Jesus’ Use of Questions in the Gospels

Matthew 12:9-14. Jesus entered a synagogue and saw a man with a shriveled hand. The Jews were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus of working on the Sabbath and thus breaking the fourth commandment, so they asked Him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” (v. 12). Jesus said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath” (vv. 11-12). By His question Jesus showed that men would be willing to work to rescue a distressed sheep on the Sabbath. And if they were willing to rescue an animal, how much more should they be willing to restore a man who is created in the image of God.

John 7:21-24. Jesus defends His healing on the Sabbath by asking a question of the Jews: “Now if a child can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing the whole man on the Sabbath?” (v. 23). The Old Testament Law required a boy to be circumcised eight days after his birth. If that day happened to fall on the Sabbath, the child was still to be circumcised on that day to avoid breaking the law. Why then was it wrong for Jesus to heal a person and make him whole on the Sabbath?

John 10:22-41. Here Jesus is accused of blasphemy, for He has declared Himself to be God’s Son. Jesus points to the testimony of His miracles and asks His opponents, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” (v. 32). The Jews are infuriated by this claim and state, “We are not stoning you for any of these, but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God” (v. 33). Again Jesus answered with a question (based on Psalm 82): Israel’s appointed judges were called “gods” not because they were divine beings, but because they were God’s spokesmen speaking for God. Jesus asked, if these men could be called gods because of the authority delegated to them, how much more could Jesus be called the Son of God after performing all the great miracles He performed, thus demonstrating God’s authority was upon Him?

Matthew 7:11. Jesus said, “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” This statement contains an a fortiori (with the greater force) argument in hypothetical form: 1) If evil men know how to give good gifts to their children, then how much more does God. 2) Evil men do know how to give good gifts to their children. 3) Therefore, even more so, God knows how to give good gifts to His children.

Matthew 22:41-46. Here Jesus asked a question that stopped all questions from His opponents. They accepted the Messiah as the Son of David but not the Son of God. But Jesus said: 1) If David by the Holy Spirit called the Messiah his “Lord” (Ps. 110:1), then the Messiah must have been more than the mere son of David (i.e., a descendant of David). 2) David did call the Messiah “Lord.” 3) Therefore, the Messiah was more than a descendant of David; He was also David’s Lord (i.e., God).

Luke 6:6-11. Jesus healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath. But before He did, He asked the Pharisees: “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good?” (v. 9). They knew it was. So His argument took this form: 1) It is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. 2) Healing a man’s hand is good. 3) Therefore, it is lawful to heal a man’s hand on the Sabbath.

His question asking logic was invincible.