The Gospel of Mark: Son Of David — Lord Of All

Text: Mark 12:35-40

Theme: If Jesus is Lord, then 1) Christ’s lordship will affect the decisions you make, 2) Christ’s lordship will motivate the things that you do, and 3) Christ’s lordship will illuminate the things that you think and the attitudes you hold.

Most of you have heard people say one of the following statements: "It doesn't matter what you believe as long as you are sincere in what you believe." Or, “I believe in everyone’s right to believe whatever they want to believe in.” Or my favorite: “There are many paths to God, and it depends on the individual as to which is their path.” These statements are all very politically correct statements in an ever increasing secularized culture. We’ve all heard them countless times. They are usually made by people who don’t want to make waves when it comes to religion or faith based discussion. They sound so broad-minded. They each have just enough of a ring of truth to them, that most people buy into their philosophy.

The only problem is that it does matter what you believe. It does not matter how sincere you are if you are sincerely wrong. When men die and stand before the Creator of the Universe, sincerity of belief will not matter.

What we believe matters. This is the force of the argument that Jesus drives home in His conversation with the Scribes.

I. THE SANCTIMONIOUS SCRIBES

1. the scribes were the ‘bible answer men’ of their day

a. their function was to copy, read, and explain the Scriptures to the people

b. they lectured on it in the Synagogues and taught it in the schools

1) the word Scribe comes from a Hebrew word that literally means scripturalists

2. they were experts in the Hebrew Scriptures

1) in fact, in our text Jesus confronts them with a probing question about what they really believed about the Messiah

2) was the Messiah to be merely a human national deliverer?

3) or was he more?

b. Jesus wanted to know whether they understood the truth about the Messiah

3. in this text, Jesus reveals the supernatural nature of the Messiah’s lordship and at the same time refutes the self-exalting nature of the scribes

4. the message of tonight’s passage is a simple one: Jesus Christ is Lord

5. the question we need to ask ourselves — and I’ll deal with this when we discuss the lessons for tonight’s text — the question we need to ask ourselves is "What are the implications of Christ's lordship for me?"

A. THE CHAMPIONS OF IMAGE BUILDING

1. for the Scribes of Jesus day, image was everything

a. the most distinguished position in that culture was that of Scribe

2. they were easily recognized because they wore a long, white linen robes that reached all the way to their feet

a. around the bottom of this robe, it was hemmed by long, white fringe

ILLUS. One commentator wrote: “They were ecclesiastical swans, regally gliding amongst the common mud hens of humanity."

3. the were highly respected

a. they were commonly greeted in respectful tones as "rabbi" which means my great one or "master"

b. when a scribe passed by, the people rose respectfully to honor him

c. at feasts they were given the place of honor, seated to the right and left of the host

d. in the synagogues, the scribes were given the place of ultimate honor

1) they sat on a bench with their backs against the chest holding the Torah scrolls

4. they were considered holy men, and they played the part well

a. most of them were sanctimonious

1) which is a fancy way of saying the were hypocrites

b. most of them were supercilious

1) which means they were pompous and convinced of their own superiority

5. Jesus is very clear that though they appeared holy on the outside, that they were more interested in self-aggrandizement

“And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces 39 and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, 40 who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”” (Mark 12:38–40, ESV)

a. with comments like these, Jesus obviously would have failed a Carnegie course on how to win friends and influence people

B. THE CHALLENGE TO THE SCRIBES

1. during the first half of this week Jesus had been in a running debate with the scribes and religious leaders in a game of 20-questions

a. up to this point, they had been the ones asking the questions

b. each time, Jesus had turned the tables on them

2. Jesus now goes on the offensive — "And Jesus answering began to say, as He taught in the temple, 'How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?" (v. 35)

a. He challenges these scribes to tell Him what they really believe about the Messiah

ILLUS. Historically, the Jewish people believed that God’s Anointed One — Messiah — would be a man, and nothing more than a man; a man like King David. He would be an earthly ruler of unsurpassed power and authority.

He would conquer Israel’s enemies.

He would fulfill all the promises given to the Patriarch Abraham and King David.

The Messiah would be a son — i.e. a descendant — of David, and would usher in a kingdom similar in size and glory as Solomon’s kingdom.

He would be the savior of the nation, but not a savior of individual souls.

3. the scribes were supposed experts in the Old Testament Scriptures

a. they were given great respect among the people because of their devotion to biblical knowledge and understanding

1) they knew the prophecies which indicated that the Messiah would come of David's seed

b. Jesus, using the Scriptures, questions why these scribes believe that the Christ is merely the son of David

1) in verses 36- 37 He quotes from Psalm 110

2) the scribes knew this Psalm and recognized it as a Messianic prophecy pointing to the Christ

4. because the Old Testament taught that the Messiah would come from the lineage of David, they expected Him to be merely a physical descendant of David

a. the thought of the supernatural never entered the picture

ILLUS. The Jewish people had not an inkling that God’s Anointed One would be divine — an incarnation of God into this world. The questions of Jesus had purpose. He was not seeking information for His benefit – He already knew their hearts. In fact, He was not at this moment seeking to discern what they thought of Him. He knew what they thought of him. Jesus specifically asked whom they considered the Christ to be. Who was the Christ; who was the Messiah? The Scribes rightly affirmed that the Christ was the Son of David, but they failed to see Jesus as the Christ. That was the major point of contention.

