Hanging Out With Jesus VIII: Clash of the New and the Old

Hanging Out With Jesus VIII: Clash of the New and the Old

Read Mark 2:13 – 3:6

Key Text is Mark 2:21 – 22

Moving from where you are to where God wants you to be is a change process. In discipleship Jesus  brings that change. He did not only bring life for every person but a process for everyone to pass on the life to others. Bringing change is not easy because accepting change is difficult. Discipleship therefore faces resistance. No wonder Jesus the master discipler and change agent was opposed, quizzed and misunderstood. Unlike the preceding Chapter full of what Jesus did the passage under consideration has more words  of how Jesus  responded to his critics.

Jesus came to establish a new kingdom. He brought a new nature where there was an old nature. A new heart where there was an old heart. A new covenant where there was an old covenant. A new culture where there was an old culture. A new theology where there was an old theology. When you bring the new be prepared for resistance from the old and it's defenders. There are a variety of reasons why the change Jesus brought was resisted.  Many felt secure with the familiar. They had developed convictions about the old way. They had mastered how to live and flourish in the old. They were comfortable  it.  They had invested in synagogues and education about the old. They live under the assumption we have it neatly put together. There is nothing new to learn or embrace, They therefore defended the status quo. They saw the new way  as a threat to the  privileges they enjoyed. His critics therefore even thought spoke in God's name, were not fighting for God but for themselves, their traditions and self-righteousness.  Another reason the change Jesus brought was resisted is the fact that the matter was spiritual. His coming established a new spiritual order and hence faced spiritual resistance.

Jesus' greatest opposition did not come from the sinners – the prostitutes, the alcoholics and the drug pushers. It came first from religious people and then from the political establishment. The Pharisees criticized and disapproved of Jesus. If they did not criticize his teachings, it was his choice of friends and lifestyle, or something else.  Being criticized is already a given in life. Not everyone will like you or applaud you.  Bringing change makes matters worse.

In the passage, five times Jesus responded to those opposed to his message and work. Their hostility escalated from thoughts, indirect, twice direct and to silence and plotting to do physical harm. He was criticized for the following five 'offenses':

1) Forgiving Sin  (2:8)

The Pharisees and scribes questioned in their hearts why he said son, your sins are forgiven,  they pondered Why he spoke that way? He is blaspheming, they asserted.  Who can forgive sins but God alone? They came close to knowing he was God but were in denial.

2) Associating with Sinners   (13-17).

They questioned him through  his disciples. He taught crowds and called Levi. He ate a meal with tax collectors and sinners in Levi’s home.   Question – Why does he eat with tax collectors.

In the passage read Jesus was quizzed about  his eating practices in the light of the law of Moses. It is interesting that the issues raised by the Pharisees were mostly  about eating. what you eat, who you it with and when you eat. Eating is very spiritual. One’s eating habits affect one’s spirituality.

The most controversial choice of a disciple was not Judas but Levi or Matthew.  The Jews hated tax collectors because collected taxes from their own people to hand over to their most hated oppressors the Roman Government. They were considered to be Jews that sided with the Romans and therefore were traitors. They were also considered as extortioners because they laid unfair charges for personal gain. They made a living by overcharging.

All people eat so eating is an opportunity to connect.   Jesus decided who to eat with by  what cause it served. He came to save sinners and had to make contact with them to present his offer.  Like a physician is of benefit to those who are sick and therefore has to make contact with them.  Meeting and eating with sinners is how he found all of us. He saw purpose not just personality or group affiliation. He saw the future more than the past. He saw the inward not just the outward. He saw potential in people more than their present state.

 In Levi he also found a man of peace.  To complete your mission in church, business, work place and village you also need people of peace. They are your advocates. Every project faces advocates and adversaries. People of peace  These value what you offer and make it known to people in need of it and link you up with them.  Through Levi Jesus was able to reach out to many tax collectors and sinners.

As Christians, we should turn from the sinful habits of the world, without isolating ourselves from contact with the people of the world  (2 Corinthians 6:14-17, 1 John 2:15-16). the church is as a hospital where the hurting and needy are ministered.  We need to maintain contact with the unsaved as salt and light. We can have them visit our homes and visit theirs. Create proximity spaces of common interests such as safe environment, sports, etc. You can extend a helping hand in times of need and receive their help. You can tell how Christ changed your life and invite them to relevant gatherings of believers.

3) For not Fasting as Expected (18-22)

They asked why his disciples did not fast like those of  John and of the Pharisees. Jesus made it clear that  he had not come to keep business as usual. He had brought a radical shift to life as a true bridegroom. He brought a new way of thinking and practice. His disciples were therefore in transit from an inferior to a superior way of viewing religious practices.    He associated their fasting with an old dispensation where fasting had become an empty tradition. He brought  new wine or joy that required new wine skins and new garments or covering.  He called it new and implied it was superior than the old. A new patch sewn on an old garment will tear it or new wine poured in old wine skins will burst.

To the Lord Jesus the decision whether to eat or fast must be guided by  spiritual understanding, occasion and season. When a new dispensation was established, the disciples would then fast with a fresh understanding. It would be no longer to earn righteousness or anything but to acknowledge God as superior to the stomach.   Their old wines were religious. For some today they are secular. Whatever you had when you met Christ has to give way to his abundant life. Jesus brought a message so radical that it required a new way of thinking and living. We must also change the way we think to accommodate the new wine in Christ. Since receiving Christ what have you let go. That will tell what you have embraced. What are you holding on to that is holding you back. nothing can hold you back except what you are holding on to. The choice between the old and the new is a forced one. There is no middle option.

4) For Violating the Sabbath/Law (23-28 )  

Jesus was criticized directly for letting his disciples pick grain in the fields as they went along the way. His response was to highlight life before the law.  The law serves people and not vice versa. Everything, the material, times and other things were made for people to use to the glory of God. The laws that govern the relationship of people with time and things were therefore made for people.  They were meant to point people to God.  The Sabbath  was therefore  made for people and not vice versa. The spirit of the law is more important than its letter. Transformation is more important than mere tradition. Function is more important than the form of religion.

To support his argument Jesus gave the precedence of how David when hungry ate the sacred bread reserved for priests.  He also emphasized that observance of the law was to be an acknowledgement of God.  Anything the son of man is not Lord over is an idol.  You can obey as a religion or as a relationship with God.  Jude warned about allowing the stomach to become your god.

5) For Healing a Man with a Withered Hand (3:1-8)

They pondered about healing on Sabbath. He wondered how they had become so insensitive to the plight of a fellow human being. For the legal questions in their heart he asked, “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath. To save life or destroy.”    They did not answer.

The bottom line was not the day of healing but their failure to see the need to heal a suffering person. He was grieved by their hardness of heart.  Failure to be moved by the plight of others is a symptom of hardness of heart.  They only focused on wanting to see if he would follow a Sabbath man made tradition.

They thought they knew something about God.  He came to correct  misunderstanding of God.  If you have misunderstood God you will struggle to embrace Jesus. Could you have misunderstood Jesus in your heart? He came to correct your misunderstanding.   If you doubt his ability you have misunderstood him. If you think your situation is irredeemable you have misunderstood him.  You need a new wine skin of his salvation and faith to receive his new wine.

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa