Proper 28; Pentecost 27
Preaching
Preaching Mark's Gospel
A Narrative Approach
In his work on Mark's Gospel, A Master of Surprise, Donald Juel joins an earlier argument made by R. H. Lightfoot on the context and nature of the material in Mark 13. Most biblical scholarship has labeled this chapter of Mark "Little Apocalypse." Lightfoot and Juel disagree with this label as they seek rather to discover the purpose of this material in Mark's greater narrative. Lightfoot argued that the material in Mark 13 served a function similar to the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4. The Parable of the Sower, according to Lightfoot, was to give assurance of the final, ultimate success of Christ's mission in spite of present obstacles. The Sower's seed will bear fruit! Juel quotes Lightfoot:
Probably the purpose of chapter 13 is largely similar, but now the horizon is far wider, and the surrounding darkness also very much greater. Chapter 13 is a great divine prophecy of the ultimate salvation of the elect after and indeed through unprecedented and unspeakable suffering, trouble, and disaster.1
The Parable of the Sower promises that harvest and new birth will spring forth from the work of the Sower. This same kind of hope is present in the teachings of Jesus in chapter 13. There will be great trials and tribulation but in the end there will be harvest and new birth (Mark 13:24-27).
Juel continues to follow Lightfoot in his contention that the function of this narrative in Mark's Gospel is to serve as an introduction to the Passion Story. "He who is now reviled, rejected, and condemned is none the less the supernatural Son of man; and the terrible story of the last twenty-four hours has for its other side that eternal weight of glory which was reached and could only be reached, as the Church believed, through the Lord's death upon the cross, and through the sufferings of His disciples also."2
We spoke earlier of the organizing role that the temple plays in these first chapters of Part Two of Mark's Gospel (Mark 11-16). Jesus has made three journeys to the temple. He has debated with the temple's teachers over many issues. Through it all we sense the impending demise of the temple as the center of one's relationship to God. The scribe got it right when he responded to Jesus by saying that love of God and neighbor "ƒ is more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices" (Mark 12:28-34 [v. 33]). Temple practices are not as important as a life of dedication to God and neighbor. The widow with her penny is also a sign of the need for the temple's demise (Mark 12:38-44). The scribes, Jesus warns, devour widows! This poor widow put all that she had into the temple treasury. Such oppressive temple practices have to go.
These stories are the immediate introduction to Mark 13. In the first verses of Mark 13 we hear of the coming end of the temple. Jesus comes out of the temple for the last time. His disciples haven't figured out what these journeys of Jesus to the temple are all about. They still stand in awe of the place. "Look, Teacher," they say, "what large stones and what large buildings!" In response to their misplaced wonder Jesus speaks the final word about this religious institution: "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down" (Mark 13:1-2). And so it will be. In actuality the temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. This fact was known, of course, by Mark's readers. The destruction of the temple was a genuine religious crisis in Israel. Chapter 13 may well be addressed primarily to this crisis! This chapter, that is, addresses an existential situation of the early church.
Mary Ann Tolbert hears in these opening words of Mark 13 strong echoes of the Parable of the Tenants in Mark 12:1-11. The owner of the vineyard will come finally and give the vineyard to others. In this way the stone that the builders rejected will become the head of the corner. The Beloved Son is killed by the wicked tenants. He is rejected. But his rejection by the wicked tenants prepares us for a new day when the rejected stone will be the true cornerstone. Temple stones will not be left standing. The cornerstone, however, will stand firm forever. In this almost coded language we are given to understand that Jesus has come to replace the temple as the focal point of the divine-human relationship. Relationship to God is founded in a rejected stone who becomes the head of the corner. This is the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in our eyes.
The inner core of the disciples (Peter, James, John and Andrew) inquires about the future. "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" (Mark 13:4). Jesus gives answer to their question. Many of the signs of the end that he speaks of apply most directly to his own end. Again, this chapter serves as a kind of introduction to the Passion.
