Tag Archives: teachers of the law

LIKE’S GOSPEL…THE HOUR OF DARKNESS – 59

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“Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs? Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭22‬:‭52‬-‭53‬ ‭NIV‬‬

There is an hour, or perhaps more than one “hour”, when darkness reigns in every life. The light goes out. Everything goes dark. The whole world falls apart. It seems that evil has finally triumphed. Something has happened to shatter life. Peace has evaporated, leaving only chaos, confusion, and terrifying fear of the next hour. 

Sometimes we create our own darkness and, sometimes, others pull down the curtain on us. Whatever the source, we must navigate our hour of darkness. 

Even in the earthly life of Jesus, He had to face His “hour” of “darkness”. His world was rudely interrupted by a mob, armed with deadly weapons, shouting, accusing, to arrest Him…Jesus…the man of compassion, mercy, and peace.  Why? What had He done to deserve this treatment?

Darkness had indeed engulfed the land of God’s people. Their leaders had lost their minds. Hatred, envy, delusion had driven out reason and sense. At all costs, they must rid the land of the one man who held them up to scrutiny… and found them wanting. They were so filled with darkness that it spilled out into the hearts of the people they ruled. 

The same people who, days before, had sung praises and hailed Jesus as “the Son of David”, would, in the next “hour”, bay for His blood.  What had gone wrong? Darkness had thrown down the gauntlet, demanding permanent and sovereign rule over the human race. If they killed Jesus, the God-man, they could finally cement their master’s bid for the title and office he craved and fought so hard to win…”Lord!”

How did Jesus deal with His “hour of darkness”? Did He resist, fight back, retaliate, use His divine power to obliterate His enemies? Did He just walk away unscathed, as He had done on many previous occasions? 

He stretched out His hands to receive the ropes that would bind Him! He surrendered Himself to His captors. He gave Himself up to the darkness that would engulf Him for the next agonising hours because He knew the truth. 

“In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

‭‭John‬ ‭1‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As in the natural world, so in the realm of spiritual truth, darkness can never outwit or triumph over light. As light enters, so darkness flees. Jesus knew that the darkness of evil would only last for its “hour” until its work was done. Let the darkness do its worst…He held the trump card. He is the light…and the life. Darkness could snuff out His life but only for its ”hour”. Then the life would return. The light would shine, and all darkness and all those who are of the darkness would fade into oblivion. 

Jesus made a promise…

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””

‭‭John‬ ‭8‬:‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The light that was extinguished for three days, could never go out forever. Jesus walked from the tomb, alive again, to be our light when we follow Him. He sets us alight with new life, and with His Spirit who lives in us to drive out darkness and transform us into His likeness to be the light for Him. 

What do we do when darkness falls on our world? How can we be sure that, however dark it may be now, the light will shine again? We have the Word, the infallible promise of God…let me say it again…

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

‭‭John‬ ‭1‬:‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

With this promise, we need never succumb to the darkness, be it circumstances, people, or the devil himself who intrude on our path. We can surrender ourselves to the darkness for a season, as Jesus did, but our faith in Jesus, anchored to the rock of truth, will hold us steady until the light breaks through again. The resurrection of Jesus is the guarantee. 

As Jesus did, so we overcome the darkness by refusing to fight back. As we absorb into ourselves the evil intended to destroy us, it loses its power. Through God’s grace, we drive out the darkness by being the light.   

To be continued…

MARK’S GOSPEL…PICKY IRRITATION -10

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Mark 2:15-17 NIV
[15] “While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. [16] When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” [17] On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Strange, isn’t it, that the religious leaders just couldn’t leave Jesus alone. Wherever He was, whatever He did, they were there, on His case, picking on Him for daring to challenge not only their authority but also their very philosophy of life.

The difference between the Pharisees and Jesus was simple.They focused on the “don’ts” while Jesus focused on the “do’s”. What do I mean? For the Pharisees, their preoccupation with being “holy” meant that they were careful not to do anything that they believed would displease God.

God’s laws were protected by a multiplicity of additional laws and prohibitions added by the learned rabbis over years of study, and preserved in the Mishnah.

Google explains…

“The Mishnah is a third-century Jewish collection that expands upon the legal material and language of the Old Testament and is considered to be “oral Torah.” Mishnah (the Hebrew term מִשְׁנָה means “study by repetition”) is the foundation of all subsequent Jewish law and praxis, from the Talmuds up to modern-day Jewish literature.”

To the Jewish religious leaders, the Mishnah was as authoritative as the Tanach. They were incensed when Jesus did what they considered to be violations of these additional laws, and they were quick to pick on Him for every infraction.

Jesus had chosen Matthew to be one of His disciples, a despised tax collector who worked for the Roman government. Matthew had arranged a dinner to which he invited Jesus and his circle of friends, outcasts like himself, of course. The Pharisees, nosing around as usual, noticed this event and immediately lodged their objection. “Why does Jesus share a meal with the riff-raff?”

On this occasion, Jesus dared to fellowship with those whom the Pharisees considered to be undesirable people, the outcasts of society, “sinners” in their eyes since these people didn’t care about “the law”.

In Hebrew culture, sharing a meal with people was much more than that. There was significance in eating together. It was a declaration that the participants were at peace with each other, no issues, no animosity.

How could Jesus be at peace with these “sinners” if He was who He claimed to be, the Son of God? In any case, He was a recognised rabbi, and rabbis don’t eat with sinners.

As usual, Jesus declared His intention not to condemn people for their sinfulness but to rescue them from self-destruction and call them into fellowship with Him.

Mark 2:17 NIV
[17] “On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus had declared His intention not to do away with God’s law, but to fulfill it in the way that God meant it to be lived, not by being hypocritically holy but by treating all people with kindness and compassion.

