Ulterior Motives

The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this (miraculous) sign. John 12:18

.

“Have you seen that new Rabbi?” Jacob asked. “I heard He turned one kid’s lunch into a feast.” Isaac nodded. “I actually saw Him heal that blind guy.” Not to be outdone, Levi called out, “Oh yeah, well I heard He raised a guy from the dead!” The three friends shouldered their knapsacks and broke into a run. “Let’s go see what else He might do!” Jacob cried, joining the crowds headed toward the Jesus Parade. “That’s the kind of leader I want! He could make us rich and famous!”

. 

The throngs gathering about Jesus that day came for a multitude of reasons, most of them misguided. They loved the miracles. People were still talking about the free food, and no one could get over blind Bartimaeus now reading the Torah for himself. We can easily see the wrong motives of the crowd that day, but what about our motives now? “I’ll give my life to Jesus if it will save my marriage,” says Stan. “I got saved in ’92, but my business went belly-up,” grumbles Rob. “Guess it didn’t do me any good.” 

.

When we learn about the supernatural, miraculous things that God does, we get excited about what God might do for us. We start to treat the sacrifice of Jesus as merely the secret code into God’s Goodie Basket. Are we really much different from the crowd that day? It’s no wonder He wasn’t impressed by their praises. He’s not always impressed with ours either.

.

Motivation

Why do you do what you do?

If you are a Christian, are you invested in eternally significant lifework? Do you serve God regularly, and if so, why? Some Christians  recognize they have a duty to serve God, so they force themselves to perform Christian-type activities. Some ignore service altogether. Some have a genuine passion for people and feel satisfied in helping them. But others carry lifelong  guilt that they should've and didn't.

Maybe this illustration will give you another motivation to consider:

My dad was a farmer. He was always working in his slow, purposeful way. I can still see his long-legged strides as he went about his constant work with patient enjoyment. As a child, I loved skipping next to him, chattering as I hung on his hand or a belt loop, ready to do whatever he was doing. He would send me on errands--"Run get me that bucket" or "Fill up this feed trough." He taught me to be still and let the cattle come to me. He showed me how to give tender care to the sickest ones and isolate the ones that caused trouble. I had no real love for the cattle or any true understanding of the importance of the work.  I only knew that this was important to my father and he wanted me to help him. I enjoyed it because I wanted to be with him, doing what he was doing. If that relationship had not been healthy, the work would have been drudgery. My motivation was the desire to be with my dad. He would praise me and tell me how much help I was, and I was young enough to believe him.

He's been gone more than 15 years, but my life motivation hasn't changed. My Heavenly Father moves through this world with a steady stride, accomplishing what He has purposed to do. I chatter alongside Him, hanging onto his belt loop with no real understanding of the significance of the work. Sometimes He says, "Run get that one" or "Sit still and let them come to you." He shows me how to give tender care to the sickest ones and what to do about the ones that cause trouble. And because they matter to Him, they matter to me.

It is not the love of the work or even love for people that motivates me to serve God. It's not even that I grasp the significance of what He asks me to do. I just want to be with my Father. If that relationship is not healthy, no amount of work will bring real satisfaction. But when it is, then I want to be where He is, doing what He's doing. I want to see His smile when He tells me He's proud of me. Jesus summed it up at age 12 when he said, " I must be about my father's business." He wasn't happy doing anything else. Neither am I. I hope that's the right motivation, because it's the only one I have.
.