Today's Passage - Luke 22:63-71

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Luke 22:63-71   The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him.  They blindfolded him and demanded, 'Prophesy! Who hit you?'  And they said many other insulting things to him.  At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them.  'If you are the Christ,' they said, 'tell us.'  Jesus answered, 'If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you, you would not answer.  But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.'  They all asked, 'Are you then the Son of God?'  He replied, 'You are right in saying I am.'   The status of Jesus Christ is the son of the eternal God; He has made his status clear several times during his preaching and He never tried to hide it.  This time, however, as He stood on trial before the judge, it's a time of life or death; no one cared about what exactly He said before, but when He was standing in the court and speaking with the Bible in hand, He must speak the truth carefully.  When Jesus faced inquisition by the court, He didn't not avoid any question.   First of all, He didn't answer the questions by flesh.  When the soldier ridiculed Him, they covered His eyes, beat Him, and asked Him "Prophesy! Who hit you?"  It's not that Jesus couldn't come up with the answer, but in all the miracles He performed, none was performed for Himself; even when He was in the desert, He didn't come up with a bread to feed Himself.  If Jesus acted by flesh, His own principle would have been violated, therefore He chose to remain silent.  We also need to learn this lesson, because no matter how much we are ridiculed by others, anger of people cannot complete God's righteousness.  Therefore, we need to calm down and let the Lord's justice prevail.   Second, He courageously faced the challenge of the truth.  The grand priest asked Him, "Are you then the Son of God?"  The answer from Jesus was totally clear with no ambiguity.  He didn't say maybe, perhaps, somewhat, or kind of; instead, He directly answered "you are right in saying I am," and then He also said "the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God."  His testimony was extremely clear, and every word of His carried power, because it was a true testimony; Holy Spirit was also His witness, and the power of Holy Spirit that was manifested had confirmed that Jesus is indeed the son of God!    Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, please give us a soft heart so that we may receive your testimony, and please give us a courageous heart so that we can be your testimony, and to draw more people to come to know you.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!