And Jesus responded and began saying, as He taught in the temple area, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Until I put Your enemies under Your feet.”’ David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?” And the large crowd enjoyed listening to Him.
The scribes in this passage loved being experts on God’s Word; they prided themselves in knowing the right way to do things and telling people how to live it out. This arrogance even affected how they interpreted Scripture. But Jesus made clear that they didn’t have all the answers. Where the scribes were looking for God’s Messiah to establish their way of life, Jesus showed them that God’s Messiah was coming to establish His way of life—and we have to lay our lives down to take on His.
This struggle of the scribes is still real for us today. We struggle with wanting to be in charge of our lives and others. We pride ourselves in knowing Christian values and following them, yet Christ reminds us that He is our ultimate authority. We are not in charge, determining the way we want. We are to come the Lord and surrender to His way as His followers.
- When have you insisted on your own way instead of seeking God to see where He was leading?
- What is difficult for you to surrender to God? What makes that difficult?
- Pray and ask God to show you where you have insisted on your own way.
