Jesus' peerless authority
Matthew 23 Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”
Jesus put alot of people's noses out of joint, especially those who enjoyed positions of authority.
In effect those chief priests were saying: "Who do you think you are? It's OUR job to teach the people - God appointed US, not you - a carpenter's son from Nazereth!"
They had just seen Jesus enter into Jerusalem and watched as He had been heralded by the crowd with palm branches.
They were being seriously undermined in their position by Jesus. So they were jealous of the adulation He received.
Envy and jealousy led to them actually planning to kill Jesus!
Imagine that - those that were meant to represent God to the people were the last to recognise and accept the Messiah's arrival!
Jesus' peerless authority has been eroded and questioned in today's secular society. He has been downgraded to the level of Buddha or Mohammed.
When sharing about Jesus, people will often say "What makes Jesus so special? Why should we believe Him more than any other religious icon?"
Jesus IS different, He IS unique. Only He was raised from the dead, only He ascended into Heaven and only He will return to judge each one of us.
Most importantly only He died to save us, only He loved us enough.
All other "religions" make humans try to reach up to God.
Jesus is God reaching down to connect with us.
Jesus IS peerless - His authority is total.
Philippians 2:10 AMPC
That in (at) the name of Jesus every knee should (must) bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.
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