Mark 11:31-32
Sometimes
you just don’t know how to answer a question. You might have been caught off
guard, not expecting any question at that moment. Or it might be the question
itself, the content of the question, that takes you by surprise. You might have
expected questions, but not THAT question. Your mind goes into a spin trying to
figure out how to answer. You can barely keep yourself from looking shocked and
off balance.
This
happens to everyone from time to time. Students try to keep their heads down so
the teacher won’t call on them. Others try to look busy as the questioner’s gaze
circles the room. The conference table can get pretty small in those moments.
You don’t dare look up, so you just bury yourself in your distracting activity.
Some
people are better at thinking on their feet than others. Their personalities
don’t need much time to process an answer. Others need time to process. They
really want to give you an answer later, after they have had time to gather the
facts and distill a good response.
For
these religious leaders who came to Jesus with questions, they weren’t
expecting to have to give answers themselves. They were on the offensive. They
were there to trip Jesus up. The last thing they expected was to be questioned.
So
they deliberate. They don’t know how to answer. No matter what they say, they
are caught. Either they get discredited by Jesus for not obeying John the
Baptist’s message, or they are put on the defensive with the people who did
accept John’s authority over their lives. They are stuck. The last thing they
want to do is to validate Jesus’ authority.
Most
people don’t like to not give an answer. Not giving an answer is generally
regarded as being dishonest or evasive. That is why politicians are trained to
answer hard questions by not answering them. They do this very skillfully,
answering every question by giving some of their own talking points. So often
they get away with this evasive answering, especially if they support the
values of the media.
Often
people who don’t know how to answer a particular question tell the questioner
that they will “get back with the answer” at a later point in time. This gives
them time to formulate a better, more reasoned answer. But, unfortunately, they
often don’t get back with an answer. They are simply using it as a stalling
technique. They aren’t able to say that they don’t know, or that they don’t
want to answer because the answer will embarrass them somehow. So they stall.
But
what these religious leaders failed to do was really answer Jesus’ question. Jesus’
question goes right to their rebellion against the LORD’s authority in their
lives. John’s authority was clearly the LORD’s authority. And so is Jesus’
authority! If they aren’t willing to commit to acknowledging the LORD’s
authority in John’s life, they certainly are willing to acknowledge His
authority in their lives. It is this lack of commitment to the LORD’s authority
that Jesus nails.
Are
you acknowledging His authority in your life? In all areas? At all times? Or
are you like these religious leaders who become evasive when asked to stand for
something important? Do you come up with excuses not to answer directly to the
LORD’s claim to authority in your life? Maybe it is time to give Him an answer.