It is set two of the Temple Tennis Tournament between Jesus and the Jewish
leadership (commonly collectively referred to as “the Pharisees and scribes”). We
are in mixed doubles now as the Pharisees have the Herodians as allies. Luke
tells us that there are spies here and that all of these men feign sincerity.
They hope to encourage Jesus to let His guard down so that He will say
something incriminating.
Their opening serve is embarrassing – all net. These men clearly don’t know
Jesus. He is not the type to dissemble in front of strangers. In fact, He will
soon testify that He has said nothing in secret, and no one will contradict that
testimony. It’s also embarrassing because the Herodians sound like a
second-rate amateur drama club. Their flattery of Jesus is not only empty but stilted
and awkward, too.
This is His second confrontation with the Pharisees over authority. This time the question is more complex because it involves two sides of the same coin (to use the
metaphor). On the one side, do the Romans have the authority to tax the Jewish
people? And on the other side, does the Law preclude them from paying “tribute”
to anyone but God?
Jesus returns this second serve with a strong backhand: why do you tempt
Me? Right away, Jesus serves notice that the question is not about Law but politics.
He asks to see a denarius and inquires about the image and superscription. If
this were an American half dollar, they might respond, “John F. Kennedy, In God
We Trust.” But this is a Roman denarius, so the answer is “Tiberius Caesar, son
of the divine Augustus.”
“Give back, therefore, the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God
to God.”
It’s a head-scratcher response – one that at first glance looks like a wild
lob. But Jesus drops the shot just inside the line to knock the Pharisees out
of the game. He has uncovered their hypocrisy and shown that, despite all
their practiced piety and purity, they have defiled themselves and the Temple
by mixing their sacrifices with the things of Caesar.
Originally, Temple worship revolved around the seasons of the year. First fruits
and tithes were given back to God as an act of worship – a simple way of life reliant
upon God for the people’s needs. When the people were right with God, there was
abundance. If they were not, famine, drought or pestilence made that clear.
Now, however, that simplicity no longer exists. The Jews have embraced the
things of Caesar. The Temple now resembles a bank. The Jews have become
Hellenistic (especially the Herodians), and they are looking to Rome for the
things they need rather than to God. In accepting and incorporating Roman
practices and customs into their lives, they have violated their own laws
regarding ritual purity (kashrut). As a result, their hypocrisy is now
painfully obvious.
The Sadducees step up to serve and suggest the Pharisees visit the showers.
“Teacher, we have a riddle for you,” the Sadducees giggle. “We’re sure you’ll
find this amusing – we certainly do – but there was a man who had a wife and
seven brothers. They all had her!” (Like junior high school boys, the
Sadducees can’t help but snicker and guffaw.)
The Sadducees continue to unpack the riddle (“But wait! There’s more!”),
until Jesus delivers a savage backhand that clinches the game: you don’t know
the scriptures.
“People get married all the time,” says Jesus, “but there will come a time
when they will no longer do so. And it won’t matter, because those people will
have been judged worthy to attain the resurrection of the dead. Marriage will
be the last thing on their minds. And by the way, here’s a fun fact for you: Moses
spoke of the resurrection of the dead when he called the Lord the God of Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob. After all He is not the God of the dead but of the living,
correct?”
The crowd – including the Pharisees and scribes who enjoy putting down the
Sadducees – cheer Jesus’ response. They don’t necessarily understand what He
just said, but they can plainly see Jesus has scored another point here.
He opens the last set with a wicked ace serve: “Tell me, how is it that the
Christ is David’s son?”
The Jews never saw it coming, and they have no response. Jesus has asked the
one question they cannot possibly answer because they do not know Him. In fact,
they cannot even speculate about Him.
Clearly, Jesus has won this last, ultimate battle of rhetorical wits. But He
takes no pleasure in it. In fact, He’s a little sad. He even feels sorry for
the Pharisees – but only a little.
“Beware of the Pharisees,” He says in the hearing of all as the Pharisees head off to the locker room. “They like to look
good, to be recognized in public, and to claim the best seats for themselves at all the
best events. They also devour widows’ homes and make a pretense of long
prayers. Theirs will be the greater condemnation.”
The Pharisees stop dead in their tracks and turn. “Not if we condemn you first.”
