Daily Devotion for Lent - Day 34

Scripture Reading: Luke 20

This chapter seems to be all about the authority of Jesus.

We begin with this question and Jesus asks them about John the Baptist.  Some have speculated that Jesus was a disciple of John's before setting out on his own.  We like to imagine that Jesus didn't need to be taught and Luke even presents this notion as when Jesus was a child in the Temple at the beginning of the Gospel.  But Jesus was a human being and studied the Torah along with the other children in Nazareth.  

A rabbi in that day would have been a disciple of another rabbi at some point to be acknowledged as such.  Could the baptism of Jesus have been his graduation?  Regardless, we see that Jesus holds John in high esteem.  His wisdom and authority came from God and Luke seems to be showing us that Jesus' wisdom and authority comes from the same place.  If you won't acknowledge one, you won't acknowledge the other.

The parable of the wicked tenets is a foreshadowing of the crucifixion.  Luke may also use this to foreshadow the spread of the Gospel to the Gentiles.  

The three questions have to do with the authority of Jesus over the emperor, the kingdom of God, and the Jewish people.  He shows mastery over all of them and steps calmly out of the traps they set.  

We are reminded at the end that Jesus is not about appearances.  He is not there for show with no substance.  In the end, his enemies were trying desperately to preserve their way of life without changing.  But a change is coming.

As Bob Dylan once said, "A hard rain's gonna fall!"

Some authority is naturally granted!

Lent reminds us to shake things up in our lives.  The season reminds us to examine ourselves and see what's amiss.  It is a period where we can set things in order as we try to align our wills with God's will.

The key in this is to remind ourselves about the authority of Jesus over us.  Jesus calls us on our posturing and tells us to be our real selves with others.  This can be a resurrection in and of itself.  How can you be more authentic today, not only to the people who know you best, but also to the strangers you encounter?

Prayer for the day:

Loving God, we confess that we grant authority to all kinds of things in our lives.  Some of these are automatic and remain unexamined.  Some of them are conscious and we struggle with what to do.  Remind us of who we are in Christ.  Remind us that the Lord of our lives is a living presence and a source of strength.  Remind us that we shall overcome.  In Christ's name we pray.  Amen.

Photo of Sheryl by Sam Powers, South Africa, August 9, 2011