look of supreme and final authority. And in all the looking there was, we may be sure, the attitude of infinite compassion. What did the Lord see as He looked? That is made evident in the word which He spoke on the next day but about which He remains silent now. He saw the temple “ a den of thieves” (v. 17). Why did our Lord say nothing on this first day? Was it to give opportunity for the guilty ones there of their own accord to right the wrongs that were present? We cannot say but it would be like Him. He “ looked round about upon all things.” Authority in Action 11:15-19 On the next day when Jesus came to the temple and found no change for the better, He drove out those who were violating the purpose of the temple and stated that the intention of the temple was not for mercantile pursuits but for worship. This was the second time that Jesus had used drastic action to cleanse the temple (see John 2:13-16). Very likely at the beginning, the sale of birds and beasts and the changing of money was in tended merely for the accommodation of visitors' to the annual feasts. But what began with a good purpose grad ually developed into a money-making scheme which tended to drive spiritu ality out of the temple. Too often the commercial spirit gets into churches today robbing them of the Lord’s blessing. The worldly meth ods often employed today by churches to raise money for the support of God’s work are of this character and meet with divine disapproval. God has ordained that His work shall be sup ported with the freewill offerings of His people. God never intended that His house should be used for socials, bazaars, shows, et cetera, for the purpose of making money. God’s house is for the purpose of prayer and preaching and whatever is con ducive to building up His church, not for purposes of material gain and worldly entertainment. Authority in Teaching 12:28-31 In answer to the inquiry of a scribe who wanted to know what is the most important or “ first” com mandment, our Lord quickly sum marized the first tablet of the law, which has to do with man’s duty to God, by quoting the words of Deute ronomy 6:4, 5 and then saying “ the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,” quot ing from Leviticus 19:18. The latter T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
among worldly people, greatness was very much to be desired. Among His disciples, however, “whosoever will be great among you, shall be your min ister [servant].” He told them how even He, the Son of God, came not to be waited upon, but to serve others and to give His life for others. As the Saviour and His disciples went out of the town of Jericho, a blind beggar, Bartimaeus, heard that Jesus was near and cried out, “ Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.” Some of the people tried to make him be quiet, but he called more loudly to Jesus. Jesus stood still and told the men to bring the beggar to Him. Bartimaeus threw away his outer garment that he might walk more quickly. When the Saviour asked what he wanted, the blind man said, “ Lord, that I might receive my sight.” Jesus said, “Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole [well].” Imme diately the blind man received his sight and followed Jesus in the way. Are you unhappy unless you can be «IT» jn games, or unless you are the soloist in the choir, or the president of your young people’s group, or the most important person at a party? Pray that your Lord’s humility will be yours, and that your greatest joy will be in serving and living for others. In keeping with its character as a book of action, power, and authority, the section of Mark chosen for this week’s lesson presents the Lord Jesus Christ as the One with authority to cleanse the temple and to tell what is the greatest commandment. Teach ers of this lesson need to emphasize the fact that the Christ they pro claim is a Christ of authority whose claims deserve the most careful recog nition. The lesson also affords a fine opportunity to stress reverence for God’s house and complete respect for the moral authority of Christ in all the affairs of the church. Authority in Investigation 11:11 Apparently, at this time Jesus sim ply looked about, especially in the temple, to see what was going on. It does not appear that He took any action. It was the look of investiga tion, the look of inquiry. It was the look of One who had a right to so look and who could see to the very depths of things as they were. It was the March 11, 1951 JESUS ASSERTS HIS AUTHORITY Mark 11:11, 15-19; 12:28-31 Pointers on the Lesson
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