Day 21: Jesus teaches God’s law
Ever since Miranda was a little kid, she’s always spotted the exception to any rule. If she was told, “You must never jump out of the window,” she would reply, “Unless the house is on fire, and then you should jump out.” She was right. Rules are put in place for our good, but sometimes there’s a good reason to break a rule. In our passage today, we’ll see the Pharisees criticizing Jesus’ disciples for breaking the rules, which weren’t even really part of God’s law in the first place. But Jesus shows that the Pharisees are the ones who are actually failing to follow God’s law.
In verse 1, where had the Pharisees and teachers of the law come from to check Jesus out?
In verse 2, what did they notice about some of Jesus’ disciples?
In verses 3–4, what extra information does Mark give us about the Pharisees to help us understand?
What do the Pharisees ask Jesus in verse 5?
The Pharisees follow lots of extra rules that have been added over time to the laws that God gave to His people. For example, if God’s law said to wash your hands before eating, the “tradition of the elders,” which the Pharisees follow, might add extra rules about how you have to wash your hands. They aren’t trying to avoid spreading germs; they are trying to make themselves “clean” before God.
What does Jesus call the Pharisees in verse 6?
A hypocrite is someone who tells other people to do something they’re not doing themselves. In our family, for example, Rebecca and Bryan are hypocrites when they scold Miranda and Eliza for their messy bedroom, because Rebecca and Bryan’s bedroom is a mess as well!
In verse 6, Jesus quotes from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah and says Isaiah was talking about the Pharisees. What does Jesus say about their lips, and what does He say about their hearts?
What does verse 7 say about how the Pharisees worship God?
“In vain” means failing to do something you’re trying to do. For example, if you were playing soccer and you missed your shot, you could say, “I tried in vain to score a goal!”
In verse 8, what does Jesus say they’re letting go of and what does He say they’re holding on to?
In verse 10, Jesus gives an example of a law God gave to Moses. What was the law and what was the punishment if you did the opposite?
When people grew old in Jesus’ day, they didn’t get money for retirement. Their children were meant to look after them. But in verse 11, Jesus says the Pharisees are encouraging people to do something else with their money: dedicate it to the temple in worship of God instead of giving the money to their parents. How is this really breaking God’s law even though it looks like a religious thing to do?
How are we sometimes like the Pharisees: talking a lot about following God and singing worship songs at church, but not actually loving Him with our hearts and loving others as He tells us to?
Ask Jesus to help you not to be a hypocrite but to love God in your heart and show your love to God by loving others.