Continue looking at Mark's account of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We're going to be looking at verses 27 through 33. Verses 27 through 33. You can find that on page 1009 if you're following along in one of the provided Bibles. Let us now hear God's word. They came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him and began saying to him, what authority are you doing these things? Or who gave you this authority to do these things? And Jesus said to them, I will ask you one question, and you answer me, and then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men? Answer me. They began reasoning among themselves, saying, if we say from heaven, he will say, then why did you not believe him? But shall we say from men? They were afraid of the people, for they considered John to have been a real prophet. Answering Jesus, they said, we do not know. And Jesus said to them, nor will I tell you by what authority I do these things. So far, a reading in God's holy word. The grass withers, the flower fades. The word of the Lord stands forever. You're not the boss of me. Children, have you ever said that to a teacher, or a babysitter, or somebody who is caring for you? I remember as a child, one time my aunt was taking care of me. And she was telling me to do something, I don't remember what it was, but my reply was to her, you're not my mom. You can't tell me what to do. Children, we say those things because we don't want to submit to that person's word and authority over us, do we? We don't wanna listen to what they have to say. And we don't accept their authority over us. And as we look at this passage this morning, we see the religious rulers questioning whether Jesus has that right. to be teaching these things, to be overturning the tables, to be questioning and changing what they have done as chief priests, as elders, as scribes, those who had great authority in the eyes of the people and even in the eyes of the Romans. In a sense, they are saying, who do you think you are? What gives you that right to do these things? Yet Jesus, in his question, also challenges these religious rulers concerning his authority and whom they serve. Again, Jesus is challenging the religious rulers concerning His authority and whom they serve. As we look at this passage, we're going to look at it in two points. We're going to see those questions about authority. Secondly, we're gonna see the fears of the Sanhedrin, or those religious rulers. We have those two points before us as we look through the passage. Again, look at me, or look with me at verse 27. Jesus says here, or it says here that Jesus is yet again going into Jerusalem and walking about in the temple. This setting is important because Jesus is already showing time and time again that He is not a guest in this house. Again, He is found in that temple. And throughout these next few chapters, we will see that the confrontation happens in and around that temple. That Jesus quite naturally belongs there as the Son. He is no guest. And Jesus, after tossing the tables and saying these things and teaching these things, has made a fresh set of enemies. The list is growing of those who want to kill and destroy Jesus. Do you remember way back in chapter 3, verse 6? It's said there that the Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him as to how they might destroy Him. Last week, following the zealous actions of driving out those who were buying and selling in the market, did you catch the words of verse 18? The chief priests and the scribes heard this and began seeking how they might destroy Him. The list of those who want to kill Jesus is becoming larger and larger. It is ever growing as Jesus seems to be offending everyone everywhere He goes. And most of all, He is challenging the authorities around Him. He is challenging how they act in their places of authority, whether they are doing right or wrong, whether it be in the political sphere with the Herodians or those who were the heads of the Orthodox Jews. They have all been rejecting Him. But rejecting might not be strong enough a word, for they hate Him. and they actively seek to take his life, to get rid of this troublesome man. So from the perspective of the ancient reader, Jesus isn't making many friends from the influential people of the world. Sure, the crowds are loving him, but those who have authority seem to hate him, and he has made enemies. And so those religious leaders come to Jesus saying, who do you think you are? That's paraphrased, of course, but that's the attitude, isn't it? Who do you think you are? We are the scribes. We know the law. We are the lawyers who determine and interpret that law. We have authority. But where does your authority come from? We are the elders. We are the ones who rule and judge. Who do you think you are? We are the chief priests. We are the ones who manage the affairs of this house. Who do you think you are to come in here and drive out those who are selling and buying? Who do you think you are? Jesus then comes in and challenges their authority. by driving out their merchants. And He challenges them even in this question. Jesus returns by asking them a question. Now some of you might think, well, He's dodging the question. He's doing a clever redirect. And He's not actually answering the question. He's quite political, isn't He? Isn't it pretty amazing that He's not going to fall into their trap? However, if we look carefully, we see that Jesus is giving them the answer right in His question. And even in the following parable, He shows exactly what authority He has. And the Pharisees, or these religious leaders, understand what Jesus is saying. It's clear to them that He is speaking about them. But he says here, I will ask you one question and you will answer me. And I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men? Answer me. Jesus puts them between a rock and a hard place. He tells them that they must consider the baptism of John. And these words draw us back to the moment that Jesus was baptized. Do you remember when Jesus was baptized? As He started that ministry? Do you remember what happened as John the Baptist baptized Him and the heavens were torn open? And the Father said, this is my Son in whom I am well pleased. we saw His anointing of the Holy Spirit as it rested on Him. It is at Jesus' baptism that we, the readers, are reminded of what authority Jesus has and who gave Him that authority. He is the Son of God and this is the Father's house, His Father's house. His authority transcends their authority. Their authority may be political, it may be inherited, but He is the Son. And that truth becomes even more clear in that following parable. And Jesus has come to do the will of the Father. And He acts on His authority. Beloved people of God, see here Jesus' authority. See His power, His right, His rule, and His reign. See here also His patience. Because that's not the only thing that John the Baptist was all about. What was his baptism all about? It was a repentance unto the forgiveness of sins. And in many ways, he is calling them to accept that baptism that was from heaven. A baptism that would bring salvation, that would bring cleansing