Powerful Words From The Last Week of the Life of Jesus
Love
Mark 12:28-44
Introduction
We are looking at powerful words from the last days of the life of Jesus. Last week we examined the parable of the tenants and the word was REJECTION. This week we will look at the context of Mark 12 and settle in on the powerful word LOVE.
Various groups are represented in our text for today.
- Herodians - loyal to the house of Herod, the Roman appointed King of the Jews. The Herodians and Pharisees usually have a hostile relationship but find unity in their hatred of Jesus.
-Pharisees were known for their meticulous observance of obligations under the Law for purity, tithing, and Sabbath observances. They are not spoken of in positive terms in the NT, often clashing with Jesus. They seemed to exhibit a self-righteous and hypocritical attitude. (Ross)
-Sadducees. “One of the major difficulties in describing the Sadducees is that all that we know about them comes from their opponents. They themselves left no written records of their history, their organization, or their views.” (Ross) Many believe they were the ruling class in ancient Israel; most of the priests, Sanhedrin, and men of status were Sadducees. This group denied the resurrection at the end of the age and the existence of angels and spirits (Acts 23:8). Barclay notes that they were aristocratic and wealthy. This is the first and only time that the Sadducees make an appearance in Mark’s gospel.
-Scribes. Barclay says the profession of the scribes was to interpret the law in all its many rules and regulations. Scribes were necessary for the transmission of religious texts and other documents. They copied the Scriptures they became authorities on the text. Ultimately a Scribe became known as a learned guardian of the Law. They were experts in judicial procedures, helpful in the enforcement of Jewish law and custom, and even joined the governing class and served on the Sanhedrin. They depended on the wealthy for their training and positions. They were loyal to the chief priests.
We see these groups coming in to play in this section of Mark, an escalation of conflict.
1. THE ESCALATION OF CONFLICT
Bookout: It is like everyone is taking their final shot to trap Him or catch Him in some inconsistency.”
-Mark 11:27-33 - Jesus turns the tables at the temple in a statement of judgment against the leaders of Israel.
-Mark 12:1-12 - Dark and bloody parable of the tenants, aimed at the leaders and their rejection of the Messiah.
-Mark 12:13-17 - Jesus has conflict with the Pharisees as they bring out trick questions about paying taxes to Ceasar.
-Mark 12:18-27 - Jesus conflicts with the Saducees over marriage in the resurrection, another trick question. “You are quite wrong” (vs. 27).
Beginning in verse 28 Jesus engages the Scribes.
-Vs. 35-37 - about the identity of the Son of David, Christ.
-Vs. 38-40 - a scathing indictment of the Scribes. They want the best dress, best greetings, best seats,
best honors. What they are best at is devouring widow’s houses and offering up long pretentious prayers to be noticed.
-Vs 41-44 Contrasts the hypocritical Scribes with a widow who offers a penny and Jesus states, “this poor widow has put in more than all of those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on” (ESV).
Right in the middle of all of this conflict and condemnation is a conversation between Jesus and a Scribe.
Mark 12:28-31, ESV
And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 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.”
2. THE ELEVATION OF LOVE
The Scribe asks which command is the greatest of all. “This is one of the few times that Jesus gives a straightforward answer to the question. Perhaps Jesus responds this way because the question is sincere.” (Bookout)
Wouldn’t the 10 Commands be the greatest commandments?
Bookout: “…if you read the commandments with these two commands in mind, you see how they all fit together … If you truly love God and love your neighbor, you don’t need the Ten Commandments because you will already be practicing them. The Law helps you practice love.”
Jesus’ answer comes from DT 6:4-6 and Leviticus 19:18.
Love God
Deuteronomy 6:4-6 is the Shema - a prayer of confession of faith every morning and evening dating back to the second century BC.
Only Mark reports that Jesus introduced his answer with the words of the Shema. It is the Lord our God who is to be loved with a devotion which is defined by the repeated “all.” (Lane)
Barclay: When Jesus quoted this sentence as the first commandment, every devout Jew would agree with him.
Wright: “No half measures: heart, soul, mind and strength - that is, every aspect of human life - is to be poured out gladly in worship of the one true God. Whatever we do, we are to do for him. If we truly lived like that for a single day God’s Kingdom would have come on earth as it is in heaven. And - this is the point - Jesus seems to think that through his kingdom-work this commandment is now within our reach.”
Love Others
Hughes: “Jesus’ double answer showed that love for God and love for humankind cannot be divided. …John later would write: “Whoever loves God must also love his brother (1 John 4:21).”
