The FaithOfJesus2 Daily Devotional

Focus:

kjv@Revelation:14:12 @ Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

( FaithOfJesus thread begun by rRandyP )

Today's Verse:

kjv@Mark:11:27-33

kjv@Mark:11:27 @ And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders,

kjv@Mark:11:28 @ And say unto him, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority to do these things?

kjv@Mark:11:29 @ And Jesus answered and said unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

kjv@Mark:11:30 @ The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? answer me.

kjv@Mark:11:31 @ And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him?

kjv@Mark:11:32 @ But if we shall say, Of men; they feared the people: for all men counted John, that he was a prophet indeed.

kjv@Mark:11:33 @ And they answered and said unto Jesus, We cannot tell. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.

Today's notes:

Context:

Before - Say to this mountain
After - He began speaking to them in parables

Key Concepts:

strkjv@STRING:G1849

What is God's righteousness observed doing?:

Answering a question on the condition the a question He has of them is answered.

What does this tell us about God's righteousness?:

Neither party verbally reveals their hand, it is left to the commentary of the author. It is almost if you won't then I won't, two can play that game and the Lord is fine with that. Jesus will not verbally commit that all authority is given to Him by the Father til after His resurrection. The works really should speak for themselves. How else can any of this happen? The people sense unfamiliar authority. It is up to each one individually to soften enough to discern where it indeed comes from.
The authority that Jesus is given to is implied by the direction His question leads. It is the authority that goes back before even John the Baptist the greatest prophet born of woman. They had asked John the same question and he pointed them back even to the prophets before him. It is an authority given Him for now within the cup of His own greater Baptism now prepared for Him to drink of. By contrast, the authority that they have is the authority that they themselves stole from proper Levitical law by means of the traditions in the name of reform. Theirs is the authority of our sin nature.

How is man reacting?:

In an attempt to trap Jesus in His word they sense that they also have been trapped. It is masterful how the simple turn of the question takes them down.
The author reacts as if it is clear what was going through their minds even though their is no expression of it on their part unless in the overhearing of their brief assembled reasoning.

Notes:

By what authority was also asked of John the Baptist. There seems to be a lot of concern over authority, but really there isn't. It doesn't really matter to them by what authority when the ultimate answer for them is what the people think. It goes to show the type of authority that they are under; one that seeks to destroy Him because He distracts from their power and authority, at the same time is cautious for the public perception because it may weaken the power they are receiving from Rome.

Righteousness is all about authority. It is not only the power to declare a thing to be, but also the power to perform/enforce it. Jesus has always ascribed His particular ability to His obedience to the will of the Father and the Father's confirmation of Him as Son; a tandem and mutual process. It is also in the overall goodness that said process serves. The end obtained is right because the means obtaining it were also.

I have often wondered had Jesus went ahead to answer the question if the result would have been any different. Results actually would have been similar except for the fact that the enemy would not have been exposed. We must conclude that it is more right to expose if all other results be nearly the same.

Key Messages:

What does this say about our present condition?

We should be aware that it is often best for God to teach us by backing us into a difficult question or strategic dilemma. The questions that we ask of Him are often the questions better asked of ourselves.

Further Resources:

Comment Board:Mark:11:27-33
index:FAITHOFJESUSDEVOTION - Devotional Index
strkjv@Mark:11:27-33 rwp@Mark:11:27-33 mhcc@Mark:11:27-33
FaithOfJesus2 - Devotion Index

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