Matthew 5:17-18 NLT
[17] “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. [18] I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved.”

Since God’s word is eternal, what He intended in His law (instructions), was meant to be understood in the context of His nature and attributes, not according to human opinions and interpretations.

Jesus declared His purpose in His words to Nicodemus…

John 3:17 NLT
[17] “God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.”

Once again, by their picky irritation with Jesus, the Pharisees revealed the nature of their hearts, self-serving and, by contrast, the nature of the heart of Jesus, selflessly serving.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – WATCH OUT FOR PHONIES

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WATCH OUT FOR PHONIES

38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.” Mark 12:38-40

God is never fooled by public opinion and accolades. The religion scholars of Jesus’ day were the Ph.D.’s (I suppose), of our day; the experts because of their so-called learning. They were held in high esteem and basked in the elevated position their learning afforded them. Jesus’ warning must have come as a shock to His disciples because they looked up to the educated ones as the ones with knowledge, therefore they were superior.

Once again Jesus approached the matter from a kingdom perspective. The man who questioned Him about the greatest commandment may have had intellectual insight but how did his life match his words? As for the rest, they were way off base. Their attitudes and behaviour cancelled out any knowledge, understanding or insight they may have had regarding the ways of God. Jesus summarised their behaviour in one sentence, “They devour widows’ houses and, for a show, make lengthy prayers.”

In the debates and conversations Jesus had with people, He clearly revealed God’s attitude to those who set themselves up above others. He put His own disposition in a nutshell – “I am gentle and humble in heart” – and He mirrored it in His life and ministry. To the Father, a gentle and humble attitude far outweighs any “knowledge” a person might have. The Apostle Paul said, “Knowledge puffs up but love builds up.”

Jesus was constantly pulling people back to reality. Never allow people to impress you by their words and actions. Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart. If I have knowledge, how do I apply it to my own life first? Of what value is my knowledge to me first before I try to impart it to anyone else? Knowledge is not intended to give me position or prestige or to elevate me above other people. It is a trust that I must steward. I will give an account of my stewardship of knowledge as much as any tangible assets God has given me for the benefit of other people. Jesus warned, “Watch out for phonies. You can recognise them by the way they exploit those who are defenseless against them.”

A Timely Warning

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A TIMELY WARNING

As He taught, Jesus said, ‘Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honour at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.’ (Mark 12: 38-40).

Jesus issued a warning which it would be well for Christian leaders to heed today. What was the problem? Was it wrong for the religious leaders to be treated with respect? No, everyone should be treated with respect regardless of their station in life. What these men were demanding was preferential treatment because they thought they were better than everyone else.

They had elevated themselves to privileged positions in society because they felt they deserved it. They were the custodians of the Torah, the Law of Moses, upon which the rest of Scripture was based. They had to ensure that the people adhered to the yoke of the rabbis with authority – s’mikhah. They were, in a sense, the watchdogs of the law, which would have meant that they, too, were under its authority, a fact they conveniently forgot.

Jesus did not have a problem with their function as far as it was fulfilled in the spirit of Torah, applying the law as God intended – with mercy and compassion, but these men has carried their position to extremes. They thought that their “learning” had made them a cut above everyone else. They expected the riffraff – the ordinary people whom they despised, especially the ones they regarded as “sinners” – to defer to them because they deserved it.

Jesus warned His disciples to watch out for them. These men had power. Many of them were part of the ruling party and the ruling authority in Israel and were hand-in-glove with the Romans. Fall foul of them and they would act ruthlessly as they were soon to find out. But Jesus’ warning was not so much to stay in their good books as it was not to be like them.

Jesus was not afraid of them. He used the weapon of truth to expose their hypocrisy and to stand up to their accusations and their intimidation. With masterful insight, He stripped away their actions to expose their motives. They were utterly self-absorbed. They did not use their learning or position to benefit the people. They used the people to benefit themselves. They wanted the admiration and accolades and they demanded it by preening and strutting like peacocks among the people.

Their attitude was contrary to the attitude of a true servant of God. Jesus insisted, time and again as He taught His disciples, that true greatness came from stepping down, not climbing up. Every time He caught the disciples bickering over positions in His coming kingdom, He took the opportunity to teach them about leadership. Greatness, like happiness is the result of something, not the goal to be sought at all costs.

Happiness is the outcome of a life lived for doing the right thing. Jesus congratulated those who gave themselves away to serve the needs of others, which brings a sense of peace and wellbeing because it is the right thing to do. Happiness follows selfless service just as night follows day. In the same way, greatness is the result of humble and self-forgetful service in the kingdom of God. Take Mother Teresa as a human example. She did not seek greatness but the world honoured her as a great woman because of her mercy and compassion to the dying beggars of Calcutta.

The religious leaders demanded to be treated as though they were great where, in fact their attitude and behaviour were despicable. They expected others to serve them instead of serving others. Their self-awareness was so great that it blew their egos out of all proportion.

What is the antidote to pathological self-awareness? We all suffer from its effects because we inherited it from Adam. The writer to the Hebrews gives us the answer:

. . . Fixing our eyes on Jesus . . . (Heb. 12: 2).

Paul put it like this:

And we all who, with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord who is the Spirit (2 Cor. 3: 18).

Whether we achieve greatness or not is not our business. Our task is to view ourselves realistically as God sees us; sons and daughters of God, yes; holy and beloved, yes; but not self-made or any better than others. Before God we all stand on level ground.

How reprehensible it is that some spiritual leaders in the church today have not heeded Jesus’ words. Unlisted phone numbers; unreachable to those in need; demanding preferential treatment; a cut above everyone else in the church – this is not the spirit of Jesus but the spirit of the Pharisees and their punishment will be great.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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