The Authority of Jesus.
The Authority of Jesus Questioned
27 They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. 28 “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?”
29 Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 30 John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!”
31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)
33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
Reflection: Having no real arguments to make concerning who Jesus was by the things he was doing, which all fit the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah, the temple leaders try to pull rank. Since they can't argue with the truth of his words and deeds, they try to go after his authority. Instead of answering their question, Jesus poses a question back to him. Of course being the wisest man ever to walk this earth, he wasn't confounded by their ploy.
And so what he does is to use the example of another prophet John the Baptist, who was universally accepted by the people as a true prophet. So the teachers and elders had two choices, neither of them were good. One, they could say John was not from God and provoke the ire of the people. Since they were more concerned about their approval ratings than God's approval, this wasn't a good option. Or, they could say he was from God, but this would validate Jesus as John said, "Look the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world." In effect, this was declaring Jesus was God, and was the Messiah.
Since they had no reasonable answer except to say Jesus had the authority to say and do the things he was doing, it says they answered, "We don't know!"
What can we learn from this is how Jesus handled this? If we are seeking to bring in the kingdom, we are bound to get pushback. If we take it personally, or take on the responsibility ourselves, it could be overwhelming. But we have authority too. Where does it come from? All our authority comes from the Word of God and using it in the power of the Holy Spirit. In this sense we can never really fail if we are relying on the means of grace God has given us as children of God, and ambassadors of Jesus.
Jesus, you have sent us in your authority to go and make disciples of all nations. As we face resistance help us to remember our authority comes from you and your Word, not man. Amen.
27 They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. 28 “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?”
29 Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 30 John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!”
31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)
33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
Reflection: Having no real arguments to make concerning who Jesus was by the things he was doing, which all fit the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah, the temple leaders try to pull rank. Since they can't argue with the truth of his words and deeds, they try to go after his authority. Instead of answering their question, Jesus poses a question back to him. Of course being the wisest man ever to walk this earth, he wasn't confounded by their ploy.
And so what he does is to use the example of another prophet John the Baptist, who was universally accepted by the people as a true prophet. So the teachers and elders had two choices, neither of them were good. One, they could say John was not from God and provoke the ire of the people. Since they were more concerned about their approval ratings than God's approval, this wasn't a good option. Or, they could say he was from God, but this would validate Jesus as John said, "Look the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world." In effect, this was declaring Jesus was God, and was the Messiah.
Since they had no reasonable answer except to say Jesus had the authority to say and do the things he was doing, it says they answered, "We don't know!"
What can we learn from this is how Jesus handled this? If we are seeking to bring in the kingdom, we are bound to get pushback. If we take it personally, or take on the responsibility ourselves, it could be overwhelming. But we have authority too. Where does it come from? All our authority comes from the Word of God and using it in the power of the Holy Spirit. In this sense we can never really fail if we are relying on the means of grace God has given us as children of God, and ambassadors of Jesus.
Jesus, you have sent us in your authority to go and make disciples of all nations. As we face resistance help us to remember our authority comes from you and your Word, not man. Amen.
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