The Peace of Jesus

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Game - Get to Know Me

Where was I born?

How many siblings do I have?

What sports did I play in High School?

What was my favorite subject in High School?

What was my first car?

Where did I go to college?

What did I study in college?

What countries did I study abroad in?

What did I do before I worked at Calvary?

When did I start working at Calvary?

Where did I meet my wife?

Am I an introvert or extrovert?

Introduction:

Back in the Gospel of Mark

It has been a month

Previously in the Gospel of Mark:

We hear about the story of Jesus of Nazereth

A man that has every person in 1st century Israel scratching their heads

Who is this man?

He is healing the sick

Casting out demons

Teaching with authority

Challenging the religious leaders

Hanging out with some questionable people

Some say he is a prophet

Some say he is crazy

Some say he is a false teacher

But some say he is the messiah—the long awaited savior

The first 8 chapters of Mark have a forward momentum

Jesus is growing in popularity and controversy

Then we spent chapters 8-10 looking at Jesus’s journey to Jerusalem

Something big is going to happen

Three times in these chapters Jesus predicts that he will be be killed in Jerusalem to later be raised from the dead

and the disciples just don’t get it

Then we started Chapter 11—and Jesus enters Jerusalem

And it’s typically called the “Triumphal Entry” but we saw how Jesus enters Jerusalem on a small donkey

Looks around—and then leaves to stay outside of the city, because there was no room for him

He was celebrated, but not welcomed

And the very last portion we read was Jesus entering the temple and causing a scene

He was overturning tables and throwing people out of the temple grounds

The temple system had been corrupted and Jesus wouldn’t stay silent about it

So this is the context

And in the next several weeks we are going to see clash after clash between Jesus and the religious leaders (5-6 weeks)

They are going to be trying to catch Jesus up in his words

And Jesus responds with such wisdom and weight

Scripture Reading:

(SLIDES)

Mark 11:27–33 CSB

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?” 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.”

Mark 12:1–12 CSB

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.

(SLIDE)

Outline:

The Question of Jesus’s Authority

What this means for us

The Question of Jesus’s Authority

(SLIDE)

Mark 11:27–28 CSB

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?”

I know we have been out of the gospel of Mark for a month, but this story is directly linked to the verses that came before it

Jesus has entered Jerusalem and he is not happy

He goes to the temple and disrupts everything that is happening because of the injustice and corruption that existed

So Jesus returns to the temple—the scene of the crime—and as he was walking in, he was stopped by the religious leaders, and they ask:

“By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority to do these things?”

They are questioning Jesus’s authority to do the things that he is doing

And as we’ll see in the next several weeks, Jesus has the right answer to his opposition

We see that Jesus has 2 answers to what they have to say

And both of them are pointed back on the religious leaders

He has a question and a parable

Question

(SLIDE)

Mark 11:29–30 CSB

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.”

If you want me to answer your question—you have to answer mine first

And we see the authority Jesus is speaking with

Answer me x 2

The young prophet and rabbi from Galilee demands an answer from Israel’s religious elite

So his question is “Was John’s baptism from heaven or of human origin?”

And it might sound random at first

But remember that Jesus’s ministry is closely related to John the Baptists

John was the forerunner to Jesus’s ministry

John baptized Jesus

So if they answer—That is is from heaven

They are proving that Jesus has the same authority that John had

But, if they answer, that it was from human origin

They knew the crowds would be upset

Everyone beleived that John was a prophet

And they would openly say that he wasn’t

So they huddle up and discuss this and realize they are not able to give an answer

They are paralyzed by Jesus

They either have to admit that Jesus is in the right

Or face the backlash from the crowds

And they are put to shame

They answer: “We don’t know…”

They admit they have no discernment…

How could they lead God’s people if they couldn’t tell if someone was from God or not?

Then Jesus takes it on the offensive and tells them a parable:

Parable

(SLIDE)

Mark 12:1–2 CSB

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.

Jesus is building off of a parable found in Isaiah 5

But he tells a pointed story showing where he recieved his authority

God - Vinyard Owners

Leaders - Tenant Farmers

Servants - Prophets

Beloved Son - Jesus

In short Jesus is saying:

God has rented out his vineyard for you to tend and take care of

But you have done a terrible job

God has sent his servants (prophets) to collect the fruit that is due to him

And you’ve beaten them, shamed them, and killed them

Now God has sent his son

And you are going to kill him

He’s saying:

You have authority as tenants

I have authority because of my father

EX. Apartment complex

Who has more authority: tenants or owners?

