Nagsulod liwat si Jesus sa templo kag nagpanudlo sa mga tawo. May manugdumala didto nga mga pari kag mga manugdumala sang mga Judio nga nagpalapit sa iya kag nagpamangkot, "Ano bala ang imo awtoridad sa paghimo sang mga butang nga imo ginahimo diri sa templo? Sin-o ang naghatag sa imo sang sini nga awtoridad?"
Nagsabat si Jesus sa ila, "Mamangkot man ako sa inyo. Kag kon masabat ninyo ini, sabton ko man kamo kon ano ang akon awtoridad sa paghimo sini nga mga butang.
Kay sin-o bala naghalin ang awtoridad ni Juan sa pagbautiso, sa Dios bala ukon sa tawo?" Nagbinaisay sila kon ano ang ila isabat. Siling nila, "Kon magsiling kita nga 'Halin sa Dios,' masiling siya, 'Ti ngaa wala kamo nagpati kay Juan?'
Pero kon magsiling kita nga 'Halin sa tawo,' delikado kita sa mga tawo kay nagapati sila nga si Juan propeta sang Dios."
Gani nagsabat sila kay Jesus, "Wala kami makahibalo." Dayon nagsiling si Jesus sa ila, "Ti indi ko man kamo pagsugiran kon kay sin-o awtoridad ginahimo ko ini nga mga butang."
Prayers:
"Lord Jesus Christ, you are the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Let your
light shine in my heart and in my mind that I may grow in understanding
the truth of your word and find joy and freedom in living according to
it."
***
Reflection of the Daily Gospel:
Are you willing to take a stand for the truth, even when it might cost you personally because of opposition or disapproval from others? When we fear the disapproval or rejection of our friends we are tempted to be evasive and to bluff our way to avoid confrontation or trouble. Jesus told his disciples that the truth would make them free - free to think and act according to what they know is right, honest, and good, rather than yield to deception, lies, and evil (John 8:32).
When the Israelites began to enter the promised land, after their wilderness sojourn of forty years, they met stiff resistance and opposition from the people around them. Balak, one of the local rulers in Canaan, employed the services of Balaam, a prophet of Baal, to put a curse upon the Israelites. Balak wanted to scare the Israelites away through fear and ill omen. Balaam, however, prophesied blessing and protection to the Israelites rather than cursing and destruction. He yielded to the Spirit of truth rather than to the spirit of falsehood. He spoke the word of God contrary to the words which King Balak wanted him to speak. Balaam even prophesied that a star would one day announce the coming of the Messiah King from the house of Jacob. This king would destroy all the enemies of God's people and establish a kingdom of peace (Numbers 24:17).
When the prophet John the Baptist began to preach a message of repentance in preparation for the coming of the Messiah, the religious leaders and rulers in Palestine resisted his word and persecuted him as well. Jesus met resistance, opposition, and fierce hostility from the religious rulers as well. Why did the religious leaders oppose Jesus and reject his claim to divine authority? Their view of religion did not match with God's word because their hearts were set on personal gain rather than truth and submission to God's plan and design for their lives. They openly questioned Jesus to discredit his claim to be the Messiah. If Jesus says his authority is divine they will charge him with blasphemy. If he has done this on his own authority they might well arrest him as a mad zealot before he could do more damage. Jesus, seeing through their trap, poses a question to them and makes their answer a condition for his answer. Did they accept the work of John the Baptist as divine or human? If they accepted John's work as divine, they would be compelled to accept Jesus as the Messiah. They dodged the question because they were unwilling to face the truth. They did not accept the Baptist and they would not accept Jesus as their Messiah.
The coming of God's kingdom or reign on the earth inevitably leads to conflict – a conflict of allegiance to God's will or my will, God's justice or the world's way of playing fair, God's standard of absolute moral truth or truth relative to what I want to believe is good and useful for the time being. How do you respond to Jesus' claim to be not only the Messiah, but the source of everlasting life and truth as well? Do you submit to his word and stake your life on the coming of his kingdom? Jesus promises that those who seek to live according to God's truth will find true joy, freedom, and happiness both now and forever.
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