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THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS IS QUESTIONED (MARK 11:27-33)

REFLECTION
“The authority of Jesus is questioned” is the theme for our reflection. Authority is the power or right to give orders or enforce obedience. The authority of Jesus questioned means the power of Jesus to teach and command obedience to God’s will is challenged. We shall reflect on the fact that ungodly and corrupt leaders will always feel intimidated and threatened by the authority bestowed on us by God to lead people to Him and to cause His will to be done in the world.

Dear friend, after Jesus had driven those who were trading and profiteering in the temple or house of God (Mark 11:15-17), the chief priest and other religious leaders, were astonished and unhappy. More importantly, they felt their positions and religious influence had been threatened. Consequently, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. 28 “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?” (Mark 11:27-28) Jesus expected them to know the answer to the question they asked because as religious leaders they ought to have known or understood the Law and Prophets and juxtapose it to the happenings of the times. Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 30 John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!” 31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.) 33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.” (Mark 11:29-33) In other words, Jesus meant that no one can do what He did unless He was given authority from God. John preached and baptised people because he had the authority from God to do so, similarly, Jesus received His authority from God to stop corruption in the Temple, teach the truth and set people free from the burden of spiritual ignorance placed on them by religious leaders.

The religious leaders were offended because their authority and influence were greatly challenged by the divine authority of Jesus Christ. Jesus once said to the disciples “…for whoever is not against us is for us. (Mark 9:40). It was clear that the religious leaders who ought to have known the law and prophets and thereby teach or instruct the people to do the will of God were rather corrupt. The were threatened by Jesus Christ who came into the world to save the world and to teach people the will of God. It must be clearly understood by leaders of the church that when we fail to teach and practice the Word of God or live up to expectations as stewards of God’s people, God will always call other people to carry out His mission thereby exposing our inconsistency, lies, bad leadership and hypocrisy. Jesus was given the authority to challenge the bad leadership, corruption and misguidance of the religious leaders of His time. Jesus exposed their hidden and corrupt practices in the temple and among the people of Israel. We are also called upon and authorised by Jesus to speak against bad leadership, corruption, oppression and all forms of evil and injustice in our church and society. The current issue of illegal mining in Ghana and other forms of corrupt practices going on in our nation is against God’s command for us to care for His creation. The church and for that matter, Christian leaders cannot sit down unconcerned. We must be active and not passive Christians and citizens. We must not be blinded by political and religious affiliations but be ultimately influenced by the Word of God and our divine authority to be the light in the darkness. We have been given the authority to speak against evil and injustice in our societies. Is the church and its leaders speaking against bad governance and leadership or are we mute for obvious reasons?

We owe our church and society the duty to speak the truth to power because according to Proverbs 29:2, “When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan” John the Baptist also exposed the true identity of the religious leaders of his time, “… when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. (Matthew 3:7-8). Like Jesus and John, so long as our authority does not resonate or conform with the corrupt and evil deeds or practices in our society by some politicians, and traditional and religious leaders, our divine authority will be greatly opposed, challenged or questioned. Beloved in the Lord, we must remain resilient and continue to operate under the authority given to us to be the light and salt of the world. We are greatly reminded by John when he wrote “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood (1 John 4:4-6). Let us continue to do God’s will irrespective of the opposition in the world, for the reward awaits us.

In summary, we have learnt that ungodly and corrupt leaders will always feel intimidated and threatened by the authority bestowed on us by God to lead people to Him and to cause His will to be done in the world. We must therefore be strong, and prayerful and remember that we have been given authority by God as children of the light and truth to speak and act against all forms of evil, corruption and injustice in our churches and societies.

PRAYER

Lord Jesus, just as you had the authority to represent God in the world, may we also be empowered through the Holy Spirit to remain resilient, courageous, truthful and righteous in all our endeavours and dealings with one another. Amen.