(remember, these are unedited/draft show notes, not a transcript — listening is always better…and if you listen AND follow along below, you’ll see why)
Focus Question:
Who does Jesus call out on justice issues?
Intro:
Can I just put this out there — no matter where you are or what you’re going through, if you want to talk, let’s talk or hop on Zoom. Like many places, my state is under significant lockdown, even tougher right now, and the holidays are coming — a tough time for some under any circumstances, and I imagine tougher this year for many. So I’ve got an abundance of hope and good cheer — and despite the fact that I’m usually doing the talkin ‘round these parts, I’d like to think I’m a decent listener, too.
NEW TESTAMENT SEGMENT:
Kicking off our NT segment today, I want to remind you of a broader cultural context of Mark. He wrote to Christians living in Rome, while he was in Rome, during a “political climate…(that) was volatile with a litany of palace intrigue, assassinations, and egocentric emperors.”(1) And remember, Rome has been the dominant, occupying force in Israel for a good long time…and it was during the story that we’re reading about.
Now add to this the fact that the Jewish culture that is the setting for what we’re reading includes expectations of who the Messiah was expected to be. They didn’t all agree of course, but broadly speaking there was an expectation that Messiah would be one who would reunite the offices of prophet, priest, and king — which, as you might expect, came with an expectation of deliverance. And understandably, many thought this would include physical deliverance from oppression.
Do you see the potential implication or conflict? The Romans are the not-always-so-welcome overlords, and many believe the Messiah will be, among other things, a savior via military or political deliverance. Which leads us to today’s focus question…in our reading today, “Who does Jesus call out on justice issues?”
Finally, recall that just as we ended yesterday, religious leaders started challenging Jesus the moment he walks in the temple door. And from there…
Passage: Mark 12
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 44
Words: ~931
Whoah. Pharisees, Sadducees, Scribes, Herodians…quite the parade of characters. We’ll come back to that.
OLD TESTAMENT SEGMENT:
So today in our OT segment, the book of Daniel takes us through a bit of a time warp. Nebuchadnezzar, whom we read about yesterday, died about 23 years earlier than where this story picks up. Four rulers rose up in King Nezzie’s place — and one of those four, Nabonidus, spent a good bit of time being away from his own post, so Nabonidus’ son Belshazzar as vice-regent spent a lot of time as the de facto ruler. As you’ll hear, that meant he got called king.
Passage: Daniel 5
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 31
Words: ~975
I hope you all caught last Sunday’s interview with Jeff Olson. It comes to mind because one of the things that came up was how easy it is for us to look back on the people in our Bible stories and think, “What fools!” And here we’ve just had two days in a row of stories of Babylonian kings with some pride issues that make me want to go, “What fools!”, but then I’m like, “Uh, oh, right. Every person deals with pride in relation to submitting to God. I’m so busted, too.”
The bottom line:
Who does Jesus call out on justice issues? Who gets Jesus’ harsher smackdown? Well, he’s got a response for everyone, but let me draw your attention to two things that may have perked up the ears to this audience in Rome. One, there’s the whole paying taxes to Caesar episode where they give him a false dilemma. If he says you shouldn’t pay your taxes, the not-so-nice Romans wouldn’t be so pleased. If he says you should pay Caesar, he doesn’t look so great to the crowds who love him but aren’t such fans of the Romans. After all, the Romans are oppressors militarily and politically.
Fast forward a smidge. Jesus warns the crowd of the religious leaders, and I want you to remember how, in the Jewish system, they got paid. Remember that it was the tithes of all the other tribes of Israel who supported the Levitical priesthood? So here’s Jesus warning that they value status and outward appearances and make great show, all the while the “devour widows houses” — they’re feasting even as the poor widow puts her last couple pennies into the offering box. The religious leaders are doing the opposite of serving, they’re consuming. Arguably that is its own form of oppression.
Now which oppressors did Jesus call out? The pagans? No, and it’s important to note that that doesn’t make what the Romans were doing politically ok. No, Jesus called out those who were supposed to uphold and defend God’s law, those who knew better what justice was suppose to look like. And I quote, “…they will receive the harsher judgment.”
“Knowing God’s requirement of wholehearted faith and surrendering ourselves to him are separate steps of entering into the Kingdom.”(2) Jesus is King now, and in a sense not yet as we await His return. And His people? They aren’t those who merely know the right answers…His people are those with committed hearts.
I love you.
ForTheHope is a daily audio Bible + apologetics podcast and blog. We’ve got a passion for just keepin’ it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day.
Roger Courville, CSP is a globally-recognized expert in digitally-extended communication and connection, an award-winning speaker, award-winning author, and a passionately bad guitarist. Follow him on Twitter -- @RogerCourville and @JoinForTheHope – or his blog: www.forthehope.org.
Sources and resources:
(1) Bruce Barton et al., Life Application New Testament Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 2001), 132.
(2) Bruce Barton et al., Life Application New Testament Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 2001), 204.