Drew Boswell

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Christ’s Power Over Every Need The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series “Who Do You Say That I Am?” Mark 8:27-9:1

Christ’s Power Over Every Need

The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series

“Who Do You Say That I Am?”

Mark 8:27-9:1

Introduction

The captain of the ship looked into the dark night and saw faint lights in the distance. Immediately he told his signalman to send a message” “Alter your course 10 degrees south.”

Promptly a return message was received: “Alter your course 10 degrees north.”

The captain was angered; his command had been ignored. So he sent a second message: “Alter your course 10 degrees south–I am the captain!”

Soon another message was received: “Alter your course 10 degrees north–I am seaman third class Jones.”

Immediately the captain sent a third message, knowing the fear it would evoke: “Alter your course 10 degrees south–I am a battleship.”

Then the reply came “Alter your course 10 degrees north–I am a lighthouse.”

In the midst of our dark and foggy times, all sorts of voices are shouting orders into the night, telling us what to do, how to adjust our lives. Out of the darkness, one voice signals something quite opposite to the rest- -something almost absurd. But the voice happens to be the Light of the World, and we ignore it at our our peril.[1]

 Prayer

 God Is Patient With Us As We Take Steps of Faith (vv. 27-30)

And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” 29 And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” 30 And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.

It is in this isolated area, as they are in between crowds, Jesus takes this opportunity to begin teaching the disciples about his journey to the cross, which is about six months away. “It was time that the disciples reveal how much they had been influenced by their environment as well as the direct instruction of Jesus.”[2]

(v. 27) “he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” – and in their response we see a similar list in Mark 6:14-15 “King Herod heard of it, [Jesus going from village to village teaching and healing] for Jesus’ name had become known. Some said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” 15 But others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” The world had their own definition of who Jesus was – today the world defines Jesus as they want Him to be (good man, good teacher).

(v. 29) “But who do you say that I am?” – After all the healings, storms on the sea, casting out demons, feeding of thousands, months and months of hearing Him preach . . . Who is Jesus? Jesus had used the phrases, “he who has an ear let him hear,” and “He who has eyes to see, let him see” . . . They have been with Jesus all this time – Has Jesus been successful in showing them who He is?

It is as though the disciples in that back country are standing at a crossroad. To go down one road leads to a further understanding of God, Jesus, and spiritual growth, but everyone seems to be against them, and there is the pain of bearing a cross.

 As they look down the second path the world in support of them, there is applause, there are no problems, no suffering, but Jesus is not there. They have to choose between the world and Jesus – you can’t take both roads at the same time. Jesus patiently waits for the answer.

Peter responds, (v. 29) “You are the Christ”— Jesus does not use the word Messiah “to avoid political complications and a revolutionary movement (see Mark 6:45).”[3] But here, he accepts the title Messiah, and “Peter’s confession revealed real insight into the nature of Christ’s person and mission, but this concept of Jesus’ messiahship was far from being perfect. Peter still had much to learn of Messiah’s suffering, rejection, and death, as the immediately incident reveals.”[4]

(v. 30) “And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.” Jesus does not want them to give a view of Him as the Messiah, because they did not understand and needed further instruction. When they were sent out two-by-two (Mark 6:7-13) they cast out demons, healed the sick and “proclaimed that people should repent.”[5]

Here, they understand that He is the Messiah, as predicted by the Old Testament, but they did not really know what that meant or entailed. Jesus “was had not come to establish a political kingdom. His victory would be that of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53.”[6]

Mark shows us in this chapter that everything is a process. Salvation, healing (Mark 8:22-26; the man’s healing took two steps), the growth of the kingdom often takes place in stages.

Following God’s Will Is Not Without Pain (vv. 31-33)

31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.[7] 32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Jesus again refers to himself as “the Son of Man,” (and in the gospel over 81 times). Son of Man was the preferred title by Jesus because it, unlike the term Messiah, was not full of assumed meanings and would not distract from His God-appointed mission.[8]

But there is an OT background in the person who would come as the Son of Man. Daniel 7:3-14 “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”

Jesus here makes three predictions, 1. That he must suffer many things, included in that suffering is being rejected by the elders and chief priests, 2. Be killed, 3. After three days be raised from the dead. This secret is now being revealed to the disciples, “And he said this plainly.”

Jesus tells his disciples plainly that to follow Him will be a path of pain and suffering.

