Mark 16:15 Preach the Gospel

Mark 16:15 Preach the Gospel

Mark 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation

And so we come to the end of the Gospel according to Mark. This text contains the charge that Jesus leaves with His disciples, and thus His church, until He returns again. There are other commission statements, for instance Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 1:7-8. But we will limit our attention to these words in Mark’s Gospel. 

If I were to diagram this sentence, following the grammar and word order of the Greek text, it would read something like this: “Having gone into all the world, preach the Gospel to every creature.” There is one key verb: “preach.” The “going” is not incidental, but it is assumed or understood.

We have in fact “gone,” haven’t we? Not as individuals, but as families and people groups. Christians, and those who would become Christians, have scattered all over the world. I am not intending to argue against “going” in mission, but, in a sense, all Christians have already “gone,” or “come” to the place where God has placed them. That is, we are all to be missionaries in our mission field, which happens to be where we live, unless God chooses to move us somewhere else. This commission is for all of us.

What is it that we are supposed to do? We are to preach. Well, that sounds preachy. That sounds like something a “preacher” would/should do. And you may feel that this should not apply to you. But what does it mean to preach?

Well, it means kind of like it sounds. It really is not primarily a religious term. It’s a “good news” term. “To preach” means “to herald.” Newspapers are sometimes called this, e.g., “Boston Herald,” or “The Daily Herald” from Everett, Washington. What do they do? They announce, in print, the news. Their announcement is in print because they are a news-paper. But you and I are not newspapers. We are people, and as “heralds,” we are to announce the news as people would announce news.

“What was the score of the ballgame last night?”, one might ask. His buddy at the coffee shop, if he knows the news, tells him. He is “preaching,” “announcing” some news. It might not be particularly good news, or important news, but he is announcing it nonetheless.

St. Francis is said to have said (and, he probably didn’t) “Preach the Gospel, and if necessary, use words.” I hope he didn’t actually say it, because it’s hogwash. And I hope you won’t repeat it, unless to explain that it is something of a contradiction of terms. How does one share news without saying it? “Preach the Gospel” is to announce Good News, the best news possible, and to do so without words is not to do it at all. Yes, certainly our actions should match our words. But words are necessary. Your words are necessary.

“Gospel” means “good news.” It has an Old Testament background: 

Is. 52:7  How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”

It’s almost a political statement - the administration has changed! The evil ruler has been replaced by the Good: “Your God reigns!” And since, then, it is about God, not only is it political, but it is also theological. We are able to be put back into right relationship with the Creator of heaven and earth. We, who once were enemies to this Righteous and Omnipotent One, have the opportunity to have the enmity extinguished, and our fellowship restored. This is really, really good news.

And, who needs to hear it? “Every creature.” Your kids? Yes. And they should hear it from you. Your grandkids? Yes. And they should hear it from you. From only you?  Hopefully not. But the commission is to you, for all around you to whom God has made you a missionary. Your neighbors? Yes. Why would you want them to live in ignorance of such good news?

We know that there is resistance in this world to the Gospel. There seems to be a deafness and a blindness to it. And, there is a resistance, on our part, to sharing it. Perhaps you can think of other reasons or excuses, but it seems to me we care too much about what people think of us. This is not a new thought, but think about it a moment. On that last day, when we stand before God, and your neighbor is found to be without salvation through Christ - and they realize that you had this Good News and failed to share it with them - what will they think of you then?

At two different points in the prophet Ezekiel, he is warned that the watchman bears responsibility for the warning of the people. If he fails to warn them, their blood will be on his hands. If he faithfully warns them, and they disregard him, then he is free from blame, though they be judged for their sin. Some may say that these passages to not directly apply to Christians who fail to share the Gospel. But I am not sure why. 

And that’s not our primary motivation for sharing anyway, is it? We announce it, because the Gospel is such Good News.

Mark 16:1-13 Weaker Witnesses

Mark 16:1-13 Weaker Witnesses

Many have noted that God could have begun the proclamation of the resurrection with much stronger witnesses. Men of education; men of power and position. But He didn’t. For this first witness of the resurrection of Jesus, God chose women.

