Day 260

Tomb is found empty

Mark 16

Key Verses: 1, 7, 18

Rituals around death are almost universal. Preparing the body for burial was an important part of saying goodbye. We have relegated this to “professionals” at the funeral home. In Jesus’ day the close women relatives would do the job. Since Jesus was rushed to the grave before sunset in order to observe the special rituals around the Passover feast, they had hastily placed Jesus in a borrowed tomb. Spice would have been added to cover the smell, and a year later the bones would have been gathered stored together in a much smaller container.

But when the women get there, Jesus isn’t there. The tomb is not secure. The Roman guards have failed to keep Jesus from rising from the dead, an impossible task. The women become the first people to carry the message of the Resurrection. They aren’t really sure what it all means, but they obey and go tell the disciples. Peter is singled out as one who needs to hear the good news. He needs the news, having betrayed Jesus only three days before.

One of the curious things about the Scriptures is that we don’t have the original writings. But we don’t need them. Instead, we have thousands of copies over a great timeframe and geographic diversity. In addition we have people who quoted the Scriptures, almost every verse. Plus, the Scriptures were translated into multiple languages around the same time as the original writing. And when you compare all these sources there is almost complete agreement about what the original said. Only a very small percentage of differences exist, mostly spelling of names and slight changes in the spelling of a few other words. This passage at the end of Mark is one of the few exceptions to this trend.

It could be that these few verses were originally part of Mark, or that the last page was lost almost at the time of its writing and someone familiar with the content of the original wrote this to fill in the missing material.

There are several very unique things in this section that don’t seem to fit with any other portion of the New Testament teaching, and especially Mark’s style. Mark has been rapid fire events with little commentary or summary work. This section is filled with summary and commentary. It seems out of place. If it were not part of the original, in my opinion, we would not loose anything of importance to the message of Mark, and of the Scriptures as a whole.

When I am serving as a pastor of a congregation I preach through Mark, including this section, gleaning from even this passage Truth that is present. So, read it and listen to hear what God can teach you about Himself and about the nature of our relationship with Him. But, I would not get in a long discussion about its content and the theology presented here.

Day 259

Narrative of Jesus' death  

Mark 15

Key Verses: 1, 5, 15, 26, 32, 39, 44,

Sometimes burning the midnight oil is not a productive thing. Jesus was arrested after dark, probably rather late in the evening. He was led for His first questioning, during which time Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. I imagine they had a messenger alert Pilate’s staff that they needed a meeting with him first thing in the morning, a matter of utmost national security.

And they show up with a carpenter, not much of a man to look at, no person of power or outward influence. Why are they wasting my time? I almost hearing him begin the questioning in a half-hearted manner. I imagine that everybody who arrives before Pilate accused of something offers a defense, a rebuttal of the charges. Jesus says nothing in His defense. Everyone is against Him, and He says nothing. The crowd would rather have a murderer released than Him. And Pilate doesn’t have enough guts to do what is right. He caves in to pressure, the ruler afraid of the powerless.

And the soldiers have some unprofessional fun at Jesus’ expense. Abu Ghraib was not the first time soldiers did stupid things during a slow time. They were brutal. Torture! They finish their dirty deeds and lead him off to be crucified. And all this before nine AM. They say people in the Army get more things done before nine AM than most people get done during their whole day. I believe it.

No truer words were ever written over the head of a condemned criminal. Jesus was their king and they rejected His kingship. And then the crowd joins in the insults. The religious leaders continue to try to discredit Him before all the people. This is their last chance to quite Him and discount His message. They challenge Jesus for a miraculous sign. He would not be manipulated. The crowd even gathers to see if the miraculous happens. But instead of chariots from the clouds or fire breathing dragons, Jesus dies.

Not all soldiers show disrespect toward Jesus. The Commander on the scene of His crucifixion knows that Jesus’ death is no ordinary death. Like the women who watched from a distance, his heart was moved. We don’t know how far it was moved, but in that moment he responded.

Pilate is surprised by Jesus rapid death. Often people could linger for days in agony. If they needed the cross for the next execution they would break the legs of the current occupant of the cross to hasten death. They could no longer life themselves to breath. Death came quickly. Jesus was dead before the expected time. He gave up His life.

Jesus’ body is prepared and placed in a rock tomb, not the usual place for a condemned criminal. They would normally be disposed of in a mass grave, or their bodies would be left for animals to devour.

