Listen

Jesus replied, “I have a question for you. If you tell me the answer, I’ll tell you what kind of authority I have to do these things. Where did John get his authority to baptize? Did he get it from heaven or from humans?”

They argued among themselves, “If we say ‘from heaven,’ he’ll say to us, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ But we can’t say ‘from humans’ because we’re afraid of the crowd, since everyone thinks John was a prophet.” Then they replied, “We don’t know.”

Jesus also said to them, “Neither will I tell you what kind of authority I have to do these things.”

Matthew 21:24-27

Think

Has anyone ever asked you a question, and you knew the answer, but answering it might have put you in an awkward position? Maybe you quickly started thinking, “What will people say about me?” Sometimes we’re more concerned with protecting our image than with acknowledging the truth.

When the chief priests and elders questioned Jesus’ authority, Jesus responded with another question about John the Baptist. The leaders began discussing among themselves what answer would be best for them to give. If they answered one way, they would look bad; if they answered another, they feared the people’s reaction. Finally, they said they didn’t know. The problem wasn’t simply that they didn’t know the answer. They were calculating which answer would best protect their position.

Pride can do that. It can lead us to defend our image, avoid admitting a mistake, or say what other people want to hear. Humility, on the other hand, allows us to be sincere, even when the truth makes us uncomfortable. Sometimes it takes more courage to admit, “I was wrong,” than to pretend we’re always right.

Lilybeth Bosch

Question to Ponder:

When do you find it hard to admit you were wrong or to say what you really think?

Pray

God, help me not to worry about keeping up appearances. Give me the humility and courage to admit when I’m wrong. Amen.

Go

May you do what is right, be faithful and loyal, and humbly obey your God.

Micah 6:8b DHH