Today we are continuing our study of the book of Mark. Mark is walking us, the readers, in and through a process of knowing (or of getting to know) Jesus. And as we have said over and over in this series, knowing is not a simple process, and it is never done.
Knowing Jesus is not about stats or information or simple recall. It’s not about being done or perfect or having arrived. Knowing Jesus is faith and process and struggle and questioning and experience–all over time. It’s getting it wrong and getting up again and growing and processing again. It’s a lot of grace and then still more process.
Mark is not looking to make it simple. Mark is looking to walk us into process. Mark is calling us to go to work in knowing Jesus, not inviting us to sit back and do nothing.
The section we are in, in Mark–and really Mark as a whole–is challenging missed understandings of Jesus. Part of the process of knowing Jesus is seeing how the people in the story missed some of the key realities of knowing Jesus. And that is an invitation for us to be pushed out of those same pitfalls.
But while the ‘not knowing’ of Jesus was everywhere in the text, it was not the end of the story for those people. It is not the end of Jesus trusting and entrusting people. It is invitation to process. The gap in knowing–in our knowing–is not met with exclusion, but with grace and with a lifetime of process. Keep it going!
In Mark 11, we are given a living parable. A fig tree looks like it should be full of fruit. Jesus approaches it and it has no fruit on it. Jesus speaks condemnation on the tree, and it is later seen withered to the root. Jesus is seeing the temple (the people) as the tree, looking as if they should be full of fruit. They had no fruit. There is condemnation as He flips tables and calls them out–the potential for withering, the potential for change.
Before we jump into the processing of Mark 11, I am going to ask you a question that will start to paint a picture of where we are going today. We’re thinking about obliviousness. Do you know that moment when you can see something in someone else's life and they seem to be clueless? Do you know the moment when you can see what needs to be done in someone else's life and they have no clue of the mistake they are about to make? Do you know that moment when you can see the mistake that has been made while the person who made the mistake is completely oblivious? Do you know the moment when everyone in the room knows what to do except for the person that is doing the thing?
The power of the external perspective. The clarity of looking from the outside. Obliviousness can be pretty remarkable. So you know that moment. You see it. Everyone sees it. We all are brilliant in seeing it–for everyone else! But what about when you are the person?
How does it feel when you become aware that everyone else was aware of what to do, but you missed it or overlooked it? How do you tend to respond?
As Mark is walking with us in knowing Jesus, there are powerful perspectives being formed about Jesus that are missing the true heart of who Jesus is. An obliviousness is forming!
First perspective: Jesus is the Messiah–and (misconception) the messiah is going to deliver them from political oppression.
Jesus, in the next chapter, is approached by the religious authorities that are trying to trap Him and is asked about the Roman taxes. If Jesus says to not pay them, He is an enemy of the Romans and a political revolutionary. If He says to pay them, He doesn't care about the oppression of the people. His response:
Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” (Mark 12:17)
Second perspective: Jesus is like Moses–and (misconception) He will guide us away from our external slavery (or slaveries).
In John 8, Jesus speaks to a freedom from slavery and oppression, but it is not external or political. It is a freedom from slavery to sin:
Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:34)
Third perspective: Jesus is powerful and soon He will use that power to rise over everyone else–and (misconception) I want to be His right-hand person so I can be powerful with Him!
Jesus, in John 13, exemplified His antithesis of being power hungry as He washed the disciples feet and then called His disciples (us) to do the same:
“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” (John 13:14-15)
Fourth perspective: Jesus fixes problems, heals diseases, feeds masses–and (misconception) I want to be close to Him so He can make my life easy.
Jesus saw the people’s desire for Him to meet a simple need and to dismiss the complex need that Jesus came to meet.
Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.” (John 6:26-27)
Fifth perspective: Jesus is passionate about the marginalized–and (misconception) therefore He will open the door for me, as one of the marginalized, to be the oppressor instead of the oppressed.
James and John, fishermen, had a moment where they thought their relationship with Jesus was going to move them from being fishermen and disciples to being rulers.
They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.” (Mark 10:37)
Last perspective: Jesus is going to lead a military revolution–and (misconception) He is going to overrun the Roman oppressors.
The religious authorities felt that Jesus was going to call for a revolution against the Romans and disrupt the power balance:
“You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” (John 11:50)
There are so many things happening here as we come to the moments where Jesus is about to be arrested and crucified, and then ultimately rise again. In addition to these misconceptions, there is another layer of complexity. We have to also remember that the culture that Jesus was in knew the teachings of the Old Testament and had them ringing in their ears. And when you bring misconception and insight together, the complexity doesn’t disappear–it actually magnifies!
