Jesus focus on the Important

Rick Warren says, “We have just enough time to do God’s will while you’re on earth.” When we try to do more than God planned for us, it is natural that you feel stressed out or always out of time. If it doesn’t fit the purpose of your life then God doesn’t want you to do it.

Jesus understood the difference between importance and urgency. It is amazing that Jesus’ life was not consumed by the urgent. Here is the Son of Man, the miracle worker, walking among the people. I am sure every person had a need that needed to be met. A son who needed healing, a daughter who was sick, a leg that needed to be fixed, eyesight that needed restoring, a relationship that needed mending, finances that needed fixing, problem after problem. But when you look closer at the scriptures it is clear that Jesus chose not to live in urgent mode. He lived with greater importance. In the gospel of Luke chapter nine Jesus’ ministry takes a turn. It says in verse 51, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” Up to this point he had been hanging out in Galilee. Now he knew that it was time to fulfill what he came to do. So starting in chapter nine we read over and over how he was determined to go to Jerusalem. It was in Jerusalem that he would complete his mission of redemption for the whole world. Listen to a few verses. In 9:51, he writes, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” In 10:1, “After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.” In 13:22, “Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.” In 13:33, “Yet today, tomorrow and the next day, I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.” In 17:11, “On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee.” In 18:31, “Then he took the twelve aside and said to them, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.’” In 18:35, “As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.” In 19:1, “He entered Jericho and was passing through it. In 19:11, “As they were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem.” And in 19:28, “After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.”

In between these moments Jesus takes time to teach and tell stories. He performs a healing and cleanses some lepers. He even takes time to stop and bless children. He takes a day and has dinner in the house of Zachaeus. He finds time for prayer. He finds time to spend with just his disciples. Jesus does ministry while on his way. He responds to the urgency on his way up to Jerusalem. But he doesn’t let the urgency take away from what is important. Jesus reminds us it’s not just about going; it’s about going with purpose.