Jesus has shown himself to be the promised Messiah, and now He is beginning to show them that the Savior must suffer to the point of death – A suffering servant.

For Peter, the Messiah was a symbol of strength, not weakness. In Peter’s mind Jesus represented God, and God could not fail, Jesus would be successful, not lose to the religious leaders. Since Jesus is the Christ, God is with Him! Peter pulls Jesus aside and rebukes him – the same word for silencing a demon earlier.[9]

“Peter’s attempt to dissuade him from going to the cross is the same temptation he had experienced from Satan at the outset of his ministry. Satan offered him the option of using the world’s means of accomplishing his mission. Peter was opposing the divine will.”[10] What Peter doesn’t understand is that if Jesus is to be Christ, then He must endure the cross. That has been the plan from the beginning. Hebrews 9:22 “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.”

“Peter’s suggestion represented a very real temptation for Jesus – one that must be rejected forcefully. Jesus is demanding that they accept his mission and his demands for discipleship. Even though Peter had Jesus’ best interest at heart, he was being used as an instrument of Satan (not possession).”[11] God’s Word does not change, we must align our thoughts, wishes, feelings, desires to it – not try to move it to our will.

Jesus’ family came earlier to collect Him because they were concerned for him, Mark 3:20-21 “Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.” We must be careful, that like Peter and Jesus’ family, we do not let our personal desires for others to cloud the plan that God has for them. We don’t want those we love to suffer or endure heartache, but it may just be the plan God uses to redeem many.

When Peter hears Jesus saying these words, he is horrified, and he allows his own wished to cloud the truth of Jesus’ words, so Jesus says, “Get behind me, Satan!” – the world does not give the answer to the one big problem we encounter each and every day of our lives – our brokenness because of our sin, and separation from our Creator.

Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.”

Also, while Jesus explains that the Savior must suffer, but (v. 31) “and after three days rise again,” Jesus is showing the disciples that he knows that there is pain a suffering coming in the days ahead, but also there is life as well.

 What Does Jesus’ Suffering Mean For His Followers? (vv. 34-9:1)

34 And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? 37 For what can a man give in return for his soul? 38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. 9 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.”

Many would rather take the cross out of the picture, remove it from the church steeple. Get rid of the blood and gore, the scourging, spitting, mocking, and clean Jesus up. Make Him safe, just focus on the “love your neighbor,” and “turn the other cheek.” But Jesus says, (v. 34) “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

Suffering is not only the destiny of Jesus, but everyone who would be a follower of Christ. Jesus gives two requirements of disciples, (1) denial of self, (2) taking up one’s cross and following Jesus.

1) denying self – “It is the same word used of Peter’s denial of Jesus, and means “let him make himself a stranger” to himself.”[12]

2) “take up his cross” – “When criminals carried their crosses, it showed those who were watching the identity of the one who had authority over the criminal.”[13] By denying oneself, taking up one’s cross and following Jesus, a disciple acknowledges that he is submitting to Jesus’ authority.

In Luke 23:26 Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry Jesus’ cross on the Via Dolorosa “And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus.”

Our choice, is often like Peter’s; we choose our own self-interest – what works best for me, what I believe to be most beneficial for me. When you become a follower of Jesus you lay that self down and crucify it. You then take up Christ’s will for your life.

 You have to lose and deny yourself, “For whoever would save his life will lose it,” and it is in this process of giving your life to Christ, and then having faith in His plan for your life, and seeking to follow His will, that true living is gained.

There is nothing more important than this (daily) decision of being safe and saving yourself from pain, suffering, loss, etc. and the loss of the life that God intends for you to have, “36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” –

Jesus wants everyone to fully understand the cost of being a Christ follower. Luke 14:28 “For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?” There is pain for the sake of others, we lay our lives down so that others may know who Christ is, and the exchange is our souls, we gain a life of purpose and fulfillment. There is death and sacrifice, but there is also resurrection and eternal life.

Jesus rebukes Peter because there is the temptation to not follow God’s plan. We face the same temptation, and the harder and painful the task, the more we are tempted to avoid it. But to be a follower of Christ, is willingly to face those things head because it is the will of God.

A couple of years ago, it was becoming clear to me that God was calling us from where we were to somewhere else – So we had a family meeting and I began to share this with the family. Their reaction was, “Dad, can’t you just work here, get a job here,” and my response is that “we have to go where God tells us to go.” So, my soon to be senior and incoming freshman high school student, would be moving to a potential new school, my wife would leave a job she loved, and we would go to a church where I would serve as pastor. It would have caused less pain for my family to stay – and I could have got a job in the community – but it would be at the expense of waking away from a calling.

