Introduction:
A. Christian Herter was governor of Massachusetts back in the 1950s and one day when he was campaigning for a second term in office, he went looking for votes at a church barbecue.
1. Herter was famished and as he moved through the serving line, he held out his plate to the woman serving the chicken.
a. She put one piece of chicken on his plate and turned to the next person in line.
2. “Excuse me,” Governor Herter said, “could I please have a second piece of chicken?”
a. “Sorry,” the woman told him. “I’m supposed to give one piece of chicken to each person.”
3. “But I’m starved,” the governor said.
a. “Sorry,” the woman said again. “Only one per customer.”
4. Governor Herter was a modest and unassuming man, but he decided that this time he would throw a little weight around.
a. “Do you know who I am?” he said. “I am the governor of this state.”
b. “Do you know who I am?” said the woman. “I’m the lady in charge of the chicken. Move along, mister!”
5. That lady in charge of the chicken knew how to finalize her authority!
B. In today’s section from the Gospel of Mark, we will see Jesus finalizing His authority.
1. Three groups of authorities came to Jesus and tried to challenge Jesus’ credibility and authority.
2. In each of those confrontations, Jesus dealt with the central issue of all time, the basic question of everyone’s life: Who’s in charge?
a. Who has the final authority of life?
b. Who should people be obeying?
c. Whose authority is highest? Human authority or God’s authority?
3. These are the kind of question that must be addressed as a person considers God and Jesus, the Bible and life, and salvation.
4. Most of us here today have concluded that because Jesus is God, His authority is higher than any other person’s authority.
5. Let’s watch Jesus finalize His authority and let’s renew our commitment to follow His lead and submit to His authority as our Servant King.
I. Confrontation #1: A Question about the Authority of Jesus (Mk. 11:27-12:12)
A. Mark wrote: 27 They came again to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came 28 and asked him, “By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority to do these things?” (Mk. 11:27-28)
1. Jesus returned to Jerusalem the day after clearing the temple and again He went directly to the temple courts.
2. Waiting for Him in the temple that day was a powerful group and they had an important question for Him.
a. This imposing group was made up of the chief priests, the scribes (teachers of the law) and the elders – basically, they were the highest rulers of Judaism.
b. I’m sure the look on their faces and their tone of voice was all business.
c. They wanted to know who gave Him authority to do what He had done the day before when He entered the temple and cleared out the merchants and money changers.
3. Jesus knew that this question was designed to trap Him and that no matter how He answered they would likely arrest Him.
a. If He said that His authority is from God, then they would charge Him with blasphemy, because in their mind, God would never give authority to a man to create such a disturbance in the temple.
b. If Jesus claimed some secular authority, then the charge would be insurrection.
c. And if Jesus claimed His own authority, then they would conclude He was a maniac who needed to be locked up before He did any more damage.
B. Jesus saw quite clearly the position they were putting Him in and so He made a strategic move that placed them in a greater dilemma.
1. Exercising His privilege under the rules of rabbinical debate, Jesus offered to answer their question if they first answered His question.
2. Mark wrote: 29 Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; then answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30 Was John’s baptism from heaven or of human origin? Answer me.”
31 They discussed it among themselves: “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’”—they were afraid of the crowd, because everyone thought that John was truly a prophet. 33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.” (Mk. 11:29-33)
3. These Jewish leaders were smart and they knew that Jesus had put them in a bind.
a. Before answering Jesus, they went aside and discussed their alternatives.
b. If they said that John’s baptism was from Heaven, then Jesus would ask why they didn’t accept him.
c. But if they say that John’s authority was from men, then the listening crowd would riot because John the Baptizer was a martyred folk hero.
4. They wisely and cowardly retreated behind the false confession: “We don’t know.”
a. They plead the 5th amendment – the right to remain silent and not incriminate themselves.
b. Sometimes when someone says “I don’t know,” they are expressing something honestly and humbly.
c. But that wasn’t the case with that group – they knew the answer but didn’t want to make it known.
