Passion Week: Temple Controversies (Matthew 22-24)

You are listening to When We Understand the Text. Welcome to Passion Week. Each day we'll be hearing a sermon about an event that happened in the life of Christ during the week leading up to His death on the cross and the resurrection from the grave.

These short sermons are delivered by our elders at First Southern Baptist Church in Junction City, Kansas. Here's today's message from David Pliesner.

The Passion Week Setting and Temple Controversies

It's evening. I have to keep reminding myself that because usually when I talk God's Word, it's in the morning. It's evening. Welcome to Passion Week. As we return to God's Word, we will be reminded of the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ had for us.

Hopefully this evening we have soft hearts in here this evening. Teaching through the temple controversies, we'll go over the authority of Jesus that was challenged, paying taxes to Caesar, the Sadducees asked about the resurrection as you know.

It was Sadducee that they did not believe in resurrection. The great commandment, Jesus' question on whose son is the Christ, and then he gives us a warning about the scribes. Then we'll get into the Olivet Discourse on the return back then to Bethany.

Jesus during the Olivet Discourse will talk about the and foretell the destruction of the temple. Signs of the end of the age, the lesson of the fig tree once again, and no one knows the day and the hour.

And then I will close that with a theological issue. Is Matthew 24 history or prophecy? And the proclamation of the gospel being the proof. We'll talk about that. We start off, I will start off in Mark chapter 11, and then as we get closer and closer to the discourse, we'll go into Matthew 24.

So if you'd like, open your applications, your apps on your phones to Mark 11. We'll start off in verse 20, and if you do actually have a Bible, go ahead and open that up. This lesson is from the withered fig tree.

In Mark 11, starting in verse 20, as they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered, was withered away to its roots. And Peter remembered and said to him, Rabbi, look, the fig tree that you cursed has withered.

Jesus answered them, have faith in God. In verse 23, truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, be taken up and thrown into the sea and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.

Verse 24, therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it and it will be yours. Whenever you stand praying, forgive. If you have anything against anyone, so that your father also who is in heaven may forgive your trespasses.

Now, in this particular part of remembering the fig tree, it was the withering of the fig tree that represented the judgment of God on Israel. Let's go over some of the temple controversies. I love reading this because Jesus just puts many in their place.

At times, when you observe this and read it, you can see that he puts us in our place also. And they came again to Jerusalem, and this is starting in verse 27, Mark 11 yet. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him.

And they said to him, by what authority are you doing these things? Or who gave you the authority to do them? Jesus said to them, I ask you one question, answer me. And I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? And they discussed it with one another, saying, if we say from heaven, he will say, why then did you not believe in him? But shall we say from man? They were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet.

So they answered Jesus, we do not know. And Jesus said to them, neither will I tell you by the authority that I do these things. Not knowing does not give you innocence. Just because you don't know doesn't mean you're innocent.

This question of authority relates immediately to the cleansing of the temple, but also his teaching in the temple and throughout his ministry. Because Jesus is neither an official priest nor a scribal authority, according to these official standards that's questioning him.

Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? To avoid the dilemma posted by the question, Jesus' opponents say that they do not know because they feared the consequences of speaking against John the Baptist, who divinely authorized ministry was carried out apart from the official Jewish authority.

Their confession of ignorance, however, demonstrates that they have no basis on which to assess Jesus' ministry. If they do not know whether John the Baptist was from God, they cannot know whether or not Jesus is either.

Faced with such hostility, Jesus refused to answer his opponent and exposed their ignorance and lack of sincerity. The parable of the tenants in Mark 12 verses 1 through 12, and he began to speak to them in parables.

A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the wine press and built a tower and leased it to the tenants and went to another country. When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard.

And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent them another servant and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. And he sent another and him they killed. And so with many others, some they beat and some they killed.

And he still had one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them saying, they'll respect my son. But those tenants said to one another, this is the heir, come let us kill him and the inheritance will be ours.

And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyards to others. Have you not read this scripture?

The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in our eyes. And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people for they perceived that he was he had told the parable against them.

So they left him and went away. Of course the parable was about them. The builders, a metaphor for leaders of Israel killing the messianic stone, Jesus. This interpretation corresponds to the current tension between Jesus and his opponents and the overall saving work of God despite the rebellion of his people.

