No 11

(His authority)

On this side of the cross, Jesus’ authority is not ever questioned; He is the Son of God and that is enough!! But when He arrived on the scene in Judea, no one knew him – John the Baptist even said in the gospel of John, chapter 1 verse 26 “I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;” Jesus was unknown to most but He revealed Himself to all. Many knew He was coming and they are the ones who recognized Him for who He really was; they never questioned His authority. The group who was most sceptical of His authority was the elite Pharisees with their traditions and when they heard of Jesus, their livelihood was immediately threatened. So they set out to destroy and to discredit Him but their pitiful efforts were defeated every time. We read of many many occasions in the Bible where the religious leaders challenged His authority with traps regarding the payment of taxes or healing on the Sabbath but the strongest defeat the Pharisees were subjected to was about John the Baptist. The account is in Matthew 21: 23-27 and here is the part that Jesus asked them: “The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.” What wisdom, what insight; the Lord knew their hearts.

But let’s not be too hard on those religious leaders back then; how were we when we first heard of Jesus? Jesus’ authority is not very much more considered by the world today than it was during those times. Just the mention of His name today and people react – some react well and become believers whereas others, like the Pharisees react negatively and trample His name as best they can. So why are people so hostile to the name of Jesus? Jesus Himself had the answer “He that hateth me hateth my Father also.” John 15:23.