Mark 2:18-22

Intro

How many of you have ever been hungry

Have you ever felt like not eating

How many of you have been to a party

Ever go to one with no food???

No we love to celebrate and we love to eat

Where we left off with the calling of Levi(Matthew)

Text

Read Mark 2:18-22

Mark 2:18–22 ESV

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 19 And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. 21 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”

This is the first of Jesus’s teaching that Mark details

Remember Mark is the gospel of action

This action movie that is playing out where Dialogue takes a back seat to action

Mark is slowing down here to bring us into this dialogue. So it must be important

Mark is bringing us down into the confrontation as the conflict simmers between the pharisees and scribes and Jesus

We have seen them ask

Why does he forgive sin

Why does he eat with sinners

and Now why doesnt he fast

The setting here is important Just before this takes place the pharisees have seen Jesus eating with these sinners

Something no self respecting rabbbi or teacher would do certainly not one with the following of Jesus

But what worse is not only does he eat with them he asked one of them to follow him

There are two parallel story lines here

The bewilderment and disdain of the scribes and pharisees

Jesus breaking all of the religious laws to cut to the heart of what’s important to God

Like last week

We saw the pharisees asking this question of why would he do this surely he cant a true rabbi look how he acts

Then Jesus saying no you guys missed the law salvation wont come to you because you dont even realize how broken you are

These story line play out here as well

The pharisees ask why would you not fast

Dont you know how important fasting is

Fasting is when “good” Jews take time to reflect on God’s providence character and ultimately seek after him

Fasting was a part of life for these jews

There were festivals that required fasting

There were other days of fasting

There was personal fasting

These pharisees had setup rules for fasting twice a week

They would fast 104 times a year at least where the original law only required it once more days were added but it was no where near the 104 days the pharisees commanded

This is an area where the pharisees were setting up extra rules

Being legalistic

Jesus was again running a foul of proper behavior why???

He explains

Why would anyone fast at a party

You see you pharisees are so married to your rules you have missed what a joyous occassion we celebrate

A sinner has been redeemed

A man was called and he responded

This is occasion for celebration

And more so the son of man the bridegroom is here

They would recognize this imagery from Isiah

Of the savior being the bride groom and Isreal being the bride

Jesus is confronting their blind eyes

Salvation is here

The kingdom of God is at hand

The son of man stands in front of them

And instead of celebrating they are worried about their laws and practices

Their religion has gotten in the way of what their true religion should have been

Worship and celebration of the true son of man

They don’t fast now but a time will come

The shadow of the cross still looms even in the celebrating

Jesus is making things new

this new religion will not fit this old law