And this story is very interesting

Because this isn’t the first parable Jesus has used in Mark—and usually they go right over the heads of the religious leaders

(reference)

Mark 4:10–12 CSB

10 When he was alone, those around him with the Twelve asked him about the parables. 11 He answered them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to those outside, everything comes in parables 12 so that they may indeed look, and yet not perceive; they may indeed listen, and yet not understand; otherwise, they might turn back and be forgiven.”

But after this provocative parable, we read that the religious leaders understood what Jesus was saying

(SLIDE)

Mark 12:12 CSB

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.

They wanted him gone

So here we clearly see that Jesus has the authority to do what he is doing

While the religious leaders intend to shame Jesus

He ends up putting them to shame

When they challeneged his authority

He turns it back on them and challenges their authority

And it ends with them, again, in fear, and unable to respond back to Jesus

Application

(TITLE SLIDE)

But this story may seem removed from our lives

What does this mean to you and me?

Where does this challenge us? where does this give us hope?

I believe this story speaks deeply into our lived experience

Of living in fear or living in freedom and peace

When we look at this encounter with Jesus it is clear that Jesus has something that the religious leaders do not—and it’s not just his authority

(SLIDE)

Jesus has a profound peace

He is not intimidated (these are the most powerful men in Israel-expound)

He doesn’t flinch and run away

Jesus is bold

(SLIDE)

On the other hand—the religious leaders, twice, are mentioned being in fear

They are paralyzed by fear

They are on their tip-toes

They either side with Jesus

And admit their failure and mistakes

Brining shame to themselves publically

Or they side against Jesus

And the crowds would not have it

They would lose the respect of the crowds if they publically attacked Jesus

So they are left paralyzed in fear by the situation

Fear of Jesus & Fear of the Crowds

So we see this contrast between Jesus and the religious leaders

Jesus is unmoved and at peace

And guys, Jesus offers us the same peace that he has

(SLIDE)

John 14:27 CSB

27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.

We live in an anxious world—filled with fear and devoid of peace—what Jesus has to offer is truly not anything this world can provide

We’ve grown up in this time of turmoil—we don’t know the world any other way

Fear is broadcast throughout the news, and in our social media

We see everything wrong happening in the world

And statistics for anxiety are through the roof

So I want to ask you all: Do you want Jesus’s peace?

Here we see a profound truth:

The peace of Jesus is tied up with living under the authority of Jesus.

Peace and authority are tied up together

Authority = Who is in charge

The source of Jesus’s peace was that He knew his father was in charge

He knew God is over all—and that his will would be accomplished

He was not afraid of any person, or circumstance

The Religious Leader’s fear stemmed from the fact that they beleived they were the ones with authority—and now it was being challenged

They had been in charge for their whole lives

But now it was crumbling beneath them

They were afraid of the future because they didn’t know who was in charge of the future

They thought it was up to themselves

And I think often we find ourselves with this problem

I know in my life and in many of the lives of the people I talk with… Anxiety and fear boil down to problems of control

We want authority… we want to be in charge of how things happen… we want to be God

And when things don’t go how we envision it, we begin to have a growing sense of fear and anxiety

So for you and I…true peace comes from living under the authority of Jesus

Being obedient to Jesus

Recognizing that as our circumstances get crazier and crazier—God is still in charge

Share: College experience

So what does this mean for us?

I think we all find ourselves in the pharisee’s shoes from time to time

We are afraid of following Jesus because we are afraid of the crowds—what other people with think about us

We are afraid of following Jesus because we have to admit we were wrong—we have to be willing to look like fools

And guys, this is the truth that I want you to hold onto this week: God is in control

Even when things are getting dark and scary

Jesus was headed to the cross—but he still moved forward with peace and confidence in His father

The peace Jesus gives is not a circumstancial peace

everything always works out and there is no problems

“Peace that surpasses understanding”

What robs you of peace?

Your future

Your friends

Your sin

The world

God is in control—and God loves you

(SLIDE)

"Restlessness and impatience change nothing except our peace and joy. Peace does not dwell in outward things, but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands." — Elisabeth Elliot

Reflection Questions

(SLIDES)

What is the greatest source of fear and anxiety for you?

Why is it difficult to beleive that God is in control?

Pray and surrender these things to God