesus’ effectiveness. He perfectly heard the voice of the Father, through the Spirit, each and every day. Jesus was very clear on this point. He was not simply doing what He wanted to do – He was fulfilling what the Father was directing Him to do!

• “…The Son cannot do anything on his own. He can do only what he sees the Father doing. Indeed, the Son does exactly what the Father does. The Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing”

So, how can this help us in our ministry, in our effectiveness? After all – we cannot hear the Father with the same purity and clarity that Jesus did. If we take this attitude we are looking at the glass as half empty. However, if we see the key to effective ministry is hearing the will of the Father, then we can set our hearts toward a new pursuit of His heart through our worship, study, and life of prayer. If we begin to listen to the still small voice of the Spirit, to quickly obey His voice, then we will see an ever increasing anointing upon our life, and greater effectiveness in our ministry!

We also need to realize that ministry is never about what I want to do, it must always be about what the Father wants to, and is doing! This is why Jesus taught us to pray – “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…”. The entire Christian life should be about discovering His will! This is what Jesus did, day by day, step by step. And this is why Jesus’ ministry was so filled with power and effectiveness! He perfectly heard and obeyed the will of the Father!

Lord, cleanse my heart and mind of all things that keep me from hearing Your voice. Give me a humble and surrendered heart that will wait, pray, and seek Your face – before I charge out in presumption, assuming I am doing Your will. And give me an obedient and courageous heart that will instantly obey when You do reveal Your will. Forgive me for the times that I miss it, and help me to not allow these times to discourage from from seeking You anew. Help me to be more like Jesus!

In Jesus Name!