Tuesday April 11, 2017
THE ESCALATING CONFLICT
By Andreas Köstenberger & Justin Taylor
It is now Tuesday
morning, March 31, a.d. 33. The disciples point to the withered fig
tree that Jesus had cursed the day before. Jesus gives his disciples a simple
lesson from it: Have faith in God. In particular, he says, if they have
undoubting faith they can throw even the mountains into the sea. Now if the
disciples had ears to hear they would recognize that Jesus is talking about
more than seemingly magical powers that can curse trees and crumble mountains.
He is talking about realities bigger than this. Note that he closes this
mini-lesson on mountain-moving, undoubting faith by saying, “whenever you stand
praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also
who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses” (Mark 11:25). Jesus is
reminding them that failing to forgive looms as a bigger obstacle to answered
prayer than a mountain. The disciples will soon face great challenges to their
faith and their ability to forgive. Will they remember this withered tree on
the road from Bethany?
As they
approach the Holy City, the events from the day before could not have been far
from their minds. As Jesus enters the Temple Mount, crowds gather to hear him
teach (Luke 21:38), and the chief priests, scribes, and elders waste no time in
making their move. They will try to lay four traps to ensnare their adversary.
Trap One:
Whose Authority?
By whose
authority, they demand to know, had Jesus carried out his actions the day
before (Mark 11:28)? Jesus doesn’t take the bait. Instead, he turns the tables
on them with a question of his own: “Was the baptism of John from heaven or
from man?” (Mark 11:30). If they respond “from heaven,” the next question is
obvious: Then why don’t you believe the one about whom John testifies? If they
retort “from man,” they risk alienating the crowds that hold John in high
esteem as a prophet. Jesus then offers three parabolic stories (about two sons,
murderous tenants, and guests at a wedding feast), all driving home the point
that they are rejecting grace and truth in the service of hypocritical
self-righteousness.
Trap Two:
Whose Allegiance?
The leaders
try a new tactic. They send Pharisees (a Jewish sect known for its zeal for the
law) and Herodians (those loyal to Herod’s dynasty) to ask him a question: “Is
it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” (Matt. 22:15–22; Mark 12:13– 17;
Luke 20:20–26). If he answers “yes,” he shatters people’s expectations of him
as a Messiah who will overthrow Roman rule. If he says “no,” he can be arrested
for fomenting revolt. But Jesus deftly evades the either-or dilemma: The denarius
has Caesar’s image on it; as long as Caesar is in power, it is appropriate to
pay taxes to him. And we are also to give God the things that are God’s; since
we are made in God’s image, we owe everything—all that we have and all that we
are—to him. Pay your taxes and worship God.
Trap Three:
Whose Wife in the Resurrection?
After Jesus
has silenced the Pharisees and Herodians, the Sadducees (a Jewish sect denying
the end-time resurrection of the dead) try to ridicule Jesus’s belief in the
resurrection by asking a trick question about marriage in heaven (Matt.
22:23–33; Mark 12:18–27; Luke 20:27–40). Jesus tells them they do not understand
the Scriptures (there is no marriage in heaven) or the power of God (God’s
selfaffirmation in Ex. 3:6, 15–16 shows that he is a God of the living, not the
dead). Like the others, their smirk turns to marvel as they grow silent.
Trap Four:
Which Commandment?
Now the
Pharisees send forth an expert in the law to question Jesus: Which of God’s
commands is the greatest (Matt. 22:34–40; Mark 12:28–34)? Jesus summarizes his
answer in a word: love (to God and for neighbor: Deut. 6:4–5; Lev. 19:18). But
Jesus discerns something different from this questioner, so he commends and
implicitly invites him: “You are not far from the kingdom of God” (Mark 12:34).
Now it’s Jesus’s turn to initiate some questions with those who are trying to
trap him. When he asks them a question about Psalm 110:1 and how the Messiah
can be David’s Lord, “no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day
did anyone dare to ask him any more questions” (Matt. 22:46). Jesus then
launches a lengthy, scathing critique of the scribes and Pharisees, pronouncing
seven woes of judgment upon these “hypocrites” and “blind guides” (Matt.
23:1–39; Mark 12:38–40; Luke 20:45–47). This full-scale verbal assault removes
all doubt concerning Jesus’s intentions, agenda, and aims. He has no desire to
ally himself with the current leadership. He has come to overthrow their
authority. There’s no way both sides can survive the escalating conflict.
Either Jesus will assume power, or he must die.
Grace and
Truth in Every Trap
With another
tension-filled day behind them, Jesus and the disciples begin to head back to
Bethany. They stop on the Mount of Olives to rest, giving them a wonderful view
of Jerusalem as the sun begins to set behind it in the west. The disciples
marvel at the size and the grandeur of these impressive buildings, but Jesus
tells them that a day is soon coming when not a single stone will be left upon
another. He goes on to explain that his followers will experience increasing
persecution and tribulation, leading up to the final Day of Judgment. But their
task is to remain vigilant and persist in faith. Tuesday is now done. But
Friday is coming. This is not the flannel-board Jesus some of us learned as
children. This is the real, historical Jesus: fully in control as he responds
with grace and truth to traps on all sides. He knows what he is doing. And he
knows what is coming. Every word and every step is for the fame of his Father’s
name and the salvation of those willing to pick up their cross and die with him.
Bible
Reading Plan: (52 weeks; 5
days a week)
Week 15
– Judges 12-16; Psalm 146; Luke 24
No comments:
Post a Comment