Jesus warns that they will "hand you over to councils" (13:9); he himself is handed over. He warns that his followers "will be beaten in synagogues"; Jesus must appear before Pilate where he is asked to testify on his own behalf. And "brother will betray brother to death," he tells them; one of his brothers, Judas, betrays him with a kiss (14:10, 43-46) ƒ While there is no one-to-one correspondence between Jesus' forecast and the ensuing narrative, there is enough to attract attention. The world for which he prepares his followers is precisely the world that has no room for him ƒaWhile the harvest lies ahead, what is of immediate concern are all the obstacles to growth.3
All kinds of calamity will assault believers. Yet the metaphor is hopeful. "This is but the beginning of the birth pangs" (Mark 13:8). Birth pangs suggest that the new is on the horizon. There is a purpose in and through the trials of history. There is a purpose and there is a task we can busy ourselves with. "And the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations" (Mark 13:10). Sow the seed! That's what we do in the midst of the birth pangs. God will give the growth. The end of the matter is in the hand of the Lord of the Harvest!
Homiletical Directions
One way of setting today's story in narrative context is to tell the story of Mark 11 and 12 with a focus on the temple. (If you have already dealt with these temple passages in their overall context you will probably pass on this suggestion.) Tell the story of Jesus' journeys to the temple. Mark 11:1-11, the story of entry into Jerusalem, is really a story of entry into the temple (v. 11). On this trip Jesus just looks and leaves. His second journey to the temple is the time for cleansing (Mark 11:12-25). This trip to the temple is enfolded in the story of the cursing of the fig tree, which is a symbol of what must happen to the temple. The third journey to the temple is told beginning in 11:27. This journey is the occasion for many debates with the teachers of the temple. It is also the occasion for the second plot synopsis of Mark's Gospel „ a parable which Jesus told and which the religious leaders took to be told against them! Both temple and teachers must fall. We indicated above how the verses in 12:28-34 and 12:38-44 prepare for the demise of the temple.
This week's Gospel text begins with Jesus leaving the temple for the last time. The disciples still stand in awe of this mighty building, but Jesus predicts that the day will come when not one stone of the temple will be left upon another. This is Jesus' climactic word against the temple.
We might next tell the plot synopsis story from Mark 12:1-11 if we haven't told it before. The focus in this telling is the climax of the story. The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner! Jesus, not the temple, is the cornerstone, the very foundation of our faith.
We can allude next to the trials that will befall believers in the days that lie ahead. Mark 13 is full of such trials. As those whose lives are given alignment by the cornerstone, however, we can live in hope that the pains endured are really birth pangs of the reign of God. (See also Ephesians 2:17-22).
God's word to us through these stories is something like this: "I have sent my Beloved Son to earth but the wicked have killed him. Nevertheless, I tell you that my Son is the sure cornerstone of your life. Trials will come to you who build your life on the gift of my cornerstone. There will be wars and rumors of war. Kingdom will rise against kingdom. You will be persecuted in untold ways. Fear not. Stand firm on the stone which the builders have rejected. Stand firm in Jesus, my Son. I will bring you through the trials to new birth. I will bring you through the trials to eternal life in a kingdom which cannot be broken stone upon stone. I will bring you to a kingdom built on the eternal cornerstone: Jesus Christ. Amen."
Just a hint of another direction. Our first story would tell the text with a focus on the question of the disciples: "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" This, after all, is a question that Christians ask in all ages. We want to know about the future. We want to know about the end-times. Many Christians are busy today telling all kinds of stories about the end-times that are wildly speculative. Jesus really puts an end to all such speculation when he says later in this chapter: "But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32).
We don't know days and hours. We do know, however, what it is we are to be doing as we experience the birth pangs of the kingdom. We are to be Sowers of the Word! "ƒ the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations" (Mark 13:10). From this reality in the story we can proceed to discuss ways in which we can be Sowers of the Word in our world today. Such a discussion will probably take more of a didactic form than a narrative form. This is so because the discussion is set up by the question of the disciples: "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" Questions like that are still asked today. We can answer such questions in a teaching format.
