11.28.2008

Matthew 20-21; Luke 19; Mark 11

Those who serve lon gin the Kingdom are prone to compare rewards with others, and expect their greater experience to merit greater reward.

Jesus enters Jerusalem as its king, to crowds expecting salvation from Him.
But He weeps over the city, because they are looking for the wrong thing (sword) to give salvation.
Jesus drives out 1. those buying and selling in the temple (because this invaded the Gentile court where Gentiles were to worship God), 2. those changing money (because they were charging ridiculously high exchange rates to profit from those who couldn't take their sheep all the way to Jerusalem), 3. those selling pigeons (because this was the sacrifice of the very poor, who they were also exploiting, against the Law). The chief priests objections to the children are as much an objection to Jesus, and He dismisses it.

Jesus withers a fig tree, symbolic of leaders, when He finds no fruit on it.

When He comes back to the temple, the priests challenge Him more directly. He traps them, as they have oftened tried to trap Him, and they have to back off. They are the ones who are stuck, and answerable to God for their rejection of John and Him; He is not answerable to them. He says this in parables that they plainly understand. But they can't get rid of Him, because they fear the people (not God).

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