Here are some of the texts that the people would have known. I am going to put these on the table, not to fully process them, but to get them in the front of our minds as we walk into Mark 11.
The Messiah will come on a donkey:
Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zechariah 9:9)
The Messiah that the religious authorities reject will be worshiped:
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad. Lord, save us! Lord, grant us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you. (Psalm 118:22-26)
The Messiah will come into the temple and refine or purify it:
“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.” (Malachi 3:1-4)
The Messiah will call into question the heart of the people as they try to manipulate God’s grace:
“‘Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name, and say, ‘We are safe”’—safe to do all these detestable things? Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching!” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 7:9-11)
One more question before we jump into our text:
What does it take to change an incorrect internal perspective when it has been built on misconceptions and preconceived notions?
Jesus comes to Jerusalem as king–the buildup:
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’” They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!” Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve. (Mark 11:1-11)
Jesus curses a fig tree and clears the temple courts–the conflict:
The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it. On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching. When evening came, Jesus and his disciples went out of the city. In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!” “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” (Mark 11:12-25)
There is a parable here: Jesus sees a fig tree that should be full of fruit. He finds it without fruit. There are consequences. At the same time, there is a parallel to the parable: Jesus sees the temple full of people. He finds it to be without fruit (not healthy) and taking advantage of people (exclusionary). There are consequences.
The authority of Jesus is questioned:
They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?” Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!” They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.) So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.” Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” (Mark 11:27-35)
The religious authorities questioned Jesus’ authority. Jesus exposes that they–the religious authorities–are not people of religious authority.
As we examine Jesus' actions in the temple, it's important to recognize that the people selling goods and exchanging money may not have had evil intentions. In fact, they may have thought they were providing a helpful service to those coming to worship. The merchants and money changers were there to facilitate the purchase of sacrificial animals and the exchange of currency for those traveling from different regions. They may have seen themselves as enablers of worship, helping people fulfill their religious obligations. However, despite their seemingly good intentions, these merchants and money changers had turned the temple into a marketplace, losing sight of the sacred nature of the place. Their focus on business and profit had overshadowed the true purpose of the temple–to be a house of prayer and worship.
This serves as a reminder for all of us that even with the best intentions, we can sometimes be misguided or lose sight of what is truly important. We may find ourselves engaging in activities that we believe are beneficial, but in reality, they may distract us or others from our relationship with God. As we strive to follow Jesus and grow in our faith, let's remember to regularly examine our actions and motives. We should ask ourselves if what we are doing aligns with God's will and the teachings of Jesus, even if our intentions are good. In doing so, we can ensure that we are not only well-intentioned but also properly guided in our pursuit of a deeper relationship with God.
Jesus' bold act of flipping the tables was a clear demonstration of His authority and a call to restore the temple to its rightful purpose. By doing this, Jesus challenged the religious leaders and the entire system that allowed the temple to become corrupted. His actions were a call to reevaluate priorities and put the focus back on worship, prayer, and genuine connection with God.
Let’s zoom out on this. Remember the misconceptions that are on the page we looked at today: Jesus is a political revolutionary; Jesus is about delivering us from external slavery; following Jesus is about gaining power; and following Jesus will move you from being the marginalized to being the oppressor. And now “pre-remember” the call He gives us in the next chapter, which we will focus on next Sunday:
“‘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.” (Mark 12:30-31)
Remember the parable that Jesus lived out with the fig tree, and put that together with His words from John 15:
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:5-8)
How should a person’s relationship with Jesus impact the people surrounding them? (fruitfulness)
Jesus’ actions were not to destroy, but to redirect, to refocus, to continue process!
Let’s end with one more conversation. It’s a vulnerable one, but let's sit in it and process and listen to the nudge in our hearts…
What "tables" might Jesus be flipping over inside of you?
Take It Deeper Questions
- Read Mark 11:1-26.
- If you could change one thing in our culture instantly, what would it be and why?
- How would that change impact your world in 3 to 5 years?
- How does Jesus expect us to be impacting people in our local?
- What instantaneous change would make Jesus’ expectation of your impact a greater reality?
- How would that change impact you in 3 to 5 years?
- How are you challenged, encouraged, focused, and/or confused by this text?
Bible Reading Plan
- Mark 11
- Matthew 21
- Luke 19
- John 12