The women were mentioned in the last post at the end of Mark 15. They watched Joseph from a distance, noting where the body of Jesus was laid. Their job was to prepare the body for burial, which now they were going to attempt to do post-burial, since they could not do it on the Sabbath. We can be quite sure that as the women evaluated their own role in this drama, they had no intention that they were to be “first witnesses” to the resurrection. 

There has been much written on the role of women in Jesus’ ministry, and about Jesus’ attitude toward women. They were often the recipients of His attention and mercy. Just to give one illustration: Jesus speaks with the religious leader, Nicodemus, in John 3; and then the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. Each gets equal attention. The difference might be that we have no indication in John 3 of Nicodemus’ response, while we find a response of faith on the part of the woman in John 4, a response that is then shared by many of her villagers. She certainly outshines Nicodemus.

There were no women named among the Twelve disciples, but we know that there were many women who were  disciples. This probably fits with cultural patterns of the day. It also fits with the consistent theme of Scriptures, which spans many cultures, and more importantly, is the Word of God. That theme is one of male leadership in the home and the church. But that is not to disregard or to minimize the role and importance of women, titled here as “weaker witnesses.”

You might know why I have chosen this title. It is an allusion to the passage in 1 Peter 3, where we have these words: 1Pet. 3:7 You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman.” KVJ says “weaker vessel.” The “first witness” regarding the resurrection was entrusted to particular people, messengers, vessels. And it so happens that God chose to make use of “weaker vessels.” God, in His wisdom, chose this route. It did not change the message. It may have made the message easier to disregard, or harder to believe. Note verse 11: “When they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.”

With regard to true faith, it is not the impressiveness of the messenger that wins the day. It is the fact that the message penetrates the defenses of what we expect to see or hear, or what we want to see or hear. With regard to true faith, it is the power of the truth entering into our minds and hearts and changing our patterns of thinking. And then, in light of that truth, every thought and behavior needs to be re-evaluated.

The fact that God chose to have “weaker vessels” deliver this message only highlights the fact that God desires that His message be a penetrating truth that needs no aid from humans, great or small. It is sufficient in and of itself. And so we rejoice in God’s ways, and we are thankful for these women, who met to do an ordinary thing, and were then employed in the highest of privileges of being “first witnesses.”

Mark 15:40-47 Waiting for the Kingdom of God

Mark 15:40-47 Waiting for the Kingdom of God

Joseph of Arimathea is not one of the central figures in the Gospel accounts. He is more of a minor figure. But that classification is derived by counting mentions, or words. I am not at all sure that God regards Joseph, or you, or me, as minor figures. He probably does not think in those terms at all. God may, though, notice who is “waiting for the kingdom of God.”

⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent member of the Council, who himself was waiting for the kingdom of God; and he gathered up courage and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. 

The same phrase is found in Luke 23:51. In Matthew 27:57, and also John 19:38, he is referred to as a disciple of Jesus. The Gospel accounts also designate him as a member of the Council, a member of the ruler of the Jews. Yet he secretly followed Jesus, if not physically, then spiritually.

The cross-references in NASB point me to two other references similar to “waiting for the kingdom of God,” found in the infancy narratives of the Gospel of Luke. Regarding Simeon in 2:25, he was “waiting for the consolation of Israel.” Regarding Anna in 2:38, she was one of those “looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.” 

We are currently involved in a period of waiting during this Springtime, 2020. We and others, whether believers or not, are waiting for restrictions to be lifted in tandem with relief from a virus. Though this present time may be an illustration, it is certainly not what is commended in these phrases, primarily, “waiting for the Kingdom of God.” What the world is waiting for is a resumption of activity in the kingdom of man. And we understand those concerns - jobs, schools, family and church gatherings. But what is “waiting for the kingdom of God?”

It is the realization that our eggs are not to be placed in this particular basket. It is a conviction that there is another world for which we were created, and that becoming comfortable and fitting in to this world is not our priority or goal. It is investing in “things above” as opposed to things “here below.” It means that I think more about my participation in the kingdom age than in the kind of life that I will have at retirement age. It is working harder to prepare my kids to walk with God than to “make it” in this world. It has to do with a concern of how I can contribute value to the kingdom rather than how much I can accumulate for my own nest egg.

