“The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin
were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to
death. ... The high priest said to him, ‘I charge you
under oath by the living God: Tell us if
you are the Christ, the Son of God.’
‘Yes, it is as you say,’ Jesus replied.
‘But I say to all of you: In the
future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One
and coming on the clouds of heaven.’
Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, ‘He has spoken
blasphemy! Why do we need any more
witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?’ ‘He is worthy of death,’ they answered.”
(Matthew 26:59, 62-66)
The answer Jesus gave to the high priest is
the declaration that separates.
The leaders of the Jews heard that statement,
convicted Jesus of blasphemy and put Him to death. They could not accept the truth of what He
said, they were not willing to even consider it. He did not look like or act like the Messiah
they were looking for and they were unwilling to consider that they might be
wrong.
For us, however, the same statement inspires
faith, confidence and hope. What Jesus
did -- His miracles, His death, His resurrection. What Jesus taught -- His authority and
obviously God-inspired teaching. How
Jesus lived -- His sinlessness and compassion.
All of these things combine to say that what He said to the high priest
is not blasphemy, but TRUTH. He declared
it clearly and openly and some accepted what He said and responded in faith and
others rejected what He said and responded in horror.
Jesus -- who He was and what He did is a
“stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
(1 Corinthians 1:23-24)
It is amazing that people can look at Jesus
and come away with such opposite answers about Him. He is the dividing point of history, the
separation point between men. Stand
firmly on His side!!
His, by Grace,
Steve
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