Mark 11:29 And Jesus answered and said unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.
Jesus’ conversation with the authorities in the temple revolved around ‘give and then receive’. They were asked a question, the answer to which was to open the door to receiving a response they sought from Jesus. Unfortunately, they would not answer Him, hence, they also did not obtain a response.
There are times when to receive, you first have to give. It is akin to the law of sowing and reaping: without the former, expecting a bountiful harvest is a fruitless adventure. You may not necessarily have to sow exactly what you desire to harvest, but making no contribution is one sure way to lock yourself out of an outflow from a resource.
This text from proverbs 11:24 comes to mind “There is one who scatters, yet increases more; And there is one who withholds more than is right, But it leads to poverty.” Poverty not only of material resources, but poverty of mind, relationships and resources. It sounds counter intuitive but although you might think it is advantageous to hold back on some things, this ultimately results in losses.
Scripture does not provide further insight, but it would have been interesting to see what the Jewish authorities did with Jesus’ response on his authority, and how it would have impacted their future relations with him. Regardless, they missed out entirely because they did not want to put forward any answer. themselves. Remember, sometimes to receive anything, you have to be ready to offer up something of yours – that is the language of sacrifice.
#sly
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