Joseph, secretly, did not fit in with other Jewish leaders. If he had been more public, he would have probably been kicked off the Council. And perhaps that would have been the better course. But nonetheless, he was walking a different path. And at this point of time, at the death of Jesus, his “waiting for the Kingdom of God” could no longer remain secret and merely spiritual. It had to become physical as well. He had to go to Pilate and ask permission for the body of Jesus. He had to physically handle the body of Jesus, publicly, and give up the use of his own tomb for its use by Jesus. And it seems, I hope, that Joseph knew this was not the end. That though Jesus was dead, he was still waiting - waiting for the Kingdom of God. 

And so the question is, how am I waiting for the Kingdom of God? How are you waiting for the Kingdom of God?

Mark 15:1-39 The King of the Jews

Mark 15:1-39 The King of the Jews

All through this passage which contains Jesus’ examination before Pilate and then His crucifixion, the phrase “King of the Jews” comes up time and again. It is not a title that Jesus had embraced at any time during His earthly ministry. What is going on here?

² Pilate questioned Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” 

Pilate himself asks this question. It is translated as a question. In the Greek text, questions have to be interpreted - they are printed in the text as a statement: “You are the King of the Jews.” And I think the translators got it right. Pilate was asking a question. Jesus’ response is very brief. “You say.” That’s the most literal translation. NASB, usually very literal, runs ahead and translates, “It is as you say.” I don’t think Jesus said that. What if Jesus’ statement is actually a question: “Are you saying?” Jesus didn’t say it. Jesus didn’t embrace it. Is that your idea; your words?

⁹ Pilate answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” 

It is a little surprising that Pilate uses this title for Jesus as he speaks to the crowd of Jewish leaders and people, who have asked for the customary release of a prisoner. It’s as though, at this point, Pilate is setting them up to say “No,” though he may be surprised that they actually opt for Barabbas, a troublemaker who has been a problem for the Romans, and most likely a problem for the Jews as well. Perhaps Pilate’s disdain for the Jews is showing through here, and he actually works against himself by way of his sarcasm. He could have said, “Do you want me to release for you this Jewish rabbi in whom I find no fault worthy of death?”

They reject this offer from Pilate, and so he says, again, it seems, baiting them:

¹² Answering again, Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?”

This is a dramatic moment, because the Jewish people respond, concerning “the King of the Jews,” “Crucify him.” They want the one who is now termed “King of the Jews” to be cruelly killed as a criminal.

¹⁷ They *dressed Him up in purple, and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on Him; ¹⁸ and they began to acclaim Him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 

The Roman soldiers are at liberty to now use this term in their abuse of Jesus. What fun to mock and torment an enemy king! And that is what they do. 

It was common to list the crime on some kind of sign posted at the top of the cross. Most of these signs would have had terms such as “thief” or “robber” or “anarchist” or “traitor.” But this sign is different:

²⁶ The inscription of the charge against Him read, “THE KING OF THE JEWS.” 

We don’t know of another case in which someone was crucified for being a king outside of Jerusalem.

³² “Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!” 

On the cross, Jesus is mocked by the Jewish leaders. They are linking the idea of “messiah” and “king” in their statement. They believe that there will be such a figure, sometime. They are stating clearly that they reject Jesus as being the messianic king of Israel.

³⁹ When the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw the way He breathed His last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”

In the end, the final statement refuses to repeat “King of the Jews” in favor of a statement that is of another order: “Son of God.” It comes from the lips of a Roman centurion who has simply overseen the operations of this day from a distance.

Kings come and go. Yes, it is true that Jesus is a king. But it is because He is the Son of God that we must admit that He is not just another king. Rather, He is King of kings, and Lord of lords.

Mark 14:27-72 From Boast to Betrayal

Mark 14:27-72 From Boast to Betrayal

Mark 14:27   And Jesus *said to them, “You will all fall away, because it is written, ‘I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP SHALL BE SCATTERED.’ 

