Gospel November 15

Mark 13:1-8 Year B Proper 28

"As he was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!" (v.1)

The scene has not changed, but the focus has.

Jesus is on his way out of the Temple when one of his disciples actually sees the scenery. No doubt the interaction with the scribes and Pharisees, and listening to Jesus, has kept their eyes on Jesus and the people who gathered around him as dialogue was taking place. Finally, when all that talk was over and they were heading home one of them realised that the Temple was huge and beautiful. This was a key that opened the door to another discussion, and another world.

What follows in Mark 13 has been described in many ways. Bultmann described it as a 'Jewish apocalypse with a Christian ending'; others have suggested it is a farewell discourse. It does not fit neatly into those categories and can best be accepted simply as 'an eschatological discourse'. At the time the Gospel according to Mark was written the life of the church was "coloured by the vivid experience of fearful persecution, an expanding mission, the danger of being led astray, and the tumult of war threatening the whole empire". [Hengel (Studies in the Gospel of Mark, 25) Note that this places the Gospel of Mark before the fall of Jerusalem about AD 70.]
They were uncertain times, and there seemed to be lots of pointers to the end of times.

In many ways the church was doing what the disciple did before he mouthed his comment. He was looking around at the environment. He saw the massive stones that made up the Temple, and the beautiful craftsmanship that made being in the Temple an amazing experience. As the church grappled with what was happening in the Roman Empire and the problems the believers faced they, too, were looking around. What they saw did not give them cause for optimism. Tough times were coming, and maybe it was to be the end of the world.

Jesus response to the observant disciple would not have warmed their hearts. It should have set them on the alert.

As they sat down later to talk about the day the curiosity of the disciples had to be satisfied. Jesus had said the temple would be destroyed. They wanted to know when. "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" (v.4)

Jesus response was detailed, but did not include a time frame. Rather it was a warning - and here is the heart of the message.
"Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, 'I am he!' and they will lead many astray." (v.5)

Monty Python's "The Life of Brian" includes a wonderful series of scenes where the people are looking for a Messiah. John Cleese' character proclaims Brian as the Messiah and adds, "I should know, I've followed a few in my time!" How apt for us today.

There is a lot of the stuff of Mark 13 that can be applied to today. Look around and the words of the gospel ring true in what we see. People are seeking salvation through a variety of means, and Christians are not immune from the latest fad and not exempt from being drawn into the latest way of salvation. For most in the west that salvation is connected to dollar signs, not relationship with God.

As the chapter concludes Jesus calls on the disciples to keep alert. We do not know when the end will come, but we need to be careful not to be drawn aside from following Jesus.

It seems to me that the disciple who asked the question took his eyes off Jesus and focussed on this environment. That started the dialogue (and we are better for it). It also occurs to me that we will be a lot better off if we don't follow that pattern. Yes, we need to know what is happening in the world around us, but we need to keep alert, keep our eyes on Jesus, and keep listening to him. That way we will not be led astray and, when the end finally does come, we will be ready.



Other readings:

Hebrews 10:11-14

1 Samuel 1:4-20/ Daniel 12:1-3

Reference: Evans, C. A. 2002. Vol. 34B: Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 8:27-16:20. Word Biblical Commentary. Word, Incorporated: Dallas