“At that time.” What was that time? It was the time when Christ had shown His love, His goodness, and His compassion towards people in a wonderful way. He had touched and cleansed lepers, healed the lame and given them the strength to walk, given sight to the blind, raised the dead, and preached the gospel of the kingdom to lost souls.

What was the common reaction to this? They rejected Him, laughed at Him, and blasphemed Him. Some called Him a glutton and a drunkard. Others accused Him of blasphemy, of having a demon, and even of casting out evil spirits through the prince of demons. They had literally shown Him evil for good and hatred for His love (Ps. 109:5).

It is clear, then, that the words “at that time” refer to the time of His utter rejection by Israel. What must it have been like for Him to go from village to village doing God’s will, and being insulted and despised again and again! Imagine God commissioning you to do good to people and preach the gospel to them. In response, you are laughed at, rejected, and attacked. How would you react in this situation? Many of us would probably become discontent. We might resign, complain, or even have thoughts of revenge in our hearts. This is exactly what the flesh brings out: tit for tat!

But the Lord reacted quite differently—without even a spark of discontent or bitterness in His heart. Without grumbling or speaking up, He accepted the circumstances from the hand of God with admirable meekness, and justified Him for His actions. His meekness was so unique and impressive for the very reason that He had been given infinite power by His Father (Mt. 11:27), with which He could have destroyed His enemies in the twinkling of an eye.