"It Had to Go Down Like That"

Scripture: "And he said, "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life." -Luke 9:22, NIV

Many of us revere someone within our communities because of a certain attribute they possess. The attribute may be strength, knowledge, wisdom, and other things. How did they obtain these attributes? They had to live life and deal with its circumstances. Since life "went down like that", they were able to obtain the strength, knowledge, wisdom, and other things you revere. One thing I always respected about people from the "old school" was the fact that they were independent. Because their lives took the road of dealing with so much, independence was birthed out of them. Many of us wonder why we had to endure hardship or why I was not accepted within a certain "circle of people". Today, I am here to let you know that "It had to go down like that"! Today's text illustrates an instance that had to go down like it did.

Today, our devotional journey brings us to the Gospel account according to Luke, the physician. Within this ninth chapter, we find Luke discussing the ministry of our Lord and Savior Jesus at work. The subjects dealt with here included Jesus sending out the 12, Jesus feeds the 5,000, Peter's confession to Jesus, Jesus' transfiguration, Jesus' healing of a boy with an evil spirit, and the discussion of who will be the greatest. Today's main scripture is found within Peter's confession to Jesus.

As Jesus was sitting with His disciples, He lets them what will take place and what has to go down. He starts by saying, "The Son of Man must suffer many things". Isn't that something? The Son of Man, the Messiah, suffering many things? However, it had to go down like that! If truth be told, the pains, blues, and agonies of life we go through, guess what? It has to go down like that! Why? Because when we go through, our character develops. When we go through, our faith in God develops. When we go through, our prayer life develops. Going through is a part of life and no matter who you are, you will experience some suffering!

Secondly, Jesus tells His disciples that He will "be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law". In those days, they knew who Jesus was, but the elders, chief priests, and teachers of the law only cared about the law. Like most, they knew that a Messiah was coming and they thought that this Messiah was going to rule high on the throne, but not in the form of Jesus. Jesus was one that came that the law would not be condemned, but it would be fulfilled. Even with this, these leaders would reject Him and not accept Him nor His teachings. As we journey along this life, there will be some people that will reject the things God had spoken into your spirit for them. When that time comes, do what you are supposed to do, shake the dust off of your feet, and keep it moving!

The last thing Jesus told the disciples that had to go down was "He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life". This blesses me because though Jesus was going to be killed, He was going to come back and live again on the third day! This should bless you because though things occur in your life, it had to go down like that to birth the real you! It had to go down like that to be a testimony to someone! It had to go down like that because God needs soldiers in His army to tell of His goodness! It had to go down like that to strip you of the pride you may have once had! It had to go down like that because God wanted you to know that He's there and He cares! When stuff occurs, it's all good! Why? Because you are more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus! Though weapons are formed, they will not prosper! Though people's words do hurt, God can heal your pain!

In closing, we are often amazed at how someone has done so much in their lives. Even within that, they had to go down a particular road to get there. Jesus showed us the things He had to deal with and even things we deal with today. In order for you to get to the next level, you are going to have suffer, you are going to have to be rejected, and you are going to have to die (in your flesh) that you may live (in the Spirit). Are you ready to continue God's path for your life?