The Authority of Jesus, the Christ

MEMORY VERSE: “And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. And they marveled at him.” —Mark 12:17

MARK 11:27-33; 12:13-17

JESUS was well received by the general public in Israel. His enemies were the religious leaders and rulers. They saw in him and in his popularity a threat to their own position as leaders, so they endeavored by every means possible to discredit him. In this study we find Jesus’ enemies questioning his authority. He did not choose to answer their question, but asked them by what authority John the Baptist conducted his ministry, promising that if they answered this question then he would tell them the source of his authority.

John the Baptist was also opposed by the religious leaders, and his teachings rejected by them. However, they knew that he was popular with the people. Jesus’ question was a difficult one for these religionists to answer. If they indicated that John the Baptist received his authority from God, then Jesus would have asked them why they did not believe him. If their answer was that he received his authority merely from men, they knew this would be displeasing to the populace. So they decided to say that they did not know.

Jesus then replied to the religious leaders that since they declined to answer his question, he would not answer theirs concerning the source of his authority. However, near the beginning of his ministry Jesus had established his authority to be a teacher of God’s truth. This was in a synagogue in Nazareth, his home town. Entering the synagogue, Jesus was handed a scroll containing the Book of Isaiah. He turned to what we know as the 61st chapter of this book, and read:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.”—Luke 4:16-19

Jesus explained that this scripture applied to him; that he had been given the authority of the Holy Spirit to conduct his ministry. The thought of authority is contained in the word “anointed.” The various kings and priests of Israel were anointed to office, their anointing being the official designation of their authority to serve. Jesus was not anointed with oil, but by the Holy Spirit, signifying that his authority came from his Heavenly Father.

Jesus bound up the broken-hearted both by his words and by his miracles. He proclaimed that all held captive in death would in God’s due time be delivered, and he delivered some from the sleep of death to illustrate that divine power was equal to fulfilling God’s promises of the resurrection. Everything which Jesus said and did was authorized by God through the Holy Spirit. On another occasion Jesus explained that the words which he spoke were not his, but his Father’s; and that by himself he could do nothing.

MARK 12:13-17

In this scripture we have another example of the efforts of the religious leaders of Israel to embarrass Jesus by their questions. This time it pertained to paying taxes to the Roman government. They asked, “Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” (vs. 14) Jesus requested a coin, and asked, “Whose is this image and superscription?” They answered that it was Caesar’s. Jesus then replied, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”—vss. 15-17

This answer by Jesus sets forth a principle to guide all who serve the Lord. As followers of the Master we have certain obligations to the civil authorities who rule over us. There are taxes to be paid, and so on. It would not be proper to withhold full obedience to these civil laws with the view of doing more to serve the Lord. If we are asked to participate in war to kill our fellow men, the true follower of the Master would have to decide whether or not to obey such a requirement. In America and some other countries, provision is made for conscientious objectors to war, and for this we can be thankful. Every true Christian will make sure that he is true to God, regardless of what the cost might be.

QUESTIONS

By what authority did Jesus conduct his ministry?

When will all the captives in death be released?

Do we today have to render some things to “Caesar”?

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