NOTES for Luk 7:23

Jesus' words, "Blessed is the one who is not offended by Me!" can be understood in different ways. The most widespread understanding, already generally accepted, is also the most straightforward: Jesus must be accepted as the Son of God and as the Messiah; those who accept Him in this capacity will fare very well, they will enter the Kingdom, and salvation is guaranteed to them.

Formally such an understanding can be considered absolutely correct, but it proceeds from the realities of later Christian ages, ages when everyone in the Christian world, of course, knows from childhood all the right words written and spoken about Jesus by those who experienced everything said in their own lives. In that case, "not being offended" means merely remaining faithful to the generally accepted truths of faith known from childhood.

Jesus Himself, however, was addressing an audience for which what it had to accept was not at all obvious. Judging by His words, there had to be something in the hearts of those who were to "not be offended" that would allow them to recognize Him precisely in the capacity in which He came into the world.

What, then, is at issue? If we look closely at the situations describing Jesus' acceptance by those seeking His help, and on the other hand look at those who reject Him, much becomes clear. It is no accident that those who accept Him most often are those who have found themselves in a hopeless situation.

The point is not that all these people were broken by the misfortune that befell them, but that a critical situation by itself quickly and easily washes from a person's heart and soul everything superficial and artificial, so that only the main thing remains. Therefore, in order "not to be offended," one must first of all leave behind all artificial intellectual constructions, all pre-invented concepts, all a priori notions of the Messiah and of the Kingdom, and indeed of spiritual life in general, leaving only the main thing: the Torah, the commandments, the path of righteousness.

If we look at those who do not accept Jesus, it becomes clear that they reject Him either for the same "ideological" reasons, preferring their own theological concepts, within which "such a thing is impossible," to obvious reality, or because of ordinary human fear, not so much fear of persecution as fear of losing what has become a familiar and integral part of life, whether property, social status, or simply the established and much-loved way of life. The fear of losing familiar religiosity belongs here too: the very appearance of Jesus as He came into the world destroyed many familiar religious notions.

Therefore, in order "not to be offended," one must decisively get rid of two things: familiar and beloved opinions and concepts, often turning into convenient cliches, and those fears of losing familiar forms of life with which fallen man is permeated from head to foot. This is not easy, but the reward will be the Kingdom and salvation.

In the Gospel of Luke, we will read more than once about the various miracles performed by Jesus Christ. The time has come for the Evangelist to explain to the reader why he includes all these stories in his book. The mystery is revealed when Jesus, answering the Baptist's disciples, quotes the prophecies of Isaiah (Isa. 35:5-6; 61:1-2), which foretold the Day of the Lord and the coming of God's messianic Kingdom. The blind and the lame of this Kingdom are the people whom Jesus healed, but not only them: they are also those whose hearts gained sight, whose spirits were healed, and who saw their calling and the purpose of their lives. It is no accident that the Lord contrasts them with the Pharisees and lawyers who did not wish to gain sight or be healed, who were unable to respond to the Gospel or understand the message of the Baptist and Jesus about the approaching Kingdom. The meaning of the messianic miracles therefore extends to the lives of those who were never lame and had always seen well—to the readers of the Gospel, ancient and modern.

Today's reading touches on a very important theme connected with the ministry and witness not only of John the Baptist, but also of Jesus Himself. For Jesus it is completely beyond doubt that what many of those who came to John did not see was true: he was the greatest of all the prophets who had ever preached to the people of God (v. 28). Meanwhile, the very people who do not accept John are those who considered themselves the messianic remnant of which the prophets had spoken: the Pharisees and the teachers of the Torah ("scribes") (v. 30). In today's passage we see how Jesus explains this rejection. He compares those who reject John to children offended by their peers who refuse to play according to the rules they have set (v. 32). That is why they are satisfied neither with John's strict asceticism nor with Jesus' accessibility and openness (vv. 33-34).

Jesus expresses the essence of the problem in one phrase: wisdom is justified by her children (v. 35). For a better understanding of this phrase, it is important to keep in mind that among the Jews the concept of wisdom had long been associated not so much with theory and abstract knowledge as with practice. At first it referred to the practical skills of one craft or another, later to the practice of human relationships so necessary for rulers, judges, and statesmen, and after the Babylonian exile wisdom also came to be connected with the practice of following the Torah, which likewise required a certain skill, one that in a sense could be called the skill of righteous living.

Jesus has in mind another skill and another practice: the practice of the theological disputes so beloved by learned rabbis and simply educated believers. In the Gospel era such disputes were a favorite occupation and pastime of many inhabitants of Jerusalem. And it happened that for many of them, as one can see, these disputes turned into an end in themselves. The question was no longer how, by reading Scripture, to understand God's will through it, but what other interpretations of what had been read could be invented.

Of course, such intellectual exercises are harmless enough in themselves, and at times they can even be useful. But if one becomes too absorbed in them, they sometimes lead away from reality. All such exercises are always conditional to some degree. And if a person trains himself to see the world exclusively through the prism of theological concepts, even ones based on Scripture, it is very easy not to see behind them God and the One whom He sends into the world. All the more so because accepting Christ will require giving up many concepts. Naturally, one would like the real Messiah to correspond to them, so that nothing would have to be given up. But there is no correspondence, and then a choice has to be made. For someone, his own wisdom may turn out to be more important than the Kingdom. And even God can do nothing about that: such is the price of human freedom.

Why does John, who himself bore witness to Jesus and saw the Spirit descending upon Him, suddenly send his disciples to Him with such a question? Perhaps he wants to strengthen his disciples' faith? Or perhaps in prison he himself was passing through the final trials of faith?

In any case, this question is extraordinarily important for us: “Art Thou He that should come?” We are called not merely to “believe” but to take a very decisive step—to take up the cross and follow Him. To do so, we must be certain that this is indeed He.

Jesus answers in the words of a messianic prophecy: let John's disciples judge by the works He performs. It seems that nothing else is left for us either: to look at what He does in our lives and in the lives of people we know, and to draw the right conclusions.

John the Baptist sends his disciples to ask Jesus whether He is the Messiah. The Lord listens to the messengers but does not give a direct answer; instead, He points to the miracles that accompany His preaching. He does not hand them a ready-made, unambiguous answer, but invites them to decide the question for themselves on the basis of certain facts. “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the dead are raised, and the poor have the Gospel preached to them”—this is what the disciples are to report to John as their own experience, the testimony that can touch his heart. We often try to seek God in theological treatises or long services. It is much harder to look freely at the things happening around us as part of divine providence. This path frightens us because it carries the possibility that we may prove blind and insensitive. But without this risk, a genuine relationship with God is impossible.