Year 4, Day 229: Luke 20

Theological Commentary: Click Here 

Discipleship Focus: Authority, Power

• Authority: Our calling.  This comes from God as king.  Because He calls us as His representatives, He gives us authority to go and do His will.
• Power: This is the natural outcome when we truly get our authority from the king.  When our authority is from God, we are equipped with His power to accomplish His will.  We act on His behalf in a world that He desperately loves.

What a great chapter about what is at the root of the human experience.  Control.  What a dirty little word that operates behind the scenes of almost everything we do.  Control is highly tied to the concept of authority.  So let’s look how we see what we can learn about the idea of authority in this chapter:

• When Jesus teaches about the baptism of John, Jesus uses the Pharisees desire for control to illustrate their hearts.  Because they wish to remain in control, Jesus can force the Pharisees to not take a stand.  They want to be in control, so they do not take a position.  Jesus has authority over them.
• In the parable of the vineyard, we hear a similar theme.  The tenants dispossess everything that the master of the land sends their way.  They want control of the land.  However, Jesus shows authority over them by teaching them that the desire for control puts them at odds with the master.  When we try to be in control of our life, we are trying to wrestle away God’s authority instead of accepting and submitting to His authority.
• With regard to taxes, Jesus speaks authoritatively into the crowd and religious leaders.  Who likes paying taxes, right?  But when we realize that everything is God’s and nothing is ours, taxes aren’t actually all that worth getting upset over.  If I get 100% of something I don’t deserve, why am I upset about having to give away a smaller portion of it?  Jesus demonstrates authority by removing our desire for control completely.
• With respect to the afterlife, we hear the Sadducees want to focus Jesus on the experience they desire.  The Sadducees want control over the concept of eternal life.  Jesus speaks authoritatively into their question by reminding them that eternal life is something over which God has authority, not us.

Again and again in this chapter we see Jesus confront the concept of control through the lens of authority.  We like to have control over everything; Jesus reminds us that we are better of seeking the authority that comes from the King.

What’s neat in this chapter is how we see the connection between authority and power.  Because Jesus lives out of the authority granted to Him by the King instead of desiring His own control, He also is able to have power over those who would desire to entrap Him.  But His power doesn’t come from His great humanity.  His power comes from the authority granted to Him by the King.

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