Day 258

Agony experienced at Gethsemane 

Mark 14

Key Verses: 2, 3, 7, 13, 18, 25, 29, 34, 44, 52, 61,

It almost seems strange to write about Jesus’ last days on earth when we celebrated His first day only yesterday. I pray that you were able to keep Him central, even in the middle of the flying paper and excess calories. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with my wife, my two children and their spouses, and my five grandchildren (and an “adopted” friend of the family). 

Jesus was getting ready for the great feast of Judaism. It celebrated their birth as a nation, their exodus from Egypt. And at the same time His enemies are plotting His execution. They had fear that riots would break out and the Romans would take over control and they would lose their place in power.

While they are plotting His death, Jesus is being anointed with oil and perfume, an ancient spa treatment! He is at the house of a societal outcast. He feels right at home. Some in attendance balk at the expenditure of resources on such an expensive gesture. What a waste, they say. Jesus blesses this woman and the gesture. Sometimes wealth can be used to bless in a way that seems extravagant, but it is OK. This is the exception rather than the rule. Not many times does Jesus commend the “waste” of resources. And guys, I don’t think a boat for her fits in this category, sorry!

Judas in there and takes his final steps toward his rebellion and suicide. He tries to force Jesus’ hand. You can’t force God.

The second predicted encounter happens during this final week. This time it is to secure a place for the Passover meal in the over-crowded city of Jerusalem. The encounter happens and they make preparations. But even with all this closeness, friendship, even intimacy that Jesus shared with His disciples, Judas chose to betray Jesus. And Jesus reveals this truth in such an intimate way. He uses food and drink that is being shared as part of their sacred time together in preparation for the Passover celebration. He says that it would be better if Judas had not been born. Not much worse than not being born.

This is my body and my blood. Sharing this meal was an act of consecration of Himself and of the disciples. He is the center. Without “eating Him” there is no salvation. We can talk about exactly what Jesus meant in detail, but it is clear He calls us to share in His essence. They conclude the meal by singing together. This meal was a fairly traditional meal with many elements that were identical for hundreds of years. They shared together to remember the past intervention of God in their lives. Jesus shares the meal again letting them know that His intervention would be a game-changer.

The aloneness of Jesus during this most difficult hour surprised me. He has His best friends, His closest confidants with Him, and He is alone as He prays. He pulls away leaving the disciples to join in His vigil. They are to stay alert; He is to struggle in prayer. Their job was simple; His was close to impossible. Have you ever felt alone in the middle of a crowd? Have you ever had such turmoil in your soul that you had to just pull away by yourself? And Jesus even knows what is going to happen next. Or perhaps it is because He knows what happens next that He is in such soulful turmoil.

Judas who left their last meal before it was completed returns. This is one return to which Jesus was not looking forward. Jesus knew the injustice and indignity to which He would be subjected, and yet He willing surrendered. And the betrayal happens with the symbol of intimacy: a kiss. This is perhaps the first recorded “kiss of death.” And the first recorded streaker! The streaker was probably Mark himself. Notice that he often names characters, and yet this one remains nameless. Would you want to attach your name to this?

Jesus’ enemies want to kill Him so much that they throw charges at Him hoping one will stick. The one that does is the statement connected to the Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah. Messiah will come in the clouds. They knew exactly what Jesus was claiming. He was claiming to be God.

Jesus’ enemies respond with injustice. Jesus stayed true to God; Peter betrayed Him. Jesus willingly took the beatings and indignity; Peter pushes against any suffering with words of denial and rejection of the truth. Peter was so proud that when his betrayal is complete he breaks. Tears.

Day 257

Violent destruction of temple  

Mark 13

Key Verses: 2, 10, 13, 14, 20, 22, 26, 29, 33

If you were to go to Jerusalem today you could see these stones still piled where they fell almost two thousand years ago. For those of Jesus’ day this would be unthinkable. The Temple had been the center of their collective lives since the time of David. It was something that symbolized their identity. Without the Temple, Israel was just a shadow. It had been destroyed once before and rebuilt. And now Jesus says, as a sign of Israel’s spiritual decline, it will happen again.

One of the goals of the destruction of Jerusalem was the scattering of the Believers. Christianity was not to be localized. We take God’s presence everywhere we go, and going is integral to the Gospel. Everyone needs to hear. And it will not be a time of peace. Despite what many want to proclaim, the Gospel often brings division rather than peace. People don’t like it when we say there is only one way to a relationship with God. They call us intolerant, bigoted, narrow-minded, simple, uneducated, backward. Jesus was called worse. When the end comes, we will be pushed to the edge.

