And they came again to Jerusalem. 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 this authority to do them?”

Mark 11:27-33

And they came again to Jerusalem. 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 this authority to do them?” Mark 11:27-28

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:27-33.  Excerpts from the commentary's introduction and the first (of three) division (vv27-28):

• The title of this chapter for the commentary is "Three Reasons People Are Not Willing 
   to Follow Jesus" and the main idea is: "People refuse to trust Jesus not because He is not worthy but because of the hardness of their own hearts."
• "Jesus has just cleansed and cursed the temple for its corruptions and abuse (Mark 11:12-25). In response, the religious leaders were “looking for a way to destroy Him” (11:18). You would think Jesus would avoid the public eye, but He does nothing of the sort! He returns to Jerusalem and the temple with courage, looking for a fight—not a physical confrontation, but a spiritual one that will place His claims and identity front and center."  
• Mark 11:27–12:44 records five temple controversies in Jerusalem that parallel five earlier controversies in Galilee (cf. 2:1–3:6). In both cases His opponents are the religious leaders. Now that He is in Jerusalem, the stakes are much higher and the intensity of the conflict much stronger. Things are moving to an inevitable climax: the cross."  
• "In this first of five temple controversies, we will see some common reasons people are not willing to come and follow Jesus."  
• The title of the first division per the commentary is "They Do Not Want to Submit to His Authority."
• "Jesus “came again to Jerusalem.” At some point the religious authorities show up—the Sanhedrin, the Jewish high court, who exercised both political and religious authority in Israel. It consisted of 71 men led by the acting high priest. Their power was enormous. They were super sensitive to anything that could threaten their authority, and Jesus was clearly a threat." 
• The Sanhedrin questioned Jesus' authority and sought to undermine Him with His followers. "The question of authority is important. We all have a source of authority in our lives, someone or something that guides us and drives us, something that rules. For most of us, like the Sanhedrin, it is ourselves. We are not really interested in surrendering that rule to anyone else."

All of humanity seeks value, worth and significance.  Yet the world offers significance that is not lasting.  Jesus offers significance and worth that is eternal.  Philippians 3:8.  He must increase but I must decrease - John 3:30.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves and who is full of grace and mercy - thank You Jesus for loving me while I was still an enemy and hostile to You.  I am not deserving of how You save and pour out mercies daily that never cease.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sins towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me.

Zechariah 11:4-14

But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me. Zechariah 11:8b

I continue my study of the last four books of the OT (complete: Zephaniah, Haggai; to complete: Zechariah, Malachi) - using the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for this book.  For today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Zechariah 11:4-14, which the commentary outlines as the third of four divisions for the text 10:1-11:17 (10:1-12, 11:1-3, 11:4-14, 11:15-17).  While believers should always look at scripture and see how it points to Jesus, I struggled with the text today and leaned into the commentary, which shares how "[i]n essence, God is commanding Zechariah to become a living picture of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. Apart from the life of the Lord Jesus, it is nearly impossible to interpret Zechariah 11:4-14."  The commentary describes how God led His people by "three shepherds (v8) and how these three shepherds represent the three types of leaders God gave His people - kings, priests, and prophets.  In one way or another all of these leaders let God down and failed His people - earthly leaders who are broken and sinful who then lead the people astray (see post yesterday).  V8b points to how even though Jesus came and fulfilled prophecy as the promised Messiah, He was rejected by his own people. The commentary also describes another aspect of the messianic prophecy in this text (vv12-13) and how the text here parallels how Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for the same amount of money - thirty pieces of silver (see also Matthew 26:15). Building on yesterday's post the commentary concludes with this warning: "[w]e must not reject Jesus, because He’s the Shepherd we need the most. If we reject Jesus, He will ultimately reject us (Matthew 23:37-38). Rejecting Jesus leaves us with the only alternative: following shepherds who will hurt us. When we refuse to follow the Lord as our Shepherd, we will inevitably follow someone or something that will lead us to destruction."

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, You are my Shepherd and and You saved me, lead me into green pastures, care for me, protect me, and provide for all of my needs.  Thank You Jesus!  I am no deserving of how You bless me. My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.

Proverbs 9

Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning. Proverbs 9:8-9

On the back half of my vacation in Maine, I resume my study of Proverbs picking up in chapter 9, which my study describes as "the final poem of the first major section of [Proverbs]." This chapter contrasts the two paths we have in life - wisdom and folly.  While the English dictionary for reprove has some variation, it core definition is one that describes criticism, feedback, or instruction - the variation can often be wide from harsh to gentle. Regardless of the variation - my study points out how the Jewish elders during Jesus' ministry (and shortly thereafter as the early church formed) on earth rejected Him as scoffers.  Here in Proverbs 9 we see the same message as scripture describes and contrasts scoffers versus a wise/righteous man. For me this is a hard message to swallow as I've recently acted like a scoffer.  Please God forgive me and help me fear in You first then seek wisdom.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Heavenly Father, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and compassion for me - despite my sin.  Thank You Jesus.  Yet I am not deserving of Your grace.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 4

Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit. v8

Paul is writing the church in Thessalonica to urge the believers there to stay sexually pure. He goes on to say that rejection of such instruction is a rejection of God.  I know that sin separates us from God I've never thought about how sin is a rejection of God.  I've learned how we often grumble, and how this grumbling is complaining about God Himself. 

It is instructive and encouraging for me to think about sin as a rejection of God...this may seem counter-intuitive, but God's ways are not our ways.

My Prayer: Lord, You are the Lord of Lords, the King of Kings.  You are pure, holy and blameless.  You came down from heaven to suffer and die for me...knowing everything about me including my sin.  What a great God You are!  I am not worth such a God.  Thank You Jesus for how You bless me beyond what I deserve.  Please help me.  Forgive me for my disobedience, my lack of desire, my lack of action, etc.  Help me turn from such sin and overcome this sin and instead turn towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of this cancer.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin.  Help me be obedient!  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.