Jesus took the Twelve aside

Luke 18:31
Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them ...

Jesus had chosen twelve men in His ministry. These twelve will be imparted with his teachings and power to spread the news of the Kingdom. We are inclined to think that there are 11 good men and 1 bad man who betrayed our Lord. However, to Yshua, all have fallen short of God's glory. Although we know Judas fell, perhaps others may have fell or chosen to follow their own wills too. God did not choose the men because they were good, but rather all twelve of them were willing to follow Him. People cannot become Christians because they have some useful abilities, rather they know their moral poverty - poor in spirit - hence willing to be led by Yshua Ha Masiach.

Do you now believe?

John 16:30-31
Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.”
Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe?"

In this scene, Jesus has explained things to his disciples using clear language rather than parables, and his disciples voiced their appreciation for that. They went further to proclaim their believe that Jesus is from God, since they now thought they understood His teachings. Then Jesus challenged them whether they really believed now?

We may hear and read the teachings of Jesus. We may even serve Him and His church in non-trivial and tiring ways. Or we may be continuing to live in our lives of sin. The question to reflect on, as our Lord Himself puts it, "Do you now believe?" Can we still fail if we believe? Can we still live outside His promises when we believe? Only the Lord Himself can answer those questions, and for that, we need to be close to Him