Wright: “This doesn’t mean loving others instead of ourselves, but showing to all people the same respect and care that we show to ourselves. … Again, if people lived by this rule, most of the world’s greatest problems would be solved overnight.”
These two are above all of the sacrifices. This places loving God and Others squarely above all of the other duties of the Christian life - or rather - they summarize all of the duties of the Christian life.
3. THE EVALUATION OF JESUS
Mark 12:32-34, ESV
And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 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 oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
The Scribe is described by Jesus as being close to the kingdom. Kent Hughes Suggests this is because the Scribe…
-The Scribe was a thinking man. The Scribes were experts on the scriptures and this man had thought a lot about the Scriptures Jesus quoted. Hughes: “In a world that is about as shallow as a birdbath, those who enter the Kingdom are those who are willing to pause and truly think about eternal things.”
-The Scribe faced head-on the implications that the love of God is the priority of all.
-The Scribe was honest. He could have sided with his fellow Scribes and Pharisees, but he did not let his natural allegiance keep him from acknowledging the truth.
-The Scribe was not a coward.He was willing to risk his position to step up to the door of the Kingdom of God.
-The Scribe was near …and we do not know what happened to him after this - perhaps he followed Jesus. But the text leaves us in a questioning place. It is a great thing to be near the Kingdom, but tragic to stay there. Jesus calls to us to join him, how many will be close but not accept His call?
Philip P. Bliss was at a revival meeting and heard the preacher say, "He who is almost persuaded is almost saved, but to be almost saved is to be entirely lost.” He was inspired to use that the hymn, Almost Persuaded. The last verse says “Almost persuaded,” harvest is past! “Almost persuaded” doom comes at last!“Almost” cannot avail; “Almost” is but to fail! Sad, sad, that bitter wail,“Almost,” but lost!
What a tragic place to be - near the Kingdom - but not willing to step in.
Conclusion
The first powerful word from the last week of the life of Jesus is Rejection, the second is Love.
On the way to the cross, in a time of conflict and condemnation, Jesus has a brilliant conversation with a Scribe who was ‘not far from the kingdom.’ In our world of argumentation, accusation, sharp words and
shaming of others, we should listen above the rabble for the clear and true message: Love God, Love Others. Everything else comes in second place.
To conclude our message today, let’s read together:
1 John 4:7-12 NLT
7 Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.
8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.
10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.
12 No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.
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Questions for Discussion
1. What does the escalation of conflict say to you about this period of the life of Jesus? When someone speaks in conflict of your faith, how should we respond?
2. When the Scribe comes to Jesus, what evidence is there that the is not out to trap Jesus?
3. Though Jesus is asked for one commandment, he adds a second to his reply. What relationship does the second commandment bear to the first? How does loving our neighbors relate to loving God?
4. What steps can you take to make the love of God and love of neighbor a higher priority in your life?
5. After our main text, the questions stop and Jesus begins to make some statements. What warning to us is present in Jesus’ cautions about the teachers of the law (vv. 38-40)?
6. In contrast to the teachers of the law and the rich, what motivates the widow’s religious behavior?
How does she fulfill the great commandment?
7. What implications does this example have for our giving to the Lord’s work?
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Resources
-Barclay, William. Daily Study Bible Series: The Gospel of Mark (Revised) Westminster Press, 1975.
-Bookout, Travis J. Cruciform Christ: 52 Reflections on the Gospel of Mark. Cypress Press, 2022.
-Hoover, James. LifeGuide Bible Studies, Mark: Follow Me. IVP, 1999.
-Hughes, R. Kent. Preaching the Word Series: Mark, Vol. Two. Crossway, 1989.
-Lane, William L. NICNT: The Gospel According the Mark. Eerdman’s, 1974.
-Ross, Allen. The Pharisees. https://bible.org/seriespage/pharisees
-Ross, Allen. The Saducees. https://bible.org/seriespage/sadducees
-Ross, Allen. The Scribes. https://bible.org/seriespage/7-scribes
-Wright, N. T. Mark For Everyone. Westminster Press, 2023.
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Not used in this sermon, but of interest...
Kent Hughes outlines the nearness question…
-It is possible to have grown up in the church, to have consistent, godly parents, and never have come to a saving knowledge of the cross.
-It is possible to have studied theology and never become a true Christian.
-It is possible to have heard the grace of Christ preached all your life and still be resting on your own goodness.
-It is possible to be within an in ch of the Kingdom of God.
What a tragic place to be - near the Kingdom - but not willing to step in.