____________
1. Donald H. Juel, A Master of Surprise: Mark Interpreted (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1994), pp. 79-80.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid., pp. 84-85.
Probably the purpose of chapter 13 is largely similar, but now the horizon is far wider, and the surrounding darkness also very much greater. Chapter 13 is a great divine prophecy of the ultimate salvation of the elect after and indeed through unprecedented and unspeakable suffering, trouble, and disaster.1
The Parable of the Sower promises that harvest and new birth will spring forth from the work of the Sower. This same kind of hope is present in the teachings of Jesus in chapter 13. There will be great trials and tribulation but in the end there will be harvest and new birth (Mark 13:24-27).
Juel continues to follow Lightfoot in his contention that the function of this narrative in Mark's Gospel is to serve as an introduction to the Passion Story. "He who is now reviled, rejected, and condemned is none the less the supernatural Son of man; and the terrible story of the last twenty-four hours has for its other side that eternal weight of glory which was reached and could only be reached, as the Church believed, through the Lord's death upon the cross, and through the sufferings of His disciples also."2
We spoke earlier of the organizing role that the temple plays in these first chapters of Part Two of Mark's Gospel (Mark 11-16). Jesus has made three journeys to the temple. He has debated with the temple's teachers over many issues. Through it all we sense the impending demise of the temple as the center of one's relationship to God. The scribe got it right when he responded to Jesus by saying that love of God and neighbor "ƒ is more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices" (Mark 12:28-34 [v. 33]). Temple practices are not as important as a life of dedication to God and neighbor. The widow with her penny is also a sign of the need for the temple's demise (Mark 12:38-44). The scribes, Jesus warns, devour widows! This poor widow put all that she had into the temple treasury. Such oppressive temple practices have to go.
These stories are the immediate introduction to Mark 13. In the first verses of Mark 13 we hear of the coming end of the temple. Jesus comes out of the temple for the last time. His disciples haven't figured out what these journeys of Jesus to the temple are all about. They still stand in awe of the place. "Look, Teacher," they say, "what large stones and what large buildings!" In response to their misplaced wonder Jesus speaks the final word about this religious institution: "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down" (Mark 13:1-2). And so it will be. In actuality the temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. This fact was known, of course, by Mark's readers. The destruction of the temple was a genuine religious crisis in Israel. Chapter 13 may well be addressed primarily to this crisis! This chapter, that is, addresses an existential situation of the early church.
Mary Ann Tolbert hears in these opening words of Mark 13 strong echoes of the Parable of the Tenants in Mark 12:1-11. The owner of the vineyard will come finally and give the vineyard to others. In this way the stone that the builders rejected will become the head of the corner. The Beloved Son is killed by the wicked tenants. He is rejected. But his rejection by the wicked tenants prepares us for a new day when the rejected stone will be the true cornerstone. Temple stones will not be left standing. The cornerstone, however, will stand firm forever. In this almost coded language we are given to understand that Jesus has come to replace the temple as the focal point of the divine-human relationship. Relationship to God is founded in a rejected stone who becomes the head of the corner. This is the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in our eyes.
The inner core of the disciples (Peter, James, John and Andrew) inquires about the future. "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" (Mark 13:4). Jesus gives answer to their question. Many of the signs of the end that he speaks of apply most directly to his own end. Again, this chapter serves as a kind of introduction to the Passion.