5. Because they didn’t answer His question, Jesus was released from having to answer theirs.
a. Jesus chose not to answer their question directly, but He proceeded to tell a parable that addressed the cause of their guilt and the source of His authority.
C. Mark wrote: 1 He began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug out a pit for a winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went away. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the farmers to collect some of the fruit of the vineyard from them. 3 But they took him, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent another servant to them, and they hit him on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 Then he sent another, and they killed that one. He also sent many others; some they beat, and others they killed. 6 He still had one to send, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenant farmers said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill the farmers and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this Scripture:
The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
11 This came about from the Lord and is wonderful in our eyes?”
12 They were looking for a way to arrest him but feared the crowd because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. So they left him and went away. (Mk. 12:1-12)
D. This story depicted the common relationship between tenant farmers and landowners.
1. The system worked only when the landowner and the tenant trusted each other implicitly.
2. The landowner trusted the tenant to manage the estate, produce the crops and share the profits.
3. The tenant farmer trusted the owner to give him full operation of the land and a portion of the profits.
4. Often the landowner would send a personal emissary to collect his share after the harvest.
5. How sad and tragic is this story that Jesus told in which the landowner sent his servants to collect, but the tenant farmers abused the emissaries with increasing violence.
a. Then the owner wrongly judged that sending his son would rectify the situation only to experience an even greater and unimaginable loss.
6. It was easy for the Jewish leaders to read between the lines and see who the cast of characters was in the parable.
a. The owner of the vineyard was God.
b. The vineyard was the nation of Israel.
c. The tenants of the vineyard were the leaders of Israel.
d. The servants of the owner who had been abused were the prophets, including John.
e. The son and heir of the owner is was Jesus.
7. And so, through the parable Jesus confronted the religious leaders with what they were doing and the punishment they were going to receive.
a. And Jesus was also answering the question of where His authority came from – Jesus was saying that I am the heir of the vineyard, the beloved Son and you have killed the prophets and are going to kill me.
E. Jesus concluded the parable by predicting His victory.
1. Jesus switched metaphors from landowners and tenants to builders.
2. Builders often search among the available rocks for the perfect cornerstone to support the structure and to set the entire foundation in the right direction.
3. Often after examination a stone was rejected as the cornerstone and was set aside to be used in a different way.
4. The Jewish people had been waiting for the Messiah (the cornerstone) to be found and they had rejected many people over the years.
5. The Jewish leaders had decided that Jesus wasn’t the one and were casting Him aside, but Jesus declared that He was the cornerstone.
6. In Matthew’s parallel account, he included another statement Jesus made: “He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.” (Mt. 21:44)
7. Note to self: Tripping over Jesus the cornerstone or being crushed by Jesus the cornerstone are not good things to experience.
F. So, what do we learn from this first confrontation?
1. We learn that Jesus has all authority and it comes from the fact that He is the Son of God.
a. He is the boss and we are His servants, not the other way around.
2. We learn that those who abuse God’s servants and reject God’s Son will be punished.
3. No one can act against God and get away with it.
4. Anyone who sets themselves up as their own god will eventually be dethroned by the One True God who alone is enthroned in heaven for all eternity.
II. Confrontation #2: A Question about the Paying of Taxes (Mk. 12:13-17)
A. Mark wrote: 13 Then they sent some of the Pharisees and the Herodians to Jesus to trap him in his words. 14 When they came, they said to him, “Teacher, we know you are truthful and don’t care what anyone thinks, nor do you show partiality but teach the way of God truthfully. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or shouldn’t we?” (Mk. 12:13-14)
1. The chief priest, scribes and elders left Jesus after their defeat, but they were not finished with Him.
a. They formed an alliance with two parties who disagreed and disliked each other greatly – the Pharisees and the Herodians.
1. The Pharisees were the right-wing religionists who stood for the law and stood against Rome.
2. The Herodians were the left-wing liberals who believed that political expediency superseded religious convictions.
b. Nevertheless, together they concocted the perfect plan to trap Jesus with a question.
