Unlimited: The Son Of David | Good News Unlimited
Unlimited: The Son of David
Jun 20, 2024 1579
While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David?David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared:
“‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?” The large crowd listened to him with delight (Mark 12:35–37, NIV).
Jesus taught in the temple courts, and he wanted to get the people thinking about who he really is. For us contemporary westerners, it’s a little difficult to work out what Jesus means here. We have to get inside the heads of Jesus’ hearers a little bit.
The Jewish people believed that the coming Messiah would be the “son of David.” That’s what the Bible said. He was called the “Son of David” because he would sit on David’s throne and deliver his people, and in him would be fulfilled all the promises that God had made to King David.
The Lord quotes Psalm 110, which was understood as David writing about a dialogue between God and his Messiah. In this passage, The Lord, that is “God,” calls the Messiah, “Lord,” so that both God and the Messiah share the same title. Jesus asks the people, why does that happen?
Jesus wanted to expand the people’s thinking about his identity. They think he is a Messiah. But they think that the Messiah is just a man. But Jesus wants to lead them to understand why it is that the Messiah shares the same title as God.
When Jesus asks, “David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son,” it’s a rhetorical question. The obvious answer is because the Messiah is not a mere man. He is the Divine Son, the Lord God himself.
Jesus was trying to lead the people to understand who he was. One of the most common questions in the Gospels is, “Who is this man?”
– Eliezer Gonzalez
Eli’s Reflection: Your salvation depends on your answer to this question. How would you answer the question? Jesus isn’t looking for an intellectual answer, but an experiential one, because you know him for yourself. He is the Son of God AND the Son of Man.