____________________

[1] http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/l/lorship_of_christ.htm

[2] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 1 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1932) 334.

[3] Robertson, 334.

[4] Frank E. Gaebelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1984) 694.

[5] Mark 6:12

[6] Max Anders, Holman New Testament Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Holman Reference, 2000) 135.

[7] Three passion announcements in Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:32-34.

[8] Gaebelein, 695.

[9] Larry W. Hurtado, New Testament Biblical Commentary, Mark (Peabody Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishing, 1989) 137.

[10] Gaebelein, 696.

[11] Anders, 136.

[12] George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 7 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1953) 770.

[13] Anders, 136.

Christ’s Power Over Every Need The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series “Are Your Hearts Hardened?” Mark 8:1-21

Christ’s Power Over Every Need

The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series

“Are Your Hearts Hardened?”

Mark 8:1-21

Introduction

The Invisible Gorilla

Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons conducted an experiment at Harvard University more than a decade ago that became infamous in psychology circles. Their book The Invisible Gorilla popularized it.

The two researchers filmed students passing basketballs while moving in a circular fashion. In the middle of the short film, a woman dressed in a gorilla suit walks into the frame, beats her chest, and walks out of the frame. The sequence takes nine seconds in the minute-long video. Viewers are given specific instructions.:

“Count the number of passes by players wearing white shirts.” Of course, the researchers were not interested in their pass-counting ability They wanted to see if the viewers would notice something they weren’t looking for, something as obvious as a gorilla. Amazingly, half of the test group did not.

How is this possible? How do you miss the gorilla in the room? (see video below) [1]

Prayer

What Do You Mean, “How Can We Feed These People?” (vv. 1-10).

In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, 2 “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. 3 And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” 4 And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” 5 And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” 6 And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. 7 And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. 8 And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets[2] full. 9 And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. 10 And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

This passage, “makes it evident that Mark saw both feeding miracles as important revelations of Jesus’ significance. His devoting space to two accounts of the same sort of miracle suggests that each one had for him a special significance and that neither could be omitted without losing something important.”[3] So what do we gain from the second miracle, that we don’t see in the first?

(v. 1) “again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat ,” The accounts in chapter 6 and here is chapter 8 are so similar that some scholars believe them to be duplicates of one occasion, but “Both Mark and Matthew give both miracles, distinguish the words for baskets (kophinos, sphuris), and both make Jesus later refer to both incidents and use these two words with the same distinction (Mark 8:19f.; Matthew 16:9f.).”[4] This second feeding of Four Thousand is to a Gentile audience.

In this second miracle of feeding the great crowd there is less detail given than in the first miracle – no mention of the color of the grass, how the people were groups together and their appearance of a flower garden, just the bare basics of the miracle.[5] So the emphasis is not on the miracle itself, or Jesus’ ability to do this miracle; instead the focus seems to be on the disciples, and how they respond to the situation of needing to come up with food to feed many people.

Previously in chapter 6, when Jesus asked them to feed the people, they said, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” There suggestion was that they could go and buy bread, but for that many people it would be very expensive (Jesus do you really want to spend that much money?) In chapter 8, the disciples say, (v. 4) “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” – there is no place to go and get the bread.

The two separate feedings and the reaction by the disciples (like they don’t even recall that this exact same thing had already occurred) drives us to ask the questions, “How can the disciples miss this?”

No Sign Will Be Given to The Hard Hearted (vv. 11-13)

11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. 12 And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” 13 And he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.

“What they asked for was something like the manna (John 6:31), or a thunderstorm from a clear sky (1 Sam. 12:18) or fire from heaven, such as came to Elijah (1 Kings 18), or the signs of Joel 2:30, 31. There was the popular impression that, although miracles upon the earth might be spurious and deceptive, signs from heaven could not be counterfeited. It was expected that they would accompany the Messiah, and therefore Jesus was repeatedly asked to fulfill this expectation.”[6]

But the request for a sign from Jesus was not genuine. Jesus refuses because of their unbelief. They are not doubting Jesus’ ability to perform miracles, they are asking for a higher miracle, one that would prove it is from God (i.e. the heavens) instead of working with Satan, as He has already been accused of.[7]

These leaders knew by now, that Jesus would not do miracles upon demand, so they repeatedly ask for a sign in the heavens. Jesus knows their hearts, Jesus himself was the true sign from heaven, the living witness to the present God. Jesus was in the Father, and the Father was in Him – if you were blind to that fact, no sign would remove that blindness.

