Religion Unmasked, Unmasked Religion!
Mark 12:37b-44
Introduction: In the book of I Samuel we have a
very instructive scene in which the prophet Samuel goes to the house of Jesse,
led by the Spirit of God, to find the one who is to be anointed as the next
king of Israel, to replace Saul. Jesse had eight sons, and when Samuel saw the
eldest, Eliab, he thought, surely this is the one the Lord has chosen! But God
had another plan. He said to Samuel,
“But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not
consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does
not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but
the LORD looks at the heart...” (I Sam 16:7).
We can only see the outward appearance, we don’t know the
heart of another human. Part of what God would teach us in our passage today is
that He does know our hearts. He understands our thoughts. He knows what
motivates our actions. We might fool other people, we might even deceive
ourselves, but God knows the truth about us. As followers of Jesus, we have
the promise of the Spirit to convict us and to guide us. Commenting on this
passage, Warren Wiersbe said, “Pride of
living and pride of giving are sins that we must avoid at all cost…”
We see in these
two contrasting scenes at the end of Mark 12 the basis for the title of today’s
message. Initially I wondered if these really went together, or if it would be
better to treat them in separate messages. I hope you’ll see how they are
connected. First, Jesus exposes, “unmasks,” the hypocritical “religion” of many
of the leaders, particularly pointing out the scribes, who were considered
“experts in the Law.” In the second scene, the large offerings of the wealthy
are contrasted with the sacrificial gift of a poor widow. Her gift, all that
she had, revealed her faith, and her sincere, “unmasked” religion. So our
title: “Religion Unmasked, Unmasked Religion!” Both of these scenes point to…
The Maine* Idea: God demands a humble and sincere
heart as we steward what He has entrusted to us.
I. Religion Unmasked: God sees our heart attitude in
worship, service, and giving (37b-40).
“And the great throng heard him gladly. 38 And in his teaching
he said, ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like
greetings in the marketplaces 39
and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at
feasts, 40 who devour widows'
houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater
condemnation.’”
The setting is established in 12:37b. Jesus had responded to
the questions of the leaders with wisdom, one by one evading the traps they
laid. The source of His authority? A parable
about a rejected Son and a reference to Psalm 118. Paying taxes? The
resurrection and marriage? The greatest commandment? He answered them all. Then,
to the delight of the crowd, He asks them a provocative question that they
could not answer, based on Psalm 110:1, Who’s son is the Messiah? Merely David’s
son, or something more? And so, having silenced His adversaries, He continued
teaching those who would hear Him in Jerusalem.
Appearances
can fool people, but God knows our heart. Jesus had already warned His
disciples to “beware of the leaven of the
Pharisees…” (8:15). Here he warns them to be watchful of the “scribes.”
Some translations might refer to this group as “lawyers” since they were
considered “experts in the law.” From
a religious perspective they might be viewed like seminary professors, or high-level
pastors that would speaking at conferences and the like. Like the Pharisees, in general they would
have been highly respected by the people. Yet Jesus knew their hearts. And here
he calls out some of them (“…beware of
the scribes who…” [v.38]) both
for their pride, and for their abuse of power. First, He says they “…like to walk around in flowing robes and be
greeted in the marketplaces…” The flowing robes Jesus describes here were
meant to show off their status as religious leaders. The greetings in the
market place would have been others greeting them with titles of respect, such
as “rabbi,” “master,” or even “father.” They enjoyed the recognition. Recognition
feels good, but it can feed our sinful pride. Benjamin Franklin, in his autobiography said,
There is perhaps no one
of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride. Beat it down, stifle it,
mortify it as much as one pleases, it is still alive. Even if I could conceive
that I had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my humility.
Jesus continues,
saying in 12:39 that some of these leaders “…and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of
honor at banquets…” (v.39). It is another manifestation of pride, enjoying
the recognition, being honored by the people.
