Encounter Jesus – Mark Week 10

Jesus the Marvel

Mark 12: 13- 12: 44

HANDOUT

Mark Week 10 – The Marvel Handout

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Lesson Notes

We continue with the event of the Passion Week – it’s still Tuesday, right after the confrontation with the chief priests, scribes, and elders, who have left. They send proxies to trap Jesus into unpopular, discreditable, or seditious statements. We see a series of 3 questions posed to Jesus and the people marvel at His answers.

Paying Taxes to Caesar – Tuesday (Read Mark 12: 13-17)

  • Verse 13 – Pharisees and Herodians (supporters of the Roman-puppet governors kings)
  • It’s a trap to get Jesus to either commit sedition or lose popularity with the people
  • Verse 14 – Flattery to get Jesus to lower His guard. He tells the truth that they won’t
    • Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? This is the trap.
    • If yes, the people will turn on Him, they hate Roman taxes and many considered it against the Law to give money to a foreign king when God was their only king
    • If no, the Romans will arrest Him as a rebel
  • Verse 15 – Jesus recognizes the trap and has them give Him a denarius – the Roman coin required to pay the tax (local currency was not accepted for Roman tax payments)
  • Verses 16-17 – Whose inscription? Caesar.
    • Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, to God the things of God
    • “Render” has the sense of giving back what belongs to someone
    • Earthly coinage simply doesn’t matter to God – return Roman coins to Romans
    • Give God what He is due
      • Obedience, worship, and prayer
      • The things disrupted in the temple by the selling and money-changing
      • The fruit not being given to God from the Parable of the Tenants
      • Jesus doesn’t really care what they give Romans – the leaders aren’t giving God fruit, that’s a much bigger problem
    • And they marveled at Him!
  • Application
    • With respect to earthly matters, do our duty without complaining
    • Recognize what really matters – are we giving fruit to God? Our worship, our time, talent, and treasure?
    • The coin bears Caesar’s image, but we bear God’s image – Genesis 1: 26-27
    • We must render to God what bears His image – us – Romans 12: 1-2
    • Psalm 24: 1 – Everything belongs to God, so we must be willing to give all

Sadducees & the Resurrection – Tuesday (Read Mark 12 18-27)

  • Verse 18 – It’s the Sadducees’ turn – they don’t believe in the Resurrection or accept any Scripture after Deuteronomy
  • They mock him a bit with this obnoxious made-up scenario, probably used as the clever “stump the chump” question for arguing with Pharisees. Adapted from Tobit.
  • Verses 19-23 – the riddle of this woman married to 3 different brothers because of levirate marriage laws
  • Verse 24 – They are wrong because they don’t know Scriptures or God
    • Verse 25 – No marriage in heaven. Looking elsewhere in the bible we see worship, mention of responsibilities, apparently our human relationships are a bit different.
    • Marriage is a gift that models relationship between Christ and the church and between parts of the Trinity. In heaven we are face-to-face with God. Physical intimacy is surpassed by perfected relationships.
    • Verse 26 – Proving the case for resurrection based on the Pentateuch
    • Cites Exodus 3: 6- “I AM the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” – God affirms the ongoing covenantal relationship between Himself and the Patriarchs.

The Great Commandment – Tuesday (Read Mark 12: 28-34)

  • I recently preached on an encounter in Luke with a man asking the same question.
  • This seems like a different setting and tone than that account, and was a common question for rabbinical discussion
  • Verse 28 – the man seems to be genuinely impressed and inquiring, not a trap
  • Cites Deuteronomy 6: 4-5 and Leviticus 19: 18
  • This guy gets it – Verse 33 – genuine love for God and neighbor is much greater than the trappings of religiosity (burnt offerings and sacrifices)
  • Verse 34 – You aren’t far from the Kingdom of God – he is genuinely wise and understanding God’s heart
  • One thing remained – to follow Jesus as Lord and Savior
  • Nobody dared ask any more questions
  • Applications to following the Great Commandment
    • Failure – Teachers of the Law – Mark 12: 38-40
      • Love status and perks, not God or neighbor
      • Religion is a show to gain advantage for them
    • Success – Poor Widow Who Gave All to God – Mark 12: 41-44
      • Her tiny sum was all she had – 2/128 of a denarius
      • She truly loved God with all her heart, mind, soul, and strength

Next Week: Mark 14: 12-25 (Passover and the Lord’s Supper)