3rd Time’s No Charm
Preached by Jason Abbott
February 9, 2014
I have always been someone who learns lessons rather slowly. Sometimes it takes 2 or 3 tries for me to get a simple lesson through my thick Missouri skull. (Now many of you are nodding your heads: “Yes.” But, be polite, be gracious towards me. You don’t yet know where this illustration might end up.)
When I was only 6-years-old, for example, I was given a small pocketknife. (No worries, it wasn’t that sharp.) However, this blunt knife did open up, for my young imagination, a range of possible uses. One especially excellent use for such a knife, I thought, was to carve my name in stuff—like my parent’s wood furniture. (I did an especially nice job with the wooden TV console. You could really make out all the letters of my name: J-A-S-O-N.)
Now, one would think, following such a carving endeavor, that if I were going to continue to do such works of art, I would (at least) have learned to do them anonymously. Yet, just a few years later, as I was walking home from school, I found that one of my neighbors had recently patched a large portion of cement in their driveway. What could possibly look better (you ask) in that freshly wet and perfectly smoothed cement than the letters: J-A-S-O-N?
I think I know now how things work. People don’t necessarily think my name is as beautiful as I do when written in their furniture or in their driveway. Yet, if you find J-A-S-O-N, one Sunday morning, carved on one of the café walls or on the inside of the cabinets in the fellowship hall’s kitchen then you’ll know I’m still struggling to put this lesson into practice.
Now some of you might ask—what does this have to do with the sermon? What does Jason being an imbecile have to do with Mark 10:32-34? Well, a lot!
You see (like me and my carving lesson) the disciples have a tough time learning the lesson Jesus has repeatedly taught them—that he has come to suffer and to die and to rise again. This is the 3rd time Jesus has taught them this lesson, and they still don’t understand. They still don’t get it!
And, if we’re honest, sometimes we have a hard time with this lesson too. Sometimes we don’t live as if our salvation depended completely on Jesus’ work for us on the cross! But, it does! We must relearn this lesson, again and again!
Let’s read today’s text together. Then, let’s pray that God would graciously, yet relentlessly, hammer this essential lesson about Jesus’ cross work into our thick heads and into our hard hearts.
Mark 10:32-34
32 And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”
So, as we dig into this text, let’s do so by asking two questions: (1) Why are the disciples amazed and afraid? (2) What does Jesus teach them in the midst of their amazement and fear?
1. Why are the disciples amazed and afraid?
This, to me, is an incredibly important question to consider and to answer. Because, when we read this passage by itself, it seems rather mysterious for Mark to tell us (without any apparent explanation as to why) that, as they take this trip up to Jerusalem, the disciples were:
…amazed, and those who followed [Jesus] were afraid (v. 32).
So we must ask: Why are these followers astonished and afraid?
Illustration:
Imagine you walk up while I’m telling a story about our recent youth trip. As you walk up to me, I’m explaining that we were on the way up to Camp Orchard Hill and that I was driving. Then I explain that the middle and high school guys in the van were all in disbelief and a little scared. Finally, I explain that I made certain I had all their attention and that I told them how once we were at camp we would sleep in a small cold room together, eat thoroughly average food together, and drink a lot of antiquated soda called Moxie together. And that, after three days there, we would all really bond and love each other!
After my story ends, you would likely conclude at least one of two things. Either (1) I’m a really bad storyteller who shares meaningless details in my stories, or (2) you have missed some detail (by coming in late) that is essential to the story and that explains why this van of middle and high school boys was in disbelief and a little bit frightened.
You see some detail I had already shard, before you walked up, might have explained the boys’ dismal condition.
Maybe they were in disbelief and a little frightened because I refused to stop singing Weird Al Yankovic songs to them.
Maybe they were in disbelief and a little frightened because I was continuously telling really bad jokes on the way up.
Maybe, just maybe, it was both of these combined that had taken the wind out of their sails.
The point is that if we look only at these three verses in this gospel story then we have come in on the middle of the story (which Mark is telling) and won’t, consequently, find the details that help us to explain why the disciples are astonished and why they are afraid as they go up to Jerusalem.
So, then, what detail or details might explain Mark’s description of them? From where does their astonishment and fear come?
Amazed: Remember the 12 just had an interaction with the rich young man. And, recall that they were astonished (when Jesus taught) that such a law abiding and rich person would have great difficulty entering into God’s eternal kingdom. The disciples were amazed because they (like the society in which they lived) imagined that wealth was a sure sign of God’s favor and blessing.