Monday, March 21, 2016
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Lent 2016, Day 40: March 20 (Luke 20:1-19)
It is fitting that Jesus is now teaching in the temple
(after all, He’s the one who just cleaned it). Jesus has evicted the moneychangers,
vendors and High Priest’s marketplace (the Annas family business) from the
temple so that God-fearing Gentiles may return to their designated place to
pray. In doing so, he creates an atmosphere of anticipation. The Gentiles – and
the Jews – are praying and waiting upon God for…what?
It seems like everyone is on edge, holding their breath. It comes partly from Luke’s storytelling (we just spent 40 days walking to get here, what’s going to happen next?) and partly from the anxiety shared amongst the Jewish leadership, Roman overlords and run-of-the-mill crowd.
We sometimes forget that this is all happening in the middle of a police action (albeit an exceedingly lengthy one). Rome has now occupied Judea and overseen its squabbling factions for well over 100 years. Their failure to get the Jews on board with their way of life is becoming a growing frustration. Titus will vent that frustration in a most savage fashion when he stands upon the Temple Mount.
Jesus has already predicted and wept over this looming tragedy. Right now, His focus is on praying and teaching in the temple in the days that remain before His crucifixion. The Jewish leaders see Jesus’ actions in the marketplace as a great opportunity to embarrass Him in front of the Romans and trap Him in His words.
“Who gave you the authority to do that?” they ask.
The Pharisees have been sulking since He got here. Despite all their scheming with the priests and the Sanhedrin, nothing has changed. The people hang on His every word. But now that Jesus has gone and done something that appears to play right into their hands, they are downright gleeful. If He says “no one,” they can have Him charged with disturbing the peace or inciting a riot. If He says “God,” they can charge Him with blasphemy. Either answer will allow them to ultimately humiliate Him. Jesus chooses a third option and offers a deal: He will answer their question if they will answer His.
“You bet!” says an overconfident Rabbi Feldman. “Ask away!”
“Do you remember John?” He asks as the crowd murmurs in appreciation (“Great man! Godly man! A prophet from God!”). “Do you think his authority came from God or man?”
The Pharisees are livid (“Way to go Feldman!”). Jesus has made fools of them by throwing their own question – and its answers – back in their faces. While they just tried to set Jesus up to face the possibility of a Roman court, Jesus has turned the tables and put the Pharisees in front of the court of public opinion. It’s not a comfortable place to be because they can’t come up with an answer that does not condemn them in some way. In the end, they give up.
“We don’t know,” they say, all long faces and hangdog expressions (and dirty looks for Rabbi Feldman). Except they do know. They just find it too hard to admit they made a mistake with John and they (wrongfully) assume it’s too late to do anything about it. At one point, Jesus will accuse them of preventing others from entering the Kingdom because they themselves don’t have the courage or integrity to admit they are wrong.
A large part of what’s holding the Pharisees back is the combined weight of their reputation and their heritage. They are convinced that they, and they alone, are the rightful purveyors of Torah and the righteous of the nation. They cannot accept that an outsider could ever have a correct interpretation or view of the Law. The problem with that, Jesus often tells them, is that they themselves don’t even believe the Law. If they did, they would believe in Him.
To help make His point, Jesus brings out the karaoke machine and warms it up with their favorite song (and His) about the man and his vineyard – a thinly veiled metaphor for God and the nation of Israel. But just as He gets to the part where Isaiah calls on everyone to sing along ("Hey, ho!"), Jesus starts freestyling – improvising on a theme that kicks their anxiety into a frenzy.
The tenants will kill the man’s only son, so the man will destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others, Jesus sings.
“Others?” wonder the Pharisees. “What others? Surely you don’t mean the ones you just cleared a space in the temple for? Surely not!”
“What then,” says Jesus, “does it mean when it says the stone the builders rejected is now the cornerstone?”
Caught between a rock and a hard place, the Pharisees have now been backed into a corner. They can neither get over nor around the stone that is Jesus. He has humiliated them again, and on their home turf no less. Round one goes to Jesus, but they'll be back. They will make Him pay for this very soon now.
It seems like everyone is on edge, holding their breath. It comes partly from Luke’s storytelling (we just spent 40 days walking to get here, what’s going to happen next?) and partly from the anxiety shared amongst the Jewish leadership, Roman overlords and run-of-the-mill crowd.
