The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Mark 11:27-33, “And they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, and scribes, and elders came to Him, 28 and began saying to Him, ‘By what authority are You doing these things, or who gave You this authority to do these things?’

29 And Jesus said to them, ‘I will ask you one question, and you answer Me, and then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30 ‘Was the baptism of John from heaven, or from men? Answer Me.’

31 And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, ‘If we say, “From heaven,” He will say, “Then why did you not believe him?” 32 ‘But shall we say, “From men”?– they were afraid of the multitude, for all considered John to have been a prophet indeed.

33 And answering Jesus, they said, ‘We do not know.’ And Jesus said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.’”

Sometimes it just better not to ask questions. Especially is this true when you’re trying to trap someone. The question of the Pharisees concerned authority. “By what authority are You doing these things…?” That’s the key question in just about everything these days. “Who told you to do that?” or “When did you become boss?”

Let’s suppose that you have discovered an error in the place where you work. Let’s suppose, too, that you have a pretty good idea who caused the error and why he did it. What are you to do? If you report the error, all of your fellow-workers will come down on you for being a snitch, a whistleblower! If you don’t report the error, you will be inviolation of the rules of the workplace and could suffer demotion or even lose your job.

This was the dilemma the Pharisees produced for themselves when they challenged Jesus. He simply turned the tables on them by saying, If you will answer me a question, I will answer yours. Now, they’re on the defensive. They huddle together and search for an answer. It must have been humiliating for them to have to say, “We do not know,” because they saw themselves as the authority over all legal matters. They were the high and might mukity-mucks. But they had to swallow their pride and admit defeat.

I submit that both of these situations –the biblical one and my work-place one– all come back to the matter of character –your character. James 4:17 says, “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

We dare not play fast-and-loose with clearly displayed rules. All authority ultimately is traceable back to God. What would Jesus do? becomes the all-important question. And when “push comes to shove,” what happens to us is not important. What reflects upon Him is! Old doctor Bob Jones, founder of Bob Jones University, used to say, “It’s never right to do wrong to do right.” In other words, just always do the right thing. It’s a matter of character; and that’s the basis upon which the LORD will ultimately bestow His reward.

You are ever and always in our prayers,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”