Questioning



Scripture:

Matt. 22:41    Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question:  42 “What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.”  43 He said to them, “How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying,
44     ‘The Lord said to my Lord,
    “Sit at my right hand,
        until I put your enemies under your feet”’?

45 If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?”  46 No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

Observation:

The religious leaders were trying to figure out who this man was. If he was the Messiah he certainly didn’t fit the image that they had in mind. His words were far too controversial for they stung. A Messiah wasn’t suppose to come and make them feel uncomfortable, he was to become a political leader of their people. The concept that Jesus was espousing was difficult for them to grasp because not only was the Messiah to come from David, but what if the Messiah were also God. They were wrestling with this in their minds because they wanted to be able to provide all the right answers, but they simply couldn’t for they were limited in their thinking.

Application:

There are so many things to question. The things of this world seem to be changing at a speed more rapid than any of us could even begin to imagine. It feels overwhelming and sometimes we would simply wish for the good old days. In the midst of it all there may be this desire to question God and where he may be found.

Questioning God has been a practice since the first humans walked this earth. Ultimately there comes a moment, such as what occurred with the religious leaders, when one realizes that we don’t have the answers. We want to question but the answers may boggle the mind, so much so, that we aren’t sure what to do with them. The idea that this man in front of them might be God was certainly outrageous. They didn’t like the answer to their question and so they went away, unwilling to ask him anything more.

They were questioning Jesus because they were anticipating a different kind of Messiah. Are we questioning the kind of Messiah we are awaiting now? Is our anticipation in Advent for someone other than the Messiah who has ushered in the kingdom of heaven? At some point the questioning needs to stop and the faith, trust, and acceptance must begin. Our longing for the Messiah is fulfilled when we accept him and rest in who he truly is.

Prayer:

Lord, thank you for your love which continues to reach out to your children. Amen.


If you would like to read more "Reflecting the Image"  click on the image to take you to the NPH bookstore.The book is also available in Kindle format on Amazon.com.



http://www.nph.com/nphweb/html/nph/itempage.jsp?itemId=9780834135277

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

The Advantage of Sanctification