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Jesus is Questioned
Jesus is Questioned
Mark 12:19-37
Jesus teaches the reality of the resurrection from God’s Word (Mark 12:19-27)
Jesus teaches the primacy of love from God’s Word (Mark 12:28-34)
Jesus teaches the deity of the Messiah from God’s Word (Mark 12:35-37)
One of the ten commandments says “Thou shall not steal”
QUESTION: if Jesus played baseball, would he steal base?
ANSWER: Yes because it would not be breaking the rules (law)
Context: (Also referenced in Matthew 22:15-46; Luke 19:28-47)
-Jesus entered Jerusalem on a colt
-People were “Blessed be the king who comes in the name of the Lord”
-Jesus drives out the money changers in the temple “My house shall be called a house of Prayer”
-Jesus is teaching in the temple (its the week of his final week)
-He teaches several parables
Parable of the barren Fig tree (speaks of Israel not bearing fruit) (Matt)
Parable of two sons (speaks of prostitutes and tax collectors being more righteous then the pharisees because they believed in Jesus) (Matt)
At this time Jesus’ authority is questioned and Jesus responds with the authenticity of John the Baptist - was he from God or man.
Then Jesus gives the parable of the Landowner (speaks of Israel’s rejection of Jesus as Messiah) (Matt, Mark & Luke)
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them.
And they were seeking to seize Him, and yet they feared the people, for they understood that He spoke the parable against them. And so they left Him and went away.
Parable of the Marriage feast (speaks of going into the highways and byways to bring as many people into the kingdom as possible) (Matt)
WOULD GOD STEAL SECOND BASE?
READ MARK 12:13-17
The purpose of these questions was “in order to trap Him in a statement” (Mk 12:13)
They start off with false humility “we know you are truthful” which they didn’t even believe
They give him a political question - shall we pay or not pay taxes
Politics always has two sides. You can usually defend both sided equally. Once a person has his mind made up, it usually doesn’t change
This is a reflection of the Pharisees. They were so strong in their own self righteousness that they failed to fulfill God’s righteousness.
Jesus responds by the question “why are you testing me”
The idea of testing goes back to the time of the wilderness experience.
“Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice,
In the wilderness they tested God by not believing in God and by not listening to His voice. The Pharisees were doing the same thing. They did not believe Jesus as the Messiah and were not listening to God’s voice through John the Baptist, by Jesus’ works and proofs that he was the Messiah.
“If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me;
but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father.”
QUESTION: What were the proofs of Jesus being the Messiah prior to the resurrection?
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”
ANSWER: Miracles and healings, (Like the leper), fulfillment of OT prophecies, His sinless life, the preaching of the gospel.
After they bring him a coin, (uses as an illustration) Jesus tells them you can do both, pay God his due and pay the government their due
QUESTION: Is God democrat or republican?
ANSWER: God is not limited mans limitations. He can use a democrat or republican to fulfill his will. And he doesn’t love the democrat more or less than the republican!
So would God steal second base? Yes if it was beneficial to Him
So is it wrong not to pay taxes? Yes, it would be beneficial to you to do so
2. IS THERE MARRIAGE IN HEAVEN?
READ MARK 12:18-27
QUESTION: Will there be marriage in heaven?
ANSWER: Yes - I’ll explain later
Ironically, its the Sadducees who ask this question.
According to Josephus, the Sadducees believed that: There is no fate. God does not commit evil. Man has free will; "man has the free choice of good or evil". The soul is not immortal; there is no afterlife. There are no rewards or penalties after death.
After the question of who the wife will the brothers will be, Jesus starts with correction.
Two facts about the Sadducees The Misunderstood the Scriptures and the Power of God.
Two facts about unbelievers: Misunderstanding the Scriptures and the Power of God!
Marriage on earth does not carry over into heaven
Jesus corrects them on the resurrection
“But regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?
“He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken.”
Jesus is life and gives it abundantly and freely to those who will receive Him
So, will there be marriage in heaven?
ANSWER: Yes, but it will only be one marriage, the church to Christ for:
We are the Bride of Christ,
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.
For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin.
and we will participate in the “married supper of the lamb”,
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”
We are the wife of the Lamb
3. WHO SHOULD YOU HATE?
READ MARK 12:28-34
The Scribes recognized that Jesus had argued well with the Sadducees, so Jesus is asked what commandment is the foremost of all? Or which is the greatest commandment or the first one we should follow?
This is not first in order, but of weight and seriousness.
“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Jesus doesn’t give just one answer but two because they go hand in hand.
and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’
“The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
How do you love God with all your Heart?
With all your thoughts and feelings, meaning He is the center of your thoughts and feelings or it represents the control center of human personality. It could also mean the “whole inner man”
How do you love God with all your soul?
With all your breath and spirit or the self-conscious thought life. This could also mean your emotions.
How do you love God with all your mind?
With all your deep thoughts, imagination, understanding or thought capacity and intelligence
How do you love God with all your strength?
With all your force, ability and bodily power.
One commentator put it this way: These are to be the sources out of which love for God should flow. We should love God with all our will (decisions), emotions (desires), minds (thoughts), and bodies (actions). (Constable)
QUESTION: Why does he give two answers?
ANSWER: Because you can’t love God and hate your neighbor.
There are always two sides to a coin
“On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Jesus give us the big picture here. This is what we are to do now, this is what we will be doing for eternity. This is the ultimate goal of your life. It is simple enough for a new believer to grasp yet complex enough for the mature believer to learn to achieve. This is the gospel in a nutshell
The Scribe responded intelligently by saying
and to love Him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as himself, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
Meaning he didn’t disagree with Jesus but didn’t understand the balance between God and neighbor. The religious leaders put a lot of emphases on burn offerings and sacrifices. They thought serving God through the sacrifices was of first importance - that’s why they focused so much on the temple. But Jesus was going to fulfill the sacrifice through his own death and resurrection, so the temple was no long needed for sacrifices. He moves the scribe to a new covenant relationship that is love God, love your neighbor.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
“But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now.
The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him.
So I ask the QUESTION: Who should you hate?
ANSWER: Nobody.
After all this Jesus takes the offensive and asked them a question by quoting a Scripture found in Psalms 110:1
READ Mark 12:35-37
Jesus uses Scripture to cause them to think and perhaps reconsider the Deity of the Jesus.
So in these passages of Scripture we see Jesus asked difficult questions in order to find fault with Him. Yet, Jesus response with skill (taxes), correction (marriage) and grace (greatest commandment). We should live the same way.