Beware of False Religion: Mark 12:38-44

When Donia and I were visiting Colorado Springs, we wanted to go up to Pike’s Peak. Everyone says that the cog-railway is the best way to get to the top, but we are somewhat adventurous, and decided we would drive up Pike’s Peak all the way to the top. As we got to the road that takes you up to the Summit, we noticed several signs that read, “BEWARE: High Winds.” You know, I might understand if it said, “BEWARE of Bears” or snakes or tarantulas or something. But, Beware of the Wind? We came to a guard station at a gate in the road, and I asked the officer on duty, “What’s the deal with the signs? Why is the wind a risk?” He said, “On really windy days, some cars have been known to be blown off the road and down the mountain. Do you want to drive up?” Donia and I looked at each other for a moment, then I turned back to the officer and said, “No, I was just wondering, where you go to catch the cog-railway?

What comes to mind when you hear the word “Beware”? It is a word that urges us to proceed with caution, or perhaps not to proceed at all. When you see the word Beware you know there is danger ahead. I think of other signs I have seen with that word boldly imprinted across the top: “Beware of Falling Rocks”; “Beware of Dog.” I’ve seen some more interesting ones also. I was paying a visit to a home on one occasion, and was greeted by a sign at the end of the driveway with a picture of a gun on it, and it read, “Forget the Dog – Beware of Owner.” In a market overseas, a sign was pointed out to me that read in a foreign language “Beware of Pickpockets.” We were walking through a village in West Africa on one occasion and I was taken aback by a sign that had writing in three languages (none of which were English) and a picture of some sort of explosion a stick figure person with his arms, legs and head all detached. I asked one of the locals, “What does that sign mean?” He said “Beware of Landmines.” It was a sobering reminder of the reality that many people in the world live with: the danger that one wrong step could be deadly. We understand this word Beware, don’t we?

There are many dangers in the world of which we must BEWARE. And in our passage today, Jesus points out one more. He says, “Beware of the scribes.” Now, that seems a bit strange perhaps. What is a scribe going to do? Stab us with his pen? Hit us in the head with his notebook? No, worse than that – if you aren’t careful, these scribes may lead us into the judgment of God. Who are these scribes? We mentioned them in our study of the preceding passage, and we have seen them in several passages in Mark thus far. They were a part of the religious leadership of Israel in Jesus’ day. They were the experts to whom the people looked for insight into the Word of God. It was their task to study, to copy, to interpret and to teach the Scriptures. When the people had a question about God’s Word or God’s will, they turned to the scribes for an authoritative answer. Is Jesus saying we should beware of them? I mean, they’re not bears or alligators. How much harm could they do? Very much, according to Jesus, and therefore, He warned the people who heard His teaching to beware of them. And He was teaching them this in the area of the Temple – the home turf of the scribes.

You recall perhaps from Mark 11:11 that Jesus had entered Jerusalem and entered the temple grounds, and looked around at everything that was going on there, and He was not impressed. In fact, the next day, Jesus returned to the temple and “began to drive out those who were buying and selling in the temple and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of of those who were selling doves” for offerings. He had used the visual image of the fruitless fig tree to indicate that there was nothing of any spiritual value going on in the religion of Jerusalem’s temple. And now, just one day after, in saying “BEWARE!,” it was as if Jesus was posting a large yellow sign on the Temple walls warning the people to proceed with caution, or perhaps not at all, for the scribes could turn out to be deadly to them. They were experts of their religious system, but by His words and deeds over the last several passages, Jesus has made it clear that their system is corrupt and will not lead the soul of humanity closer to God. It is a false religion that may well bar the people from entry into the Kingdom of God.

I wish we could say that there is no need to beware of false religion today. But today, false religions abound, and the danger is just as prevalent. All you have to do is drive through town or turn on your television. Well-dressed, handsome and charismatic religious leaders are all around us, declaring with persuasive and eloquent speech their empty promises and people are falling under their spells by the multitudes. We must beware! Much has changed in the world in the last 20 Centuries, but this much has not: We must still beware of false religion, and the words of Jesus apply to us today as much as they did to those who heard Him in the Temple so long ago. I warning us to Beware!, Jesus would have us to bear in mind that we must not be deceived by the practices or the promises of false religion.