We sometimes forget that this is all happening in the middle of a police action (albeit an exceedingly lengthy one). Rome has now occupied Judea and overseen its squabbling factions for well over 100 years. Their failure to get the Jews on board with their way of life is becoming a growing frustration. Titus will vent that frustration in a most savage fashion when he stands upon the Temple Mount.
Jesus has already predicted and wept over this looming tragedy. Right now, His focus is on praying and teaching in the temple in the days that remain before His crucifixion. The Jewish leaders see Jesus’ actions in the marketplace as a great opportunity to embarrass Him in front of the Romans and trap Him in His words.
“Who gave you the authority to do that?” they ask.
The Pharisees have been sulking since He got here. Despite all their scheming with the priests and the Sanhedrin, nothing has changed. The people hang on His every word. But now that Jesus has gone and done something that appears to play right into their hands, they are downright gleeful. If He says “no one,” they can have Him charged with disturbing the peace or inciting a riot. If He says “God,” they can charge Him with blasphemy. Either answer will allow them to ultimately humiliate Him. Jesus chooses a third option and offers a deal: He will answer their question if they will answer His.
“You bet!” says an overconfident Rabbi Feldman. “Ask away!”
“Do you remember John?” He asks as the crowd murmurs in appreciation (“Great man! Godly man! A prophet from God!”). “Do you think his authority came from God or man?”
The Pharisees are livid (“Way to go Feldman!”). Jesus has made fools of them by throwing their own question – and its answers – back in their faces. While they just tried to set Jesus up to face the possibility of a Roman court, Jesus has turned the tables and put the Pharisees in front of the court of public opinion. It’s not a comfortable place to be because they can’t come up with an answer that does not condemn them in some way. In the end, they give up.
“We don’t know,” they say, all long faces and hangdog expressions (and dirty looks for Rabbi Feldman). Except they do know. They just find it too hard to admit they made a mistake with John and they (wrongfully) assume it’s too late to do anything about it. At one point, Jesus will accuse them of preventing others from entering the Kingdom because they themselves don’t have the courage or integrity to admit they are wrong.
A large part of what’s holding the Pharisees back is the combined weight of their reputation and their heritage. They are convinced that they, and they alone, are the rightful purveyors of Torah and the righteous of the nation. They cannot accept that an outsider could ever have a correct interpretation or view of the Law. The problem with that, Jesus often tells them, is that they themselves don’t even believe the Law. If they did, they would believe in Him.
To help make His point, Jesus brings out the karaoke machine and warms it up with their favorite song (and His) about the man and his vineyard – a thinly veiled metaphor for God and the nation of Israel. But just as He gets to the part where Isaiah calls on everyone to sing along ("Hey, ho!"), Jesus starts freestyling – improvising on a theme that kicks their anxiety into a frenzy.
The tenants will kill the man’s only son, so the man will destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others, Jesus sings.
“Others?” wonder the Pharisees. “What others? Surely you don’t mean the ones you just cleared a space in the temple for? Surely not!”
“What then,” says Jesus, “does it mean when it says the stone the builders rejected is now the cornerstone?”
Caught between a rock and a hard place, the Pharisees have now been backed into a corner. They can neither get over nor around the stone that is Jesus. He has humiliated them again, and on their home turf no less. Round one goes to Jesus, but they'll be back. They will make Him pay for this very soon now.
Saturday, March 19, 2016
Lent 2016, Day 39: March 19 (Luke 19:28-48)
Jesus leaves Jericho (City of Palms, City of Priests) and
begins “ascending up to Jerusalem.” This is an important moment, because (in
larger terms) the Messiah is making His final pilgrimage to the temple. In more
immediate terms, Jesus is stepping onto the last leg of His journey. He is now
walking amongst other pilgrims, all of whom are on their way up the mountain to
Jerusalem for Pesach – the feast of Passover.
This is also a unique moment, because it is both spontaneous and orchestrated. Jesus has gone to a great deal of trouble to make certain preparations so that others may later testify as to how He fulfilled certain signs. Close by the Mount of Olives, a donkey’s colt waits for the Lord. Zechariah has been patiently holding the donkey’s bridle for over 500 years, ready to hand him over in exchange for the password: “The Lord has need of him.”
