Cowardice

There are many times in life when we are confronted with a question, and we must choose how to answer it. In these moments, there can be the temptation to answer the question with a convenient answer. This is the answer that maintains the status quo and does not jeopardize one’s status or privilege. Instead of answering with the truth, we give a non-confrontational answer. Over time, this can habituate us to the point of being silent in the face of injustice.

Gospel - Matthew 21:23-27

When Jesus had come into the temple area,

the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him

as he was teaching and said,

“By what authority are you doing these things?

And who gave you this authority?”

Jesus said to them in reply,

“I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me,

then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things.

Where was John’s baptism from?

Was it of heavenly or of human origin?”

They discussed this among themselves and said,

“If we say ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say to us,

‘Then why did you not believe him?’

But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we fear the crowd,

for they all regard John as a prophet.”

So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.”

He himself said to them,

“Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Scriptural Analysis

The chief priest and the elders mentioned in the opening of the passage are representatives of the Sanhedrin. The word Sanhedrin comes from the Greek word synedrion, which means council. It was the name given to Jerusalem’s supreme Jewish legislative and judicial body. This group will be leading the charge against Jesus, working to bring him to death. They are upset as he has challenged their role as the religious leaders in Jerusalem.

Consider what has happened thus far. Jesus entered Jerusalem with the crowds hailing him as King. They have seen him cleanse the temple, driving out the money changers and those selling animals for sacrifice. In Luke’s account, we also hear Jesus foretelling the temple’s coming destruction. One can see why the religious leaders would be nervous and seek to silence this man.

They decide to question Jesus publicly and ask him a logical question, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?” This question is a trap. Jesus will either have to claim that he has no authority from God or that he came from God. Either answer puts him in a bad position. However, Jesus does not fall for the trap. He tells them that he will answer their questions if they first answer his questions, “Where was John’s baptism from?”

Jesus is not changing the topic. There is a continuity between John’s ministry as the forerunner of the Messiah and Jesus’s ministry. Additionally, in answering this way, Jesus is delaying directly answering that he is, in fact, the Son of God. To do so at this moment would have created difficulties for him. He was not ready to deal with these as he still had work to complete. It was not time for his ministry to be over.

Now, this question puts them in a challenging situation. John was very popular with the people. They can say that John’s ministry did not come from God, which most certainly would have angered the crowds, or they can say he was from God and then look ridiculous for not believing John. They responded by saying that they did not know, to which Jesus replied that he would not answer their question concerning his authority.

Daily Application

It takes courage to answer a question truthfully when we know that a truthful answer will create problems for us. This is the behavior exhibited by the chief priests and elders. They know full well that answering this question truthfully (and by that, I mean what they believe to be true about who John is) would cause them great difficulty. So, instead, they act cowardly, avoiding the question altogether.

How many times do we act similarly? How often are we confronted with a question about any number of issues today where we refuse to speak truthfully? When questions about marriage, transgenderism, or other “hot button” issues, we give the culturally accepted answer instead of the answer based on the truth of the Gospel. We provide the answer that presents little risk to us: to our position, wealth, or status.

This is not what our Lord is calling us to. Recall the words from Luke, “For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” (Luke 9:26) Speaking the truth, even when it is inconvenient, is demanded of us. Sharing the Gospel message, the message of Christ is what we are called to do. Now, we can do that with love and charity, but if we spend our lives avoiding difficult discussions, afraid of losing our status or privilege, or being silent, we will have to account for that on the day of our judgment.