I. We must beware, lest we be deceived by the practices of false religion (v38-40)

In calling out the false practices of the scribes, Jesus draws out attention to their appearance, their treatment, and their speech. Beware, Jesus says, of these scribes who like to walk around in long robes. The garment indicated here was a special one. It was not the everyday attire of the common people. It was a flowing full-length white robe that went all the way to the feet that was appropriate for special occasions. It set the scribes apart from the ordinary people. Ordinary people didn’t wear white – it was too hard to keep clean. And they didn’t wear garments this long and flowing, lest they trip as they walked. Now, it wasn’t that anything was wrong with wearing a special garment. Let’s suppose you sit down for lunch at the local McDonalds. In walks someone in shorts and a T-shirt, followed by a man in a business suit, followed by someone in a tuxedo. Now, you do not normally associate tuxedos with McDonalds, so you assume that he is either on his way to or from a special occasion. And no sooner than the man enters McDonalds, everyone is looking at him and saying, “Oh my! He is all dressed up, he must be going somewhere special.” His dress draws attention to himself and says something about him. On certain occasions, you may walk into the sanctuary and find me wearing a robe, and you know this is no ordinary Sunday. Something special must be taking place. But I am not going to wear that robe to the grocery store. There are times and places and events when special dress is fitting, and we may say even expected. But the thing here is that these guys enjoy the attention that their special dress gives them and the status that it affords them. Jesus said they like it. In fact, they like it so much they walk around in these long robes. They wear them all the time, even when the occasion does not demand “getting all dressed up.”

And because their dress sets them apart from the common people, everyone who sees them recognizes that they are scribes. By wearing them, the scribes are indicating that there is an expectation of different treatment for them. “When a scribe walked down the street or passed through a marketplace, everyone was expected to rise before him,”[1] and great him with reverent titles like “Master,” “Father,” and “Rabbi.” And they liked it! Jesus says that they like “respectful greetings in the marketplaces.” And when they entered the synagogue, their dress indicated their special status, and they would be escorted in a ceremonial fashion to the “chief seats,” those seats that were arranged in the front, separated from everyone else, facing the congregation, indicating they were endowed with a special authority. And when they come to a banquet, everyone falls all over themselves saying, “Oh, great scribe, we have a special seat reserved for you right up front.” And they just eat it up – they love the special status, and attention and favor that comes their way because of their status.

When the time came for one of the scribes to pray, be it in the synagogue or at some other occasion, they would pray aloud at length and with much flowery language. Now, there is nothing inherently wrong with praying lengthy prayers. God invites us and welcomes us to commune with Him in prayer and there are times when we need to pray for an uninterrupted duration of time. However, why did these scribes pray such elaborate and long prayers? Jesus tells us: For appearance’s sake. They did not pray in this way to be heard by God, but to be seen by men. They wanted people to be impressed by their eloquence and their display of piety. It did not matter if the words were genuine and heartfelt to them. They knew what the people wanted to hear, and how to speak impressively, and they used this to deceive the people into trusting them as eminent religious leaders.

Oh, but we don’t have false religious leaders today who hold sway over the masses by their appearance or their sweet-sounding speech. And we don’t have religious leaders today who think that they deserve better treatment than others, do we? Well, I think there are a few out west. Seriously, though, we all know that these abound in great number today! And yes, some of them are out west, but there are plenty around here too! They say what people want to hear, and the people flock to them to have their itching ears tickled. And they thrive on the devotion that their followers lavish upon them. But what would the Lord Jesus say of them? He would say Beware! Beware of those who carry on with much religious talk for the purpose of being applauded by people! Beware of those who demand special privilege and status because of their supposed sense of religious importance! Beware of those who insist on high and mighty titles and parade around in demonstrations of self-aggrandizement. Don’t fall into their traps! They cannot lead you closer to God. You can’t lead someone where you are not going yourself, and the path these false religious leaders are on is not leading them closer to God – Jesus says, “These will receive greater condemnation!” Because of their position as scribes, the people respected them and trusted them to be faithful to God and lead the nation spiritually. But they were only interested in themselves. Because of the abuse of their influence, because of the corruption of God’s word and God’s will, because they had twisted the things of God for their own benefit, they were in danger of a much more severe judgment. And beware – lest you be deceived by their practices and follow them into condemnation as well.