The quote from Zechariah speaks of a stricken shepherd, and scattered sheep. So many things happen in this passage, but we will note just the second of these. Sheep, both then and now, without care, will scatter.

First of all, as Jesus quotes Scripture, Peter argues with it. He is arguing with Jesus, and He is arguing with the Old Testament Scriptures. Not a good look. And Jesus reminds him that he is a sheep not unlike other sheep - he too will scatter: “Truly I say to you, that this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.” 

Jesus guides His disciples into the Garden, and then brings the inner circle further with Him. He tells these three to “keep watch” while He goes further to pray. He comes back and finds them sleeping. They couldn’t last “one hour.” “Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” When we fail to “keep watch,” then we have already, in a sense, scattered. 

Judas approaches with a contingent of soldiers to arrest Jesus. They are armed, as though they are intending to storm a castle. They confront the group that has simply been praying, or sleeping. The arrest happens, and, “they all left Him and fled,” just as Jesus, and Scripture had said. 

During the trial before the high priest, Peter watches from a distance. He is not now Jesus’ right hand man. He is too far away for that. And he is seeking to conceal His identity, His relationship with Jesus:

• ⁶⁷ and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and *said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.” ⁶⁸ But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.”
• ⁶⁹ The servant-girl saw him, and began once more to say to the bystanders, “This is one of them!” ⁷⁰ But again he denied it.
• And after a little while the bystanders were again saying to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean too.” ⁷¹ But he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this man you are talking about!” 

And then the rooster crowed. I wonder, what if a rooster crowed every time I didn’t put into practice my profession of faith; every time I failed to follow through and my statement of good intentions; every time I hid my relationship with Jesus?  It’s not that we shouldn’t be too hard on Peter. He should have done better. The point is that we should “be stricken” when we see the same behavior in our own selves. Instead, He was “stricken” for us.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

On the one hand we are in the midst of an epidemic, a pandemic. It’s dangerous, and it is has hit southeast Michigan hard. We have recorded more deaths attributed to Covid-19 than any other of the United States except New York and New Jersey. It is serious, and we don’t know many answers. We do not know how long it will last. We do not know if, once you have it, you are immune, or how long. We do not know about seasonal reappearances. We do not know about long-term effects for those who survive serious cases.

On the other hand, we are in the midst of an economic mess. We don’t know what to call it. Most certainly, some say, a recession; others say, more like a depression. There are massive relief funds being distributed, coming from who knows where, and will be paid back who knows how. We don’t know if a business gets permission to go back to work, if they will be able to get the supplies they need, or if there will be much of a market for what they sell.

The house in our picture is “between a rock and a hard place.” It sits between two immoveable realities. And yet it looks quite comfortable there, quite safe. I’m not sure we always feel so safe.

As Christians - as those who rely on, who believe in the Word of God - we remember that we find our safety and refuge, not in our physical health; and not in our economic or employment stability. We find our safety and refuge in God: “my God, my Rock, in whom I take refuge” (Psalm 18:3). Many psalms speak of this refuge in different ways. Many hymns also: 

Rock of ages, cleft for me; Let me hide myself in Thee

The Lord’s our Rock, in Him we hide,

A Shelter in the time of storm;

Secure whatever ill betide,

A Shelter in the time of storm.

Oh, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land,

A weary land, a weary land;

Oh, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land,

A Shelter in the time of storm.

The raging storms may round us beat,

A Shelter in the time of storm

We’ll never leave our safe retreat,

A Shelter in the time of storm.

Mark 14:12-26 The Passover Lamb

Mark 14:12-26 The Passover Lamb

Mark 14:12 On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was being sacrificed, 

On the eve of the Exodus, the families of Israel were instructed to kill the passover lamb. They were to make a meal of its meat, and to spread its blood on the doorposts. Then, when the avenging angel came by to kill every firstborn son, the angel would “pass over” that house marked with the blood. 

Mark alone makes the point that this was the time of the killing of the Passover lamb. Jesus goes on to give instructions about finding and preparing the room where they would meet for this meal - a room that was providentially provided. 