Therefore, I think, it is quite likely that the disciples’ amazement is a holdover from Jesus’ teaching. They continue to be shocked. They continue to reel. For, Jesus has just clearly taught that salvation does not depend upon their merit. Jesus has just explained to them that salvation is impossible for man to achieve. Jesus has taught them that their salvation depends upon God alone (Jonah 2:9)!
Consequently, the 12 disciples are still struggling, in amazement, with this paradigm shifting message from Jesus!
(By the way, we should recognize that this very message is no less difficult for people to accept today. I have many friends who will not accept the message of human inability and helplessness in the achievement of their own righteousness before God and their own entrance into heaven. You see, the rich young man’s problem and the disciples’ problem is really a human problem.)
But, what about the fear, of those who follow Jesus, which Mark mentions? Why would the disciples be afraid as they head up to Jerusalem?
Afraid: Again, I think we find the key in what Jesus has just taught them. Remember that Peter (in light of Jesus’ teaching concerning the rich young man) has highlighted all that the disciples have given up in order to follow Jesus. Basically, he says, “We’re not like the rich young ruler! We’ve given up everything to follow you! So, won’t we receive an eternal inheritance?!”
(By the way, Peter’s plea is simply another appeal for works righteousness!)
How does Jesus reply? He teaches:
…there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first (10:29-31).
This little prepositional phrase, with persecutions, (I believe) is what spawns the fear that Mark mentions here.
Have you ever noticed that human beings are naturally glass-half-empty creatures? I don’t mean we’re always that way, but we do tend to see the negative. We often dwell on them despite the many positives.
This tendency is clearly seen a lot when I’m planning things for the kids. Perhaps I say: We’re going to get Pizza. (Hooray!) Then, we’re going to Hershey Park. (Hooray! Hooray!) Then, we’re going to rent a movie. (Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!) So let’s cleanup the toys before we go. (Boohoo!)
Jesus says, if, for me and the good news, you give up things then you’ll get one hundred fold more!!! You will get eternal life!!! But, there will be persecutions too.
What do the disciples do? They only focus on the negative persecutions. And so they are afraid! You see, that ugly tree keeps them from seeing the whole immaculate forest about which Jesus mainly speaks here!!!
We are currently in the midst of a Sunday school class that is entitled: Facing Our Fears. I’ll shamelessly plug it right now because part of the purpose and benefit (I believe) of facing our fears is that we might keep them in perspective and not allow them to rule us!
If we keep them against the back drop of God’s promise of glory—found in Jesus—then we like Paul can say that we:
…consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us (Romans 8:18).
Look, it’s the elders’ and my constant prayer that we—as a congregation—will be so focused on the glorious treasure of knowing our God that we won’t be ruled by the fears of this earthly life.
Well, hopefully we now better understand the disciples’ astonishment and fear in this passage. Moreover, hopefully we can begin to see how we (in many ways) resemble the disciples and, then, be encouraged to trust in Jesus evermore fervently and follow him evermore closely.
Let’s now turn to the second question:
2. What does Jesus teach the disciples in the midst of their amazement and fear?
Well, if you’re like me, you would think this is the perfect time for the William Wallace a la Brave Heart—ride in on a horse, face painted, sword waving pep-talk! Yet, Jesus, as usual, doesn’t do what we think he should do. As usual, Jesus defies our human expectations.
Look at what he says to his frightened disciples:
See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise (vv. 33-34).
If we were Jesus’ personal strategists, we’d without a doubt attempt to dissuade him from making this little speech to his disciples.
“No, Jesus!” We’d say, “This is the time to be strong and to model courage to your followers!”
“No, Jesus!” We’d advise him, “This is not the time for talk of defeat. You need to speak of victory and conquest!”
“No, Jesus!” We’d counsel him, “Now is the time to display power!”
But, at each of these 3 points, we would be ironically so very, very wrong! For never has there ever been such a courageous, victorious, and powerful speech given to one’s followers!
Never ever has there been a more courageous leader—who not only hands himself over to certain death for his followers but, also, courageously submits himself to the very wrath of God for his followers. This is true bravery!
Never ever has there been a conqueror more victorious—who will not merely stop at defeating earthly enemies for his people but will relentlessly see the greatest human enemy of all (Death!) defeated too. This is real victory!
Never ever has there been a more powerful leader—who will not be led into mocking, spitting, flogging, and killing by the power of one greater than he is. But rather, he will give up his life freely, for no one is capable of taking it from him, and will take his life up again freely, for no one can deny him that right either (John 10:18). This is ultimate authority!
This is good news bravery, good news victory, and good news authority!
