Tenants, Taxes, And Eternity Series

Tenants, Taxes, and Eternity

Mark 12:1-27

- Jesus is demonstrated in this book as a “servant”

- Jesus’ teachings, while difficult for some to deal with, are always timely

-- God always allows us to hear from Him at just the right time

- Tonight I’d like to give you three different stories, all parables of teaching

-- Each of them is teaching us different facets of living fully for Christ

- Whether we are talking about tenants, taxes, or eternity one thing is constant

-- IMP: The way we live reflects on the Master that we serve

-- If we are living fully for Christ, our life will speak clearly of this fact

- Read Mark 12:1-12

∆ Point 1 – Parable of Tenants (1-12)

- Jesus’ teaching in parables is a method for conveying the things of God

-- Mark 4:12, “He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, “they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!”

-- APP: Some people are just not going to get it …

-- Those are the ones who’ve decided to not hear, accept, and produce

- What is unique about this parable is that Jesus is speaking to get the truth

-- APP: The man represents God Himself; and the vineyard represents Israel

- The man went through great detail to protect what he had built (v2-5)

-- Dug a pit (for where the wine would be processed)

-- Put a wall up (keep animals out)

- Added a watch tower (protect from thieves)

-- Often these would be built and rented out to others to maintain

-- They’d stay in the watch tower and offer protection to the land

-- The tenant farmers would be those given to watch over Israel (religious leaders)

- The servants sent to gather fruit represent the prophets of God

-- They were sent repeatedly to draw others to God and away from unholiness

- As each servant is sent, the treatment of them becomes worse and worse

-- First is beaten and sent him away with nothing to show for his efforts

-- Second is hit on head and treated shamefully (mocked and ridiculed)

-- Third is beaten, mocked, and finally killed

- In v6 something unique here, the man sends the son that he loves

-- Ref to Mark 1:11, “And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

-- APP: Only the foolish would not respect the son as he represents the father

- (v7) What the thieves are thinking is this: Without an heir, his land can be ours

-- APP: If we remove the son, eventually Dad will die and this is ours

- (v8) The son is beaten, killed, and then disgraced by not even having a burial

-- Jesus too was shamed, stripped naked, and mocked in disgrace as He died

- In v9 Jesus then challenges those hearing with a statement to elicit truth

-- APP: How can we be mad when the owner passes judgment on them?

- Jesus uses scripture to again confirm to them what they should know (v10-11)

-- The Pharisees and Scribes knew this piece of scripture intimately

-- Psalm 118:22, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.”

-- Jesus quoted this very thing upon His entry into Jerusalem

-- It is a revelation of what God is doing in Christ, because we’ve rejected God

- Then, in v12 what is said enrages the Sanhedrin for one reason:

-- APP: They knew that Jesus claimed divinity for Himself

-- He has prophesized destruction, of the temple (which is Himself)

- He also says that God’s blessings would come upon the (hated) Gentiles

-- In that, Jesus manages to slip away into the crowd before being seized

-- APP: Why is this important? B/C it was not time for Him to be arrested

- TRANS: In this story we see that Jesus has revealed where they are in sin

-- Let’s continue on and talk about a favorite topic of ours … taxes!

- Read Mark 12:13-17

∆ Point 2 – Paying Taxes (13-17)

- This story is often misunderstood … but is actually very cut and dry

- The Pharisees have come to Him to try to trap Him, again (v13)

-- They are once again attempting to get Him to say something false

-- This would be their evidence against Him and give them power to arrest

- The Herodian’s were loyal to Herod, and often did his dirty work