No Answer

How difficult it can be to willingly choose to refuse to become defensive.
Luke 23:5-9 (NIV)⁵But they insisted, "He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here."  ⁶On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. ⁷When he learned that Jesus was under Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.  ⁸When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform some miracle. ⁹He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.
           

In today’s passage, we see that Pilate and Herod—the ones in authority—were pretty impressed with Jesus, even though quite a few of the townspeople were obviously ticked off at Him. Herod was excited to meet Jesus and he hoped to see with his own eyes the things he had only been hearing. From this scenario it makes it hard to believe that this whole crucifixion thing could have ever happened to Jesus. It made no sense then, and it makes no sense now—if we look at it merely from a natural standpoint that is. When He could have given an answer in His own defense, Jesus chose to remain silent. When He could have just said the word, and everything would have changed, He chose to say nothing.

How hard that would be for me! When I feel accused, misunderstood, judged, or rejected, my first instinct is to protect myself and defend my honor and integrity. And yet, Jesus (the ultimate authority in this whole situation) chose to remain completely silent—refusing to defend Himself in any way.

I’ve heard Pastor Johnny Hunt (First Baptist Church of Woodstock) say on many occasions that we are never less like Jesus than when we are trying to defend ourselves. Does this mean we should never set the record straight? I don’t think so. But I do see that oftentimes we can become more concerned with what people think about us or whether or not people like us, than we are in what God is trying to do in us and through us.

Jesus could remain silent as He confidently trusted in His Heavenly Father’s purpose for His life—and His death. As Christians, we accept and believe that Jesus entered our world, knowing He would die for it. He counted the cost and willingly chose to step out of Heaven and into our world because He felt we were worth it. We, too, can choose to walk in the full assurance that our Heavenly Father’s purposes will be accomplished in our lives—regardless of the opposition or obstacles we encounter along the way.

Questions to consider:

1. When facing criticism from others, how difficult is it for you to remain silent and allow God to be your defender?

2. Can you think of some other Scriptures that talk about the importance of what comes out of our mouths and the importance of what does not come out of our mouths?

3. How differently might things have turned out had Jesus given in to the pressure to answer Herod’s questions and the people’s accusations?

4. Sometimes we are the very ones who pester and pressure our Lord to give us an answer or show us a miracle. And sometimes He chooses to remain silent for a time. This can be difficult for the believer, but if handled properly, can be very beneficial in bringing greater maturity to our lives. Have you ever experienced a time like this?

Please share your experience and what you learned by responding in the Comment Box below.