Nobody Feels Sorry for the Pharisees

 
A Nightly Punching Bag

Nobody ever feels sorry for the Washington Generals. Who are they? So glad you asked. They’re the nightly punching bag for the legendary Harlem Globetrotters.

People don’t buy tickets to pull for the Generals. They have no rabid fan base. Folks come to watch them lose. And Washington doesn’t let them down. They lose. Boy, do they lose. Over and over and over.

A 2,495-Game Losing Streak

The Generals hold a record of 6-17,000 (plus) against the ‘Trotters. Yeah, you read that right. Six wins. More than seventeen thousand losses. Their last victory came way back in 1971.

That win broke a 2,495-game winning streak. It also broke the hearts of fans who came to see  them lose. The Washington coach said the crowd reacted “like we just killed Santa Claus.”

See what I mean? Nobody feels sorry for the Generals.

Wearing the Collar

I’ve come to the conclusion that the Pharisees are the First Century version of the Washington Generals. These knuckleheads continually make the mistake of challenging the sinless Son of God and lose. Over and over and over.

The only difference between the two? The Pharisees are winless. They’re wearing the collar. They carrying the goose egg. At least the Generals claim six victories. Oh, there was one time they thought they’d finally gotten the W on a Friday during Passover. But when Sunday rolled around, Jesus took the ultimate last second victory.

Like the Generals, nobody feels sorry for the Pharisees.

Could This Be the Day?

We pick up the action in the Gospel of Mark with game six of the schedule (Mk 8:11-13). Christ and His crew have just dropped anchor on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, somewhere near Dalmanutha (Mk 8:10).

When word gets out that the radical Rabbi/Carpenter is in town, the Pharisees scramble into action. Despite riding a five-game losing streak in Mark’s bio of Jesus, these guys think this will be the day. Gotta give’m credit for persistence.

Crashing the Party

Let’s review the highlights, or in their case, lowlights of the previous losses. There was the time the Pharisees crash a party and lose their ever lovin’ minds when they see our Savior hanging out with nothing but losers. Jesus tells these religious bullies that if they knew how truly sick they are, they would join the party (Mk 2:15-17).

There was the time they caught Christ and His crew grabbing a snack on the Sabbath. He gets in their pharisaical grill and tells them they’ve got the rules all wrong. God gave His people the seventh day as a divine day off (Mk 2:23-28). 

Throwing the Penalty Flag

There was the time at church back in Capernaum when the Pharisees got so upset when Jesus healed a man with an atrophied hand that they immediately begin plotting to shut Him down (Mk 3:1-6).

There was the time they teamed up with religious power brokers from the Hebrew home office to throw the penalty flag on Him for failing to follow their manmade rules. All the Lord did was call them out for being phonies when it comes to faith (Mk 7:1-13).

Here We Go Again

See a theme? Five confrontations. Five defeats. Well, buckle up, buttercup. Here we go again. Number six is about to go down.

“When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had arrived, they came and started to argue with Him. Testing Him, they demanded that He show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove His authority” (v11).

Jewish Superstars

Just who are the Pharisees anyway? Did they always have such a terrible rep? I mean, two thousand years later, their name has become the equivalent of a four-letter word to most followers of Jesus.

Well it certainly didn’t start that way. Back in the day, the Pharisees are a very small but incredibly popular team of Jewish superstars. They’re super serious about God. Because of that, Hebrew parents dream of their sons growing up to wear the Pharisee jersey.

Fighting Greek Culture

About 150 years before the birth of Jesus, they began fighting the battle against what’s known as Hellenization. Greek culture was spreading like wildfire around the Mediterranean Rim. The Pharisees wouldn’t stand for it and fought the good fight for the good ol’ days in Israel.

They run the synagogues in the countryside, the equivalent of local Jewish churches. Meanwhile, another rival Hebrew party known as the Sadducees hold a death grip on the temple in Jerusalem. More on them in a moment.

Keeping God’s Rules and Regs

The Pharisees are lot like today’s conservative religious fundamentalists. They believe there’s only one way to God and that’s through keeping His rules and regs. Spoiler alert: only one Person in history has done that and they see Him as public enemy number one!

The Religious Liberals

Matthew tells the very same story but adds that the Sadducees are there too (Mt 16:1-4). That’s a critical bit of intel because they are the arch enemy of the Pharisees. The Sadducees are the religious liberals of the day. They run the temple because they’re more than happy to play footsie with whoever’s in power.

The Sadducees accept only the first five books of the OT. They aren’t buying the endless list of rules cooked up by the Pharisees. They also don’t believe in the resurrection of the dead. The way they see it, this life is all there is. Which is sad, you see. (That’s a preacher’s version of a bad dad joke.)