It is during this meal that Jesus quietly identifies Judas as the one who would betray him. Mark includes the very solemn line, “but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” In the context of a feast about rescue from captivity, Jesus identifies one who has just stepped all the more fully into his captivity, and will not be “passed over.”

The Passover lamb was clearly a substitute for the people. It was sacrificed in place of judgment that was falling on Egypt. They would escape. The lamb would not. They would identify with the lamb by eating it, but that union was limited. Jesus, as He alters the traditional course of the passover meal, identifies the bread and cup with Jesus’ own body and blood. There is here a deeper involvement of the people with the Passover Lamb - a binding of covenantal relationship; a marriage of sorts; a change of identity, in that we are so thoroughly identified with Him.

Again, we are quite sure that the disciples are not absorbing the significance of these events. They love and respect Jesus, but they miss so much. And so they leave, singing a hymn and saying something like, “that was a nice time of worship.” “I’m really glad I showed up today.” “It would have been a shame to miss this.” Little did they know that, as they walked toward the Garden, they were following the shadow of the Passover Lamb.

Mark 14:1-11 Simple, Extravagant Worship

Mark 14:1-11 Simple, Extravagant Worship

We have here one of the “sandwich” passages in Mark. Verses 1 and 2 show the religious leaders “seeking how to seize Him by stealth and kill Him,” while in the closing part of the passage (vv.10-11) we find Judas doing the same: “And he began seeking how to betray Him at an opportune time.” This is the “bread” on the outside of the sandwich.

The “peanut butter and jelly” of this sandwich is this account of Jesus being anointed as an act of worship by a woman. Different from other, similar passages, we learn nothing about the character or lifestyle of the woman. She is simply a person who wants to worship Jesus, and finds nothing incongruous in it being costly. In fact, just the opposite, she believes that it is entirely appropriate that her worship cost something. Not that she was trying to “buy” anything from Jesus. She just wanted to worship.

We don’t know the makeup of the crowd that was with Jesus this day. He was visiting in a home, so it couldn’t have been a mass of people. We know that Judas is mentioned in the next paragraph, with the implication that what he saw here was motivation for him to betray Jesus. We assume, then, that they other disciples were present as well. And when some from the crowd objected - “some were indignantly remarking to one another, “Why has this perfume been wasted? ⁵ “For this perfume might have been sold for over three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor.” And they were scolding her.” - we find no one standing up for this woman, or for the fact that Jesus actually and truly deserved this kind of worship. No one. Except Jesus.

He, however, says some important things that we should consider with regard to our own worship. He says, “She has done a beautiful thing to me.” That’s an amazing statement, and a bit shocking. The usual human response would be, “Oh, you shouldn’t have.” “This is way too much.” What kind of person says, as it were, “this is entirely appropriate.”

Jesus does not say that one should not contribute to the needs of the poor. He just says that it is acceptable to put off meeting those needs when the opportunity to worship Jesus, who is physically present with them only a short time, affords itself. Again, this would be strange for any mere human to say. And remember, she is not just doing something nice. She is worshipping Him.

Jesus says, “She is anointing my body beforehand for burial.” I wonder, does this woman even understand this point. If so, then she is both the only one present worshipping Jesus in such an extravagant way, and she is also the only one present who has heard Jesus words predicting his death, and who has absorbed that message and believed it. I don’t know if this is true, but if she alone understood the gravity of Jesus’ mission, she alone also is the one, the only one, who worships him appropriately. And, she gets criticized for it.

I wonder if it’s not this way throughout the history of the Church, that those who best know Jesus; who most closely walk with Him; who most dearly love Him - I wonder if the Church, conducting business as usual, tends to marginalize and criticize such persons. Is there anyone in your experience that you think might resemble the unnamed woman of Mark 14?

Mark 13 - Disruption

Mark 13 - Disruption

Here are some elements that are prominent in Jesus’ sermon on the end times. There will be no predictions here about when these things will come about. But, these are strange days, and some of these themes feel eerily familiar.

Mark 13:1,2 talks about the disruption of destruction. They are referring specifically to the temple, which wasn’t, by old world standards, all that old. It was Herod’s temple, which had been in a building process for the last 40+ years. But it was impressive, and it seemed solid. And yet, impressive things that seem solid, in the end times, will be overturned. In fact, we aren’t sure what things in and of this world won’t be overturned.

