Mark 12:13-37
13 And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 15 But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar's.” 17 Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” And they marveled at him.
18 And Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. 21 And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.”
24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”
28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 33 And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
35 And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 36 David himself, in the Holy Spirit, declared,
0 “‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.’
37 David himself calls him Lord. So how is he his son?” And the great throng heard him gladly.
Reflection
Even though Jesus is not guilty of breaking the law of Moses, there is growing opposition to him. In these four encounters we find Jesus facing the challenges of the religious leadership. In each case he is providing a proper interpretation of the law with regard to taxes (Mark 12:13–17), divorce and resurrection (vv. 18–27), the chief commandments (vv. 24–34), and the “Christ” (God’s promised King; vv. 35–37).
The passage reminds us once again that unless God purifies our hearts, we are going to mishandle and misunderstand God’s Word (the Bible), ethics (moral values), social issues, etc. The eternal Son of God must transform us on the inside in order for us to see and experience God and the world properly.
Galatians 2:1-10
2: Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. 2 I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain. 3 But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. 4 Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery— 5 to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. 6 And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me. 7 On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised 8 (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), 9 and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
Reflection
Paul returned to Jerusalem after 14 years (Gal. 2:1; see Acts 11:27–30). During this visit he presented the content of his gospel message to James, Cephas (Peter), and John (Gal. 2:2, 9) —who accepted both Paul and his message. The Jerusalem apostles gave Paul the “right hand of fellowship” (v. 9), endorsing his ministry and recognizing that God’s grace was upon his work with the Gentiles (non-Jews), just as Peter had been entrusted with gospel ministry to the Jews (vv. 7–8).
The false teachers in Jerusalem were saying that non-Jews (Gentiles) needed to embrace the obligations of Judaism (starting with circumcision) in order to truly become part of the people of God (v. 4). If this or any other sort of human performance becomes a requirement for God’s acceptance, then Paul regards it as a form of slavery (v. 4). The contrast between the freedom of the gospel and the slavery of the “law” becomes a major theme later in Galatians (4:1, 7, 22–26, 31; 5:1, 13).
Psalm 119:58
58 I entreat your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise.
Our performance will never be the basis of our acceptance with God, though Christians can sometimes mistakenly forget this. Pray that you and your Christian community continue to base your assurance of God’s favor squarely on the finished work of Christ alone.