Romancing The Rock

‘At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. “If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.”

Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you, you would not answer. But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”

They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?”

He replied, “You say that I am.”

Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.”’ [Luke 22:66-71 NIV]

Photo by fabioslave

As I read this passage last week, something stood out to me: Jesus was absolutely sure of who He was and what He had to do. There was no room for doubt.

He stood, first before the chief priests, then Pilate and then Herod. They all asked Him if He was the Messiah, the King of the Jews. In each case, He either remained silent, or confirmed His claim. And such a huge claim it was — one that was punishable by death in Jewish law.

If He knew what would befall Him by holding to this assertion that He was the Son of God, and if there were any doubt in Him, surely He would have backed down, admitted a mistake, something.

This reminds me of the statement ‘liar, lunatic or Lord,’ which was said by CS Lewis. If Christ was a liar or a lunatic, certainly He would have given in under the pressure, or at the very least, screamed against the persecution He received. But He did none of these. He quietly stood His ground and went to the cross without a fuss or fight.

My question is, do you and I have that much certainty to who He is, and to our purpose in life? Are we willing to lay down our lives for the cause, and not give in to the pressure of hardships? It’s worth a thought.