Mark 13:3-8 talks about false teachers. The world will be characterized by lies. People will not know who or what they can believe. Rumors will run rampant. And, that sounds familiar.

Mark 13:9-13 says that there will be persecution. Yes, there will be strife in general, but there will be deep animus against faith and against the faithful. It does not appear in Jesus’ setting that the persecution was going to affect the Roman worship of pagan gods. You can have your gods, so long as they are not exclusive; so long as they come in multiples. But exclusive religions are going to suffer. That is, if you don’t profess that there are many ways to heaven, but instead insist, as does the Bible, that there is only One Way, then you are exclusive, and you will be resented and hated.

Mark 13:14-23 describes an incident that seems already to have happened in history, during the first century of the early church. And when it happened, it must have seemed like “the end.” And this has happened several times through history. The Church experiences these “stress points” at different times, in different places, and it easy to conclude that this is the end of all things. But it comes in waves. When the end comes, I believe we will know it (cf vv. 24-26).

Mark 13:28-32 contains the phrase, “He is near, right at the door.” And that is part of the picture. I have used the illustration of time, that we don’t stand in a long line, waiting for the years to drop off ahead of us one by one, until we finally come to the end. Rather, we each live our lives on the precipice, on the edge of His coming, and are to live our lives from that perspective. 

Mark 13:33-37 repeats the phrase, “Be on the alert.” And yet, it almost seems at times that we are sleep-walking through life, as though we can assume that tomorrow will be just like today because today seems so much like yesterday. Jesus has promised - and this is the most certain thing that we know about the end times - that He is coming again. This passage says it: ²⁶ “Then they will see THE SON OF MAN COMING IN CLOUDS with great power and glory.” And so our job is to be awake; to be ready; and to be occupied in this mean time with things that are in keeping with Jesus’ coming.

Mark 12:38-44 A Large Heart

Mark 12:38   In His teaching He was saying: “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like respectful greetings in the market places, ³⁹ and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, ⁴⁰ who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers; these will receive greater condemnation.”Mark 12:41   And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums. ⁴² A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent. ⁴³ Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury; ⁴⁴ for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”

Here at the end of Mark 12, Jesus warns (Beware!) of religious leaders who are all about themselves, so much so that “they devour widows’ houses.” He then moves on to observe and commend a poor widow who comes to the temple. As part of her worship, she contributes to the treasury.

The description of the religious leaders focuses not on what they give, but on what they receive. It is their own focus. They want to receive “respectful greetings;” they want to be recognized with seats of honor; they want to accumulate; they want to be noticed. This can happen in the lives of many who are not so-called “religious leaders.” Many of us want to be respected, and we react negatively when we perceive being slighted. Many of us desire to be honored, and are often quick to judge those who are honored before us, or, to judge those doing the honoring. Many of us want more, and just a little bit more.

It would be easiest, in seeking to apply this passage, to purpose to curtail the receiving in our lives, and to expand the giving. If that’s the lesson, we can all do a little bit better. But that’s not how the passage works out, because Jesus does not here commend incremental improvement; He commends a stark contrast: “a poor widow.”

She “put in(to the treasury) two small copper coins, which amount to a cent.” That’s not going to add up very fast. It will not pay the utility bills on the building. But Jesus says, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury.” Obviously, Jesus is using a different standard of measure than monetary. He is measuring hearts. And her heart is larger.

Jesus explains, “for they (the ‘receivers’) all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”

One more point - a bit of conjecture. She didn’t lug her house into the temple and throw it into the treasury. She put coins in. She didn’t put in the price that she received when she sold her house. Did she really put in all that she owned? Well, perhaps this is one of those widows whose house has been “devoured” by the religious leaders, you know, for the good of the ministry. Maybe she had lost her house to these old goats, and she had only two coins left.

In which case, it amazes us all the more that she still, having been robbed by the men who run the temple, is still willing to come into the temple and worship. It seems that her worship of God is so sincere that the bad behavior of religious leaders does not get in the way; and her trust in God is so pure, that being wronged does not disrupt her faith in Him.

