John 7:45 returns to the unfinished thread dangling from verse 32 when the Jewish religious leaders sent their police force to apprehend Jesus for the purpose of executing him. Those officers had returned to the chief priests and Pharisees empty-handed, and a reason for their dereliction of duty was demanded of them.
Their one-sentence reply in verse 46 is so profound it stops me in my tracks every time I read it. I simply find it impossible to move on from this verse without spending time enjoying, reflecting on, and personally responding to these moving words. Referring to Jesus they said, “No man ever spoke like this man!”
During the years of my pastoral ministry, I had the privilege of serving many men and women employed in law enforcement. And one of the things I learned about these brave and dedicated public servants is that they’re not easily impressed. They develop a healthy dose of skepticism in order to be effective at what they do. And this is especially true when it comes to what people say. Words are cheap and can be easily thrown around carelessly. These guys are daily subjected to streams of false and deceptive claims in their line of work. So, they usually don’t pay much attention to your talk until they see your walk. Deeds are the language that matters most to them.
Another thing I’ve noted about these folks is their loyalty and commitment to their superiors. So, the fact that the words of Jesus impacted these religious police so deeply that they were willing to disobey orders and defy the Jewish leaders is stunning.
In the time between when they had set out with the arrest warrant and returned to give their report, they encountered someone whose words penetrated their well-developed defenses and captured them so completely they were willing to face insubordination rather than betray their hearts.
They discovered – as countless others have since – that among many other things, the words of Jesus can empower us to stand up to false authorities. Sometimes – as in this case – these impostors are other people. But most of the time they’re those faceless entities we allow to dictate our thoughts, feelings, responses, and behaviors. But no matter what commands we’ve received from pride, shame, self-pity, fear, depression, anger, lust or any of the rest of their unholy crew, choosing to listen to and act on what Jesus says instead enables us to hold our ground against their threats.
If you find yourself struggling under orders from one of these illegitimate voices today, here’s what I suggest. Get hold of an edition of the Bible with the words of Jesus printed in red, open it to one of the four Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John – find some red ink, and allow those words to empower your resistance. In fact, John 16:33 might be a good place to start. Jesus said:
These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.