The Folly of Forcing Change

“Don’t just stand there; do something!” These words communicate urgency, and are meant to motivate action before it is too late. They can also be an attempt to get someone else to take responsibility for changing a situation or solving a problem. In this passage, the people who followed Jesus were impatient, wanting him to lead a rebellion against the Roman and Jewish leaders, to do something that others had tried to do, and failed (Barabbas, for example). They wanted him to be their Messiah, on their terms!

Jesus knew his time for action had not yet come, and even when it did, it would not involve him being made a political king. He read the signs and took action by withdrawing. This was actually the second time that Jesus withdrew (see verse 3) but the people persistently followed him. He refused to let well-meaning people force him into an action that he was not meant to take, even as a recognized prophet, miracle worker and messiah.

There are times when the best thing to do is to do nothing (and withdraw from people, if necessary)! But I would like to propose another option to “doing something.”: “Don’t just stand there; pray something!” (These words are actually the title of a book written by Ronald Dunn. The full statement on the front of Dunn’s book is, When you’re looking for a miracle Don’t Just Stand There Pray Something: The Incredible Power of Intercessory Prayer.)

Dunn makes this point about prayer: “Some people dismiss prayer as a weak alternative to practical action, an alibi for doing nothing.” The people could not understand Jesus’ obvious reluctance to go head to head with the church and political leaders who oppressed the people on a daily basis. They probably thought he was a coward, and eventually they scorned him on the cross, saying, “he saved others, so why can’t he save himself?” (Mark 15:31)

Wait on God’s timing and prompting for action. Be hesitant to respond to every nomination that well-meaning brothers and sisters make, especially when you know that they are putting you forward to do a job for them, or to correct wrongs in the church. Beware of embracing any “messiah complex” no matter how much people believe in you. My dad told me about a time when another man in the church came up to him and said, “You’re my man on the board”. He promptly responded, “I cannot be your man on the board, because I am God’s man on the board, and I will do what he tells me to do.”

Jesus, thank you once again for your example! Thanks for refusing to let people or dire circumstances force you to act when you needed to withdraw and pray. Thank you that prayer is actually the secret weapon of the kingdom of God that can be fired toward any spot on earth…and hit its target every time (Dunn, pg. 19)! Amen.

Throughout this day: Choose to wait for God’s prompting. Don’t allow someone to push you into a role or responsibility that you are not meant to take. And if you are tempted to force change in any aspect of your life or in the church right now, resist the urge, withdraw and pray! If Jesus did it, we should do it too!