For the third time in one chapter the disciples and Jesus entered Jerusalem, and as Jesus was coming up to the temple, the chief priests and elders came up to him and asked "By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right to do them?" (vs. 28) Probably in relation to Jesus clearing out the temple of the moneylenders and merchants.
The religious leaders felt very defensive of their temple. They didn't like it when this popular figure, this Jesus came and accused the temple of being a den of thieves... after all, who does he think he is?? Humanity hasn't changed in the least, whenever somebody does the 'right thing' there may be people that question it. How about when someone corrects us, or our behavior? We get defensive, and our defenses all of a sudden come up.
Jesus asks the priests where they thought the authority of John the Baptist came from .. from 'heaven', or simply human understanding (vs.29-30). Revealed is their thought process, and they replied "We don't know." (vs. 33) basically because they didn't want to give an answer that would put themselves in the 'wrong'. In response Jesus told them that he wouldn't tell "by what authority I do these things."
That wasn't a denial that he was getting his authority from heaven, but it was a response to the priests unresponsive, or unreceptive ears. The priests and elders were more concerned about their perception by others, than the truth, and even if they heard the truth, they wouldn't acknowledge it because of their pride.
I had an Old Testament teaching in College and we were talking about the pride of Pharaoh when Moses would give the Egyptian leader a warning about an upcoming plague if he didn't let the Jewish people go. My professor would say, "God make hard hearts harder" and this is true in Jesus' day, and it's true today as well. The priests in chapter 11 were not open to Jesus' teaching, or his answer, they just wanted Jesus to fail so that they would be seen in the right.
I'm all for apologetics, and learning how to defend our faith, but if the other person isn't going to listen to the truth of the Gospel, if their shields are fully powered and defensive, than what's the point. There is never a cause to get into a heated argument over the faith, when the other person is unwilling to accept the power of Christ, of salvation. In those times it's best just to 'dust off your sandals' and move on.
Our prayer in our lives has to be that we don't become hard hearted, that we continue to allow God to move in us, that our pride would not keep up from the truth that He wants to reveal in our lives.
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