Your Biggest Problem

What is your biggest problem right now? Maybe you don’t even know, but you could probably come up with some things. Maybe a person. Those are the biggest kinds of problems we have. Maybe it is a thing, a deadline, a quandary you don’t have the answer to. But what is your biggest problem? Sometimes we don’t know what our biggest problem is.

The disciples in Luke 24 had a big problem. What was their problem? They came to the tomb of the Lord Jesus and He was not there. It was empty. The Bible says in Luke 24:3, “And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout…” It goes on to say they were afraid, they believed not, they wondered, and were astonished. There are quite a few descriptions of their feelings, but the empty tomb was not a problem. The problem was their ignorance. Jesus was not supposed to be in the tomb, so they had a problem that was not a problem.

When Jesus later saw a couple of the disciples, He said, “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.” They weren’t slow to be smart or accomplished, but they were slow to believe. They were troubled. In verse 38, Jesus revealed Himself to these troubled disciples and said, “Why are you troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?” So many times, I have troubled thoughts that are roiling in my heart and I am discontent. I am disquieted. Oftentimes, like the disciples, your biggest problem is the way you think. It is not something outside of you; it is something within you.

In verse 37 the disciples were terrified and supposed they had seen a ghost when Jesus appeared to them. Yet, Jesus said, “Peace be unto you.” So, their biggest problem was the way they were thinking.

There are two things to help your head. First, be open-minded to the truth. Sometimes we think we are open-minded, but we are just open-minded to things that are not true. Necessarily, if I am open-minded to one thing, I am going to be closed to something else. If I am open to the truth, I am going to be closed to falsehood. That is why it is so important that I have an ethic to know what is right and what is wrong.

Verse 31 says, “Their eyes were opened.” Verse 32 says, “He [Jesus] opened to us the scriptures…” Verse 45 says, “Then opened he their understanding.” No one and no thing could stop the Lord Jesus. He died, was buried, and rose again. There was no one who could stop Him, but the disciples could be stopped because their thinking was wrong. Your biggest problem is the way you think. Be open-minded to the truth. That is what the disciples learned to do.

Second, be open to the presence of Jesus Christ. Be aware of the presence of Jesus Christ. Acknowledge His presence. Peace is the presence of a person. It is not the presence of accommodating circumstances. It is not something without; it is something within. Peace is either an inside job or not present at all. Jesus said to them “Peace be unto you.” Peace is a person, not a thing. It is not money; it is a person. That is why the presence of this person resulted in their witness. In verse 48 Jesus said, “Ye are witnesses of these things.” I am not an eyewitness of the Lord Jesus, but I am a witness. A witness tells what he knows. They were to witness.

They had power because of the presence of a person. Jesus says in verse 49, “I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until you be endued with power from on high.” That same Holy Spirit who was given to these men is present in every person who has trusted the Lord Jesus as Savior. It is not a feeling; it is a fact.

So, we are a witness with good news to share and power that is beyond ourselves, and we can have joy, not in the circumstances of our day, but in something that transcends all of that. They worshipped Jesus and returned to Jerusalem with great joy praising and blessing God.

So, what is your biggest problem? It may be a person or a thing, but really your biggest problem is the way you think. Help your head today. Be open-minded to the truth and be aware of the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.