April 6, 2020 –Holy Monday Devotion by Rev. Jessica Johnson
Jesus Tells Parables to the Pharisees and Sadducees
Lectionary Readings for Holy Monday 2020
Devotion – Matthew 21:23-46
The day after Jesus made rode the donkey into Jerusalem, and the crowds greeted Him with palm leaves and rejoicing, Jesus returned to the Temple and began teaching. The priests and elders immediately questioned Jesus asking Him by what authority was He doing these things. Jesus was known for answering a question with a question, and I am sure it drove the religious leaders crazy when He would do that. This is what Jesus said in Matthew 21:24-25 ESV:
24 Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?”
As usual, Jesus had stumped them. If they answered from heaven, then the Jewish religious leaders would have to admit who Jesus was. If they answered from man, then they faced the anger of the crowds of people, because it was generally accepted that John had been a prophet of God. Whatever their motives were at the time, they still would not give in and admit to the true identity of Jesus. After discussing it amongst themselves, they just frankly told Jesus that they didn’t know. Because they couldn’t or wouldn’t answer His question, then Jesus refused to answer theirs.
They were challenging the authority of Jesus yet again, and once again, they failed in their challenge. Jesus turned His teaching towards them. And in the passages that follow in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches a couple of parables aimed directly at the Jewish religious leaders.
In the first parable, the Parable of the Two Sons, Jesus asked the leaders which son did as their father had asked. They correctly answered the first. Then, Jesus challenged the leaders in verse 32 saying, “For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him.” Jesus is basically pointing out to them that they know the truth, but still they do not believe or acknowledge the truth. They don’t act on that truth.
The second parable, the Parable of the Tenants, Jesus tells the story of an owner who sent servants and others to his tenants to collect the fruit from his land. The tenants beat and killed everyone the owner sent, including the owner’s own heir. The owner then kicked them out of the land. Jesus ended by saying in verses 43-44, “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.” This was a warning to the Jewish religious leaders that they were ignoring the people that God was sending to them and as a result they would lose the kingdom of God.
The Pharisees and priests knew that Jesus was talking about them. But still, they did not repent, and they still wanted to arrest Him. They could see the truth right in front of them, but they could not accept it. They held back. They held back their beliefs and acknowledging who Jesus was. And they held back from arresting them, because they were afraid of the crowds of people flocking to Jesus. The people believed Jesus to be a prophet from God and followed Him.
I think that at least some of the religious leaders knew who Jesus was, but they couldn’t admit it to themselves. Have you ever denied knowing something even though you knew it to be exactly true? What happened as a result? How did you feel after your denial?
What about Jesus? Do you know who Jesus really is? Sometimes, we can fool ourselves. We can know Jesus with our brains but not our hearts. We can know all about Him but not really know Him. To really know someone is to have a relationship with someone. I can know all about a celebrity or movie star and the details of their lives, but I don’t know them. I don’t have a relationship with them. There is a difference between knowing about someone and knowing them. We are called to love Jesus with all our hearts, souls, and minds. Do we really know Him enough to do that? In order to build relationships, you have to spend quality time with someone. The way that we do that with Jesus is prayer, reading the Bible, and a host of other spiritual disciplines. I encourage you to take some time to intentionally build your relationship with Jesus in the days to come.
Closing
I pray that God keeps you and your loved ones safe and healthy this week. May God grant you peace and wisdom as you make good decisions for you and your family. May your hearts and minds be open to building your relationship with Jesus, and may your eyes be open to the opportunities to do God’s will and share His love and hope with others this week. Amen.
Jesus Tells Parables to the Pharisees and Sadducees
Lectionary Readings for Holy Monday 2020
- Isaiah 42:1-9
- Psalm 36:5-11
- Hebrews 9:11-15
- John 12:1-11
Devotion – Matthew 21:23-46
The day after Jesus made rode the donkey into Jerusalem, and the crowds greeted Him with palm leaves and rejoicing, Jesus returned to the Temple and began teaching. The priests and elders immediately questioned Jesus asking Him by what authority was He doing these things. Jesus was known for answering a question with a question, and I am sure it drove the religious leaders crazy when He would do that. This is what Jesus said in Matthew 21:24-25 ESV:
24 Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?”
As usual, Jesus had stumped them. If they answered from heaven, then the Jewish religious leaders would have to admit who Jesus was. If they answered from man, then they faced the anger of the crowds of people, because it was generally accepted that John had been a prophet of God. Whatever their motives were at the time, they still would not give in and admit to the true identity of Jesus. After discussing it amongst themselves, they just frankly told Jesus that they didn’t know. Because they couldn’t or wouldn’t answer His question, then Jesus refused to answer theirs.
They were challenging the authority of Jesus yet again, and once again, they failed in their challenge. Jesus turned His teaching towards them. And in the passages that follow in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches a couple of parables aimed directly at the Jewish religious leaders.
In the first parable, the Parable of the Two Sons, Jesus asked the leaders which son did as their father had asked. They correctly answered the first. Then, Jesus challenged the leaders in verse 32 saying, “For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him.” Jesus is basically pointing out to them that they know the truth, but still they do not believe or acknowledge the truth. They don’t act on that truth.
The second parable, the Parable of the Tenants, Jesus tells the story of an owner who sent servants and others to his tenants to collect the fruit from his land. The tenants beat and killed everyone the owner sent, including the owner’s own heir. The owner then kicked them out of the land. Jesus ended by saying in verses 43-44, “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.” This was a warning to the Jewish religious leaders that they were ignoring the people that God was sending to them and as a result they would lose the kingdom of God.
The Pharisees and priests knew that Jesus was talking about them. But still, they did not repent, and they still wanted to arrest Him. They could see the truth right in front of them, but they could not accept it. They held back. They held back their beliefs and acknowledging who Jesus was. And they held back from arresting them, because they were afraid of the crowds of people flocking to Jesus. The people believed Jesus to be a prophet from God and followed Him.
I think that at least some of the religious leaders knew who Jesus was, but they couldn’t admit it to themselves. Have you ever denied knowing something even though you knew it to be exactly true? What happened as a result? How did you feel after your denial?
What about Jesus? Do you know who Jesus really is? Sometimes, we can fool ourselves. We can know Jesus with our brains but not our hearts. We can know all about Him but not really know Him. To really know someone is to have a relationship with someone. I can know all about a celebrity or movie star and the details of their lives, but I don’t know them. I don’t have a relationship with them. There is a difference between knowing about someone and knowing them. We are called to love Jesus with all our hearts, souls, and minds. Do we really know Him enough to do that? In order to build relationships, you have to spend quality time with someone. The way that we do that with Jesus is prayer, reading the Bible, and a host of other spiritual disciplines. I encourage you to take some time to intentionally build your relationship with Jesus in the days to come.
Closing
I pray that God keeps you and your loved ones safe and healthy this week. May God grant you peace and wisdom as you make good decisions for you and your family. May your hearts and minds be open to building your relationship with Jesus, and may your eyes be open to the opportunities to do God’s will and share His love and hope with others this week. Amen.
RSS Feed
