BibleProject | One Story That Leads to JesusSample

When Jesus says God’s Kingdom has drawn near, does he mean that God is finally ending all evil by establishing his promised Kingdom of peace and setting the Messiah on the throne? Yes—but the “ending all evil” part may not look like what people are expecting.

In today’s reading, Jesus confronts assumptions about how a strong kingdom functions. Jesus arrives triumphantly in the holy city, yet he rides in on a donkey, accompanied by 12 apprentices who combat evil by sharing food and healing their neighbors, including their enemies. Many would have expected a king to charge into a city on a warhorse, commanding his warriors to destroy their enemies. But Jesus is a different kind of king. He enters the city humbly, caring for all people. He then exposes corruption and accuses temple leaders of using God’s house of prayer for all nations as a commercial space for Jewish people only.

Flipping merchant tables and scattering coins, Jesus’ actions recall the many prophetic proclamations in the Hebrew Bible—exploitation is a force of darkness, and God will bring the light of justice. Jesus then levels some of his sharpest critiques at religious leaders who enrich themselves at the expense of the poor. These people financially prey on poor widows but pretend to be devout by giving long, public prayers.

We see an example of the leaders’ predatory behavior when a poor widow gives the temple treasury her last resources needed “to live [Greek: bios]” (Mark 12:44), implying that the temple system is killing her when it should be blessing and caring for her. She is a model of Kingdom devotion to God, but her poverty exposes the leaders’ corruption. If others behaved as generously as this woman, she would not be so impoverished.

As we see in today’s video, Jesus’ Kingdom is a place where people care for one another mutually and live out God’s foundational command to love both God and neighbor, enemies included, with everything we’ve got. Love—not violence or control—will be the power that establishes God’s Kingdom fully and forever.

Reflection Questions

• How does the theme of economic exploitation in today’s reading reflect themes from the Hebrew Bible? How would you summarize the Bible’s teaching on generosity and wealth?
• Meditate on Psalm 100. What does the psalmist think about God’s Kingdom? How does it compare or contrast with your own thoughts? How does it compare to what Jesus has said about the Kingdom so far?