2. They began with a bit of flattery to try to disarm Jesus, then they asked their question thinking they had Him in the corner – “Is it right to pay takes to Caesar?”
a. If Jesus answered “Yes,” then He would be labeled a traitor by the populace.
b. If Jesus answered “No,” then they would report Him to the Romans as a revolutionary.
3. As you would expect, Jesus saw through their trap and saw into their hearts.
a. Mark wrote: 15 But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius to look at.” 16 They brought a coin. “Whose image and inscription is this?” he asked them. “Caesar’s,” they replied. 17 Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him. (Mk. 12:15-17)
4. It was truly a brilliant answer but we shouldn’t be surprised by God’s brilliance! Amen!
a. What could the Pharisees and Herodians do except marvel at Jesus’ answer?
b. The Bible says that they were utterly amazed at Him – sadly their amazement didn’t cause them to believe in Him!
B. There are several important lessons that we can gather from this incident.
1. First, we learn that Caesar has a legitimate realm.
a. Jesus acknowledged the authority, functions, and demands of the secular state – even when that secular state is ruled by an ungodly person like Caesar, who thought he was god.
b. The secular state rules the land, keeps the peace, and deserves tribute – taxes – yes, as much as we don’t like it, we have to pay our taxes!
c. The Bible speaks to these realities in Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2.
2. Second, we learn that God has a legitimate realm.
a. Jesus implies that God has, like Caesar, a legitimate authority, function, and demands which define His kingdom.
b. The difference between the two include the fact that God’s authority is the highest and His demand of absolute obedience is justified.
3. Third, we learn that these two realms are separate from each other.
a. While Jesus makes room for the realm of Caesar and the realm of God to coexist and cooperate, they are to be kept separate from each other.
b. If the state stays within the boundaries of its realm and permits freedom for the church to proclaim God’s sovereignty, minister salvation, and expect full obedience to God’s will, then the two realms will not be in conflict.
c. But in the event of conflict, then God rules over Caesar.
d. If the state oversteps its boundaries, then followers of God must say, “We must obey God rather than humans.”
e. Many of our Christian brothers and sisters around the world and throughout time have had to stand for God against the state, and many have suffered because of it – but God will reward them.
f. As the leaders of our country become increasingly atheistic and immoral, we can expect that we will find ourselves having to stand firm in obedience to God’s commands over and against human commands, and we will likely suffer because of it, but God will reward us.
g. But until those direct conflicts emerge, Christians should strive to be the best citizens of any nation in the world where they are living.
III. Confrontation #3: A Question about the Afterlife (Mk. 12:18-27)
A. Wave after wave of Jewish religious leaders launched their attacks on Jesus trying to trap Him.
1. The next group was the Sadducees who were a small Jewish party made up of wealthy aristocrats.
2. They included many of the priests and the high priest was always a Sadducee.
3. They placed authority in the first five books of the Old Testament, but they didn’t believe in immortality, spirits or angels.
4. The Sadducees didn’t believe in the resurrection and that’s why they were “sad-you-see.”
5. They came to Jesus with a question designed to make the resurrection look ridiculous.
B. Mark wrote: 18 Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him and questioned him: 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife behind but no child, that man should take the wife and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers. The first married a woman, and dying, left no offspring. 21 The second also took her, and he died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 None of the seven left offspring. Last of all, the woman died too. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be, since the seven had married her?” (Mk. 12:18-23)
1. Their story concerned a woman who became the wife of seven brothers, one at a time after each one died.
2. Each of the brother’s had married the woman in keeping with the Jewish Law of Levirate marriage.
3. Their irrelevant and irreverent question was: “At the resurrection, whose wife will she be?”
4. Their question belongs with other ridiculous questions that skeptics ask trying to make belief in God look ridiculous, like:
a. Can God create a rock too big for Him to lift?
b. Did Adam have a belly button?
