Authority-4th Favorite Passage of Scripture

Luke 20:1-8 (New American Standard Version)

1 And it came about on one of the days while He was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, that the chief priests and the scribes with the elders confronted Him,

2 and they spoke, saying to Him, "Tell us by what authority You are doing these things, or who is the one who gave You this authority?"

3 And He answered and said to them, "I shall also ask you a question, and you tell Me:

4 "Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men?"

5 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why did you not believe him?'

6 "But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet."

7 And they answered that they did not know where it came from.

8 And Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."

The first time I read this story, I could almost see some sarcasm in Jesus' last statement. I think it had a lot to do with my stage of life. It is easy, when you are young to want to see revenge. I guess I felt like Jesus' words were a way of "sticking it to the scribes." I always imagined him with a smirk on his face as he walked away. 

But the more that I read this passage, I think He probably was not sarcastic. Now, I can imagine Jesus shaking his head back and forth in sorrow. It is so amazing how my age and maturity level influence my understanding of the Bible.

The reason I love this story so much is because Jesus did not try to explain himself away. He did not back down from these men. Sometimes when I am questioned about my beliefs (by people who just want an argument), I feel the need to explain myself and not offend them. I think this story is evidence that you do not have to discuss your beliefs with people who are going to argue with you and try to make you look stupid. 

Let me tell you what I am NOT saying. I am not saying that this story gives you an excuse to keep your beliefs to yourself. The Bible makes it clear that you should always be ready to give an account. I do believe, however, that Jesus was smart in the way he handled these men. He knew that they wanted to trap him in his words. He chose to avoid the question and re-direct their thoughts (and make them more than a little uncomfortable in the process)