2026 Reading Plan Reflections - Day 67

“By what authority are you doing these things?”

That’s the question the religious leaders put to Jesus. But underneath it is another question entirely:

“Who do you think you are?”

Jesus responds the way he often does—with a question of his own about John the Baptist. And the way the leaders process that question tells us everything we need to know.

They aren’t searching for truth. They’re calculating outcomes. “If we say ‘from heaven,’ he’ll ask why we didn’t believe. If we say ‘from men,’ the crowd will turn on us.” Their concern isn’t faithfulness. It’s image management.

They are capable of understanding the truth standing right in front of them, but they choose not to acknowledge it. Admitting the truth would require humility, repentance, and change. So they take the safest path. “We don’t know.”

Sometimes we can do the same thing. God reveals something clearly—through Scripture, through conviction, through the quiet work of the Holy Spirit—but acknowledging it would require us to surrender something. Because grace always invites surrender.

We talk about responsible grace: God’s grace is always reaching toward us, always inviting transformation. But we are still responsible for how we respond. The leaders in this passage resist that grace.

The question for us is simple: When God shows us the truth, will we respond in faith… or protect our image?

Ask the Holy Spirit a simple question today:
“Lord, is there something you’ve been showing me that I’ve been avoiding?”
If something comes to mind, take one small step of obedience today.