(v. 12) “And he sighed deeply in his spirit,” – the word anastenazo, is found only here in the NT. “It describes Jesus’ grief and disappointment when faced with unbelief of those who, because of their spiritual privileges, ought to be more responsive to him.”[8] They knew the Bible backwards and forwards, and could quote whole books of the OT. “But, through their stubbornness and rebellion, they remained blind and deaf while others were healed.”[9] The problem is the will not the intellect.

How many signs did they need to show that He was who He said He was? How many miracles, casting out demons, and explanations and teachings does Jesus need to do before a person believes Him? For the Pharisees, it was just one more.

In Luke 16:31is the story of the rich man and Lazarus where they both die and the rich man goes to Hades and Lazarus goes to Paradise. The rich man wants to warn his living brothers of the torment so He asks Abraham to let him warn them, so Abraham, “said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.” Eventually, Jesus will rise from the dead, and this same group instead of being convinced, seek to cover it up, and pay the soldiers to lie.

We have all the miracles and teachings required for one to place their trust in Jesus in the Bible. We have the complete Word of God, and it is sufficient. Ask yourself, if I don’t believe, what do I really need to place my faith in Christ, and is it really a lack of evidence, or is your heart just refusing to repent and bow before the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.? Is it simply a love of sin, and pride?

(v. 13) “And he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side” – Jesus doesn’t give them a sign, he doesn’t continue the conversation with them, He just gets in the boat and leaves. Sometimes there is nothing more to say or do – He left them in their unbelief and blindness.

Taking Responsibility for One’s Own Spiritual Journey (vv.14-21)

14 Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. 15 And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” 16 And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. 17 And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” 20 “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” 21 And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

After the conflict with the Pharisees, the disciples realize that of the seven (giant) baskets full of bread, they only have one single loaf (to feed all of them). So they are all in a boat, Jesus is reviewing in his mind the conflict with the Pharisees (where He sighed deeply), and is wanting to discuss this in their ministry going forward, Jesus says, (v. 15) “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”

The leaven that Jesus is referring to is their influence – the beliefs and teachings of the Pharisees could grow and influence them (the disciples). Therefore, you have to watch out, be on guard. It is something that corrupts.

So what is the influence of the Pharisees? Seeking a Sign, while being hard hearted. Jesus wants them to understand that the authority that he possesses cannot be proved by a sign. Only by faith can they recognize him as the bringer of God’s salvation.[10] In light of all the miracles Jesus has done, and in light of all His teaching they cannot see Him for who He truly is because of their pride. Their influence was just being hard-hearted.

Watch Out So that You Do Not Become Hard Hearted!

What is the influence of Herod? We only see Herod mentioned in Mark 6:14-29. When he discovers that he made a vow to give a girl anything, and she asks for John the Baptist’s head on a platter – he gives in instead of breaking his vow and being embarrassed in front of the leaders present at the banquet. Herod is unwilling to do what is right if it meant looking bad before the crowd because of pride.

Watch Out So That Pride Does Not Keep You From Doing What Is Right!

It is hard heartedness and pride that is keeping other leaders from understanding who Jesus really is. Here the disciples are in danger of not understanding who Jesus really is.

(v. 16) “And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread.” – The disciples have completely missed what Jesus was saying and trying to teach them. So Jesus rebukes them, and “This rebuke is the harshest comment on the dullness of the disciples thus far in Mark and describes them in language borrowed from the OT where rebellious Israel is condemned for disobedience to God and an unwillingness to hear his prophetic word (eg. Ps. 95:8; Isa. 63:17 “hardness” of heart).”[11]

In response to their dullness to the spiritual events surrounding them, and the conversations that Jesus is having with others (and even them) Jesus asks them a series of questions;

1. “Do you not yet perceive or understand? Jesus has asked them this question already in Mark 4:13 when discussing a parable, “And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?”

Here the questions are more intense’; they have been with Jesus too long for them not to be able to perceive spiritually what is going on around them. This is the third and final trip across the sea and the disciples are in the same state of failure to understand as did the first two trips (4:40-41; 6:51-52, 8:21).

