Mark 11:27-12:12, Rejecting God’s Authority
Questioning of Jesus (11:27 -33)
What authority to do these acts?
Jesus again has come into Jerusalem and is walking about in the temple complex. The chief priests, the scribes, and the elders come up to Jesus. This throng of Jewish teachers asks Jesus two questions: (1) By what authority are You doing these things and (2) who gave You this authority to do these things? What things are the scribes and the chief priests referring to? I believe they are referring to all the events that Jesus has led over the past few days. Remember that we are only days away from Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion. This is the final week of Jesus. Jesus has ridden into Jerusalem on a donkey fulfilling messianic prophecy. The multitudes have been shouting that He is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. A fig tree has been cursed and withered, signifying the fruitlessness of the nation of Israel and its coming end. Jesus has also cleansed the temple complex of the abuses that were taking place, also a fulfillment of messianic prophecy. On the day Jesus cleansed the temple, He also put an end to all the activity that was going on, such that no one could cross the temple courts with a vessel in hand. Therefore, the Jewish leaders want to know where Jesus gets His authority to act like the Messiah and make claims that He is the Messiah.
Jesus’ response
Jesus says that He will ask these Jewish leaders one question. If they will answer His question, then Jesus will answer their question about where He gets His authority to do the things He is doing. Jesus’ question is: Was John’s baptism from heaven or from men? Instead of simply answering the question, the Jewish leaders realize that Jesus has put them in the horns of a dilemma with His argument. The scribes and chief leaders were very concerned about their reputation among the people. They did not want to lose favor with the nation. Therefore, Jesus places the leaders in a difficult bind.
If they say that John’s baptism was from heaven, then Jesus would be able to ask them why they did not believe him. Now what was the purpose of John the Baptist? Remember that he was the forerunner to the Messiah who would prepare the way for the Lord. John the Baptist had specifically preached that Jesus was the Messiah, as we read in John 1:29, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” If John’s teaching was from heaven, then Jesus would simply say that John preached about Him.
The alternative for the Jewish leaders was to say that John’s baptism was from men, and was not authorized by God. This would mean a rejection of John’s words that he was from God and preparing the way for the Messiah. The people believed that John was a genuine prophet. Even Jesus said that John was a prophet, going even further by stating that he was the greatest born of woman (Matthew 11:11 ). Jesus also clearly said in Matthew 11 that John was the fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy that Elijah would come (Malachi 4:5). If the Jewish leaders said that John’s baptism was from men, this would have caused an uproar among the people who knew that John was sent from God.
We must be impressed with the dilemma that Jesus is able to put these Jewish leaders into. They are stuck in either answer they give. Therefore, instead of answering honestly, they simply say, “We do not know.” The leaders were not interested in an honest discussion about Jesus’ authority, nor John’s authority. Jesus does an amazing work in His argument to tie the authority of John to His own authority. Jesus shows that John’s authority is from God and so was Jesus’ authority from God as well. Since the leaders are unwilling to be part of an honest discussion, Jesus responds that He will not tell them where His authority came from. The chief priests, scribes and elders had rejected Jesus’ authority. But this is not the end of the scene. While Jesus was not going to directly tell these Jewish leaders where His authority came from, He is going to show His authority through a parable that He is about to tell in the next chapter. So let us continue the scene into chapter 12.
The Parable of Wicked Tenants (12:1-12)
The story
This is a fascinating parable that Jesus tells, for it has great depth in its meaning. There is one main point to be understood. But there are many sub-points that Jesus was making in this parable that the people with understanding would pick up on. The use of the vineyard imagery has always been representative for the nation of Israel . One of the best places to see proof of this point is in Isaiah 5:1-7. Compare the first two verses of Isaiah 5 to the first two verses of Jesus’ parable. You will see that they are almost exactly the same. The Jews listening to Jesus’ words would be reminded of Isaiah’s prophecy right away, if not thinking that Jesus is beginning to quote Isaiah. The end result of Isaiah’s prophecy was that the hedge and walls would be broken down and the vineyard would become a wasteland. This prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled in the three captivities of Judah and the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.
Now we turn to Jesus’ parable and we see that the owner of the vineyard has leased the vineyard to some tenants. The tenants were clearly understood to be the people of Israel . God had given them the kingdom, and the Jews were the people in God’s kingdom. The owner of the vineyard sends servants to the vineyard to collect some of the fruit from the vineyard. The owner is looking for fruitfulness from the tenants who are using the vineyard. The servants represent the prophets of God who had been sent to warn and correct the people. What happened to the servants? They were beaten, shamefully treated, stoned, killed, and sent away empty-handed. Jesus is simply describing the history of the nation of Israel and how they had treated the servants of God thus far.
In verse 6, the owner of the vineyard says that He will send His Son because the tenants would surely respect the Son. This would seem reasonable. Even if the tenants were to mistreat the servants, surely when the son would come, the tenants would behave differently. But the tenants said to themselves that they ought to kill the son, the heir of the inheritance. Then they could seize the vineyard for themselves. Therefore, the tenants seized the son, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Jesus is now foretelling what would happen to Himself. Further, do you see who Jesus is identifying Himself as? Jesus is setting Himself up as the Son of the vineyard owner, the Son of God.
In verse 9 Jesus describes what the vineyard owner’s response would be. The vineyard owner is going to destroy the farmer and give the vineyard to others. Those who were the tenants, the people of Israel , were going to be destroyed and the kingdom of God was going to be given to a different people.
