“So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”” Mark 11:33 ESV
Reflection: do people come to God, or does God come to them?
We are once again approaching the beginning of a new school year. For some, this is a very exciting time, full of anticipation as many enter into a university that they have been accepted to. Although it is now quite a long time ago, I still remember getting the acceptance letter in the mail to the university I attended. I was thrilled that they had given me this opportunity, that they had chosen me for their engineering degree program. Now, clearly getting their acceptance letter wasn’t enough to get an education. I had to first acknowledge and receive it, and then actually choose and commit to go there to learn. Some people get the acceptance letter, but never end up going there to get an education,
While not a perfect analogy, there are some parallels here to becoming a Christian. Through Jesus, we have been accepted and chosen by God, to enter into His kingdom. But, God’s acceptance and election of us isn’t enough, which seems strange in a way. We still have to accept this, and then choose and commit to become a follower of Christ. And, we see such a clear example of this in the story from the end of Mark chapter 11 today.
After Jesus had “cleansed” the temple once more, He was approached by the religious leaders. “And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?”” Mark 11:27-28 ESV. Now, Jesus knowing their hearts, knowing very well that they were not interested in pursuing the truth, He decided to demonstrate to them how little interest they had in the truth. “Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” “And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet.” Mark 11:29-32 ESV
What is so interesting about this exchange, is to see what they were actually pursuing. They were clearly not interested in getting to the right answer; they were pursuing the best “political” answer that they thought would benefit them. And by this small example, Jesus demonstrated to them, and to everyone who were listening, what was truly in their hearts. They had knowledge of God, but they had no interest in God.
No interest in the truth.
This revealing of the truth, was made plain to them, over and over. But they liked the darkness. They had been blinded by their own pride of “knowledge”, their selfishness of greed, power, position, and so on. And it is in the heart of God that they would have accepted the truth, so that He could have brought them into His kingdom, that they could be saved. And, while they had the invitation, they rejected it. John wrote “He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him” John 1:11 ESV. Paul wrote to Timothy about the heart of God, “who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:4 ESV.
All people; not one group of people.
And we see the same today too. There are those who have no interest in the knowledge of truth; only what can benefit them in their prideful and selfish pursuit. They twist God’s word to make it sound like they are pursuing Him, but they are not. But, this is relevant to “all people”, you and I included, to pursue and come to the knowledge of truth. To accept His invitation, and to actually commit to follow Him, leaving all else behind.
