Mark 12
COMMENTARY:
: 11 This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes? (2298 “marvelous” [thaumastos] means wonderful, worthy of pious admiration, excellent, causing amazement joined with terror, surprising, extraordinary, or remarkable.)
DEVOTION: God can take something that no one wants and make it an important part of the building. The religious leaders didn’t want Jesus around they thought they were doing the LORD’S work well without HIM.
Jesus had just told a parable informing those who understood that the current religious leaders were not honoring God but trying to build their own kingdom without God. They were using religion to build their kingdom. They were using words that were found in the Bible but they were using them for their own glory. Along comes Jesus who is the Messiah and they want to kill HIM.
That was God’s plan for the Messiah to die and come back to life. .HE was going to be the foundation of a new building called the church. HE was going to set a new standard for those who were HIS followers.
The new Temple was going to be in the hearts of the followers of Jesus. They were the temple of God. They were the church that would bring glory to God alone.
The church is supposed to bring glory to God. Each Sunday, when they gather there should be everyone honoring the LORD with their presence and loving one another at the same time. This was marvelous in the eyes of the LORD because HE will be honored.
The Pharisees were leading in the wrong direction. Some churches are leading in the wrong direction but in spite of all that HE is still on the throne.
CHALLENGE: The foundation has been laid and those who are faithful to the LORD will build on that foundation until HE returns in HIS glory.
: 13 And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words. (64 “catch” [agreuo] means to hunt, trap in verbal exchange, catch off guard, to ensnare, unguarded statement or catch unawares.)
DEVOTION: Have you ever played a trick on someone? Have you ever had someone play a trick on you? Have you ever had someone who wanted to hurt you by playing a trick?
Jesus had a lot of people who wanted to hurt HIM anyway they could. The ones who really wanted to hurt HIM were the religious leaders. They knew that what HE was teaching was truth but also that what HE was teaching was against what they were teaching the people.
The religious leaders were hurting because the people were following HIM rather than them. HE was teaching practical theology that caused the people to understand what real worship of God was all about.
They thought that if they could trap HIM in a verbal exchange that would cause HIM to lose HIS creditability they would win. The problem was that they didn’t want to admit that HE was the Messiah. They just looked at HIM as someone who was stealing their followers.
Now we have questions about how much we should be involved in government and how much we should be involved with the work of the LORD. Also, what the relationship should be between the two. Are we to be good citizens and good Christians?
The answer to that question is YES!! We are to give to the government what they deserve. We are to pay our taxes. We are to obey their laws when they don’t interfere with the law of God.
People are trying to trip us with our words all the time now. They are claiming that Christians are intolerant of those who have an opposite view than their view. We don’t have an opposite view we are to have a Godly view of life. The Bible teaches us the standard God has set down for mankind. If we go against that standard we are sinning. If they go against God’s standard they are sinning. They don’t want to be called sinners.
The Bible makes a distinction between those who are sinning and those who are living in sin. The world doesn’t make that distinction. We are sinners until the day we die. We shouldn’t be living in sin.
CHALLENGE: Watch your words to those outside of Christ. They are looking for reasons to hate us. We have to be like Jesus and confront them with the wisdom we receive from above.
: 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question. (3562 “discreetly” [nounechos] means wisely, prudently, wisely, intelligently, with understanding, thoughtfully, or sensibly.)
DEVOTION: When these three groups of religious leaders questioned Jesus, this was the only man Jesus complimented. The Pharisees asked a question to trick him. The Sadducees asked a question to trick him. The scribes asked a question to trick him. Today we find many religious people out there that want to trick genuine Christians into giving the wrong answer to their questions, so that, they can put down our form of Christianity. There is the liberal form. There is the open theism form. There is the legalistic form. There is the license form.
We are the form that believes the Bible is the inerrant Word of God. We are the form that believe there is only one way to heaven and that is through Jesus Christ alone. We are the form that should be led by the Holy Spirit in all our answers. Jesus is our example.
When he was questioned, he always gave the right answer. This man who asked Jesus about the first commandment had an understanding of the Word of God. The first commandment is that we are to LOVE the LORD with all our heart – soul – mind- strength. The second commandment was to “LOVE thy neighbor as thyself.”
The scribe told Jesus that he had answered with the TRUTH. He knew that these two commandments obeyed was better than animal sacrifices.
