Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things

 Now when He came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people confronted Him as He was teaching, and said, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- where was it from?  From heaven or from men?"  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say to us, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men,' we fear the multitude, for all count John as a prophet."  So they answered Jesus and said, "We do not know."  And He said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

"But what do you think?  A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, 'Son, go, work today in my vineyard.'  He answered and said, 'I will not,' but afterward he regretted it and went.  Then he came to the second and said likewise.  And he answered and said, 'I go, sir,' but he did not go.  Which of the two did the will of his father?"  They said to Him, "The first."  Jesus said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you.  For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward relent and believe him."

- Matthew 21:23-32

Yesterday we read that, after His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.  But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  And Jesus said to them, "Yes.  Have you never read,  'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise'?"  Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.  Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.  And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again."  Immediately the fig tree withered away.  And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How did the fig tree wither away so soon?"  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.  And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

 Now when He came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people confronted Him as He was teaching, and said, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- where was it from?  From heaven or from men?"  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say to us, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men,' we fear the multitude, for all count John as a prophet."  So they answered Jesus and said, "We do not know."  And He said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."  Since Jesus is not a Levitical priest, the chief priests and the elders challenge His authority to cleanse the temple of the money changers and sellers of doves (see yesterday's reading, above).   As Christ is careful not to reveal Himself to scoffers, my study bible says, He confounds them with a different question about John.  Each question -- that of Jesus and that of the Elders' -- requires the same answer, and therefore would lead a person to confess that Jesus has come from heaven.  As Jesus does not answer them directly, He teaches us not to answer people who come asking about holy things with a malicious intent, my study bible adds.

"But what do you think?  A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, 'Son, go, work today in my vineyard.'  He answered and said, 'I will not,' but afterward he regretted it and went.  Then he came to the second and said likewise.  And he answered and said, 'I go, sir,' but he did not go.  Which of the two did the will of his father?"  They said to Him, "The first."  Jesus said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you.  For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward relent and believe him."    The elders, using their own principles, convict themselves in their answer to Christ's parable.

Today's reading shows us Jesus ready for confrontation with the leadership.  He has completed His ministry, and is here in Jerusalem because it is the right time for Him to be here.  As an opponent, He does not fight physical battles, although perhaps His first confrontation in the temple is to cleanse it in a very physical way, by throwing out the money changers and the sellers of doves (in yesterday's reading).  Jesus is immediately challenged by the authorities as to just exactly what His authority is to do so.  And here we get into the finer points of Jesus' confrontation in today's reading.  As He has done elsewhere, He refers to John the Baptist.  John was such a towering figure in His own time, and widely regarded in Israel among the people as a holy man.  The leaders are clearly fearful of what the people think about John, and so they will not contradict John's holiness in front of the crowds who've come for the Passover and are in the temple. It is important, also, to note that the leaders have no concern to give Christ an honest answer.  They simply worry about what the results will be.  Jesus uses their fear first of all to, in turn, refuse to answer their question.  He uses principles of limitation of conflict by setting down some rules as to what He will honor and what He will not.  Since they feel no need to answer Him, neither, He says, is He compelled to answer them.   But He goes on to tell a parable, a kind of riddle -- a time-honored way of response.  This they do answer; and so, responding in kind, Jesus tells them that they have answered to their own behavior regarding John.  What we notice about Jesus here is His toughness.  It doesn't come from claiming a position of authority in a worldly sense, but it does come from a kind of authority that has to do with integrity and mostly with humility.  How is this a picture of humility?  What comes first with Jesus is His fidelity to God the Father, and the priority of faith at work.  John the Baptist also could claim no position of worldly authority.  His life was austere in his service to God before all other things in life.  When you strip away all else, their lives seem to tell us, what you have left is a dependency and fidelity to God, and this becomes one's strength.  The toughness of Jesus' character is evident to anyone who's faced the prospect of testimony in a courtroom.  His principles are firm.  His truth is His rock.  While He will be prosecuted and condemned to death on a Cross through the manipulations and false testimony engaged by these men, He cannot be moved from His truth in the love of God.  This is the rock upon which He builds His Church -- faith, and it is the rock upon which we stand when we choose to let all things come second to His priorities.   Our God is a God of love, and mercy, and forgiveness -- but not a God of falsehood.  Our God knows the heart, but will not accept to support lies.  This is tough for us to understand, on worldly terms.  It seems that forgiveness, turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, giving up one's cloak would mean sometimes going along to get along -- but this is a misunderstanding and misreading of Jesus' full ministry and character that He shows to us in the completeness of the Gospels.  At some point, the mercy that we show will be the mercy shown to us, and this cuts both ways.  With what judgment we judge, we will be judged; and with the measure we use, it will be measured back to us (see 5:7, 7:2).   Jesus points out that the nominal sinners -- tax collectors and harlots -- did repent because they believed John, who came in the way of righteousness.  To be a God of compassion, of mercy, of grace, of love does not mean there are no values to uphold, no strengths to affirm, no truth to stand up for.  This is a lesson we could all take in learning what confrontation means and is about.  There is never abuse on Jesus' part, but there is good judgment and honesty.  Let us consider where He leads us in our own confrontations in life, with ourselves and with others.