Mark 12:35-37 Both Son and Lord

Mark 12:35-37 Both Son and Lord

Mark 12:35   And Jesus began to say, as He taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? ³⁶ “David himself said in the Holy Spirit,  ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD,  “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,  UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET.”’³⁷ “David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?” And the large crowd enjoyed listening to Him.

Jesus now teaches in the Temple, and his lesson is not in response to a question. It is material that He Himself decides to present because we need to hear it. It seems to be a twisty little argument that He uses, but it is not all that difficult.

One of the most familiar commandments is #5 from the 10 commandments: “Honor your father and your mother.” Nowhere do we find parents required to honor their children. It is the responsibility of the younger to honor the older. This applies to honoring parents, and grandparents, and forebears up the line. The older is honored by the younger.

And so if Jesus is a descendant of David, and He is, through Mary, then it is His responsibility to honor David. And yet, in Psalm 110 - these verses that Jesus quotes from the Scriptures - David speaks, referring to “My Lord,” and places this “Lord” at the right hand of the LORD, that is God. In the Hebrew text of Psalm 110, two different words are used for these two Lords. The first is clearly the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - Yahweh, or Jehovah. He is clearly divine. The second is Adonai, which is a term that refers to one who has authority, and can certainly refer to God, but could also refer to a king. It would be appropriate, then, for a descendant of David to refer to David as “my lord.” But that is not what happens here. Here David refers to a son, a particular son, different from all others, as “Lord.” He alone, and not David, is the One who will sit a Yahweh’s right hand, with all enemies subdued under His feet.

This One who would sit at Yahweh’s right hand is also the One who is about, in the flow of Mark’s Gospel, to be crucified. But again, David has already spoken about this, not in reference to himself, as Peter says, but in reference to Jesus the Christ. 

“For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;  Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.”  (Psalm 16:10 NAS95)

Having suffered the pains of death, Jesus was buried, he rose again from the dead, and He has ascended to sit at the right hand of the Father, as both Son and Lord.

Preparing for a Different Future

One of the great prayers recorded in Scripture is Daniel’s prayer in Daniel 9. It is a prayer of confession, in which he confesses both the greatness of God, and also the greatness of the people’s sin. He is very clear that the basis for his appeal to God for forgiveness is not “because of our righteousness but because of your great mercy” (v.19). 

Let’s think about this verse:

“As it is written in the law of Moses, all this calamity has come on us; yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our iniquity and giving attention to Your truth.” (Daniel 9:13 NAS95)

There are differences, of course, between our current “calamity” and that of the Israelites under the Babylonians. And yet we still understand that the hand of God is involved in our current situation, and while we cannot say that it is due to this and this, and that God wants to accomplish this and this - we still must ask, what should we be learning? What should be forsaking? What should we be embracing? How should life and church be re-shaped in light of what we are learning?

We are to seek the favor of the the Lord our God. We know that His favor follows walking in His ways. No, there is not one-to-one correspondence. Many who walk in God’s ways may suffer unusually, though we can also say that they are also blessed unusually, often right in the midst of their sufferings. As we seek the favor of the Lord, we do not merely ask for the virus to be abated or eradicated, but we ask how it is that we might more consistently walk in His ways. Last week’s Easter message mentioned three areas that are clearly addressed in Scripture, but are often not-so-clearly addressed by our own selves: 1) “no longer living for themselves” (2 Cor 5:15); 2) “see to it that no one takes you captive … according to the elementary principles of the world” - here, seemingly, a kind of legalism that produces self-righteousness (Co. 2:8); and 3) “born again to a living hope” (1 Pet 1:3), thus not living on the strength of dying hopes. 

How is it that I am living selfishly, or self-righteously, or placing my hope in dying things? These things will run directly counter to “the favor of the Lord our God.” And so here, then, we come to the remainder of that line that begins with seeking the favor of the Lord our God: “by turning from our iniquity, and giving attention to Your truth.” By examining ourselves, individually and collectively, and making required changes.