Jesus' teaching either instructs or hardens its hearers. In Mark 12 verse 13, they thought, well, let's go ahead and see if we can't go ahead and trap him into this tax thing, paying taxes to Caesar. Starting in verse 13, and they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians to trap him in his talk.

And they came and said to him, teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. Sounds like they're kind of buttering him up there. For you are not swayed by appearance but truly teach the way of God.

It is lawful to pay taxes to Caesar. Should we pay them or should we not? Of course, Jesus knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it. And they brought one and he said to them, whose likeness and inscription is this?

They said to him, Caesar's. 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. After the Pharisees and Herodians failed to trap Jesus with their tax question, the Sadducees stepped in and had a question that they were sure they could stump him in.

Mark 12, starting in verse 18, the Sadducees came to him and they asked him a question saying, 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.

Verse 20, there were seven brothers. The first took a wife and when he died, left no offspring and the second took her and died and left no offspring. And the third, likewise, and the seven left no offspring.

Last of all, the woman also died. In the resurrection, when they raise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as a wife. Verse 24, Jesus said to them, is this not the reason you are wrong?

Because you know neither the scripture nor the power of God? From when they raise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 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 I have the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.

And he is not the God of dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong. Well, the great commandment comes up now, so the scribes are gonna have a shot at Jesus now. Mark 12, verse 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?

Jesus answered, the most important is, hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.

In verse 31, the second is this, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said to him, you are right. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.

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. 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. Now I'm gonna go to Matthew 22, verse 41 to 46. Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, saying, what do you think about the Christ?

Whose son is he? They said to him, the son of David. He said to them, how is it then that David, in the spirit, calls him Lord, saying, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.

If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son? And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions. Jesus was quoting from Psalms 110, verse 1, to show that the Messiah would be greater than David.

The most important question we'll ever answer is what we believe about Christ. Our theological questions are irrelevant until we believe that Jesus is who he says he is. And in his teaching, he said, beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplace and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers.

They will receive the greater condemnation. Jesus exposes these religious leaders with their impure thoughts. Jesus warns us against trying to make good impressions. Live for Christ even when no one is looking.

It's easy to look like a believer. It's easy to look like you might be holy. It's easy to do that. Living for Christ, however, is not. I'd like to then take you now to Matthew 24 where Jesus is struck to start a discourse when one of his disciples talks about this lovely temple.

In verse 1, Jesus left the temple and was going away when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. He answered them, you see all these? Truly I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.

And the disciples came to him privately saying, tell us when these things will be. And what will be the sign of your coming and at the end of the age? In verse 4, and Jesus answered them, see that no one leads you astray for many will come in my name saying I am the Christ and they will lead many astray.

And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed for this must take place. But the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. You know Jesus was actually sitting in the very place that Zachariah predicted the Messiah would stand when he came back to establish his kingdom. A rather fitting place for the disciples to ask Jesus what would be the sign of his coming, not an accident, not a coincidence.

In Zachariah 14 .4, on that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east and the Mount of Olives shall be split into two from the east to the west by a very wide valley so that one half of the Mount shall move northward and the other half southward.

I just find this amazing when I spot things like this. It once again shows the Old Testament constantly pointing to the Messiah in the New Testament. It's important to note that Jesus pointed out to his disciples that they should be less concerned with knowing when and more concerned with being prepared.

We also should be more concerned about being prepared for this day as much as we try to mystically find out, okay, all this stuff is coming to fruition, Jesus must be coming. He could come tonight. In verse 9, then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death and you will be hated by all nations for my sakes, my name's sake.

And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another and many false prophets will arise and lead many astray and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many will grow cold.

But the one who endures to the end will be saved. It's also important that you remember verse 14, and this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations.

And what are the last few words? And then the end will come. Jesus said that before he returns the gospel of the kingdom, the message of salvation would be preached throughout the world first. Still more warnings from Jesus, the abomination of desolation starting in verse 15.

So when you see the abomination of desolation spoke by the prophet of Daniel standing in a holy place, let the reader understand and let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the house top not go down to take what is in his house and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.

And alas, for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days, pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath, for then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.

And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, look, here is the Christ, or there he is, do not believe it, for false Christs, false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

In verse 25, see, I have told you beforehand, so if they say to you, look, he is in the So he's still telling them more particular scenarios. If they say, look, he is in the inner rooms, do not believe, do not believe it.

