Who Says?
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, I bow before You and acknowledge that You are my God and the ultimate authority in my life.
Read Mark 11:27-33
[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.” Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION
Reflect
What did his enemies ask and how did Jesus answer?Why should we listen to Jesus? More to the point, why should we obey him? Those questions are just as central today as they were then. Jesus’ actions in the Temple (15-17) had triggered a strong reaction from the chief priests and teachers of the Law (18). Now they came out into the open, and this time the elders were with them, as well (27). Together they formed the Sanhedrin, the highest legal body in Judaism. Perhaps not surprisingly, they wanted to know what authority Jesus had and who had given it to him (28). As we will see over the coming days, this question about authority would continue to be asked. Indeed, it still is. Jesus’ response was to ask another question (29,30), a common technique at the time. And with that question he linked himself to John the Baptist. They quickly saw the trap. As if they were responding to a survey, they fudged it with a “don’t know” (33). But when Jesus brought John into the argument, it wasn’t a random choice. Those who had been with John knew full well the answer to the Jewish leaders’ questions; the voice from heaven had been quite clear about Jesus’ identity (Mark 1:11).
Apply
How can Jesus’ authority be seen in your life? How will it make a difference to what you do today?
Closing prayer
Jesus, I pray that, more and more each day, I will be clearly seen to follow You as my Lord.
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