Turn the Tables

Father may my heart and mind remain focused on You. As I sit here to begin our time together, I would ask that You open Your word to me. May I be a vessel through which Your truth will spill forth. Amen.

Luke 20:1-8 (<<click here to read the passage)

You have probably heard the phrase “turn the tables” before. The Collins Dictionary, says that if you turn the tables on someone, you change the situation completely so that instead of them causing problems for you, you are causing problems for them.

But what are the origins of the phrase? Mentalfloss.com says, believe it or not, from board games!

Backgammon…belongs to a class of board games referred to as “tables,” a general name given to games played on a board with dice. If the game wasn’t going in your favor, you would have to “turn” them, figuratively, if you wanted to win. You can’t actually “turn the tables” in a game of backgammon, although that would be nice. The phrase is a metaphor, a substitute for the common idea of a “comeback,” because you would have to reverse the board/the players’ current positions/situations in order to change the outcome.

One thing we can give credit for the religious leaders of Jesus’ day is that they were persistent and consistent in trying to get Him to trip up by getting Him to say something or admit something that would incriminate Him. But Jesus, clearly knowing their hearts and minds, readily turned the tables on them over and over again.

This passage is but one example,

They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?” v2

My study Bible* states,

This group of leaders wanted to get rid of Jesus, so they tried to trap him with their question. If Jesus would answer that his authority came from God – if he stated openly that he was the Messiah and the Son of God – they would accuse him of blasphemy and bring him to trial. Jesus did not let himself be caught. Instead, he turned the question on them. Thus, he exposed their motives and avoided their trap.

Jesus had no problem holding His ground in the attacks of the religious “know-it-alls”. They should have been smart enough to figure it out, but they refused to believe that He was Who people said He was. Honestly, I think deep down they knew He was the Messiah, but since He didn’t fit their preconceived notions, they fought it tooth and nail!

At least for those of us who follow Him, we know that God is in the middle of everything we are. There is never a time when He is not with us. It’s a little strange to say but we may know that is the case but often we don’t acknowledge that it is the case.

How often do we push ahead with our agenda, doing what we want with no input or influence from anyone else…especially God? We have preconceived notions, and no one is going to change our minds and we fight tooth and nail to get what we want.

We would be so much better off to yield our wills to Christ, if we would allow the tables to be turned on us and our preconceived notions, how much better off we would all be! Lord, open our eyes, our minds, and our hearts to Your direction. Amen!

*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation

Nov 8^th, 2020, Sun, 7:14 pm