In our sensationalized media age I often get the gut feeling
that questions that could help the public engage in civil
discourse and make wiser decisions are instead intended to
embarrass or entrap. Jesus was not immune to this tactic—
especially from the religious leaders who wanted so desperately
to expose him as a fraud.
Yet questions can generate new thoughts and perceptions.
Honest inquiry that seeks to pull back the layers
of knowledge and complexity is always in order. So the
question in today’s text posed to Jesus by John the Baptist’s
disciples is one that allows Jesus to shed light, deepen
knowledge, and inspire faith: “Are you the one who is to
come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus answers by citing
his actions on behalf of the blind, the lame, the deaf, the
leper, the poor, and even the dead. His answer is compassionate
yet firm. If John and his disciples are not sure just
who Jesus is, they now know.
Jesus, indeed, is the one who was to come. But because
Jesus came in a different guise and fashion, acting more like
a servant than a messiah, people weren’t sure. Jesus showed
them and shows us a view of the God who works among the
lost, the last, and the least.
We dare not fault John for sending his clarifying question.
Remember, Jesus said of John, “Among those born of
women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist.” The
real question now is this: In what ways do we announce to
the world that Jesus is the One who has come through our
compassion for “the least of these”?
By Gregory V. Palmer from The Upper Room: 60 Days of Prayer for General Conference 2016