Matt 21:23 Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25 John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”
They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”
27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
Big Idea: Understanding truth requires humility.
The chief priests and elders approached Christ while he was teaching in the temple. They had reached a point of frustration with his popularity and were eager to find a way to make him look foolish in front of everyone. They asked him who gave him the authority to teach and perform miracles. This is a question so obvious it shouldn’t have even been asked. Here he is, with a profound understanding of scriptures and performing miracles in front of their very eyes, and they want to know who made him boss.
Their intent was obviously political. If he came out and said that his authority came from God, then they believed that they could prove that he was arrogant and delusional. If he denied it was from God, then the people would see that he wasn’t the real deal. Their biggest problem was that they didn’t care at all about the truth. They didn’t actually want to know what the answer was. They wanted to be right more than to know what is right.
St. Augustine talked about his own struggle with a desire to be right rather than to pursue what is right. This was very convicting for me personally, because I have often caught myself arguing a point that I didn’t even really believe in, just to prove that I was right and the other person was wrong. But if I actually cared about the pursuit of truth, then it wouldn’t matter if I lost a debate, because the truth had been found. Both sides would have won.
The pharisees were trying to win a debate with Jesus. Their pride blinded them to the actual truth which was that the divine was right in front of them! So when Christ stumped them with a question that required they humble themselves to answer, they refused to even give an answer, preferring to hold on to their pride! Pride blinded them to the obvious, only humility could have opened their eyes to the Truth.
Application: Ask God for humility. Pride, like all sin, blinds its victims to its presence. The proud aren’t aware of the depths of their self-centeredness. This is why the priests and elders were so upset with Christ, their pride caused them to project their sin on Jesus. They were trying to get him to confess to delusional pride in front of the people and in so doing, exposed their own. But if we are blinded by are own pride, then our only hope is to humbly ask God to expose it, and root it out. A process that can be painful, but in the end brings joy and peace! Imagine never feeling embarrassed at being wrong, but only joy at learning something new! Imagine being able to freely laugh with those who laugh, and weep with those who weep. Imagine nothing holding you back from being of one mind and one purpose with fellow believers! Imagine being able to see the divine right in front of you!
