Introduction
This morning we will look at the beginning of what became a
major theme in Jesus’ public ministry—his conflict with
the religious leaders of Israel. Once again, we will use Mark’s
gospel as our base text. About one year into his public ministry,
Jesus collided head-on with the Pharisees and their scribes—and
this collision quickly escalated to a death plot (explain Mark 3:6).
This conflict continued over the next 3 years—until it led
finally to Jesus’ arrest, illegal trial and execution.
What was it about
Jesus that was so threatening to them? What was it about them that
was so offensive to Jesus? On the surface, they had much in common
(monotheism; Old Testament; Jewish). But at the root level, there
were irreconcilable differences between them. Jesus loved them--but
he hated the religious mentality they promoted, and he fought it
literally to his death.
Unfortunately, the
religious mentality of the Pharisees has infected Christianity. In
fact, it can infect every church (including Xenos) and every
individual Christian (including you and me). In order to avoid this
infection, we must understand and reject the religious mentality.
That’s why this passage is so important. The specific
conflicts here between Jesus and the Pharisees highlight the
irreconcilable differences between biblical Christianity and the
religious mentality. Let’s look at these conflicts--not only
to understand the specific disagreements, but also the root
difference in mentality.
Conflict over Jesus’
associates
Read 2:13-15. The
fact that Jesus included Levi as one of his disciples, and that he
included many of Levi’s friends as his followers was utterly
scandalous to the Pharisees.
Tax-collectors
were “notorious sinners.” They worked for hated Rome
(backed up by Roman soldiers) and were on total commission. The
rabbis called them “licensed robbers” and “wild
beasts in human form.” They were excommunicated from the
synagogues and viewed as unredeemable. Although rich, their Jewish
countrymen would not associate with them or touch their money because
this would make them ceremonially unclean. So they tended to throw
lavish parties for one another. No self-respecting rabbi would be
caught dead with a tax-collector, let alone make one of them his
disciple or hang out with his friends!
But Levi and his
friends were not a lost cause to Jesus! For all of his sinfulness,
Levi evidently was a spiritual seeker. Like a lot of people
(including many of us), he was probably looking for love in all the
wrong places. And when heard Jesus, he recognized the love he had
been looking for. And when he entrusted himself to Jesus, Jesus’
love changed his life. When Jesus gave him the opportunity to join
his band of workers, he was delighted to quit his job to do so.
Probably the party in 2:15 was thrown by Levi to celebrate his
salvation—and was a great opportunity for him and Jesus to
invite his friends to believe (and many did).
But did the
Pharisees rejoice because of this man’s changed life? Did they
ask Jesus, “What are you teaching that has such a wonderful
effect on these people?” No! Read 2:16. They were grossed
out that he would even associate with such people.
Jesus’ reply
to their objection is so instructive (read 2:17). Who ever heard of a doctor who refused to treat patients for
fear of their germs? Note two things:
The only people
who are beyond the reach of Jesus’ forgiveness and healing are
the self-righteous! The issue with Jesus is never how much
you’ve sinned—it is always and only if you are willing to
admit you need forgiven. But self-righteousness can tie Jesus’
hands and render even almighty God impotent to help you! What about
you? Do you insist that you’re a good person? Jesus can’t
help you! Are you ready to admit that you’re a sinner/sick?
Then the doctor is ready to make a free house call!
The root conflict
here was between Jesus’ insistence on initiating God’s
love toward “sinners” vs. religion’s insistence on
“separation” from them. (The Pharisees even developed a
“sin kooties” theology to justify their separation!) In
the end, we must choose which is more important: to make it as
difficult as possible for us to sin (Pharisees) or to make it as easy
as possible for people to come to Christ (Jesus).
Yes, it is
important to have a sober respect for sin’s destructive
power—but when that concern results in walling yourself off
from irreligious people, it is more sinful than anything those
irreligious people do!
Should you stay
out of situations that you know you can’t handle? Yes. But how are you initiating with such
people so they can see and hear the love of Christ? Concern for
holiness/moral purity that excludes loving initiative with “pagans”
is a contradiction in terms!
Should you protect
your children from morally risky situations? Yes.
But how are you modeling active loving involvement with “pagans”
and helping them reach out to such kids? Unless you bequeath to them
a love of this in their own lives, you have failed with your children
no matter how “safe” you have kept them!
“Bad sinners
make good Christians” because they so appreciate God’s
love. Levi became known as Matthew--author of the first gospel! The
even greater miracle is that God can even heal Pharisees!
Conflict over fasting
Read 2:18. John
the Baptist’s disciples were fasting out of mourning, because
John had recently been arrested by Herod and was in danger of
execution. The Pharisees fasted for a totally different reason.
They fasted twice a week, and this was just one part of a huge
emphasis on ritual observance, which they viewed as central to
personal piety. That’s why they were aghast that Jesus wasn’t
emphasizing this with his disciples.
Jesus’
response is two-fold:
Read 2:19,20.
Jesus answers why his disciples aren’t fasting like John’s
disciples. Fasting is an appropriate expression of mourning—but
Jesus’ disciples shouldn’t be mourning. He is the
bridegroom (a messianic metaphor--see Isa. 61:10). It will be
appropriate for his disciples to fast when he is taken away from them
(first allusion to his violent death)—but not now while he is
with them!