Hebrews 5:12 “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food.” We are responsible for our own spiritual journey – take whatever steps you need to take to grow in your relationship with Christ. Coasting, just going along is not acceptable – you are responsible for your own faith journey. Maturity carries with it responsibility.

2. (v.17) “Are your hearts hardened?” – They are acting like those on the outside, even though they have had an insiders view of His ministry. Mark 4:11-12 “And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, 12 so that “‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.’” Have you heard the gospel so many times that it no longer moves you – have you heard the stories of Jesus’ miracles that they no longer astound you!

3. (v. 18) Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? This is the scripture Jesus quoted earlier in the book of Mark 4 when teaching parables to the crowd.[12] The disciples (those on the inside) were told what the parable of the soils meant, but the crowd (those outside) was left not fully understanding the various soils, and seed, etc.

Now, the disciples are placing themselves in the place of those outside by not perceiving the spiritual implications of what is going on. It is moving beyond just not getting it, to being obstinate and hard headed. It’s like they are not even trying to grasp Jesus’ teachings and what He is trying to do among the people.

The words also echo the prophet Jeremiah’s description of “foolish and senseless people” who are stubborn (Jer. 5:21, 23), and Ezekiel’s description of “rebellious people.”[13]

4. And do you not remember? Jesus then walks them back through the two miracles, and the disciples know the facts (twelve baskets, seven baskets, etc). But they aren’t putting in the effort to put the facts together into a bigger picture.

(v. 21) “And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?” The disciples are suffering from the same spiritual blindness that the Pharisees have. They can’t see how the feeding of the five thousand and here the feeding of the four thousand are the same. They still don’t see Jesus as the answer to the need they have (bread, hunger).

A shallow perception of Jesus is very dangerous. “Jesus was not just a prophet or wonder-worker but the Son of God, whose ministry not only brought fulfillment to the prophetic hope of Israel but also was the basis for the preaching of salvation to the whole world.”[14]

___________________

[1] Mark Batterson, The Grave Robber: How Jesus Can Make Your Impossible Possible, Baker Books .

[2] The word used for basket (spyris) is the same type of basket mentioned where Paul was lowered from the wall of Damascus in Acts 9:25. “Whereas a kophinos is a wicker basket in which Jews ordinarily carried their food when journeying.” Frank E. Geabelein, General Editor, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1984) 687. Also, they are in a desolate place, where do they get 7 baskets large enough to put men into? Where did they get these large baskets and what were they used for in such a desolate place?

[3] Larry W. Hurtado, New International Biblical Commentary, Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishers, 1989) 121.

[4] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 1 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1930) 329.

[5] W. N. Clarke, An American Commentary on the New Testament, Volume 3 (Valley Forge, Pennsylvania; Judson Press, 1950) 111.

[6] Clarke, 112.

[7] Geabelein, 688. Mark 3:22 “And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”

[8] Geabelein, 688.

[9] Max Anders, General Editor, Holman New Testament Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Holman Reference, 2000) 133.

[10] Geabelein, 689.

[11] Max Anders, 126.

[12] Jeremiah 5:21

[13] Daryl D. Schmidt, The Scholar’s Bible, The Gospel of Mark (Sonoma, California; Polebridge Press, 1990) 94.

[14] Hurtado, 128.

Christ’s Power Over Every Need The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series “Teaching as Doctrines the Commandments of Men” Mark 7:1-23

Christ’s Power Over Every Need

The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series

“Teaching as Doctrines the Commandments of Men”

Mark 7:1-23

Introduction

Bee keeping suit as a sin suit.

Prayer

Religious People Focus on Little Things At the Expense of Big Things (vv. 1-5)

Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, 4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) 5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?”

In Mark chapter 6 we see the feeding of the five thousand, and as the disciples are concluding the day they board a boat with 12 baskets of bread and fish. Chapter seven is the following afternoon, so it stands to reason that the disciples were eating the bread and fish from the day before. “But the objection raised is on ceremonial, not sanitary, grounds.”[1]

There are Pharisees and scribes (religious leaders in the Jewish culture) who were gathering to observe Jesus and his disciples. This is the second time that these teachers of the law had come from Jerusalem to find fault with Jesus’ teaching.

They appear to be an investigating committee and when they investigated “they saw the little things. But they never saw the big things. They saw the violations of their hand washing codes. They did not see Jesus. They never took an open loo so that the true nature of the man and his teaching might come fairly before them.”[2] They are so focused on pots and pans, and how you hold your hands when you wash them, and going through the prescribed motions, they overlook the Savior of the world.