and the forgiveness of sins. The religious leaders don't submit to this truth though. They're not bad. They're the righteous ones. They're the ones worthy of God's salvation. To be called to account and to be called to repentance means that they would have to confess that they are sinners. They can't do that. But, before we start saying Oh, those terrible religious rulers. Maybe we too should look at our own lives. How quickly, when we are called to account and called to repent of what we have done, that it makes us angry. It hurts our pride. It gets our heckles up and we're ready for a fight saying, who do you think you are to tell me what to do? We try to weasel our way out by challenging their authorities. You can't tell me that. Don't judge me. But we ought. to submit to the rule and reign of Christ Jesus, who calls us to repentance and faith, who calls us when we are confronted about our sin, not to say, who do you think you are? But if they are coming with the very words of God, to say, woe is me. I deserve punishment. I need forgiveness. Please forgive me. But how do the religious leaders respond to this question? Look at me, or look with me at verse 31. They began reasoning among themselves, saying, if we say from heaven, he will say, then why did you not believe him? But shall we say from men? They were afraid of the people, for everyone considered John to have been a real prophet. Answering Jesus, they said, we do not know. Here we see the second point, the fears of the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin was made up of these scribes, elders, and chief priests. They were the ruling party religiously and had some political influence as well. but they are caught in between this proverbial rock and a hard place by their own working. They were trying to trap Jesus into claiming his authority was from God, but he put them in a pickle. On the rock side, they could say that John's baptism was from heaven. He was indeed a prophet of God. However, none of them were baptized. They did not believe him to be from heaven. So they couldn't answer that way. They couldn't confirm that that baptism was on legitimate authority. But on the hard place side, if they say what they really thought that John was a farce, and so is Jesus, then they would have the people to deal with. You will remember Mark 1 verse five said that all the country of Judea was going out to John the Baptist, and all the people of Jerusalem, and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. There was a great amount of people that had gone out there and accepted His authority. And so they see really no way out. And they are the ones who play the political game. They say, well, we're not sure. Just to be safe, we didn't do it. But also, we're not sure. But in reality, they're saying, whatever it takes not to bow to this man. This man will not be our king. We will not submit to his authority. In fact, we will conspire against this anointed one. We will not bow the knee to this man. But when they try to reject Jesus' authority, what Lord and Master do they end up submitting to? Again, look at verse 18. The chief priests and the scribes heard this and began to seek how they were, how to destroy him. For they were afraid of him for the whole crowd was astonished at his teaching. And then in verse 32, but shall we say from men, they were afraid of the people for they considered John to have been a real prophet. And if you look down at 12 verse 12, following that parable, it says, And they were seeking to seize Him, and yet they feared the people, for they understood that He spoke this parable against Him. And so they left Him and went away. Who do they end up serving? Fear. The whims of the crowd. They're afraid. of the people. And they cannot get away from serving something. They have set themselves against Christ, the Lord and Savior, the one who could save them, and now they serve fear. They fear what man can do to them, but not what God can do to them. This is why the gospel is true freedom. It's not freedom to do this without any direction, or do whatever we want, but it's freedom to serve the Lord who is Master of all. Who tells His people, do not fear. As Jesus told His disciples not to fear the storm. As death had taken over Jairus' daughter, He told him, do not be afraid any longer, only believe. And Jesus commands His disciples in Luke 12, I say to you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that, have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear. Fear the one who after he is killed has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are numbered. Do not fear. You are more valuable than sparrows. And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess Him also before the angels of God. But he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. We must humble ourselves under the righteous, perfect, and loving reign of Jesus Christ. We must submit ourselves to the great Son who serves us by dying for our sins. And yes, that means that we need to say, I have sinned. We must not be too proud and too afraid of man to not confess our sins. to not repent and believe upon Him. The fear of man especially is an enslaving taskmaster. The whims and desires of the people are demanding, and they are fickle. They change with any new doctrine. And even These religious rulers were able to change the minds of the crowds and the desires of the people to also reject Christ. Congregation, do not let fear be your Lord. Do not let the fear of man prevent you from confessing Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Confessing your sin and doing what is right, even when it'll be met with pain. He draws you to the very truth of the baptism, which is for the forgiveness of sins. Do not let the fear of men direct your steps any longer, but swallow your pride and submit to the Lord Jesus Christ. And yes, even as believers, we can fall into this trap. We shut our mouths because we would rather have friends than stand up to them and confront them about their sins. We would rather be silent and quiet rather than be known as a troublesome zealot like Jesus. Yet we are his disciples who are to make disciples of all nations and the church is to baptize and teach them to do all that he has commanded. So as we come to a conclusion, let me put you between a rock and a hard place. By what authority does Jesus call you to repent and believe in him? This is not a one and done thing. It's a walk. You continually, willingly submit yourself joyfully to the rightful lordship which is not domineering. It's not a might makes right sort of king, but a servant king who submitted to the Father serving us with his perfection that we might be delivered from the Lord of fear and love him. Who is it that controls the wind and the waves? Who is this Jesus? If He is Lord of all, if He is Son of God, then bow your knee now. and confess Him as your Lord and your Savior. For in the end, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess Him. Amen. As we come before Him in prayer, I was asked to pray for John Van Laar and give thanks for his safety, for his car accident in the last couple weeks. And so we will do that in the prayer here.