04/03/18 - Luke 23

April 3, 2018 – Luke 23

Herod plied Him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. Luke 23:9

Jesus doesn’t owe us answers, but often gives them in His silence.

This is hard to face:  but I’m more like Herod than I care to admit.

Herod finally got the chance to meet Jesus, and started asking many questions.  Luke doesn’t tell us what the questions were, but we can venture a guess.  Maybe Herod was curious about Jesus’ background.  Or maybe how Jesus did all those miracles.  Or how Jesus was able to attract all those crowds.  Maybe Herod was curious about Jesus’ opinions on political or social issues.  Or there could have been some clarification questions on teachings from Jesus’ sermons.

But I think there was one bigger question Herod asked, and it’s the question I would have asked too:  WHY?   Why did my loved one die?  Why does evil happen?  Why am I put in this place, or this job, or this family?  Of all the questions Herod could have asked, I would bet most of them were rooted with a WHY. 

That’s what makes me more like Herod than I care to admit.  Given the chance to ask, my questions would fall into the WHY category as well.  And if you had a private consultation with Jesus, you may also have some WHY questions to ask.  Let me be clear: THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH WHY QUESTIONS!  But the attitude behind the WHY question is often at issue.  Are you expressing grief, demanding an answer, longing to learn, or questioning the logic? 

But here’s the amazing response of Jesus.  JESUS DIDN’T ANSWER, he just listened. 

·         For the grieving, that is the best response: listening and caring for their pain.

·         For the demanding, it’s the best response: letting them hear their own arrogance.

·         For the learning, it’s the best response:  letting the question lead ourselves to learn the answer.

·         For the questioning, it’s also the best response: letting the person think through the issue.

Often, the best answer to WHY questions is not an answer, it’s a listening ear.  Jesus heard everything that Herod said, but didn’t offer an answer.  And that allowed Herod to hear himself.  It was not only wise of Jesus, it was the right answer from Jesus.

We’ve been on both sides of this situation.  When we’re faced with pain, we often want to demand answers.  And when people are in pain around us, we often want to give an answer.  Don’t be so quick to respond.  Use your listening skills as a part of the solution.  You might do more good in what you hear, than in what you say.   

And when life gets you down, go ahead and ask Jesus the WHY questions.  But pay attention to His response.  He may not be verbally answering, but He is definitely listening --- and that’s the best answer we could ever ask for!