More Parables (Part 1)
The Suffering Servant • Sermon • Submitted
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Introduction
Introduction
If you were with us last week, you may remember that Jesus was confronted in the temple by the religious leaders—the chief priests, teachers of the law, and the elders—asked Jesus where He got his authority, but because they wouldn’t answer His question.
Today, we come to Mark chapter 12, if you have your Bibles, I want to encourage you to turn with me to Mark 12, and we’ll begin reading with verse 1.
He then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey.
“He began to speak to them. . .” the first thing that we need to do is to explore who the “them” is. In the context it is the religious leaders.
Parable 1—The Vineyard
Parable 1—The Vineyard
Okay let’s continue:
He then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed. “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
We are introduced to come characters in the story.
First we are introduced to a man—this man represents God the Father.
The man builds a vineyard, which represents Israel.
The vineyard is rented to some farmers (tenants)—which represent the religious leaders.
The servants of the man represent the prophets.
And of course the son that the farmers kill represents Jesus.
Now let’s continue the story. Jesus asks:
“What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.
The rhetorical type question—everyone knew the answer. The owner would come and kill the farmers, and give the vineyard to others.
Jesus then makes a Messianic claim by quoting Psalm 118:22-23. Look at verse 10.
Haven’t you read this scripture: “ ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
While the religious leaders, don’t completely understand Jesus’ teachings, they knew it was against him, look at verse 12.
Then they looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.
These religious leaders may not have understood the charges that Jesus was making about them, but it is very possible they understood the messianic claim. This may not be immediately clear, but let’s continue the story.
Parable 2—Paying Taxes
Parable 2—Paying Taxes
Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch him in his words.
Now we know they were trying to find an excuse to kill Jesus, but now they intensify their efforts. Two groups that normally did not get along much joined together. The Pharisees, who were the leaders of the religious leaders, and the Herodians who were politically allied with Herod.
They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or shouldn’t we?” But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.”
To pay or not to pay that is the question.
The appeal to Jesus integrity. “We know you are a man of integrity.”
They knew He wasn’t swayed by men.
So—Taxes to Caesar, do we pay or not?
This was a “no win” question. If Jesus said they should not pay taxes He would set Himself against Rome! On the other and, if He said to pay taxes, then He set Himself up against the common Jew (who loved His teachings) and against the religious leaders!
Jesus knows it’s a no win question, that’s why He says, “Why are you trying to trap me?” So He ask for a denarius—about a day’s wage.
They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” And they were amazed at him.
Jesus gives a winning answer to a no win question! Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to God what is God’s!
Amazing! And that is exactly what the Pharisees and Herodians thought too.
Parable 3—Marriage & the Resurrection
Parable 3—Marriage & the Resurrection
So now, the Sadducees—another religious leading sect—come to Jesus with an amazing tail.
Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”
This story is based on the Law of Moses. You find this law in Deuteronomy 25:5-10. So they spin the tail that a woman marries a man—the man dies without leaving any offspring. So one by one the man’s brothers marry his widow, and one by one they die without leaving an heir. Finally, after the last brother dies, and so does the woman.
Now the Sadducees, who don’t believe in the resurrection, ask Jesus in the resurrection whose wife will she be, since all seven were married to her?
Once again, a question they don’t believe he can answer without alienating someone. Look at Jesus’ answer.
Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.
First they are mistaken—Don’t they know the Scriptures? Don’t they know the power of God? The answer is they really don’t!
When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage.
Then Jesus gives them more than they bargained for! Jesus is going to tell them why they are truly mistaken.
Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”
God is the God of the living not the dead! So there is a resurrection! Jesus not only answers their hypothetical question with great wisdom, but also explains their misinterpretation of Scripture!
Parable 4—The Greatest Commandment
Parable 4—The Greatest Commandment
Now all of the teaching that Jesus has been doing appears to have been in the temple courts. Apparently, there were a number of respected teachers that were there listening to the previous three teaching parables. One of them is intrigued by the answers that Jesus gave. So he decides to ask Jesus a question—not for the purpose of trapping Him—but rather to get an honest answer. Look at verse 28.
One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”
The man wants to know which commandments is the MOST important commandment. So Jesus answers—by giving him the two most important commands.
“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 6:4-5.
This passage confirms that there is JUST one God—In essence the Lord our God is one Lord.
Next Jesus gives the greatest command: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. Which is the quote from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 which is known as the Shema.
Heart—the control center of our being. *
Soul—the self-conscious thought life. *
Mind—the thought capacity.
Strength—bodily power. *
(* represents the Hebrew version)
Together these four—Deuteronomy has three—represent the entire person.
Jesus gives the man more than he bargained for by giving him the second greatest command from Leviticus 19:18—Love your neighbor as yourself.
Jesus says there is no greater commandment than these two!
Apparently, Jesus’ answer impressed the man. Look at his response.
“Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
You can hear the man’s amazement. And he wholeheartedly agrees with Jesus! Alluding to 1 Samuel 15:22, he refers to the fact that God is far more pleased with obedience than He is with sacrifice.
Jesus tells him,
When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
This man is not far from the kingdom of God! Jesus thought this teacher had better understanding than the Sadducees, and better understanding than than the Pharisees and Herodians. They were far from the kingdom of God—but this man was not far!
SO WHAT?
SO WHAT?
How about you—would Jesus say you are far from the kingdom of God? Or would He say you are close?
Or would Jesus tell you, “You are mistaken—in error—because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?
We need to learn to give to God what belongs to God! Every day the world around us places demands on us—and we render to the world what belongs to the world. But we also MUST give God what belongs to God!
It is time that we live as servants of the King. We need to accept God’s capstone (cornerstone) Jesus and commit our lives completely to Him.