DGeMs- Daily Gospel eMessage
Dear Friend in the Lord,
Truth – Living: In today’s Gospel, the chief priests and elders questioned Jesus’ authority to teach in the Temple. However, they were not able to refute the Truth that Jesus proclaimed. Likewise, if we try to justify our unbelief and disobedience of God’s Truth, Love and Mercy, we will always live in fear and insecurity.
Fr Philip Heng, S.J.
Matthew 21:23-27
Jesus had gone into the Temple and was teaching, when the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him and said, ‘What authority have you for acting like this? And who gave you this authority?’
In reply Jesus said to them, ‘And I will ask you a question, just one; if you tell me the answer to it, then I will tell you my authority for acting like this. John’s baptism: what was its origin, heavenly or human?’ And they argued this way among themselves, ‘If we say heavenly, he will retort to us, “Then why did you refuse to believe him?”; but if we say human, we have the people to fear, for they all hold that John was a prophet.’
So their reply to Jesus was, ‘We do not know.’ And he retorted to them, ‘Nor will I tell you my authority for acting like this.’