Again the high priest asked Him and said unto Him, "Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?" And Jesus said, "I am; and ye shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming in the clouds of heaven." Then the high priest rent his clothes and said, "Why need we any further witnesses? Ye have heard the blasphemy. What think ye?" And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death. Mark 14:61-64
Jesus warned his enemies -- the Jewish high priests, elders and scribes -- that though they rejected Him now, they would one day see Him seated at the right hand of God the Father in heaven and coming in the clouds of glory to be their Judge. Now was the time to repent and look to Him in faith for mercy and forgiveness before it is too late (cf. Psalm 2:10-12).
Why was Jesus condemned by His enemies? What were the charges against Him? It was because He told His enemies the truth, that He is God's own dear Son -- and that they would on the Last Day see Him as prophesied in Daniel the prophet: "I saw in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion and glory and a Kingdom, that all people, nations and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His Kingdom that which shall not be destroyed" (Dan. 7:13-14).
Jesus' enemies accused Him of "blasphemy" for claiming to be the Messiah, the Son of the Almighty God, and said He was "deserving of death."
This truth that Jesus is the Christ, God's only-begotten Son, and their Judge on the Last Day, was distressing to them because Jesus revealed to them their utter sinfulness and their need to repent and trust in Him for salvation, but they were not willing to face their own sin and need of a Savior!
Today also, people reject Jesus and the Christian Faith for the same reason. They are discomforted by the truth that Jesus is God the Son and will be the Judge of the living and of the dead on the Last Day. They are unwilling to acknowledge their own sinfulness before the LORD God and their need for a Savior! They are unwilling to turn from their sins to Christ Jesus for mercy!
Instead of accepting the responsibility and guilt for their own wickedness, people attempt to justify and excuse themselves, placing the blame for their failures on anything and everyone but themselves. Instead of acknowledging their utter sinfulness and seeking God's mercy and forgiveness, they attempt to justify themselves and are angered by the truth that God will judge and condemn them for their sin.
The Bible says: "If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us. My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 1:7 -- 2:2).
The Bible also says in Psalm 32:1-5: "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silent, my bones waxed old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Thy hand was heavy upon me; the sap of my soul was turned into the drought of summer. (Selah) I acknowledged my sin unto Thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord,' and Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. (Selah)"
If we hide and cover up our sins, we are lying to and deceiving ourselves; but, if we acknowledge and confess our sins unto the Lord, He will have mercy upon us and forgive us all our sins for the sake of Jesus Christ's holy life and innocent sufferings and death in our stead.
Again, the Bible says: "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy" (Prov. 28:13).
Dear LORD God, we acknowledge our own sinfulness unto You and ask You to graciously forgive and cleanse us for the sake of the holy and precious blood which Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son, shed for us on the cross. Amen.
[Scripture quotations are taken from the 21st Century King James Version (KJ21) Copyright © 1994 by Deuel Enterprises Inc. Devotion is by Randy Moll. He may be contacted at [email protected]. More of Moll's devotional writings may be freely read at https://goodshepherdonline.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author.]