5. Jesus declares that David had penned these words through inspiration of the Holy Spirit ... “David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared:” vs. 36

a. what is David declaring? He’s revealing a conversation between God the Father, and God the Son ... “The LORD, Yahweh, said unto David’s Lord, Adonai, sit on my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool”

1) while David had not lived to see Christ in the flesh, through the Spirit he recognized his Lord as Christ, the Son of God

b. so when Jesus said, "David himself calls him — i.e. the Son of God — Lord" He threw the scribes into a theological dilemma

1) how could God’s Anointed One be both David's son and David’s Lord?

2) the first word Lord in this verse is Yahweh, which is God’s covenant name

3) the second word Lord is Adonai a word that the Jews used as a title of God

c. in this passage, King David pictures God speaking to the Messiah, whom David calls his Lord

1) the scribes had never thought of that

5. the Messiah could not be both David's son and his Lord if He were merely human

a. it would take a divine-human being to do that

b. the scribes had no answer

c. they had never thought of God’s Messiah in terms of being a supernatural being

6. but this is exactly what the 110 Psalm teaches

II. THE SUPERNATURAL SAVIOR

1. the Jews were looking for a human deliverer

a. they had no concept that God’s Anointed One would be divine — an incarnation of God into this world

2. but what the world needed was a divine Savior

ILLUS. This morning Millie quoted Ephesians 3:20: “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,” (Ephesians 3:20, KJV). In Jesus, God the Father was going to do exceedingly abundantly above all the Jewish people could ask or think.

a. the Jews wanted freedom from the bondage of Rome

b. but what the world really needed was deliverance from the bondage of sin

1) a human leader could perhaps give them political freedom

2) but it would take a divine sacrificial lamb to give them spiritual freedom

3. in this passage, Jesus reveals the truth about His nature

A. JESUS WAS A PHYSICAL DESCENDANT FROM DAVID

1. as a matter of fact, as you trace the lineage of Jesus you find that on both sides of the family He is descended from David.

a. liberal scholars often point to the differences in the two genealogies of Jesus as proof that the Gospels are unreliable sources of information about our Savior

1) but the solution is really simple

b. Joseph was a descendant of David and so was Mary

1) Matthew records Joseph’s lineage — but, as we know, Jesus wasn’t really descended from Joseph because He was divinely conceived in Mary’s womb by the Holy Spirit without the benefit of Joseph

2) His physical descent was actually through Mary — but she also was a descendant of David and her lineage is found in Luke’s Gospel

ILLUS. The genealogies of Jesus offer irrefutable proof that he was a descendent of David. Both his early father, Joseph, and his mother were direct descendants of David. His Davidic descent claim could be easily verified or disproved. The Jews were meticulous in genealogic records which were carefully preserved in the Temple. That his opponents ever challenged his ancestry offers convincing proof of its validity.

2. the prophecy of Isaiah will come true — of His Kingdom there will be no end

B. JESUS WAS THE INCARNATE SON OF GOD

1. not only was Jesus a physical descendant of King David, He was also the Son of God

“IN the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. 9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. 11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not. 12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:1–14, KJV 1900)

“concerning his son Jesus Christ our lord, which was made of the seed of david according to the flesh; 4 and declared to be the son of god with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: 5 by whom we have received grace ... “ (Rom. 1:3-5a, NIV)

2. the message is clear in this passage: Jesus is telling the Scribes that the Messiah is both human and divine

a. He is both man and divine

1) He is both David's son and David's Lord, and indeed He is the Lord of all

3. the testimony of the early church was a simple and clear one: Jesus Christ is Lord

a. this was the first great confession of faith of the church

III. LESSONS FROM MARK 12:35-40

A. THE QUESTION “WHO IS JESUS” IS STILL THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION

1. this question remains no less significant today than it was then

a. who is the Christ? ... What does the Bible reveal about Him? ... Did Jesus not fulfill every prophecy concerning the coming of the Christ?

b. if He did, (and we know He did), then why do so many have a problem accepting Jesus as the Christ and the sole means of salvation?

ILLUS. “A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else He would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” — C. S. Lewis

B. GOD IS MORE CONCERNED WITH INNER HOLINESS THAN OUTWARD IMAGE

1. it is clear from our text that the Scribes were concerned with just the opposite

a. Jesus issues a stinging rebuke to the most respected people of His day

1) but it’s not a rebuke of their profession

2) it’s a rebuke of their lifestyle

b. because the scribes did not fully understand the implications of the Messiah's lordship, they continued to seek to feather their own nest, to build up their own esteem, and to climb the power ladder of success.

2. this is a lesson, I think, the church has to learn again, and again, and again

a. a self-exalting lifestyle, however, is the antithesis of the lifestyle a Christian should have

b. a Christian should be known as one who seeks to serve, seeks to give, seeks to love, seeks to build up

C. IF JESUS IS LORD, THEN HE IS LORD OF ALL WE ARE AND ALL WE HAVE

1. If Jesus is Lord, then

a. Christ’s lordship will affect the decisions you make

b. Christ’s lordship will motivate the things that you do

c. Christ’s lordship will illuminate the things that you think and the attitudes you hold

2. what you believe determines how you behave

a. what you believe about Jesus determines how you will live for Him, or whether you will live for Him

ILLUS. On one occasion, Jesus asked His disciples a very important question. He asked them what they believed about Him. He said, "Who do you say that I am?" The same question could be asked to us. Who do we say Jesus is?

b. and if He is who most of us here tonight believe Him to be, how does that affect how you will live tomorrow?

Only as we see the risen Christ as our Lord can we begin to see ourselves for who we need to be - His servants. Becoming a Christian means that I commit myself to allow Jesus to make a difference in my life on a daily basis. It means that I not only acknowledge Him as the Lord, I also acknowledge Him as my Lord. The acknowledgement is not merely a verbal acknowledgement, it is an acknowledgement by the way I live my life for Him, in accordance to His holy word.