No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
John 6:44 (KJV)
Draw – Often times we’re like little miserable untrained children. If left to our own devices we’d surely choose to satiate our fleshly desires and our lives would be about the immediacy of what we want. And if we were ever deterred by some other means than our own, we’d start kicking and screaming… like little children. “No!” we’d yell. And we’d fight with every bit of strength that we have to resist.
Maybe this is why the word helkō means “to drag”. The Father has to drag us kicking and screaming to His Son – The Messiah. Despite all our efforts and all our fits, the Father drags us in front of His Son who shows us how to walk. He shows us the path wherein to walk, and teaches us righteousness.
As a father myself, I’m very aware of this. Often times I have to practically drag my kids away from something while they throw a fit. I have to sit them down and teach them why this is a better choice, why they should put aside their own desires. They struggle to resist, and I struggle to draw them. They want to satiate their immediate desire, but I need to help them see the long term affect of their decisions. It’s a struggle of love.
In the OT hélkein denotes a powerful impulse […] which is obscure but expresses the force of love.
The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, p.227
Thank you, YHWH, for drawing me unto Your Son. So let’s think about this now. Do you find yourself resisting the power of love from God in your life? Are you kicking and screaming right now? Or are you at peace? He is drawing you closer. Take His hand and go! I’m not sure where your path, or even mine, will lead, but it’s exactly where YHWH needs us to be.
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