Mind Meld of A Different Kind

MARK 11:27-33
Again they entered Jerusalem. As Jesus was walking through the Temple area, the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him. They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right to do them?”

“I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human? Answer me!”

They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask why we didn’t believe John. But do we dare say it was merely human?” For they were afraid of what the people would do, because everyone believed that John was a prophet. So they finally replied, “We don’t know.”

And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Rationalizing unbelief
“Excuses, excuses, you hear them every day…” the old song tells us. There certainly is a lot of truth in that song, especially if you have children. Imagine how God feels with his children. I think I hear more excuses in church than I do at home. I especially love the ones where we shift the blame to God. “I am not feeling led to do this.” “Let me pray about it.” Now before I go too far, let me assure you not everyone who tells me these things is using them as an excuse. Some people are sincere. Unfortunately, others use these words to spiritualize their unbelief or lack of action.

The Pharisees fell into this latter group. They were caught between a rock and a hard spot by Jesus’ question to them. On the one hand they feared the crowd, on the other, they did not want to believe what John had said. So they stalled. They gave an excuse. “We don’t know.” Baloney, they knew and refused to listen.

How often do we ignore God’s words to us and go on living in disobedience? How often do we stay away from a ministry opportunity and offer up excuses instead. Too often we are just the like the Pharisees, rationalizing our answers to best fit our plan for life instead of living in openness to God’s plan for life. Shame on us when we do. The authority Jesus exercised comes from the surrendered life not the rationalized one.

Jesus, I want to live in obedience to you every day. Help me not to rationalize my actions or attitudes when they conflict with your will for my life. May my first response be confession and repentance followed by faith in action. - Dan Jones

Authority to reaarange
Jesus has a habit of walking into places and creating upheaval. He’s just trashed the area where people sold sacrificial animals and changed currency. Now those in charge want to know who gave him the authority to do that, not to mention coming into these sacred precincts and teaching the kind of stuff he does.

Invite Jesus into our lives and this is pretty much what we can expect. In fact, if there isn’t upheaval and at least an uncomfortable feel to it, (if not initial resistance) perhaps he’s not really present!

Jesus embraces authority as if he were God. He takes for himself the right to assess the goodness of everything. His diagnosis? Just about everything that exists needs to be recalibrated. And he will insist that they be rearranged according to his own ideas.

So Jesus tells the Temple leaders how to treat his Father’s house. Make room for outsiders and stop overcharging people!

Bet on it. Let Jesus into the interior spaces of our lives, and he’ll start telling us how to run the show. And we can be pretty much guaranteed, that, if we listen carefully and long enough, he’ll end up recalibrating everything about us.

Master, go ahead and rearrange whatever you want to in my life. Thanks for being patient when I resist or don’t understand. I accept you as the author of life and will trust your changes to produce deep and meaningful life in me. - Mike Leamon