WALK WITH ME!  

Week Nine (Feb 26-Mar 4) 

Matt 19:16-21:27; Mark 10:17-11:33; Luke 18:18-20:8; John 11:55-12:50

March is the final month – keep up the great discipline!  

No room for Luke this time – no unique events not included in the other Gospels – sorry!

It’s not fair!  Says everyone to God at some point – yet…  (Matt 20)

The Parable of the Vineyard Workers is told by Jesus in Matthew 20:1-16. In it, the vineyard owner hires workers in the morning with the promise of a daily wage of a denarius, the typical wage of the day, which the workers accepted. Throughout the day, the vineyard owner hired more workers with the promise to give them a fair wage, which they all accepted. When it came time for the wages to be distributed, they began with the last hired, who had worked for a very short time. Those workers were given a denarius, and so on, until the workers who had been hired first in the morning. When they received only a denarius, they were upset because they expected more and felt they’d been treated unfairly. But the owner had kept his deal with them as they had agreed. He hadn’t treated them unfairly but had a right to spend his money as he chose. If he wanted to be generous to the other workers, it was not a slight to the early workers.

The meaning of The Parable of the Vineyard Workers is a beautiful lesson in God’s justice and righteousness but its logic conflicts with our typical human thinking. When God gives grace and blessings to others, it is a kindness to them, not an injustice to us. God is fair and merciful. His Grace is above all else.  Before we get too upset about anything – remember that as Americans, we are most similar to last group hired – most prosperous with the fewest sacrifices.

“Then will the eyes of the blind be opened…”(Isaiah 35:1-5 & Mark 10)

The story of Blind Bartimaeus occurs in the Gospel of Mark and concerns the healing of a blind beggar called Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus. A parallel account mentions two blind men (Matthew 20:30), but Mark focuses on the one who was no doubt familiar to his readers. On his way out of Jericho, Jesus was surrounded by a huge crowd, when, from the roadside, Bartimaeus called out to Him to be healed. 

As Jesus was walking by him, Bartimaeus heard who it was that was passing and called out to Him: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47). By calling Jesus the “Son of David,” the blind man was affirming his belief that Jesus was the Messiah (2Sam 7:14–16). The people told Bartimaeus to be quiet, but he kept calling out, even more loudly and persistently than before. This is further proof of his faith. In addition to his proclamation of Jesus’ identity as the Messiah, the blind man showed that he believed in Jesus’ goodness and deference to the poor and needy. Bartimaeus believed that Jesus was not like the other religious leaders, who believed that an individual’s poverty or blindness or bad circumstances were a result of God’s judgment. Bartimaeus appealed to Jesus according to the revelation of God’s character in the Psalms—a God who cares for the poor and the brokenhearted (e.g., Psalm 34:6, 18).  Blind Bartimaeus had the kind of faith that pleases God—a wholehearted trust in the Healer. Jesus showed once again that God “rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Anointed as the Messiah (John 12)

All four gospels present an account of Jesus being anointed by a woman with a costly jar of perfume (Matthew 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9; Luke 7:36–50; John 12:1–8). Matthew and Mark relate the same event but do not give the woman’s name; Luke tells of a different woman, also anonymous, on an earlier occasion; and, in yet another event, the woman in John is identified as Mary of Bethany (John 11:2), sister to Martha and Lazarus. To understand the significance of Jesus being anointed on these three occasions, we’ll look at each account separately and then compare and contrast them in conclusion.

The anointing of Jesus in Matthew takes place two days before Passover in the town of Bethany at Simon the leper’s home: “Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table” (Matthew 26:6–7, ESV).  All four Gospel accounts can be reconciled if Simon was a Pharisee, contracted Leprosy only to be healed by Jesus now celebrates the Passover with a week-long feast inviting Lazarus to his home.  By the way, what is poured on Jesus’ head would drip down to his feet – again explaining the observations of the Gospel writers.

In John’s gospel, Lazarus’ sister Mary is the woman who anoints Jesus with a high-priced perfume at a dinner in Bethany. The story is similar to those in the other gospels, although this anointing takes place six days before Passover, and Judas is named as the disciple who objects to the “waste.” On this occasion, “Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair” (John 12:3, NLT). Jesus defends Mary from Judas’s criticism by pointing out the unique opportunity Mary had: “You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me” (John 12:8).

Mary’s anointing again points to Christ’s identity as Messiah-King, but it also points to His humble position as Servant-King. When Mary anoints Jesus’ feet and then wipes them with her hair, she foreshadows Jesus’ actions at the upcoming Last Supper when the Lord washes the disciples’ feet and teaches them how to love one another through sacrificial, humble service (John 13:1–20).

Jesus Christ is God’s anointed Messiah. The word Messiah means “anointed one” and derives directly from the Hebrew word for “anointed.” Christ comes from the Greek word Christos, also meaning “anointed one.” Thus, Christ is the Greek equivalent to Messiah.

Way too much to see here but look anyway – you will love it!

BLUE LETTER BIBLE ENTRY:

"Jesus Christ's Names, Titles and Characters - Study Resources." Blue Letter Bible <https://www.blueletterbible.org/study/parallel/paral19.cfm>