II. We must beware, lest we be deceived by the promises of false religion (v40-44)[2]

You will notice that Jesus says one more thing about the scribes in v40 that we have not mentioned yet. He says they “devour widow’s houses.” Over and over again in the Scriptures, we find God’s people admonished to extend great care to orphans and widows. We see it in the Old Testament repeatedly, and in the prophetic books especially: the religious leaders are chastened by the Lord for their failure to help the orphan and the widow in their time of need. And in the New Testament, James says, “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world” (James 1:27). They were the most defenseless, in many cases the most impoverished of society. They were the ones most in need of care from the people of God. But the scribes are said to devour their houses.

How did they do this? The story that follows is an illustration of it. Jesus sat down in the temple opposite the treasury. In this area of the temple were thirteen large chests shaped like rams’ horns where the people would drop their money for various offerings. And here Jesus sat – it had been a long and difficult day. Everything from Mark 11:20 to the present has all taken place on the Tuesday of His final week. He has been interrogated by the Sanhedrin, debated by the Sadducees and Pharisees, and has had several public teachings. He is also keenly aware that it has all ultimately been for naught – He knows that they are going to conspire together to put Him to death in just a few days. So here He sits: tired, frustrated, sad, filled with righteous indignation over the parade of false religion filling the temple courts. And He began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury. Every person that dropped a coin into those chests was perpetuating a false religion, fattening the pockets and furthering the corruption of wicked leaders. And many rich people were putting in large sums! There was a lot of money rolling into the temple on that day—every day, really, but this was Passover week, and Jerusalem was filled with people who had come to the temple just for the occasion.

In the midst of all this hustle and bustle came a woman who Mark describes as a poor widow. She put two small copper coins into the treasury. These tiny coins were practically worthless. They amounted to less than two percent of a day’s wages. Now, the text says, “Calling His disciples to Him, He said ….” Picture Jesus, sitting there exhausted and exasperated, watching all this, and He sees this widow, and says, “Hey guys, come here and check this out. Did you see that? Do you see that woman right there?” Jesus says to his disciples, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury; for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”

Now, forget the sermons and Sunday School lessons you have heard for a moment and look with me at what the text says. Does the text say that Jesus was pleased with what she had done? It says she put in more, she put in all, but Jesus doesn’t say, “She has done the good thing,” or “the right thing.” Does He say she is going to be blessed, or that the Lord loves her for what she’s done? Does He say that she will enter the Kingdom because of her gift? Does the text say that Jesus wants others to follow her example? It does not. She has caught Jesus’ attention because, unlike the rich who can give large amounts and never miss it, this woman has put into the temple treasury, this corrupt, twisted, institution of false religion, her last two tiny copper coins, all she had to live on. Put yourself there. How would you feel about it? Would you be pleased that this woman has put the last money she had to live on in a false religious system? I hope not! It should sicken us to see this.

Now, why has she done it? Why has she brought her last two coins to the temple anyway? Because she has been taught by these scribes that her poverty is a sign of God’s judgment on her life. She has been told repeatedly that if God had truly loved her, He would not have taken her husband away from her, and would not leave her in that destitute state. And if she wants to make things right with God, she needs to give more money to Him, and then He will bless her. Don’t miss her desperation here. It is all she had to live on. In other words, she thinks, “Well, its all come down to this. I am going to give it all away, and if God doesn’t turn things around then, I will just go home and wait to die.” Some may look at her and say, “But oh what great faith she had!” Yes, she had great faith, but it had been built on false promises that God would bless her if she paid Him. This woman is not to be commended, she is to be pitied. She is a victim of false religion’s empty promises, and having given every last cent away, she is going home to die. Is God honored by that? Would God not rather her spend that money on food or medical care, or some essential matter than to virtually waste it on an empty promise of false religion?