“Not dirty hands” – that was not the point of the objection – but with hands unwashed, not ceremonially purified according to their ideas of necessity. It also says that some “some of his disciples” – Some of the disciples then, had gone through the process of being ceremonially cleaning their hands, and some had not.[3]

Being unclean or impure causes a separation between God and His people and had resulted in the people having to leave the land – The traditions and teachings of the elders were trying to accomplish three things;

“It made the basic requirement that Israel be holy to the Lord something attainable for every Jew in everyday life. The Pharisees never thought that they were voiding the commands of God – only making them more applicable.”[4]

“the tradition of the elders sought to forestall the dominant pagan culture from making inroads into Jewish life (see Lev. 20:1-7). It encouraged the devout to make conscious efforts to set themselves apart from the unwashed hordes destined for destruction. Actions, such as washing hands, were tangible positive gestures that displayed who God’s elect were.” These outward traditions were a way to show who was “in” and who was “out.”

“The tradition of the elders assumes that God created order and that human affairs prosper when things are divinely ordered – even when they seem only to be minor issues.” So for example when discussing hand washing, the elders specified “the quantity of water required, the position of the hands, and the type of vessel to be used.”[5] And they even added what to say while you are washing your hands.[6]

Does living one’s life according to the tradition of the elders keep you from being defiled?

 No, because they become a substitute for faith. Superficial preoccupation with ceremonies had supplanted a deeper faith.

 In John 17:14 we get the phrase that Christians are to be in the world, but are not to be of the world, “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” Being set apart, distinctly different from the world around us, is not the ultimate destination; it is beginning of a journey, a purpose. The John 17 passage goes on to say, “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.”

 

Religious People Replace the Truth With Tradition (vv. 6-13)

6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’[7] 8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah, where even during his time, this same thing was occurring. The people’s worship was hollow, vain, worthless – they were going through the traditional motions, with no desire from their heart to draw near to God – because they were “teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” These man made commandments became a substitute for genuine heartfelt, God honoring worship.

“Tradition was the ecclesiastical version of the law – the law as it came out of the hands of the great teachers. It was regarded as equally authoritative with the written law itself, and, by some, even more so. It was the very life and mission of the Pharisees to keep the traditional interpretations in full force.”[8]

The Mishna, a collection of Jewish traditions in the Talmud, records, “It is a greater offense to teach anything contrary to the voice of the Rabbis than to contradict Scripture itself.” – the traditions of the elders have become more important than the Word of God itself.[9]

So Jesus came to heal people, cast out demons, and to teach – and this is a bondage that Jesus was intent on freeing people from. The religious leaders covered the law with these traditions, so that the original Word of God was lost, but it also shovels unnecessary weight of rules and traditions that suffocated the spirit of the people.

“They had covered up the Word of God with their oral teaching. Jesus here shows that they care more for the oral teaching of the scribes and elders than for the written law of God.”[10] They are not adding to the Word of God, they have substituted their own traditions in its’ place.

When we “teach[ing] as doctrine[s] the commandments of men” – there is no need for faith, and there is no need for heart. Your actions are not rooted in a love for God, only in wanting to appear and be in your own effort “good.” I am not a sinner, I am a godly person – see what I do!

An Example of this Substitution (vv. 9-12)

9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’[11] 11 But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God) — 12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother,[12] 13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

Jesus has called their teachings, “tradition of men,” “commandments of men,” and in verse 9, “your tradition” with the emphasis on your – thus disowning it himself. Jesus is completely rejecting their teachings because “it does not represent the will of God but can be used to legitimize the breaking of God’s command.”[13]

(v. 11) Corban is the word for “a gift or offering to God.” Once the offering to God was given, it could not be taken back.[14] “The single uttering of the word Corban “sacred gift” over a thing was supposed to set that thing apart from all ordinary uses and give it the character of a consecrated thing.”[15] In the case of property a person could designate it as corban, and continue to use it with the intention of upon the person’s death it would then be used as an offering to God.

So instead of supporting his father and money, a son could say that the money was an offering to God, and then the Pharisees then forbid the son from using it to support his parents (it was a gift to God) and then allowed the son to use the money for himself.

