“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Daniel 7:13-14
I think you can tell how important someone is from how they arrive at an event. I usually turn up in my Golf, reflecting just how unimportant I am. At the rather posh school I teach at in Sussex, our pupils often arrive in Bentleys, showing that they, or at least their parents, are far more important than me. When Barack Obama visited London back in March, he arrived at the airport in his own Boeing 747, before transferring to his helicopter, then finally boarding his limousine, which was accompanied everywhere it went by a large motorcade of dozens of support vehicles, which contained over 200 security officers, political aides, personal chefs, and doctors. Barack Obama is clearly even more important than the parents of my pupils!
Important Obama might be, he has nothing on the son of man described in today;s passage. Not for him personal limousines of jumbo jets; he came with the clouds of heaven.
So who is this “son of man?” Well, it is the title which Jesus most commonly refers to himself. Indeed, he does so in our current passage from Mark. If Jesus is the same son of man as the one in this passage, that makes him rather special. In Daniel, he approached the Ancient of Days – a name given to God himself. Not just that, but he was given authority, glory and sovereign power. He was given an everlasting dominion and a kingdom that will never be destroyed. Barack Obama has four years, possibly eight if he’s lucky; this character’s reign will last for ever.
So can Jesus really be this ‘son of man’? He certainly seems to think he is. What are the practical implications for us if he is? Well, if he has authority, glory and sovereign power; if he has a never-ending kingdom, perhaps we should pay attention to him. Perhaps we should worship him.
I pray today that we would gain a better understanding of who Jesus is, and that we would consider what an appropriate response should be.