Then in 2:21,22,
Jesus answers why his disciples don’t fast like the Pharisees
(read). His point is very radical. “I haven’t come as
one more rabbi to reform your ritualistic way of relating to God; I
have come as Messiah to inaugurate a whole new way to relate to God.”
So the root
conflict is over two different ways to relate to God: Jesus’
emphasis on relating personally to God vs. Religion’s emphasis
on relating to God impersonally through ritual observance.
You may be
thinking, “But the Old Testament prescribed relating to God
through rituals.” That’s true--God gave them hundreds of
rituals to observe, and he carefully regulated how they observed
them. But the reason he did this is not because he prefers rituals
over relationship. God always wanted to indwell his followers with
his Spirit so they could know him personally. But sin separates us
from God and makes this impossible. So God taught his people to
relate to him through rituals that were prophetic pictures of how his
Messiah would one day to pay for their sins and liberate them to
relate to him personally. In fact, the
Old Testament itself recognized that this was an inferior and
temporary arrangement until Messiah came (Jer. 31:31-34).
But now that Jesus
has come and fulfilled these pictures, the emphasis on ritual has
been replaced by the real thing—being indwelt by God’s
Spirit and relating to God in a deeply personal love relationship!
You can’t miss this contrast if you read the Old Testament and
New Testament: 100’s vs. 2; detailed prescription vs. little
detail; predictive vs. commemorative.
The good news is
this personal love relationship with God through Jesus. Why is
Christianity virtually equated with ritual observance? Why does the
church place such an emphasis on liturgy, baptism, communion, holy
days, Lent, priests, etc.? Ritualistic Christianity fundamentally
misrepresents the gift that Jesus died to make available to us!
Ritualism turns Christianity from a joyous, exciting personal
relationship with God to an impersonal, boring, lifeless system of
rituals that make God a distant figure.
I would not be a
Christian today if someone hadn’t corrected this misconception.
I hated Christianity because going to church services was like going
to a museum or a weekly funeral service commemorating its dead
founder. I am so thankful that someone told me that this was not
Christianity at all, that Christianity was a life-changing
relationship with the living Christ! That message changed my life!
Jesus led the way
and gave his life to liberate us from ritualism. We cannot embrace a
ritualistic Christianity without betraying our leader!
Conflict over the Sabbath
Read 2:23,24.
This is an example of one more man-made Pharisaic rule. The Old
Testament law specifically allowed poor people to do this
(Deut. 23:25). But the rabbi’s created a vast set of
Sabbath no-work laws, including prohibitions against this practice
because they defined it as “reaping” and “threshing.”
The fascinating
thing is that Jesus could have replied by simply pointing out
Deut. 23:25. But he replied in a way that made a different
point. Read 2:25,26. Even though the consecrated bread of the Old
Testament temple was to be eaten only by priests, it was right for
the priests to give this bread to David and his men when they were
hungry.
Read 2:27,28.
Note briefly yet another Messianic claim in 2:28. As the Messiah
(cf. Dan. 7:13), Jesus claimed the authority to interpret
and apply God’s will about the Sabbath. But his main point is
that even divinely sanctioned ritual laws aren’t as important
as human need. God gave the Sabbath to his people to meet their need
for rest, not to become a straight-jacket of rules that prevented
them from resting!
This is why Jesus
goes on the offensive on this same point in 3:1-5 (read and explain
rabbinic law against healing non-critically ill people on the
Sabbath). When lesser laws become more important than meeting human
needs, this is religious wickedness that Jesus went out of his way to
reject and oppose!
What’s the
root conflict? Jesus’ ethical priorities (“majoring in
majors”) vs. Religion’s reversed ethical priorities
(“majoring in minors”).
See Jesus in
Matt. 23:23-26. The “weightier provisions” are
costly love for other people (seeking justice for the poor and
oppressed, showing mercy to those who have wronged you, being
faithful to love people who annoy you and test your patience). The
Pharisees tithed their garden herbs, but they didn’t love
people—and Jesus condemns this as “straining out a gnat
and swallowing a camel.”
Religion tends to
focus on external and keepable rules, masking human selfishness while
ignoring the really important ethical issues. Christian religion is
full of this reversal of ethical priorities. EXAMPLES:
Fundamentalist
after Sunday night “road-warriors” CT: “But I saw
people smoking!” Which is more important--to stop smoking or
reach the lost?
Tony Campolo to
fundamentalists concerning 3rd world famine victims:
“They’re starving, and you don’t give a damn. And
what’s worse, you are more upset that I just said ‘damn”
than that these people are starving!”
Youth leader after
elders called on him to reprove a recent convert for saying “S___”
during his baptism testimony: “I will reprove him, but I will
also have to reprove the tattle-tales who told you--but who never
share their faith.”
Church sermons
that thunder away at watching PG-13 or R-rated movies--but never a
sermon against materialism, forgiving, etc.
“I haven’t
cut anyone off in traffic, cheated on my taxes, etc.” But have
you initiated God’s love toward anyone?
The ethical
priority of Christianity is a lifestyle of sacrificial,
other-centered love! This kind of love is impossible to live out
unless we stay in living touch with God’s love for us and in
humble dependence upon his Spirit. Let’s make sure that we
major in majors!
Copyright 2004 Gary DeLashmutt