Many years ago, I reunited with Jake, a fellow dermatopathologist whom I met in my dermatopathology fellowship. During my training, we became very close friends and spent much time together outside of the hospital. After we completed our training, he took a job in Tennessee while I took a job in Southern California. I had not seen him for five years and welcomed the opportunity to catch up. He was raving about the benefits of living and working in Tennessee, including the lower cost of living and no state income tax. In fact, he even invited me to meet with his group, potentially joining him. Although I declined because of family obligations, we always hoped that someday we would work together again.
At that time, I was in charge of recruitment for my pathology group and was seeking another dermatopathologist like myself. Although I thought of Jake, I assumed he was content in Tennessee and would not give up his job and uproot his life to join me. Thus I drafted an advertisement and placed it in a major pathology journal. A few months later Jake contacted me. “Just saw your group advertising for a dermatopathologist. How come you didn’t contact me first?”
I was surprised. “Honestly, you seemed so happy where you were. I thought you would never leave.”
“Well, the pay and benefits are good, but Tennessee isn’t really a good fit for my wife. I would welcome an opportunity to work with you again.”
“Ohhh…” I moaned. “I am so sorry. We just hired another dermatopathologist.” I should have dug deeper instead of making an assumption that he would never leave. It was not the first time I committed such an error. The Bible also records an example of making assumptions and failing to dig deeper.
When some from the crowd heard these words, they said, “This truly is the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some said, “Surely the Messiah doesn’t come from Galilee, does he? Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Messiah comes from David’s offspring and from the town of Bethlehem, where David lived?” So the crowd was divided because of him.
John 7:40-43 (CSB)
The crowds acknowledged that Jesus was from Galilee. Yet in the same passage they also acknowledged that the Messiah must be a descendent of King David and come from Bethlehem. They did not consider the possibility that both scenarios were true. Jesus was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Galilee. They should have dug deeper instead of assuming both possibilities could not both be true and mutually exclusive.
I made assumptions about Jake and it caused me to miss out on an opportunity to work together with him. Do we make similar assumptions about God? Some believe Jesus is one of many prophets all proclaiming the same god. Others believe He is a good man and teacher but not divine. Still others believe He had delusions of grandeur believing He was the Messiah and God incarnate. All of these assumptions cannot be true. God has definitively revealed who He is through His Word, the Bible. Don’t make assumptions about who He is. Take the time to dig deeper and investigate the Truth. Jesus Christ is God, the Messiah, a Prophet, and a teacher. He is God incarnate and the only path to salvation and eternal life. It is not an assumption. It is the Truth!
Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.
The Bereans Blog 
Wonderful blog! I found it while browsing on Yahoo News. Do you have any
tips on how to get listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a
while but I never seem to get there! Many thanks
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