Prophecy quoted
Jesus then quotes Psalm 118:22-23. This shows the hearts of the people Jesus is talking to. Again, Jesus is foretelling that these people are going to reject Him. However, though they reject Him, He will become the cornerstone of the kingdom of God . Jesus would be the foundation upon which rested the plans of the Lord. It is very interesting to notice that Jesus quotes this prophecy in Psalm 118:22-23. Look at the rest of the context of Psalm 118, noticing verses 24-26. Do you remember where we have seen these words before? These are the words that the people were shouting when Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Mark 11:9-10). Jesus continues to use prophecies to show that He is the one the scriptures spoke of and that the Jewish leaders are the enemies of God.
We cannot miss the fact that Jesus calls Himself the cornerstone in this text. Remember in Daniel 2:35 we read about a stone that would rise up and shatter the stature of the nations of the world. From that stone a mountain would come out, symbolic of the establishment of the kingdom of God . Jesus is making that very point here. The stone would shatter anything that stands in its way. Jesus is the stone and upon Him will be built God’s kingdom. A parallel passage shows this all the more. Notice what Luke records that Mark does not mention in Luke 20:18. “Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him into powder.” The point of the parable is that the kingdom of God would be taken away from the Jews and given to another people built upon that stone, Jesus Christ.
An underlying point that we find in this parable is the foreshadowing of the destruction of Jerusalem . Just as Isaiah’s parable in Isaiah 5 spoken of the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C., Jesus is implying the same point. Verse 9 of Mark 12 says that that owner of the vineyard would kill the farmers. The destruction of the nation was coming because they had rejected the prophets, rejected the Son, and tried to seize God’s kingdom for themselves.
Concluding Lessons
The patience and love of God for His people
We cannot escape the patience and love that God shows in this parable. Why does the owner of the vineyard tolerate the actions of these wicked tenants? Imagine if you owned some property and you sent someone to collect rent for you and they killed him? What would you do? You would evict him immediately and send him to prison for his sins. What did the vineyard owner do in the parable? He sent another servant and another servant. Yet the tenants continued to beat, stone, humiliate, and shame the servants. Who would put up with such treatment? Yet the owner sends more servants. Finally, in a final offering, the owner sends His only son to collect. Who would dare send their son after seeing the treatment of the owner’s servants? Yet the owner sends His son anyway. Why would God be so patient? Do you see how He was suffering so long with His people? He would send person after person to His people trying to get them to repent and come back to Him. What patience we see in the Lord! This patience shows the great love that God has for His people. There is no way for us to ignore the love the owner is showing to the people in this parable. The reason He tolerated so much from the people was because He loved the people so much. Think of the prophets that God sent who suffered! Elijah was running for his life from Ahab and Jezebel. Micaiah was sent off to prison for his words to Ahab and Jehoshaphat. Jeremiah was thrown into pits and put in cages for the people to mock him. In the words of Stephen in Acts 7:52 , “Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute?” Patiently God continued to send His servants for hundred of years to teach His people the ways of the Lord and warn them, all because of His great love.
The warnings and sacrifice made for His people
But no greater love was shown than when the owner of the vineyard sent His Son to the tenants. Our Lord was willing to make a sacrifice for His people. He had already seen how the tenants had treated the other messengers. He already knew what the end result would be. That is why the prophecy was given that Jesus reminds them of in this text, “The stone that the builders have rejected, this has become the cornerstone.” The builders were going to reject the Son. This was known to the Lord and to the Son. This was not a surprise. But God sent His Son anyway, showing how much He loves His people. The details of what would happen to the Son are exactly as what would happen in just about four days from when Jesus said these words. While in the garden with His disciples, the leaders would come and seize Jesus, arresting Him and taking Him to trial at night, which was a violation of their Jewish law. After the arrest, Jesus would be sentenced to death by Roman crucifixion. The place of the skull, Golgotha , was outside the city walls of Jerusalem and therefore the prophecy would be fulfilled that the tenants would seize the Son, kill Him, and throw Him out of the vineyard. Jesus made this sacrifice on behalf of His people.
The judgment that comes to those who reject God’s authority
The scene has been all about the authority of God. Our story began with the chief priests and scribes demanding authority for what Jesus did. Jesus repeatedly proved that His authority was from God Himself. The Jewish leaders rejected that authority. Because they rejected God’s authority, severe judgment was to come upon the nation of Israel . The kingdom would be stripped from them. They would no longer be the chosen people and would no longer be the people of God. The nation was going to be destroyed in 40 years when the Romans would come up against the city and lay siege to it and burn it. The kingdom of God would now be given to those who were not chosen, those who were on the outside, the Gentiles. They would now have the opportunity to be the people of God, built upon the foundation, Jesus Christ.
Let us be warned that we never reject the authority of God or severe judgment will come upon us. We reject God’s authority when we believe that we can live our lives however we want to live. We reject God’s authority when we do not do things the way God has commanded. We reject the authority of God when we do not listen to the warnings of God’s servants, the apostles and prophets recorded for us in scriptures. We reject God’s authority when we ignore the love and patience that God has shown to every person. To those who reject God, the imagery is clear, for they will receive everlasting punishment while those built upon Jesus will receive everlasting life.
As we conclude, let us consider what Paul said in Romans 11:17-24. Let us strongly hear this warning found in verses 20-22. “Do not be arrogant, but be afraid. For if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you either. Therefore, consider God’s kindness and severity: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness toward you--if you remain in His kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.” There is no room for boasting before God. If we have been disobedient to God’s commands, then we also have rejected God’s authority and we are cast out of the kingdom. We may call ourselves Christians and we may attend every service. But if we are not doing things God’s way and obeying His word, we have no hope of mercy and a fearful expectation of His severity. God did it before to people who called themselves chosen by God; He will do so to us even if we call ourselves disciples, if we are not obedient. Let us search the scriptures and obey all that He has commanded. Then we can have the kindness of God upon us while we remain in His kindness.
