So living in the not yet, we struggle with the pieces of the world (including ourselves) that are not in submission to Christ. That is the bad news.
The good news is that one day Jesus will return and set everything right, including my stony heart.
Thoughts on the Incarnation of Christ
That Jesus loved us enough to “tabernacle among us” (John 1:14) should blow our minds. That his did so for the purpose of dying to redeem us adds to the “amazingness” of the whole plan.
John Stott on Jesus’ Hour
Jesus referred to an “hour” that was coming in his life and ministry. John Stott writes about what Jesus meant by this.
Crowds and compassion
While we might view a crowd as an inconvenience, Jesus viewed the crowd as an opportunity to meet their physical and spiritual needs. There is much we can learn from Jesus’ feeding of the 4,000 as recorded in Mark 8.