Oh, Jesus says, beware of these scribes. They devour widow’s houses. They have enriched themselves on the contributions of those who can least afford it. They didn’t care about this poor widow. To them she only represented more coins in the coffers. She’d been deceived by the promises of false religion and her little offering was being used to deceive more and devour more. And if you think this sort of false religion disappeared after the first century, you are as deceived as she was. All you have to do is turn on the television and see these self-styled prophets preaching false promises that God will bless you, reward you, make you healthy or wealthy if only you send them money. And if you were to analyze their lists of contributors, do you know what you would find? Most of them are widows living below the poverty line, funneling money hand over fist to these charlatans in false hopes built upon false promises. Meanwhile, the preacher who is receiving all their money travels around in limousines and Lear-jets, and spends a thousand dollars a night on hotel rooms when he or she is away from their several million-dollar homes. Are you going to tell me God is pleased with that? No, He says BEWARE of it! Those modern-day scribes are bound for a severe condemnation, and they will be glad to take you with them.

Listen - God doesn’t need your money. Let me be abundantly transparent here. We ask people to give to the Lord’s work. Missions costs money, literature costs money, we have a staff that works hard and deserves to be paid, and utilities cost money. Duke Power will not accept intangible blessings as payment for the power bill; they deal in cash. Not only this, but as a member of this church, you have the opportunity to take part in the decisions of how that money is going to be spent. So we make no apology for inviting God’s people who have been saved by grace through faith in Christ to give. The Bible exhorts us to invest in the work of the Kingdom of God. But we aren’t promising you that the more you give, the more you’ll get, and we aren’t promising you that God will only bless you if you give Him money. And we aren’t threatening you that if you don’t give, God’s “gonna get ya.” You should invest in Kingdom work as you are able, but not to the neglect of your basic needs. If the offering plate comes your way and you’re worried that you won’t be able to eat later today, keep your money. God doesn’t operate a ponzi scheme, where you give Him a little money and He will give you back a lot of money. The Bible never promises that. But false religion does. You must beware, lest you be deceived by false religion’s promises.

Excessive displays of wealth and prominence; demands for special treatment; long, eloquent speeches that have no biblical content but offer empty promises of what we want to hear; endless pleas for more and more money: its hard to tell if I’m describing the first century scribes or the twenty-first century preachers of the prosperity movement. Well, some words can be fittingly applied to both. Jesus has a few here: Beware! These will receive greater condemnation. They should be renounced, and those who have been duped by them are in desperate need of truth. Do you know anyone like this? If so, I believe you have an obligation to go them with the Scriptures in hand and plead with them to turn away from the corrupted systems that have spiritually victimized them.

There is one promise that we can offer with confidence: it is the promise of God’s word that if you will turn from sin and trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of your life, you will have eternal life. We don’t deserve it, we can’t earn it, and we can’t buy it. God offers it to you freely because He loves you, because He is full of grace and mercy. He has come to us in the person of the Lord Jesus in order to pay the debt we owe for us – because of our sins, each of us deserves the condemning judgment of God. But Jesus died for you and for me, and as He died on the cross, He took the punishment we deserve so that we could be forgiven and made righteous by faith in Him. And the hope of freedom in Him has been secured and validated for us by His glorious resurrection. Come to Him and receive what He offers freely – the gift of eternal life! And beware, lest anyone deceive you by the practices and promises of false religion.

Father, how the world needs to hear this word! We deplore the abuses that take place in Your name by the Christ-denying and Christ-corrupting promoters of false religion. We are well warned by Your word to beware! Keep our lives and our message pure, anchor our faith in the true promises of Your Word, and grant us courage to speak the truth in love to those who have been deceived. And should any be here today who are trusting in anything other than the saving merits of Jesus Christ alone as their source of ultimate hope, save them and set them free by the truth of the Gospel this day. We ask in Christ’s name.

As we sing our hymn of commitment __________________, we invite you to come if God has placed a burden on your heart today. Come and be set free from the effort to earn God’s favor by our works and our money. Receive from Him freely what you cannot buy: abundant and eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Come and pray if God has laid a person on your heart who needs to be set free by the power and promise of the Gospel. Come and unite with this church family, or for any other need that God may be speaking to your heart about.

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[1] James Edwards, The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002), 378.

[2] I am indebted to John MacArthur, whose sermon from the 2008 Shepherd’s Conference on the parallel account in Luke 21 opened my eyes to the central truth of this heartbreaking narrative.