Gluttons for Punishment

This is the first time these two bitter rivals have ever teamed up to take down Jesus. Let’s just say it won’t be the last. The Galilean has become a threat to both and as a result is their common enemy.

As we mentioned, the Pharisees have had their share of run-ins with the radical Rabbi/Carpenter from Nazareth already. But that doesn’t stop them from doing it again. They must be real gluttons for punishment.

Ganging up on the Son of God

Mark tells us “they came and started to argue with Him” (v11). The author uses a word in the original language (Gr. συζητεω/suzeteo) the NLT translates as “argue.” It means to question together as a team in a negative sense.

In other words, the Pharisees are ganging up on the Son of God. It’s like one of those scenes in a martial arts movie. You know, the thugs way outnumber and surround our hero. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Bruce Lee, Billy Jack or Neo from “The Matrix.” The result is always an epic beatdown of the bad guys. Same here.

Ready to Drop the Gloves

The same word shows up in similar ways throughout the NT. When Jesus and His lead team walk in on the religious leaders ambushing His other followers (Mk 9:14-16). Luke uses it to describe the time a truckload of angry Jewish folks surround Stephen just before they murder him (Acts 6:9).

The Pharisees really aren’t looking for answers from Jesus. It’s their way of getting in His grill and cramming their views down His throat. This isn’t about seeking a peaceful solution. This all about being right.

They’re like those old school hockey goons who constantly try to pester an opponent into dropping the gloves. They’re bullies who love to fight because they always win. Well, that is, until they challenge Jesus. Major mistake.

Wrestling with Pigs

Know somebody like that? It’s that person who’s always looking for a fight. They’re always ready to argue. Their hobby is never being wrong and always hoping for a chance to let everyone knows it.

Don’t take the bait. There’s an old saying that may come in handy. It goes a little something like this. Don’t wrestle with pigs. You both get dirty and the pig likes it!

A Relational Thermostat

God jam packs His Word with all sorts of commands about how we should avoid pointless arguments. The wisest man who ever walked the planet writes, “A hot-tempered starts fights; a cool-tempered person stops them” (Prov 15:18). You have the opportunity to be a relational thermostat.

The man who wrote a huge chunk of the NT pulls no punches with his friends in Philippi. “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure” (Phil 2:14-15). Godliness and integrity has nothing to do with winning more fights than you lose.

Could It Be You or Me?

But what if the person who looks back at you in the mirror each morning is the problem? Yeah, I’m talking to you. Are you the instigator? Do you believe you’re smartest person in the room no matter where you go? Are you constantly correcting others during conversations? I know because I’ve been there.

Since you’re unable to interrupt me and tell me I’m wrong, do you mind if I drop a little wisdom? Take it from Paul. “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love” (Eph 4:2). I’m just gonna leave this right here.

Messianic Magic Tricks

Mark lets us know these religious thugs have come with a very specific strategy to bushwhack Jesus. “Testing Him, they demanded that He show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove His authority” (v11).

Maybe you think this is some sort of well intentioned pop quiz. Say Jesus, how ‘bout You show us what one of those handy dandy messianic magic tricks so we’ll know you’re the Real Deal. Not even close. These goobers are clearly up to something.

Poking a Hole

When we dig into the word the NLT translates as “testing” (Gr. πειραζω/peirazo), something curious happens. It means to see whether something can be done. It comes from a root word that describes piercing an object. Think of poking a hole in something in order to look inside.

Depending on the context, “testing” can be either positive or negative. I’ve give you three guesses as to what sort of test the Pharisees are giving Jesus and the first two don’t count.

An Ongoing Fight

They’re out to burst the bubble on this whole Messiah business once and for all. They hope to obtain info to use against Him. Trip the Lord up and expose Him. And what better way to do it than by publicly shaming Him here on the shores of Lake Galilee.

If that’s not enough, the grammar in the original text shows this is ongoing fight. These troublemakers are just getting started. They just won’t let up. As it says in the Message, “badgering Him to prove Himself, pushing Him up against a wall” (v11 The Message).

Some Divine Fireworks

The Pharisees demand a supernatural sign from our Savior. They insist He cough up a miracle right here and now. Preferably some divine fireworks in the Galilean sky. Apparently these goofballs missed out on the famous angel-laser-light-show the Father cooked up as a birth announcement for His one and only Son.

In doing so, they’ve made a huge mistake. Jesus isn’t some heavenly Netflix account that’s always on demand. He’s not sitting around twiddling His thumbs like our personal butler, hustling to give us what we want when we want it.