For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Whatever the corpse, wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. Immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

The nations of the earth will mourn because unbelievers will suddenly realize everything they scoffed about will be happening, and it will be too late for them. I'd like to stop here and remind us that if there is somebody that you absolutely know that absolutely does not know Jesus Christ, don't stop telling him or her about him, that they also still can be saved.

There is time. But I would not just wait. I have a tattoo on my arm that some have asked, why does an elder have a tattoo on his arm? And I leave that there because it strikes up conversation. It strikes up conversation of me having one of my best friends that died, and I never had a chance.

I never made a chance, never went out of my way to tell him about Christ, and I knew about Christ before he did, and he was still alive. Both have the same tattoo. It reminds me, don't wait. If somebody asks me about the tattoo, there's a good chance that I'm going to start to tell you about the great king that we serve.

Don't wait. Take advantage. Pray, call, and pray. In Matthew 24, verse 32 through 35, the lesson of the fig tree, which is still here, and it's here for a reason. From the fig tree, learn its lesson. As soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near.

We're starting to see those pop out of the trees right now, aren't they? So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. It is a time to be ready. It is a time to get into God's word, follow our Lord Jesus Christ, not part-time, but full-time. It's very interesting now that Jesus goes into, no one knows that day or hour.

In verse 36, but concerning that day and hour, no one knows, not even the angels of heaven nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, kind of like today, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away.

So will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field. One will be taken away and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill. One will be taken and one left. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.

But know this, but know this, that if the master of the house had known what part of the night that the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake, and he would have not let this house be broken into.

Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household to give them their food at the proper time?

Blessed is the servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if that wicked servant says to himself, my master's delayed, and begins to beat his fellow servants and eat and drink with drunkards, the master of the servant will come on a day when he does not expect him, and in an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him in with the hypocrites.

In that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. So, what about it? Is Matthew 24 history or prophecy? Is it a prophetic question? This scripture clearly portrays a period of an intense tribulation that will precede the second coming of Jesus.

Has this terrible period of tribulation already occurred, or is it yet to occur? And what about the second coming of Jesus? Has it already occurred? Ridiculous. Have all the events described in Matthew 24 been fulfilled, or do some of them await fulfillment?

I believe Matthew 24 was fulfilled and prophetic-type in the destruction of the Jerusalem in 70 AD, and therefore yet to be fulfilled in history. And I think I can prove that from the passage of scripture that I'm about to read.

Let's begin with verse 14 in Matthew 24. It states that all the events described in Matthew 24 will take place at the time when the gospel has been preached to all the world. This certainly had not taken place by the year 7 AD.

In fact, it still has not taken place to this date. Even though we have a pastor that is eagerly using technology today, using radio, television, movies, satellites, and the internet—mostly the internet—we have been able to proclaim the gospel to more people than ever before.

I don't know what your hits are up to right now, Pastor, but I know you've got quite a few listeners. But we still have not reached all people in the world. I think we can come to that agreement. Matthew 24 is a prophecy yet to be fulfilled.

It is going to be fulfilled soon for the spiritual Israel, the spiritual Jew, the spiritual Gentile, the spiritual foreigner, the spiritual eunuch. The wrath of God is about to fall. We are on the threshold of a great tribulation.

As you ponder this reality, are you ready for it? Have you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior? The Bible says to you saints, in Romans 5, 9,. Since therefore we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.

The Bible also tells us in Matthew 24, verses 43 and 44,. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would have not have let his house be broken into.

Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. If you are all ready for this great day, like I am ready for this great day for Jesus' second coming, then what are we doing about that?

How are we telling the rest of the world? Is Jesus just our prize? We're not willing to share it? Are we claiming our Savior in our homes and in our workplace? Are we raising our children with Jesus leading in our lives?

Are we claiming our Savior Jesus in our daily lives? And finally, are we still repenting? Are we turning to God and asking for forgiveness? Are we a forgiving people? Because it does start. That ministry starts with you.

I think we need to be just as passionate as our Christ is this week, every week, until He comes and takes you away and says, Well done. Good.

Thank you for joining us during Passion Week as we studied the events leading up to Christ's death on the cross for our sins and His resurrection from the grave. On behalf of our church family, my name is Becky, inviting you to join us again tomorrow.