Back to the beginning!

John 10:31-42

The Jews fetched stones to stone him, so Jesus said to them, ‘I have done many good works for you to see, works from my Father; for which of these are you stoning me?’ The Jews answered him, ‘We are not stoning you for doing a good work but for blasphemy: you are only a man and you claim to be God.’ Jesus answered:

‘Is it not written in your Law: I said, you are gods? So the Law uses the word gods of those to whom the word of God was addressed, and scripture cannot be rejected. Yet you say to someone the Father has consecrated and sent into the world, “You are blaspheming,” because he says, “I am the son of God.” If I am not doing my Father’s work, there is no need to believe me; but if I am doing it, then even if you refuse to believe in me, at least believe in the work I do; then you will know for sure that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.’

They wanted to arrest him then, but he eluded them.  He went back again to the far side of the Jordan to stay in the district where John had once been baptising. Many people who came to him there said, ‘John gave no signs, but all he said about this man was true’; and many of them believed in him. 

Food for thought! 

In this text, there is a small detail that is worth noting about Jesus: "He went back again to the far side of the Jordan to stay in the district where John had once been baptising." 

Why did Jesus do this? Well, for Jesus the time was running out; he knew his hour was approaching but was not yet. He would not recklessly court danger and throw his life away; nor would he in cowardice avoid danger to preserve his life. Jesus desired quietness before the final struggle. He always armed himself to meet men by first meeting God. That is why he retired to the other side of Jordan. He was not running away: he was preparing himself for the final contest.

The place to which Jesus went is most significant. He went to the place where John had been baptizing, the place where he himself had been baptized. It was there that the voice of God had come to him and assured him that he had taken the right decision and was on the right way. That place was significant because that is where it all began; that is where Jesus started his ministry.

There is everything to be said about returning every now and then to the place where we had the supreme experience of our life. When Jacob was up against it, when things had gone wrong and badly wrong, he went back to Bethel (Gen.35:1-5). When he needed God, he went back to the place where he had first found him. Jesus, before the end, went back to the place where the beginning had happened. It would often do our souls good to make a visit to the place where we first found God, or where we first fell in love, or where we first met, or where we first loved. In other words, never loose touch with your beginning; it is your source of inspiration. When your life begin to fall apart, remember to go to your beginning, and start your life all over again.

But not only Jesus went back to the source, the people too went: "Many people who came to him there said, ‘John gave no signs, but all he said about this man was true’; and many of them believed in him."

Time and again, we also get discouraged; we too loose faith and begin to doubt; we too loose the initial fire of our love to the Lord and to each other. Many couples have lost the initial fire of love and passion they used to enjoy. In other words, we too need to go back to Jordan where it all started, where we started our journey, where we got the initial inspiration, initial love and passion. And if and when we do so, will be like the people in the gospel reading, they became believers in Jesus. They adhered to and trusted in and relied on Jesus again; they too were re-energized in their commitment.

Do you think you need to go to your Jordan again? Where's your Jordan? Where did you start? May be you need to revisit the place. May be. When things get tough, we do well to go back to our Jordan and press the Reset button.