Jesus warns that they will "hand you over to councils" (13:9); he himself is handed over. He warns that his followers "will be beaten in synagogues"; Jesus must appear before Pilate where he is asked to testify on his own behalf. And "brother will betray brother to death," he tells them; one of his brothers, Judas, betrays him with a kiss (14:10, 43-46) ƒ While there is no one-to-one correspondence between Jesus' forecast and the ensuing narrative, there is enough to attract attention. The world for which he prepares his followers is precisely the world that has no room for him ƒaWhile the harvest lies ahead, what is of immediate concern are all the obstacles to growth.3
All kinds of calamity will assault believers. Yet the metaphor is hopeful. "This is but the beginning of the birth pangs" (Mark 13:8). Birth pangs suggest that the new is on the horizon. There is a purpose in and through the trials of history. There is a purpose and there is a task we can busy ourselves with. "And the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations" (Mark 13:10). Sow the seed! That's what we do in the midst of the birth pangs. God will give the growth. The end of the matter is in the hand of the Lord of the Harvest!
Homiletical Directions
One way of setting today's story in narrative context is to tell the story of Mark 11 and 12 with a focus on the temple. (If you have already dealt with these temple passages in their overall context you will probably pass on this suggestion.) Tell the story of Jesus' journeys to the temple. Mark 11:1-11, the story of entry into Jerusalem, is really a story of entry into the temple (v. 11). On this trip Jesus just looks and leaves. His second journey to the temple is the time for cleansing (Mark 11:12-25). This trip to the temple is enfolded in the story of the cursing of the fig tree, which is a symbol of what must happen to the temple. The third journey to the temple is told beginning in 11:27. This journey is the occasion for many debates with the teachers of the temple. It is also the occasion for the second plot synopsis of Mark's Gospel „ a parable which Jesus told and which the religious leaders took to be told against them! Both temple and teachers must fall. We indicated above how the verses in 12:28-34 and 12:38-44 prepare for the demise of the temple.
This week's Gospel text begins with Jesus leaving the temple for the last time. The disciples still stand in awe of this mighty building, but Jesus predicts that the day will come when not one stone of the temple will be left upon another. This is Jesus' climactic word against the temple.
We might next tell the plot synopsis story from Mark 12:1-11 if we haven't told it before. The focus in this telling is the climax of the story. The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner! Jesus, not the temple, is the cornerstone, the very foundation of our faith.
We can allude next to the trials that will befall believers in the days that lie ahead. Mark 13 is full of such trials. As those whose lives are given alignment by the cornerstone, however, we can live in hope that the pains endured are really birth pangs of the reign of God. (See also Ephesians 2:17-22).
God's word to us through these stories is something like this: "I have sent my Beloved Son to earth but the wicked have killed him. Nevertheless, I tell you that my Son is the sure cornerstone of your life. Trials will come to you who build your life on the gift of my cornerstone. There will be wars and rumors of war. Kingdom will rise against kingdom. You will be persecuted in untold ways. Fear not. Stand firm on the stone which the builders have rejected. Stand firm in Jesus, my Son. I will bring you through the trials to new birth. I will bring you through the trials to eternal life in a kingdom which cannot be broken stone upon stone. I will bring you to a kingdom built on the eternal cornerstone: Jesus Christ. Amen."
Just a hint of another direction. Our first story would tell the text with a focus on the question of the disciples: "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" This, after all, is a question that Christians ask in all ages. We want to know about the future. We want to know about the end-times. Many Christians are busy today telling all kinds of stories about the end-times that are wildly speculative. Jesus really puts an end to all such speculation when he says later in this chapter: "But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32).
We don't know days and hours. We do know, however, what it is we are to be doing as we experience the birth pangs of the kingdom. We are to be Sowers of the Word! "ƒ the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations" (Mark 13:10). From this reality in the story we can proceed to discuss ways in which we can be Sowers of the Word in our world today. Such a discussion will probably take more of a didactic form than a narrative form. This is so because the discussion is set up by the question of the disciples: "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" Questions like that are still asked today. We can answer such questions in a teaching format.
____________
1. Donald H. Juel, A Master of Surprise: Mark Interpreted (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1994), pp. 79-80.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid., pp. 84-85.