I have to say I feel uncomfortable in getting any attention directed
at me. Not because I am humble, more likely because I know how easily I can be
prideful! I am encouraged by the many “humble servants” I see in our church
family. Those who serve, and give, and minister quietly, behind the scenes, not
wanting recognition or attention drawn toward their serving and giving. That is
a good definition of true humility, “…not
thinking meanly of yourself, simply not thinking of yourself at all.” Andrew
Murray said,
Humility is perfect quietness of
heart. It is for me to have no trouble; never to be fretted or vexed or
irritated or sore or disappointed. It is to expect nothing, to wonder at
nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest
when nobody praises me and when I am blamed or despised. It is to have a
blessed home in the Lord where I can go in and shut the door and kneel to my
Father in secret and be at peace as in a deep sea of calmness when all around
is trouble. It is the fruit of the Lord Jesus Christ's redemptive work on
Calvary's cross, manifested in those of His own who are definitely subject to
the Holy Spirit.
Someone said, "They that know God will be humble, and they that know themselves cannot
be proud."
Jesus said to
beware of the leaders who had
the wrong kind of attitude, who were prideful (meaning some of the scribes, not
all!). God knows our heart! Some were also abusing their power, “…consuming widows’ houses…” and “…for a pretense making long prayers…” Were
they exploiting the generosity of widows for their own profit? It seems so (could
the widow in the next scene, giving her last two-mites, have been a victim of
such abuse?).
Jesus said leaders
who abuse their position and whose hearts are not right with God, “…will receive the greater condemnation…” That
is a sobering warning for anyone who would teach or lead. And this is not an
isolated teaching. James made a similar statement when he said in James 3:1,
“Not many of you should become teachers,
my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater
strictness.” God knows our hearts! The proverb comes to mind that says “Above all things, guard your heart…”
(Prov 4:23). Notice that verse talks about watching carefully over our own
heart. Of course, Jesus knows the hearts of us all. The only human heart
we can be fairly certain about it our own!
The apostle Paul
was having his motives challenged by some in the Church in Corinth. He said in
the fourth chapter of his first letter to that congregation,
“I care very little if I am judged by you or by any
human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that
does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore judge nothing before
the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is
hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time
each will receive his praise from God…” (I Cor 4:3-5).
False “religion” will certainly be unmasked! God demands a
humble and sincere heart as we steward what He has entrusted to us. We see next
a contrasting story and an example of a humble heart, sacrificially focused on
the Kingdom of God…
II. Unmasked Religion: Giving cheerfully and sacrificially
can demonstrate a heart of worship (41-44). By “unmasked religion” I mean
sincere, vulnerable, unfeigned.
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting
money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put
in two small copper coins, which make a penny.
43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them,
"Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who
are contributing to the offering box. 44
For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has
put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
First of all, we
should be careful not to read more into this scene than the writer, and the
Lord, intends. It might seem an odd scene, Jesus watching as people came by and
but their offerings in the box. Actually, Jewish tradition tells us there was
not one, but 13 offering boxes around the temple. They had trumpet shaped “funnels”
made of brass on the top, so that as people threw their offerings in (only
coins, there was no paper money!) it would funnel down into the box. As this
widow put in these two small coins, it couldn’t have made much noise as it slid
down into the collection! But Jesus knew exactly what she had done. She gave
everything she had. And He commends
her generosity and faith.
Jesus had
already spoken of the challenge that the rich face in coming to God on His
terms. He also made it clear that all things are possible for God (Mark 10:23-27).
Here, Jesus does not criticize the large gifts of the rich. He simply
says that the sacrificial gift of the widow, her last two small coins, hardly
a penny, but it was all that she had. And it was greater than the large gifts
of the wealthy in the eyes of God. Jesus is concerned about stewardship and
faith in His followers.
