Title: Look Into My Eyes!
“When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, because he taught as one with authority, not as their scribes” (Matthew 7:28,29).
The Gospels testify that Jesus had authority when he explained the law to the Jews and strengthened the kingdom of heaven, and everyone was amazed. How did he really have the authority to teach? Was it because the teaching method and technique were excellent while teaching with a loud voice that penetrated the heart, and was it because he showed miracles on the spot while teaching?
When interpreting the Bible, one must first be faithful to the meaning of the text before guessing the meaning of the inter-line. It is said that he taught as “one with authority”. He said that he did not teach “with authority”, but that “one with authority” seemed to teach.
They seem to mean the same thing, but there are significant differences. To interpret the former, attention should be paid to the teaching method, while the latter should be considered in connection with authority and those in authority. Even if you analyze it just like this, it means that more than half of it has already been interpreted. It is because it is a very natural principle that authority is always connected with the person who has it.
As an easy example, if the president of a trading company orders all employees to work hard to achieve the export target of 100 million dollars this year, he has the authority. The president provides various conditions for employees to work, and also distributes authority to each department. In addition, while rewarding for their hard work, those who did not contribute to the achievement of their goals will have their salaries cut or fired. Authority comes only when someone who can take full responsibility for their words speaks.
Also, if someone who is qualified to say something does it, he has authority. It's not the same as having a park custodian stop you from entering the park after 9pm and an adult passing by telling you not to go into the park and play because it's late. The former must be followed as it is said, while the latter is for reference only. Authority exists because the speaker has the office of the speaker, that is, the power already granted by law.
Furthermore, when a parent says, “Look straight into my eyes and tell me honestly!” in front of a child who lied to his parents that he studied and went out after playing hard without studying, he has authority. This is because, apart from the ethical issue of respecting parents, the personal and personal relationship of parents and children was premised. A person who has been harmed by a friend who has broken a personal promise can demand an apology, but a third friend cannot intervene.
Conversely, they cannot be held responsible for what they say, they have no authority and no right to say it, and they have no authority over what a third party says, regardless of any personal or personal relationship. However, according to the text, it means that there was no authority in the teachings of the scribes. So isn't it strange? Surely they have the authority and qualification to teach the law in the synagogue, and if they do not follow that teaching, they may be punished in a council, and they know the people gathered in the synagogue personally?
The scribes had authority to teach, but not over what they taught. In other words, because Jesus taught as a person who had authority over the words, the authority to teach was revealed, and no matter how powerful the scribes were, the authority did not appear because they did not have authority over the words.
To put it simply, the scribes used indirect speech to simply say “God commanded you to do this and this and that” from the perspective of the teacher of the law, whereas Jesus used direct speech directly from the point of view of God who gave the law, “Do this and that”. that was ordered. It means that Jesus did not speak in a way of exhortation or advice, such as, “It will be helpful and beneficial to you to do this or that.”
How did the Jews teach before they were amazed at Jesus' teaching? How is it recorded in the Bible just before the text? Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, do not worry about tomorrow, if you will not be judged, do not judge, hypocrite, first take the log out of your eye, go in through the narrow gate, hear the false prophet. He said that he would take all the responsibility himself, or as someone who could take it.
All of Jesus' teachings were based on the declaration, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). And the teaching style was the same. Not only were you the subject of the grammar, but you were also the subject of what was said. Their authority is inevitably different from those of the scribes who only preach after reading the law.
Furthermore, it was different from the prophet who declared that he had received a revelation from God. They always prophesied with the modifier “Thus saith the Lord”. John the Baptist, who is said to be the greatest of all women born, said, “The Messiah is coming soon. He will give judgment.” But Jesus declared, “I am the Son of Man, the Messiah, and the Son.” It was something that only a madman or a megalomaniac could say, but it was not considered that way at all. There was no contradiction or conflict between the content of the Word and the person who spoke it.
Most of the audience at that time had no personal relationship with Jesus. Most of them came after hearing the rumor that a strange and young rabbi had appeared, sneering around out of curiosity, trying to find faults to slander, and hoping that they would hopefully be healed. Such people could not move in front of the words of Jesus, their necks were numb and their hearts were pounding.
Hearing this, the Jews said to the Jews, “This is what this man must say. This person can be held responsible for that. No one other than this one has the authority to say such a thing. It seems that they know us inside and out. He brings out even the hidden things of the soul.” The feeling struck their hearts intensely.
I am not trying to explain what happened 2,000 years ago now. Even today's believers who read the Bible must have a firm awareness that Jesus is speaking to them as "the one with authority." It is not “the Bible, so it must be the word with authority”. It is that Jesus is speaking directly to me based on personal and personal relationships through the written texts.
In short, even at that very moment, Jesus said to the believer, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. you! Now look me in the eye and listen! Love your enemies! Don't imitate this generation! Offer your existence, your life, and your whole life as a living sacrifice! Go on the narrow road! There should be no place in the world to lay your head! Spread the gospel to the ends of the earth! It is only natural for us to be persecuted when we preach the gospel! Rather, give thanks in the midst of tribulation and increase the hope of heaven!”
It doesn't mean that Jesus was just coercive. With a heartbreaking heart that loves us more than our parents, it means that we are earnestly appealing to those who will fall into eternal destruction if left unattended, not just towards the children who have not studied and committed lies.
When a believer encounters the Bible, he says, “If you do this according to the Word, you will prosper and be blessed. You should not expect that you will be able to obtain mental peace by vindicating the enemy and releasing your injustice,” or thinking, “I should try to love my enemy” for a while and reflect on it and make a decision. Whenever we read the Word, we must have personal fellowship with Jesus. My heart is pounding, my heart is pounding, and I must be seized by the divine power of heaven, which cannot be expressed in words. So, because of that Word, not only the believer's life and life, but also the very existence of the believer must be completely turned upside down.
The Bible, no, God is speaking right now, looking straight into my eyes and completely penetrating my heart, how can I dare to treat and even disobey those words?
7/12/2006