Over the last three weeks, we’ve seen Jesus answer questions from three different groups of religious leaders. The religious leaders weren’t seeking to discover truth with these questions.
They were questions meant to trap him, alienate him from his supporters, or get him in trouble with the Roman government.
Pharisees’ tax question
Sadducees’ resurrection question
Scribe’s law question
He has answered each of them with such skill and wisdom that the text says no one else dared to ask him any questions. The debate is over. Jesus stands victorious. (Battle royale analogy)
But these antagonistic questions were not enough to reveal who Jesus really is. It’s now his turn to ask the questions, and he begins with a question about the Messiah. Unlike the religious leaders, whose questions were meant to trap, Jesus wants to reveal himself. Essentially, he’s asking, “Do you know who I am?”
This is one of the great attributes of God - he seeks to reveal himself to us. It’s hard to imagine when you really think about it. The God of the universe longs to reveal himself in a personal way - to me? King David wrestled with this idea in Psalm 8.
Psalm 8:3-4 When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers— the moon and the stars you set in place—4 what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?
General Revelation - creation
Special Revelation - Bible
Personal Revelation - Jesus
Jesus is the pinnacle of God’s revelation to humanity. He is God in the flesh and at the heart of his question to the Pharisees he is asking - do you know who I am?
That’s the question I want to use as a framework for today’s message: Do you know who Jesus is?
Jesus is going to use Psalm 110 as the means to reveal himself
Read Psalm 110 as intro?
The LORD said to my Lord,
“Sit in the place of honor at my right hand
until I humble your enemies,
making them a footstool under your feet.”
The LORD will extend your powerful kingdom from Jerusalem;
you will rule over your enemies.
When you go to war,
your people will serve you willingly.
You are arrayed in holy garments,
and your strength will be renewed each day like the morning dew.
The LORD has taken an oath and will not break his vow:
“You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”
The Lord stands at your right hand to protect you.
He will strike down many kings when his anger erupts.
He will punish the nations
and fill their lands with corpses;
he will shatter heads over the whole earth.
But he himself will be refreshed from brooks along the way.
He will be victorious.
(Pillar New Testament Commentary) Ps 110 is quoted or alluded to thirty-three times in the NT, and an additional seven times in early Christian authors. See D. M. Hay, Glory at the Right Hand. Psalm 110 in Early Christianity (Nashville/New York: Abingdon Press, 1973), 15, 45-47.
(Pillar New Testament Commentary) The preceding story ended with the note that "from then on no one dared ask [Jesus] any more questions" (12:34). The wording of v. 34 (particularly in Gk.) is strong and unequivocal, signifying that Jesus has prevailed over challenges from the Sanhedrin (11:27-33) and its various constituencies – the Pharisees (12:13-17), Sadducees (12:18-27), and scribes (12:28-34). Jesus has bested the field and debate is closed. Jesus does not quit the field, however, but he takes it. The meaning of his person and the kingdom he proclaims cannot be understood by mere responses to human interrogation – especially when the interrogation is antagonistic. The questions and categories of the Sanhedrin, the supreme authority in Judaism, are not sufficient to reveal and encompass Jesus. And if theirs are not...