C. How did Jesus answer their question?
1. Mark wrote: 24 Jesus spoke to them, “Isn’t this the reason why you’re mistaken: you don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like angels in heaven. 26 And as for the dead being raised—haven’t you read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God said to him: I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob? 27 He is not the God of the dead but of the living. You are badly mistaken.” (Mk. 12:24-27)
2. Notice that Jesus began and ended His reply with a clear statement of their error – they were wrong and He told them so!
3. His correction of their theology fell into two parts:
a. First, they didn’t understand the manner of the resurrection.
1. Jesus explained that the resurrected life is different from the earthly life.
2. Marriage played an important role in earthly life, but it won’t play the same role in the afterlife.
3. We can’t imagine how people who were married on earth for 20 or 40 or 60 years in earthly life could have a different relationship in the afterlife, but they will and it will be okay.
b. Second, they didn’t understand the fact of the resurrection.
1. Jesus pointed out that God is (present tense) the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, not that God was (past tense) the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
2. If God is their present God, then they must still be alive, meaning that there is a resurrection.
3. Jesus reinforced this truth by emphatically concluding: “He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”
4. It appears that the Sadducees had no response – how could they argue with Jesus’ answer?
D. What can we learn from this confrontation?
1. The main thing I take away from this is the tragic reality that people can diligently study God’s word and still not know God or God’s power.
a. I don’t want that to happen to me or to any of us! Amen!
2. These Sadducees were unmatched in their commitment to study and they were unmatched in the intricacy of their arguments and the arrogance with which they presented their arguments.
a. They were smart and had all the rules down, but they had missed what was most important.
b. They missed the truth about who God is and what God can do.
c. They missed God’s most important messages in Scripture – which Jesus will address in the next episode in Mark that we will look at next week.
3. How sad to study so hard and so long and to be so wrong about God!
a. God is alive and is so powerful – He can do much more than we can even imagine – we had better be careful not to put God in a box of our creation.
b. Just because we can’t understand or explain something about God – like the trinity – doesn’t mean that it isn’t a reality.
c. Let’s let God be God and let’s admit that He is infinitely beyond anything we know and can do far more than we can imagine. Amen!
Conclusion:
A. So, what have we learned today from this section of Mark’s Gospel?
1. We have learned that Jesus’ authority comes from God the Father and from His position as the Son of God.
2. Jesus runs circles around those who try to outsmart Him because as God He knows everything.
3. All of this should cause us to have great faith and great confidence in Jesus.
B. As we live out the lordship of Jesus in our lives, we must also learn to give Caesar what is Caesar’s and to give God what is God’s.
1. As citizens of the kingdom of God and as citizens of the United States of America, it is our obligation to follow the laws of our nation unless they oppose the laws of God.
2. We cast a dark shadow on the Christian faith when we deliberately break the laws of our nation – whether those laws are traffic laws, or copyright laws, or tax laws, or any other laws.
3. A rebellious attitude towards God’s laws or towards our government’s laws is not compatible with the claim that Jesus is Lord.
4. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commands” (Jn. 14:15) and one of God’s commands is to keep our government’s laws.
5. The apostle Peter wrote: 13 Submit to every human authority because of the Lord, whether to the emperor as the supreme authority 14 or to governors as those sent out by him to punish those who do what is evil and to praise those who do what is good. 15 For it is God’s will that you silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good. 16 Submit as free people, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but as God’s slaves. (1 Peter 2:13-16)
6. If we are going to walk with God in a way that pleases God, then we must study the Scriptures in a way that leads to us know God and His power and His commands, and in a way that puts what we know into practice – being not just hearers of the word, but doers of the word.
7. Let’s bring glory and honor to our God by living a life of obedience and righteousness.
8. Praise God that the Holy Spirit lives inside of us and helps us to know God’s will and do it.
Resources:
• Truth for Today Commentary: Mark 1-8 and 9-16, Martel Pace, Resources Communications.
• Finalizing His Authority, Sermon by David Owens
• Mark, The Communicator’s Commentary, David McKenna
• Jesus the King, by Timothy Keller, Riverhead Books, 2011