Some of the particulars of who sits in the Temple are fuzzy to me. Many have pointed to particular moments before 70AD. Some place it still in the future. Some say it is both. What I can tell from the text is that it will be a horrible time to be around. This distress will never be this bad again. And even in the middle of the destruction and distress, God’s grace is present. He shortens the time of distress for the sake of the believers. Everyone gets the benefit of that shortened distress.

During that time many will be led away from the faith. Believers won’t be deceived because we are watching, alert to what is happening and the eternal significance of those events. But those on the fringes will be led astray. And then there will be Jesus’ return in power and gather believers from the whole earth and heaven. The exact nature of this gathering is not spelled out, so we will have to wait until the events unfold to find out.

With the Christmas buying season almost complete, I was wondering if you ordered anything online? Was it shipped UPS, FedEx or USPS? Did you track it online and know what day it was coming? Were there indications that the package was getting closer to your house? Email updates? Did you recognize the truck when it pulled up to your house? Did you know what it contained for you?

So it will be for us. We know many of the things that surround Jesus’ return. If we are awake and alert, watching for His return, we will notice the signs and continue to be prepared. We might not know the exact moment when the box will be handed to us in advance, but we will recognize the truck when it pulls up in front of our house. We will not be surprised. We know He is returning. We know it things will get really bad before He does. We know His grace will sustain us. Be ready!

Day 256

Resurrection queries are answered  

Mark 12

Key Verses: 6, 14, 17, 27, 33, 37, 40, 43

It continues to amaze me that we can have such evil motives hidden in our hearts. Notice that I said “we”. I am included in this group. Almost daily I am struck by the remnants of sin that seem to creep up on me in the middle of the night, and in daylight as well. Do you ever get those creepings?

In this parable, we have a rich landowner whose tenants want more than they deserve. In fact, they think they have earned the rights to steal the rightful possession of the owner. They lose everything in the end.

The religious leaders were trying to steal God’s place in society and in the human heart. They thought they were in charge. They were trying to set the rules. Preceding generations had mistreated and killed the prophets. They had been on the wrong side of field. And now Jesus points this out to them and they are not happy.

Have you ever been on the wrong side of an issue? I know I have. What did you do when you came to your senses? Did you think about killing the person who delivered the message? That is exactly the reaction of these religious leaders.

If there was one time I wish Jesus had said “No!” it is here. I don’t really like paying taxes. I know that some taxes are necessary, but the way the government wastes money! We as a government spend over $50,000 for every welfare recipient, but the individual receives far less than that. It gets gobbled up in the bureaucracy. But notice that Jesus gets to the heart of the matter. They were just trying to trap Him in his words so that they would have a legitimate excuse to have Him killed.

Give to the proper authority that which is imprinted with the authority’s image. We are imprinted with God’s image. We belong to Him. We need to give ourselves to Him.

It must be “Stump the Chump” day (a reference to NPRs Car Talk), because another section of the religious community comes with their question. I think this was one of their standard trick questions thrown at their opponents. This group doesn’t believe in the resurrection at all. I can almost see them snickering with each other like schoolboys when they finish the question. They think there is no answer to the question. But Jesus confronts their blindness. God is the God of the living, even when those living individuals have already died. There is a resurrection.

The next questioner seems to have a legitimate question, rather than the contrived traps thrown by the others. And the answer demonstrates the two prongs to the Gospel: love God, love people. Both are essential. Faith must transform our lives. If we say that God is first and foremost, then we need to be His hands extended in the world. Our eternity is not secured by these acts of reaching out, but our acts of reaching out demonstrate our eternity. This man was not far away from the truth. He understood that religious things, like burnt offerings and sacrifices, could get in the way of this upward and outward relationship.

I often wonder what trappings we allow to get in the way of the Gospel. One of these for Jesus’ hearers was their traditional understanding of the person and mission of the Messiah. They kept thinking powerful strongman. Jesus was the sacrificial lamb. David’s son would never be the master, unless their understanding of Messiah changed.

Jesus confronts the hypocrisy of the religious leaders. They want everyone to know how religious they are, but they are all words and no actions. He points that out using the offering plate. The leaders put in lots of money, but they have lots of money to spare. This one woman puts it all in. Are we putting it all in? Or do we make a show of what we give? Does our life of giving reflect this woman’s “all in” attitude and action? Or do we hold back, just in case?