IT WAS ONE OF THOSE DAYS

LUKE 20:1 And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders, 2 And spake unto him, saying, Tell us, by what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this authority?

To begin with brothers and sisters, Christian Friends, Well Wishers and Saints of God It was one of those days. All of us have had “one of those days”.

I was looking at a you tube reel and the little fellow was talking to himself on the reel. And he basically said It’s one of these days where I feel like setting it off and show em that I don’t play but he began to say to himself out loud Don’t do that you got bills to pay, you got obligations to meet, and your family is counting on you… And I laughed and laughed and laughed again and I said to myself Somebody secretly filmed me back in the day and they are pulling up a remix on what I said. Because I sware I’ve said don’t tell em off today, you’ll get fired and won’t be able to teach school not another day.

I sware I’ve said don’t hit nobody today you’ll go to jail for it.

The late great Coach Kettleson of Belaire High said to me one day Allen my wife told this morning Baby just don’t go get fired today… That stuck with me because coach said one these kids gon catch me on one them days when I don’t feel like putting up with them and I ain’t gon be nothing nice.

I told my wife about it and she started telling me on my way out the door baby just don’t go get fired today we still have babies to raise.

Listen to me some people you just might need to leave alone because brothers and sisters some people can rub you the wrong way sometimes and It might just be One those days like Jesus was talking about.

Yeah 3x In verse one Jesus said “that on one of those days”

They done caught me wrong.

They done come at me wrong.

They done handled me wrong!!!

Brothers and sisters with the current climate of the country I’m mindful of my behavior around them folks because it seems to me that racism is escalating not diminishing. It’s one of those days

It seems to me the prices are going up and my wages are going down. My buying power has diminished. It’s one of those days.

Well it seems to me that domestic violence is escalating not diminishing. I hate to preach the newspaper but I was watching the news and while the po po was investigating a murder, while the cameras were filming!!! Shots rang out and people were running and somebody else got shot and killed. It’s was one of those days.

It seems like one of those days are happening more frequently than ever before. And the good Lord spoke to me and said don’t get carried away with the care of this worldly stuff Because this worldly stuff will make you go back to the old you. If we are in Christ we have become new creations. The bible says old things are passed away and behold all things are become new for those who are new creatures in Christ Jesus…

And so I’ve got to go back to the you tube reel.… And say out loud to myself ! Don’t set it off, you have pertinent responsibilities, You’re considered a part of the upper echelon, You are middle class according to your education level, you’re Rev. Dr. R.E Allen, You have too much to lose so just walk away.

But Jesus couldn’t and wouldn’t just walk away NO NO NO. And they came at Jesus side ways.. Look at their conversation .

“Ah Jesus who told you that you could teach and preach the Gospel like that up in here up in here. Now If Jesus was talking pea pie patty cake stuff it wouldn’t have bothered them.He’d been a laughing stock but Jesus was getting to their hearts.

So listen to them

“Ah Jesus by what Authority did you plop your self down in the High Priest’s Chair and Stand up in the sacred Hallow Desk where the Chief Priests the Scribes and the Elders of Israel stand up and teach and preach at.

Boy you’ve got some nerve yeah Jesus .

But what’s the real problem? I’ll tell you a couple of them right off the top of my head.

1. Jesus was too much for them to handle. Deon Sanders said I’m not intimidated by what other people say about me. Their opinion of me doesn’t matter to me at all, It’s really their insecurity at my confidence that upsets them so much. That’s real Folks because saints of God when you finally learn that your worth doesn’t depend on what other folk think about you, you’ll do what’s right for your life and fulfill your God given purposes. ATCSA

I don’t try to preach like the late great Rev C.L. Franklin, Sam Singleton,Jr. or Freddie Dunn, or like the living legend hooper above all hoopers Jasper Williams, Frank E. Ray, Moses Gordon, Gerod Robinson, Chris Arvie, Ricky Carter, John Montgomery, Ricardo Handy or Tellius Chatman etc etc etc because If I’m preaching like them who am I .

I don’t need you to be me. Let me drop something in your spirit man right here. Do you know why some people didn’t like Jesus and why some people don’t like you ? The answer is that The religious leaders didn’t like Jesus because He was the same way all the time. Jesus was the Truth. I heard Jesus saying I am the way the truth and the life no man comes to the Father but by Me. But The Sanhedrin Council on the other hand were wearing masks all the time. In modern times you call that two face. Some people wear one face when they talk to you and wear another face when they talk to somebody else. But the bible says that Jesus Christ is the same today, yesterday, and forever more.

I’d rather be around Jesus because I know what I’m getting with him. Somebody say Me Too Rev.

#2 The second reason why they couldn’t stand Jesus, Why they resented Jesus and why they flat out hated Jesus was? Because Jesus spoke with Authority. Yes Indeed. In the text The word Authority in the Greek vernacular is the word Exousia. Everybody say Exousia Exousia It means Power with Influence. It does not mean rich… Because you could be rich and not have Exousia. Exousia means that my words mean something.My character means something, My demeanor denotes and dispels any rumors of mediocre. You give some people money and they still a fool. And some people don’t have any money but their integrity will keep them in rooms of power, wealth, and influence. ATCSA.

And #3. The most pressing reason why they didn’t like Jesus was, He was a Clinical Psychologist. Jesus had the canning cognitive ability to be able to read people. Also Jesus had the ability to all always give the right answer. Jesus was pass being clever, pass being cunning, and pass being witty because Jesus had Godly Wisdom. Jesus used an ethical ethos to answer his question of Authority. Look at verses 3, 4, and 5a.