As the crowd winds up the mountain, they move through the Songs of Ascent (the traditional Psalms pilgrims sang and recited as they made this trip). Someone realizes just how alive the words really are in this moment and sings out, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
The Pharisees are alarmed. “Are you nuts?!” they exclaim. “We’ve been talking in code about the Messiah for over 500 years for a reason – it’s called survival. Do you really want to talk about Jewish Kings in front of the Romans during a high holy day? Do you want to start a riot? Tell your disciples to shut up!”
Jesus, however, knows that this is a sign that must be fulfilled. Praise must be given.
Laughing because it feels good to see the Word of God fulfilled, Jesus says, “I tell you if these kept their peace the very stones would cry out.”
It is the briefest of joyful moments. As they make their way around a bend, Jerusalem leaps into view. But standing by the road in rags, Jeremiah beckons to Jesus, weeping for what was and is about to be lost.
“So, here we are again Jerusalem,” says Jesus. “There was a time when shepherds with their flocks came against you and pitched their tents around you. They cut down your trees and cast up a siege mound. And now? Déjà vu. For the days shall come that thy enemies shall cast a trench about thee and compass thee on every side.”
This has to be one of the most bittersweet moments of Jesus’ life. On the one hand, He is riding the triumphant crest of fulfilled prophecy all the way up the mountain – but He is going to an end that will come as a huge surprise to everyone (except Himself).
Jesus knows His death is imminent, but He is not feeling sorry for Himself. Instead, He weeps for what awaits Jerusalem. All around Him, His disciples and the crowd are caught up in the joy of Passover and the enthusiasm of something and Someone new – could this be The Messiah?
Jesus grieves for the nation of Israel because He knows that what Jeremiah testified to – the near extermination of the Jewish people – will pale in comparison to what is coming. The Romans are here, and they don’t want another King. Come to think of it, neither do the Jews. It is one of the few things they can agree on – that and their willingness to use murder to maintain the status quo.
This is also a unique moment, because it is both spontaneous and orchestrated. Jesus has gone to a great deal of trouble to make certain preparations so that others may later testify as to how He fulfilled certain signs. Close by the Mount of Olives, a donkey’s colt waits for the Lord. Zechariah has been patiently holding the donkey’s bridle for over 500 years, ready to hand him over in exchange for the password: “The Lord has need of him.”
As the crowd winds up the mountain, they move through the Songs of Ascent (the traditional Psalms pilgrims sang and recited as they made this trip). Someone realizes just how alive the words really are in this moment and sings out, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
The Pharisees are alarmed. “Are you nuts?!” they exclaim. “We’ve been talking in code about the Messiah for over 500 years for a reason – it’s called survival. Do you really want to talk about Jewish Kings in front of the Romans during a high holy day? Do you want to start a riot? Tell your disciples to shut up!”
Jesus, however, knows that this is a sign that must be fulfilled. Praise must be given.
Laughing because it feels good to see the Word of God fulfilled, Jesus says, “I tell you if these kept their peace the very stones would cry out.”
It is the briefest of joyful moments. As they make their way around a bend, Jerusalem leaps into view. But standing by the road in rags, Jeremiah beckons to Jesus, weeping for what was and is about to be lost.
“So, here we are again Jerusalem,” says Jesus. “There was a time when shepherds with their flocks came against you and pitched their tents around you. They cut down your trees and cast up a siege mound. And now? Déjà vu. For the days shall come that thy enemies shall cast a trench about thee and compass thee on every side.”
This has to be one of the most bittersweet moments of Jesus’ life. On the one hand, He is riding the triumphant crest of fulfilled prophecy all the way up the mountain – but He is going to an end that will come as a huge surprise to everyone (except Himself).
Jesus knows His death is imminent, but He is not feeling sorry for Himself. Instead, He weeps for what awaits Jerusalem. All around Him, His disciples and the crowd are caught up in the joy of Passover and the enthusiasm of something and Someone new – could this be The Messiah?
Jesus grieves for the nation of Israel because He knows that what Jeremiah testified to – the near extermination of the Jewish people – will pale in comparison to what is coming. The Romans are here, and they don’t want another King. Come to think of it, neither do the Jews. It is one of the few things they can agree on – that and their willingness to use murder to maintain the status quo.
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