I am able to do nothing from Myself. (John 5:30 AMP)
You get to the heart of everything in the case of the Lord Jesus when you
recognize that the one question which constituted the testing ground of His life
was: "Will this Man act alone, speak alone, choose alone, decide alone, move
alone?" And His answer was always, "Not out from Myself!" "The Son can do nothing
out from Himself." "The words that I speak unto you I speak not out from
Myself." Every kind of appeal was made to Him to persuade Him on the impulse of
the moment, or in response to an entreaty that seemed to promise success, or by
an argument that appeared to be the truest wisdom, to move, act, speak, do
something as out from Himself....
At times the suggestion would
be influenced by necessity of circumstances, at times by the
promise of effectiveness in His service, or again by
representation of the utter un-wisdom of the line that He was
taking, as when His own brethren, who did not believe in Him,
chided Him for delay, saying, "Go up to Jerusalem and show
yourself!" To them He said, "I go not yet up to this feast!" And
then, so quickly after, when His brethren were gone up He went up
also. But He would not go up at the persuasion of popular reason;
He would not do this merely because it was the thing which
everybody else was doing, or because it was urged upon Him that,
since everybody was going to the feast, He ought to go too. That
ninety-nine people do a thing is no argument for the hundredth to
do it. We are not to be led by the appeals that decide the
actions of the many – "It is the popular thing! Everybody else is
doing it! It is the recognized thing to do!" No! Does my Father
want me to do this thing? That is the question that must ever
rule our steps. In the case of the Lord Jesus there was all the
time an underworking to get Him to adopt the contrary course, to
act without inquiry of His Father, without direct leading from
His Father; to act in His individual capacity as though He were
His own Master, as though He had not to make appeal elsewhere. In
Him there was none of that which was personal, independent. We
are not speaking merely of such things as are sinfully personal,
positively personal, but simply of independent action, action
taken for the best ends, for a good motive, with quite a proper
intention. Yes, all this may be done, but apart from the positive
word from the Father. That creates an independent thought,
however good may be the motive.