3 And he answered and said unto them, I will also ask you one thing; and answer me: 4 The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? 5 And they reasoned with themselves.

The first psychological battle of the minds was,

1. To answer a question with a question. Jesus said in essence I’ll answer your question if you can answer mine first. In psychology when you’re laying on the couch seeing a psychologist the first thing they ask you is

“And How does that make you feel”? They always ask a question with a question.

2. Jesus challenged the theological institution itself. Yes Indeed. The issues was The Baptism of John Oo oh The Baptism of John is a Doctrinal question in it self. And ain’t no Rev. Dr, of the Law want to touch that subject with a ten feet pole. Brothers and sisters they stepped right into it. A whole pile of it too.

#3 Jesus asked Was John’s Baptism from God From Heaven or from mankind and sinful men who are corrupted and sinister ? Boy, I wish I could’ve been a mind reader on the walls of their minds.. because I bet you somebody said “How did Jesus think of that? We were trying to trick Him by asking Him By what Authority does He teach and Preach. And now in front these people, He done put us on front street by asking us a serious doctrinal question that we can’t back from. Jesus put them in a catch 22 situation.In other words Jesus is saying I’m playing Chess and y’all still playing checkers.

And the bible says that they reasoned among themselves. In other words they’ve got to go back to the drawing board because Jesus has just blown them clean out of the water with this question,

Listen to me, if you’re going to try to go up against somebody with the word at least know the word. Jesus knew the word, ask me how I know He knew the word. Because John 1:1 says clear that 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. Jesus is the Word. So let take a placid look at what’s happening here.

The reason Jesus used John the Baptist’s Baptism is because:

1. John had pointed to Jesus and introduced Him to the nation (John 1:15–34), so their rejection of John was actually a rejection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

#2.Secondly, it is a spiritual principle that if the Sanhedrin Council disobey truth they already knew, that God cannot reveal new truth to us (see John 7:14–17). And so Jesus knowing all of this stuff said “Why answer their question when they had refused to submit to John’s message about Him?”

Oh He had them! Jesus had them in between a rock and a hard place. And my momo said Raym when you have your head in the lion’s mouth you be quiet you hear! Yes Mamahn. Then ease it out ok.

And so the bible says in verses 5-7 “And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then believed ye him not? 6 But and if we say, Of men; all the people will stone us: for they be persuaded that John was a prophet. 7 And they answered, that they could not tell whence it was.

And what I gather from this is when you don’t know what to say don’t say nothing. You don’t have to answer every question. Because some questions are designed to trip you up. Jesus knew that He was tripping them up. Jesus knew that He was throwing them off their game. Brothers and sisters some question are designed to throw us off kilter.

Life is funny sometimes y’all, “It’s like Foster Gump said Life is like a box of chocolate you never knew what you’re going to get. You never know how the tables are going to turn. Either for you or against you.

ATCSA And the end result to this apologetic defense from Jesus is in verse 8 the bible says “And Jesus said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.”

And the pertinent question one must ask here is what things?

Well for one thing Jesus had cleared out the temple. Jesus kicked the money changers out of the Church because they were changing the nature of the church! Jesus said My Father’s House is supposed to be a house of prayer but ye have made it a den of thieves… The Sanhedrin Didn’t like that. Because corrupted power absolutely corrupts.

#2. The Sanhedrin council was more concerned with the policies and procedures that they set up not with the actual Laws of God. And what that means is sometimes people make up their own rules to satisfy their own self interests. And if it’s not satisfying their self interest they’ll change the rules of the game. And you’re not going to interrupt what we’re doing. We see this happening on full display in real time right now in the USA. And get ready for higher prices on everything.

Then thirdly the Sanhedrin didn’t take to kindly to Jesus making the temple of God His headquarters. Yeah yeah yeah Jesus was going to the temple daily. And the more He came to teach and preach the more people He reached. The Sanhedrin Council didn’t like that idea at all. Why ? 1. They didn’t consider Jesus to be a great Prophet .2. They didn’t perceive Jesus to be The Great High Priest. And 3. they certainly didn’t perceive Jesus to be the King. Especially not the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. HE JUST COULDN’T BE THE MESSIAH. And by the way the term Messiah. It was taboo because not only did the Sanhedrin reject the idea of Jesus being the True Messiah but also the Romans Government.

During the Passover time of the year the Roman Government was always looking for ANYBODY who the Jews claimed to be the Messiah. And they would put them to death.

I’ve got to close here but let me remind you that tah. Jesus said in Luke 20:1 It was just One of those days. Um UM Um Lord.

And Sometimes we have to endure hardness as good soldiers of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because if Jesus had to suffer some cruel, gruesome, grueling, and gasly things, um um um we too must suffer some things sometimes too.

And We all have a cross to bear. Because if there is And No Cross it won’t be No Crown. The song writer said “Must Jesus bear His Cross alone and all the world go free”?

Church I’m going to tell you the truth sometimes it’s hard, But I know that the Lord has me in the hollow of His Hand and

No matter what happens I’m in the will of God. Yes.

No matter what happens God is still in control.

No matter what the world throws at me I’m still trusting and believing that God is Able. Yes Sir He’s Able

Is there anybody in here that knows that God is Able. He’s Able and II just want to say Thank You Lord for being so Good to me… Have He been good to you, Don’t fool me in here but if the Lord’s been good to you Let me hear ya Say Yeah Say Yeah Say Yeah Oh Lord.