Certainty with compassion

 
The story about giving to Caesar what belongs to Caesar closes with Jesus’ observation about the religious leaders –  that “taken back by my answer, they fell silent and slipped away” (Luke 20:26. Quotations are from Jesus, In His Own Words). On the same day, Jesus answered another question, this one having to do with the nature of life after the resurrection, noting that the Sadducees “didn’t have the courage to ask me anything else” (Luke 20:40). After answering yet another question posed by the Pharisees, Jesus noted, “From that point on no one had the courage to ask me any more questions” (Mark 12:34). Finally, Jesus took a question asked by some Pharisees and turned it back on them; and, since no one was able to answer, he said, “From that day on no one dared to question me further” (Matt. 22:46). These four consecutive encounters (and Jesus’ response to each) yield an important insight as to how Jesus lived out his life: Fully informed, he spoke with clarity about every issue. So much so that his adversaries were left with open mouth and afraid to pursue the discussion any further.
       Did this unique ability belong to Jesus alone or should it be characteristic of today’s Christian as well? As you might know from what I have written before, I believe the incarnate Jesus to have been fully human and not to have lived out his life by resorting to the use of his divine nature. If he did, the charge to live like Jesus would be preposterous. But he lived among us as one of us and we are to live as he did. How does this work out?
       The central thing is that he was fully informed. No one was able to ask him a question he couldn’t answer. I believe that every Christian should make scripture the fundamental book for life. We need to know how Yahweh dealt with his people prior to the coming of Christ. We need to be able to answer any question about how Jesus lived, what he taught, how he died for our sins, and how he will return. We ought to be able to turn immediately to relevant verses for answers to every basic problem of life.
One result of a thorough knowledge of scripture is the ability to answer relevant questions with clarity and certainty. The believer should approach all of life in a way that mirrors his Master. Tough call? Yes, but we follow the example of one who spoke with certainty, but never in a way that would alienate those who asked. Those who asked in order to trip him up were often baffled by their sudden encounter with truth, but others who really wanted to know were privileged to learn in an atmosphere of love and compassion.