How do you respond?

Last night, I was at The Garden, doing a Bible study/preaching with the ladies. The text was Luke 20:1-8. Jesus is teaching and preaching the Gospel(which is really cool to think, because the Gospel is Jesus came to save the world, so he was preaching about himself!), and some elders and teachers of the law, came and asked him who has given him authority to do the things he’s been doing. Jesus being so wise, answers their question with a question of his own: “John’s baptism – was that from heaven, or from man?” Well these guys knew they were stuck…if they said it was from heaven, then Jesus would ask them why they didn’t believe him. After all, John was preparing the way for Jesus, and if they really believed John, they would believe Jesus is who he says he is. But, if they say John’s baptism was from man, then according to the law(remember, they were teachers of the law), they would have been stoned to death for rejecting, or denouncing, a prophet of God. That’s a tough situation for them to be in…so they answered, “We don’t know.”

The way these guys responded revealed their ignorance and pride, it revealed their hearts. Which is always what happens when we encounter the words of Jesus. However you respond after hearing the words of Christ, or having an encounter with God, reveals your heart. Example…if you get mad when a pastor preaches on tithing, you’re just revealing your greedy heart.

Even when confronted about an area of your life, that maybe some friends have noticed, do you make the effort to change, do you consider their advice, or do you get upset and start calling out things you notice about them. We’ve all heard this, “You can’t judge me!” or “You think you’re better than me? Who do you think you are to confront me?” However you respond in those situations reveals your character.

People can see who you really are, your heart and your character are always revealed, by the way you respond. So how do you respond?

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