Jesus
Remained Silent
Those who had arrested
Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the
teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the
courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see
the outcome.
The
chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against
Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came
forward.
Finally two came
forward and declared,
“This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the
Then
the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What
is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” But Jesus remained silent.
The high priest said
to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the
Messiah, the Son of God.”
“You have
said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting
at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Matthew 26:57-64
Are there times when a Christian
should be silent not talk about God?
There may be times when we are being challenged, as Jesus was by the High
Priest, when the best thing is to remain silent. What we say will not change
that person’s mind, but our actions might. Jesus understood Caiaphas
was not interested in the truth. While we don’t always know another’s heart, we
must be sensitive to the leading of the Spirit in every situation.
If talking about faith distracts
us or co-workers from performing our job, we should stay focused on our work.
If someone has shown a continual resistance, we might choose to stop pressing
them. Remember, we can be a witness of God’s grace with our conduct as well.
Silence can be one
tool in evangelism.
Our Daily Bread –