Emmaus Biblical Equipping
4/11/06 Gospel Reading
Mark 11:27-33
27 Again they came to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to him 28and said, ‘By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority to do them?’ 29Jesus said to them, ‘I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin? Answer me.’ 31They argued with one another, ‘If we say, “From heaven”, he will say, “Why then did you not believe him?” 32But shall we say, “Of human origin”?’—they were afraid of the crowd, for all regarded John as truly a prophet. 33So they answered Jesus, ‘We do not know.’ And Jesus said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.’
After Jesus explains to his disciples the meaning behind his cursing of the fig tree and cleansing of the Temple, the entire group returns yet again to Jerusalem (this is his third entry now) where they are met at the Temple by the highest authorities there. It appears that the purpose of the question posed to Jesus was that the authorities were hoping to trap him. If they admit that John’s authority came from heaven, then they would have to allow the same for Jesus, but at the same time be in trouble for not having welcomed him. If, however, they assert that John’s authority came only from man then they can continue to attack Jesus, but they will be in a lot of trouble due to John’s great popularity.
Explore:
1. Who confronted Jesus? Why?
2. What do Jesus’ actions tell you about His attitude toward the religious leaders of the day?
3. How did Jesus silence his critics?
Connect:
1. Why do you think Jesus did not want to reveal to the religious leaders the source of His authority?
2. When have you ever questioned God’s authority in you life?
3. What could you learn from Jesus’ example in this episode about dealing with people?
Prepare:
What specific steps can you take this week to obey God’s authority in one area of your life?