Jesus’ Counterattack
Mark 12: 35-40

Jesus Asks a Question… In 11:27-12:34, we have seen Jesus continually attacked and bombarded with trap questions meant to discredit Him, all of which He answered with uncontested wisdom. In today’s passage the religious leaders have finally run out of steam with their trap questions. Jesus saw this as the perfect opportunity for a counterattack. With a question of His own, Jesus exposed the scribes’ ignorance about the true nature of the Christ and He further exposed the ugliness of their hypocritical religion.

The Beauty of the Gospel… In Jesus’ question, He quotes Psalm 110:1 where David referred to the Christ as “Lord.” The scribes knew that the Christ would be a descendent of David but they failed to see that the Scriptures also taught him to be much more. The Christ is both David’s son and David’s Lord because Jesus is both man (David’s descendent) and God (Conceived of the Holy Spirit). This Christ laid down His life as a payment for sins, rose again, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father. When we trust in this Christ our sins are washed away and we are given new hearts of love for God and others. The scribes didn’t see a need for this kind of Christ - do you?

Religion’s Ugliness… Jesus continued His attack against the scribes by exposing their ugly hypocrisy. He pointed out that the scribes make a big show of their religiosity in order to feed their own egos and that they use religion to steal from the needy. He warns that their condemnation will be great. Thankfully, we can be rescued from the hypocrisy of self-reliant, self-serving religion when we humbly enter God’s kingdom by faith in Christ Jesus!

*Questions for Reflection:

1. What is the difference between the gospel of Jesus Christ and typical religion? Have you experienced this gospel?

2. Why do you serve God? Are your motives true?

3. Have you ever seen the type of hypocrisy expressed in the scribes? What should you do if you see this in your own life?