John 2:20

The Jewish leaders are taken aback by his response.  "What?" they reply, "it’s taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you claim you can rebuild it in three days?  That's ridiculous!"  John 2:20 EFP

What else can the Jewish temple leaders say?  From their perspective, this Johnny-come-lately who has just finished putting a serious dent into their temple fund-raising initiatives now apparently claims he can rebuild Herod's temple in three days.  Please note that Herod's temple was a work in progress.  The building had been in continual state of expansion for forty-six years.   It was, in a sense, not finished yet.  It was truly a magnificent edifice.

I do wonder if the leaders' response to Jesus is more in the fashion of Nicodemus' question to Jesus when he asked, "How can a man re-enter his mother's womb to be born again?"  Are they being obtuse on purpose, trying to avoid having to face the true meaning of the statement Jesus has just made?  They could have simply asked, "That sounds a bit over-the-top, you must mean something other than what we hear you say.  What are you really saying?"  Then Jesus perhaps would have given them the knowledge he wanted them to internalize, and they would have been introduced to the Messiah.  Jesus is not trying to be evasive; He is making sure they want to know the answer and not just playing mind games.

I'm no different at times.  I can be obtuse when I don't really want to hear the answer I’m getting from people-- Penny particularly.  It's almost as if I become dull-of-thinking (more than usual) when what I am hearing is not very convenient or pleasant to my plans to the contrary.  I am prone to ask a rather moronic question to side-step the issue.  Penny usually gives me "the look" which is enough to put me back on track, but sometimes she lets me off the hook and concedes that pressing the issue would not benefit either one of us.  I have no doubt God occasionally acts in the same manner.  He does not seek to impose his will. He is not in the business of forcing relationships on his children.  Sometimes he simply lets us make the choice to "play dumb", and make no mistake, we are very good at it.  There is the risk that we will become satisfied with our self-deception, but that is the risk a loving God is willing to take to ensure we love him and enter into a close relationship with him out of a true sense of love and commitment.  I can handle that.