Surgery on the Soul
Questions! How powerful they can be! Young children learn by asking their parents endless, insistent questions. Why, how, when and what, are the endless words of the young child.
Jesus asked a lot of questions. In fact, a great Bible reading exercise is to pick one of the Gospel’s and skim through it reading all of Jesus’ questions.
Among the questions that Jesus asks are:
Are you still sleeping and resting? Could you not watch with me for one hour?
And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night?
Didn’t you know that I had to be in my Father’s house?
Was no one found to return and give praise to God…?
What good is it if you gain the whole world and lose your soul?
Why do you call me “Lord, Lord,” and not do what I say?
If the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?
Why then didn’t you put my talents on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected them with interest?
Why do you worry about what you will eat and what you will wear?
So, if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?
What is written in the Law? How do you read it?
Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?
Gordon MacDonald points out that Jesus wasn’t asking these questions “seeking information; he was performing surgery on the soul.” Surgery on the soul … I like that phrase. So, let me ask my own question: “Are you ready for a little surgery on the soul?”