He does commend the sacrificial
gift of the widow, putting “all her living”
into the offering box. Remember the fable
of the pig and the hen? They saw the sermon title on the church sign one week: How can you serve? The hen
suggested, “I have an idea, let’s make a bacon and egg breakfast for the
church!” The pig replied, “There’s a small problem with that plan. It only
requires a contribution from you. For me it means total commitment!” God
doesn’t call many of us to give away everything we have. But He does
require total commitment! Paul said it in Romans 12:1, “I urge you therefore brothers, in view of
God’s mercy, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord…” The
poor widow gave all that she had, all her living, and was commended for her
sacrifice. It’s hard to read this without harkening back to another scene in Mark,
chapter 10, where Jesus calls on one young man to make a similar sacrifice…
17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees
before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit
eternal life?" 18
"Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--
except God alone. 19 You know
the commandments: 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not
give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.'" 20 "Teacher," he
declared, "all these I have kept since I was a boy." 21 Jesus looked at him and loved
him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you
have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come,
follow me." 22 At
this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.
From outward appearances that rich, young ruler was a good
man, a pious man. Jesus knew his heart, and the Bible tells us He loved him (10:21).
Because He loved him, he told him the truth. He knew that this man’s wealth had
become an idol. And so, He pointed the man to the “one thing” he lacked: he had to loosen his grip on his money. “Sell it all, give to the poor, and follow me.”
He went away dejected, sad. Why? That rich, young ruler couldn’t do it, he
wouldn’t let go. He loved his “stuff” more than he loved Jesus.
Fast forward two
chapters to our setting here in Mark 12, in the context of the Passover week.
This poor widow had almost nothing, a couple of small coins worth a fraction of
a penny. And she gave it all. What a contrast in those two stories! That is
what sometimes happens, the more people have, the smaller the percentage that
they feel they can give. I remember one pastor telling of someone who came
to him asking for prayer because he just didn’t feel he could cheerfully give
10% of his salary to the church anymore. He said, “When I was starting out,
making only $100 a week, it didn’t seem like so much to give 10%.” Then he said, “Now that I’m making $1000, a
tithe seems like a lot of money!” And the pastor did pray for him: “Lord, help
this brother give in proportion to how you have blessed him, or bring his
salary into proportion to what he can cheerfully give!” I am not sure how that
worked out! Jesus says that in God’s
accounting, the poor widow’s sacrificial gift is more than all the gifts of the
wealthy that were filling the coffers of the Temple! Why? She gave all that she
had. God is not just interested in the 10%! How do we use the 90% that is left?
Jesus said “Seek first the Kingdom of
God, and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.”
Missionary Doctor David Livingstone had a great perspective. He said,
I place no value on anything I have or may possess,
except in relation to the kingdom of God. If anything will advance the interests
of the kingdom, it shall be given away or kept, only as by giving or keeping it
I shall most promote the glory of Him to whom I owe all my hopes in time or
eternity.
What is God saying to me
in this passage?
“Religion unmasked, Unmasked religion!” One day God will bring to light the things hidden in darkness, and expose the motives of
our hearts. He demands a humble and sincere heart as we steward what He has
entrusted to us. The material things He has given us, the spiritual gifts that
we are to use to build up others in the church, and also the message He has
entrusted to us. We have been given much. It
is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy!
What would God have me to do in response to this passage?
For those in leadership the lesson is pretty clear: Above all else, guard your heart! Everything else depends on it…
(Prov 4:23). I think that also applies by extension to every follower of Jesus.
Paul asked the Corinthians, “What do you
have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as if
you had not?” (I Cor 4:7). We were not saved because we were good, because we
earned it. On the contrary, “For by grace you have been saved through
faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that
no one may boast…” (Eph 2:8,9).
There is no room for pride in the Christian life. Jesus paid it all, all
to Him we owe! The experts in the Law
that Jesus points to in this passage had lost sight of the two greatest
commandments, because they loved self rather than God, and they exploited
others for personal gain (Strauss, p.559). The widow didn’t think of herself at
all it seems, as she gave her all.
Will we choose
to serve Him with our whole heart? Can we give cheerfully, sacrificially, in
faith? He doesn’t need our money. He
owns the universe after all! But as we give, He will grow our faith and
carry out His mission in the world. Could it be that as God works through
our prayers and at the same time is working in us, He also works through
our giving, and at the same time He is growing our faith? Will we also use the
time He gives us for His glory? Will we be faithful stewards of the message
that He has entrusted to us? Unmasked religion! AMEN.
No comments:
Post a Comment