It was bound to
happen; John the Baptist is being somewhat cryptic in his responses. He is not
apparently interested in making it easy for these uninvited inquisitors. He tells them who he is not (The
Messiah). He rebuffs their attempts to
peg him as a second coming of Elijah or even the promised Prophet whose arrival
had been predicted by Moses millennia ago.
The emissaries of
the leaders yet to be identified individually are not going to give up without
a fight. "Who are you then?"
they insist. They finally admit they are
not really speaking for themselves, but for a mysterious cartel of power-brokers
back home. They ask for more
clarification so they don't return empty-handed to Jerusalem. It is in this context that they ask the next
question. It is a question that gives me
much reason to ponder.
I wonder what my
answer would be if I was asked, "What do you say about yourself? What makes you tick?" In other words, apart from anything anyone
might say about me; regardless of any titles, earned or attributed, who do I
say I am? What defines me in my own eyes
and estimation? Second only to what God
thinks of me, what I think of myself in our heart of hearts is critical. Why am I here on earth? What is my mission in life? What has God assigned to me as your life's
work? I am at a place right now where I
am being pushed to reassess my answer to that question. I must take the time to listen to what God
has to say. I should do it more often.
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