It was a tricky way to keep from following the Word of God (taking care of one’s parents) and then using the money on yourself.[16] Jesus is saying that such a vow is invalid, because it violates God’s command to honor parents.

But these traditions that find their way into the church often times tear churches apart. The author Swift describes in “Gulliver’s voyage to Lilliput, between the party which believed that an egg should be cracked at the big end and the party which believed that it should be cracked at the little end. So the big enders and the little enders fought to the death, to the complete ruin of their country.”[17] Religious people can be incredibly cruel and heartless.

 

Religious People Think They Are Made Right With God By Outward Actions (vv. 14-23)

Things That Do Not Defile Us (vv.14-19)

14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”[18] 17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)

Moses’ law teaches not to eat certain types of animals (crustaceans, pork, divided hoof animals, etc.) because by eating these things you break the law and thereby become ceremonially unclean. Jesus says, what makes us ceremonially clean or unclean has nothing to do with what we eat – so is Jesus disagreeing with the law?

Jesus’ teachings “not only takes issue with a major feature of traditional Jewish religious practice but also rescinds a major body of OT material dealing with such ritual laws.” Also, new gentile believers who would be reading Mark’s gospel would be asking, “so should I be following the OT ceremonial teachings?

Matthew 5:17-18 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.”

The purpose of the law was to show mankind that no matter how hard they sought to keep God’s standard, they couldn’t and were in need of a Savior. The Pharisees and their traditions undercut that intention of the law. They taught you could please God by following their rules – Jesus says that’s impossible. “Jesus’ main point is that uncleaness is moral rather than ritual.”[19]

Things That Do Defile Us (vv. 20-23)

20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

(v. 18) “And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding?” – “They had been trained in Judaism, in which the distinction between clean and unclean is ingrained, and could not understand a statement abrogating this. They had noticed the Pharisees stumbling at the parable of Jesus (Matt. 15:12). They were stumbling themselves and did not know how to answer the Pharisees.” [20]

This way of thinking was so instilled into their thinking that it was very difficult for them to change their own way of thinking. Tradition has this effect upon us, we stop seeking the higher things, and are content to follow the lower things’ “it’s just how we do things.”

Jesus releases people from the anxiety of thinking they have to follow all these rules and traditions, and the idea that their defilement or uncleanliness comes from something they may touch or eat on the outside. But, He also makes them aware that they are themselves the sources of their own defilement and the law does not give them an escape. “The only defilement worth serious consideration is that caused by the evil which comes out of the heart.”[21]

You can’t clean the heart with a fistful of water in cupped hands. If I am the source of my own defilement – and that uncleanliness causes me to be distanced from God, and I find no hope in the following the law or the traditions of the elders, how then am I made clean, how can I be brought close again to God? What must I do to be saved?

The law was given to help us realize that we have a corrupt and sinful nature, and are in need of a Savior. Jesus came to fulfill the law by being the Savior that mankind needs. Romans 7:6 “But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.”

_____________________

[1] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 1 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1930) 321.

[2] George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 7 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1953) 747.

[3] W. N. Clarke, Commentary on the Gospel of Mark (Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, Judson Press, 1950) 97.

[4] Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 2002) 247.

[5] Arnold, 248.

[6] “Blessed is He who has sanctifies us with his commands and commanded us concerning the washing of hands” Arnold, 248.

[7] Isaiah 29:13

[8] Clarke, 98.

[9] Max Anders, Holman New Testament Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Holman Reference, 2000) 117.

[10] Robertson, 322.

[11] Exodus 20:12; 21:16

[12] The religious leaders were backing their teachings on Numbers 30:1-10, where it speaks of keeping a vow made to God. Jesus is rejecting the idea of using one biblical text to negate another biblical text.

[13] Larry W. Hurtado, New International Biblical Commentary, Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishing, 2001) 110.

[14] James A. Brooks, The New American Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1991) 117.

[15] Clarke, 100.

[16] Robertson, 323.

[17] Buttrick, 750.

[18] Mark 7:16 “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear,” “Verse 16 does not appear in NIV, (or ESV) because, though it is present in the majority of the MSS, it does not occur in the important Alexandrian witnesses. It appears to be a scribal gloss.” 680. Frank E. Gaebelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1984) 680.

[19] Brooks, 119.

[20] Robertson, 324.

[21] Alexander Balmain Bruce, The Expositor’s Greek Testament, Volume 1 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Grand Rapids Book Manufacturers, 1967) 389.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

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