Holy Week: Holy Tuesday
Holy Teaching
As mentioned in Monday’s post, one of the activities Jesus did throughout the week was to teach in the Temple. He shared parables and illustrations, teaching His audience about the Kingdom of Heaven and the great commandments. He also faced the religious leaders who were asking Him questions, not to learn, but to trap Him with His words. Of course, Jesus knew what they were plotting. Each time He was confronted, His answers left the leaders and the crowd astonished, to the point the leaders finally stopped asking questions.
Considering the Gospels only mention Jesus appearing to His disciples and various groups of people after His resurrection, we may assume that this last week leading to His death and resurrection was the last week He spoke to large groups of people that weren’t necessarily His followers. One could ask then what important truths would Jesus want to convey about God to the people before His death?
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke all contain nearly identical testimony of Christ’s teachings, though Matthew contains more parables. For the purpose of this post, I will focus on the Gospel of Matthew as he was more detailed with his writings. This post may be a bit longer than the other posts, but there’s a lot to cover.
Parables
Before Jesus begins telling His parables, He’s confronted by the religious leaders. They begin to challenge His authority. They question Him as to who gave Him the authority. Jesus replies that He would answer their question if they answered His first. He then asks them “The baptism of John, from where did it come? From Heaven or man?” (Matthew 21:25) The leaders refuse to answer His question for fear of the crowd, so then Jesus refuses to answer their question.
Next, He begins to tell them parables: “The Parable of the Two Sons,” “The Parable of the Tenants,” and “The Parable of the Wedding Feast.” Each parable illustrated that the message of the Kingdom of Heaven was about to be taken away from them and offered to the Gentiles (note: I am not suggesting replacement theology where Christians replace the Jewish people. What I am saying is that the message was offered to the nation of Israel and they rejected it. Now it would be offered to the Gentiles. It will be given back to the Nation of Israel one day).
The “Two Sons” parable was directed to the religious leaders specifically. They are like the second son who agreed to do the work, but then did nothing. As the Bible Knowledge Commentary points out “While some (the religious leaders) seemingly accepted the ministry of John the Baptist (John 5:35), their actions (Luke 7:29–30) proved they were like the second son. On the other hand many tax collectors and prostitutes received the message of John and did the will of the Father.” [1] The other two parables addressed the nation as a whole.
The Q&A Sessions
After hearing the parables, the Pharisees went away and devised a plan to trap Jesus with His own words. They returned and asked Him a question. They “marveled” at His reply and left.
The Sadducees decided to try to trap Jesus. They asked a question, He replied and the crowd was “astonished” by His teaching.
Finally, the Pharisees tried again to trap Jesus with His words. This time they sent a lawyer to ask Him a question about the greatest commandment. Jesus replied. But then, He asked the Pharisees a couple of questions. They were stumped by the second question and decided to no longer ask Him any more questions (see Matthew 22).
Seven Woes
After this, Jesus began to teach to the crowds and His disciples. He lists seven woes to the Scribes and Pharisees. Jesus did this to point out the hypocrisy of the religious leaders to the crowds. He called them out for not living the words they teach. He called them out for seeking honor for themselves. He called them out for leading others astray and for keeping them from Heaven. He didn’t mince words. He referred to them as hypocrites several times throughout his teaching. He then laments over Jerusalem (see Matthew 23).
The Destruction and the End of the Age
Jesus left the Temple, along with His disciples and they began a conversation about the end of the age. This started because Jesus warned them about the destruction of the Temple. They asked when it would happen and also when He would return. Jesus answers and explains to them what to look for and what to expect. He spoke of the Tribulation and the “abomination of desolation,” and how no one knows the hour or the day. He then tells two parables, each one warning the listener to be prepared (“Parable of the Ten Virgins”) and to do well with what you’re given (use it, invest it, multiply it, and so on). He concluded His teaching discussing the final judgment (see Matthew 24 and 25).
What We Can Learn
So, what can we learn from His teachings? There are so many things that stand out. To begin with, the good news of the Gospel is available to everyone, not just to one group. Anyone who hears it can make a choice to believe and accept Jesus as their Savior.
We can also learn wisdom from Jesus. Each time a religious leader would ask Him a question, He would answer with truth and wisdom. Though He knew they were trying to trap Him, He still answered the questions. He also had great patience with them. It would have been easy for Him to walk away from them and ignore them, but He didn’t. Why not? Maybe He stayed for the crowd so that they would learn something from Him. Maybe He was giving the religious leaders another chance to soften their hearts. Maybe He did it to show He truly was the Son of God.
This reminds me of Exodus 7 where the LORD tells Moses and Aaron what would happen when they would approach Pharaoh and ask him to let the people of Israel go. The LORD tells them that Pharaoh would not listen to them despite the signs and wonders the LORD showed Egypt. He continued to tell them that He would bring His people out of Egypt and that the Egyptians would know that He is the LORD (see Exodus 7:1-6).
Another take away from Jesus’s final teachings is how to not let your faith become a religion (meaning you practice the laws but have no love for God or others). By reading through the seven woes to the Scribes and Pharisees, we can see what it looks like to be a hypocrite. He rebuked the leaders for not following the laws, and also for not showing love, mercy, and compassion to others.
One final take away (other than learning the signs of the end of the age) is to be prepared and to not be afraid when we see these signs come to fruition. Use the gifts the LORD has given you and invest in His Kingdom. We can be prepared by knowing the Word of God and by having a true relationship with Jesus Christ. We can invest in His Kingdom by following the Great Commission and making disciples (see Matthew 28:16-20).
Though His teachings were taught more than 2,000 years ago, we can still learn from what He had to say. Nothing is irrelevant, even the woes to the Scribes and Pharisees. Jesus had a lot to say to the leaders, the crowds, and His disciples during that last week before His death. If His words were important then, they’re just as important now. Let us learn from them and grow closer to Him.
[1] Louis A. Barbieri Jr., “Matthew,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 70.