The Key to Ultimate Joy

The Lord doesn’t answer to us. He doesn’t obey us. It’s the other way around! Our willing obedience to His commands is His favorite love language (Jn 14:15, 21, 23-24). Consistently doing what Christ tells us is not only the key to ultimate joy but is a sign of an intimate relationship with Him. (Jn 15:10-15; 1Jn 2:3).

That doesn’t mean we can’t ask Him for anything. He loves it when we do. God wants us to bring everything to Him, including our worries, regrets, hurts, and pains. ESPECIALLY our worries, regrets, hurts, and pains! He trades that garbage for a peace that will blow our minds (Phil 4:6-7)!

A Long List of Miracles

The ironic thing is that Jesus has used a long list of miracles as divine signs to show He’s legit to this point. Driving out demons (Mk 1:21-28; 5:1-13; 7:24-30). Healing the sick (Mk 1:29-38, 40-45; 2:1-12; 3:15; 5:21-43; 6:53-56; 7:31-37). Calming storms (Mk 4:35-41). Feeding big crowds (Mk 6:30-44; 8:1-10). Water skiing without a boat and skis (Mk 6:48-52).

But Jesus isn’t some magician headlining in Vegas who’s come to dazzle the crowd. He uses each and every miraculous sign for the benefit of others. Christ doesn’t even do command performances for local royalty (Lk 23:8-9).

A Groan from the Gut

Check out the Lord’s immediate reaction to their ridiculous request. “When He heard this, He sighed deeply in His spirit” (v12). While Matt relates the same story in His bio of Jesus, we only find this little nugget in Mark.

This is not some insignificant exhale. Mark carefully selects a verb that only appears once in the entire Bible. Αναστεναζω/anastenazo means to draw a deep sigh from the bottom of the lungs. Think of it less than a sigh and more like a groan of intense grief from the gut.

Of All People

You know when a parent heaves a heavy sigh when their child should know better. You just don’t get it, do you? How many times are we going to do this? This exhale contains more than CO2. It’s loaded with a mix of frustration, exasperation, as well as deep compassion.

Jesus is offended and frustrated by the arrogance of these religious leaders. Of all people, shouldn’t they know EXACTLY who He is and what He’s come to do? Nobody but nobody knows the Scriptures like these guys. Come on, man!

It makes me wonder how many times my Savior shakes His head over my repeated bad choices. Dude, not again. It’s just one of the many reasons why I’m glad His mercies are hot and fresh each morning (Lam 3:22). I desperately need them everyday because I fail everyday.

They Just Won’t Let up

As the Pharisees just won’t let up and won’t stop their irritating insistence for an on demand miracle, Jesus puts an end to their nonsense. “Why do these people keep demanding a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, I will not give this generation any such sign” (v12).

Oh, they can ask all they want but it ain’t happening. Christ goes so far as to publicly promise they’ll never see the sign they want. He swears they won’t get want they want. Not now. Not tomorrow. Not ever.

A Smelly VRBO

According to Matthew’s Gospel, the Lord swears He’ll give them a sign…just not the one they want. “The only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah” (Mt 16:4).

Just like the runaway prophet stayed three days and nights in the stomach of a fish like some kind of smelly VRBO (Jonah 1:17), Jesus will soon spend the same amount of time in a tomb. He’ll shock the world by taking a Sunday stroll straight out of the cemetery.

Another Embarrassing L

Oh, the Hebrew hotshots will get a sign alright, but it won’t be the sign they want. The next miracle they’ll see will be the one God wants them to see. And even then, they won’t buy it.

So just like the Generals, the Pharisees take yet another embarrassing L. Sure, there was no water bucket of full of confetti, basketball on rubber band, or shorts pulled down to their ankles. But these religious superstars certainly got caught with their pants down once again.

Make It Six in a Row

After dropping the mic on His opponents, it’s time to hit the road. Or in this case, the water. “So He got back into the boat and left them, and crossed back to the other side of the lake” (v13).

If you’re counting, that’s six defeats in a row at the hands of the Son of God. And you can bet they’re counting. Every. Single. One.

Not Throwing in the Towel

But you can be sure the Pharisees aren’t throwing in the towel. Mark tells us they challenge Jesus two more times (Mk 10:2-9; 12:13-17). I don’t need to tell you how those turn out, do I?

Kinda like the hapless Washington Generals. The owners of the longest losing streak this side of Wile E. Coyote.

Like I said, nobody for the Generals. Or the Pharisees.

©2018

Jay Jennings