Jesus told him that he was “not far” from the kingdom of God. Why? It is because this man answered wisely. He was not like the others who questioned HIM to find fault with HIM. However, he was not in. He was only close. There are many people we know that are close to the kingdom of God but not in. They will not get to heaven by being close. They have to be in. We don’t know if this person ever got in but he was close. We should be praying for those on our salvation list that they will not only be close but IN. Is that our prayer?
CHALLENGE: Have a list of three or four individuals that you have contact with on a regular basis. This list is for these individual’s salvation. Once you have prayed for a while – witness to them. Follow the LORD’S leading. Pray that by the end of the year one or all would be followers of Christ.
: 43 And HE called to HIM HIS disciples, and said to them, Verily I say to you. That this poor widow has cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury. (4434 “ poor” [ptochos] means a person with few or no possessions (but not yet reduced to begging), beggarly, destitute of wealth, lowly, needy, pauper, or afflicted.)
DEVOTION: Jesus is watching the people give to the temple. HE watches people with a lot of money give to the temple to be seen of men. HE was watching as a widow woman gave all that she had to the LORD.
HE used this as a teaching moment with his disciples. HE wanted them to learn the proper attitude toward giving to the LORD. The ones with a lot of money gave a little to impress people. The disciples were even impressed.
The widow gave a small amount but it was all that she had to live on. She was dependent on the LORD for her next meal. The others were not dependent on the LORD for their next meal they were dependent on themselves.
The difference between our offering to the LORD shows who we are dependent on for our future. If our future depends on us then we are headed in the wrong direction. If our future depends on the LORD and we realize then the LORD will bless us.
So manner how much you earn in a week you should be giving to the LORD on a regular basis not to show off to people but to show the LORD that you are dependent on HIM for your future.
CHALLENGE: Once in a while we could give 90% to the LORD and keep the 10% to live on. Some have tried this in the past and the LORD has blessed them.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Long prayer – wrongverse 40
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Burnt offeringsverse 33
Sacrificesverse 33
Templeverse 35
Synagoguesverse 39
Treasuryverse 41
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Scriptureverses 10, 24
Mosesverses 19, 26
Abrahamverse 26
Isaacverse 26
Jacobverse 26
Commandmentsverses 28-31
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
Lordverses 11, 29, 30, 36
Godverses 14, 17, 24, 26, 27, 29, 30, 32, 34
Way of Godverse 14
Power of Godverse 24
God of the livingverse 27
Lord our God is one Lordverse 29
Lord your Godverse 30
Kingdom of Godverse 34
LORDverse 35
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
Speak in parablesverse 1
Parable of owner of vineyardverses 1-12
Well beloved sonverse 6
Masterverses 14, 32
Jesus is trueverse 14
Jesusverses 17, 24, 29, 34, 35, 41
Taught in the Templeverse 35
Christverse 35
Son of Davidverse 35
Lordverses 36, 37
Seat at right handverse 36
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Holy Ghostverse 36
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
One Godverse 32
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Angelsverse 25
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Pay taxesverse 14
Caesarverses 14-17
Neighborverse 31
Enemiesverse 36
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Shamefully treatverse 4
Killverses 5, 8
Catch people in their wordsverse 13
Hypocrisyverse 15
Temptverse 15
Errverses 24. 27
False belief: no resurrectionverse 18
Love long clothingverse 38
Love salutationsverse 38
Love chief seats in synagoguesverse 39
Love uppermost rooms at feastsverse 39
Devour widows’ housesverse 40
Pretense make long prayersverse 40
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Teachverse 14
Way of Godverse 14
Regard not the person of menverse 14
Truthverses 14, 32
Power of Godverse 24
Love: heart, soul and mind, strengthverses 30, 31, 33
Love neighborverses 31, 33
Answer discreetlyverse 33
Hear Jesus gladlyverse 37
Doctrineverse 38
Give allverse 44
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Phariseesverse 13
Herodiansverse 13
Sadduceesverse 18
Mosesverse 19
Abrahamverse 26
Isaacverse 26
Jacobverse 26
Scribesverses 28, 32, 35, 38
Israelverse 29
Davidverses 35-37
Common peopleverse 37
Widow’s givingverses 42-44
Church (New Testament people of God)
Disciples given lesson on givingverses 41-44
Last Things (Future Events)
Resurrectionverses 18, 23
Greater damnationverse 40
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