8: Worship

Read Mark 1:21-28

The events in this passage take place on a Sabbath when Jesus was teaching in the synagogue. A synagogue is a meeting house where Jews congregate on the Sabbath to pray and hear readings from Scripture. When Jewish rabbis make a statement they justify it with reference to the teaching of another rabbi, who in turn will have based their claims on the authority of others. Jesus taught with authority, which meant that he did not refer to others to justify his claims. He spoke in his own right. Mark’s gospel shows the power of Jesus’ word in his conflict with the man possessed by an evil spirit. As Jesus speaks his word is effective in driving out evil, and the spirit leaves the man. Note that his power extends to forbidding it to speak as it knows his identity.

It is important to see the Christian teaching on the Sabbath here. Jewish law forbids all but urgent work on the Sabbath. For Jesus the war for humankind against evil and suffering is God’s work and it is urgent. Hence Jesus heals on the Sabbath.

What does Mark 1, 21-28 teach us about Jesus’ authority and mission?

Read Mark 2:23-3:6.

These two passages were put together as they have a joint message. In the first passage we find Jesus walking to synagogue on the Sabbath. The Pharisees were so keen to keep the law that they had developed a set of rules called the hedge around the law, which were intended to prevent accidental law-breaking. So, although travellers were allowed by Jewish law to pick ears of corn up to an arm’s length from the road, the Pharisees forbade this practice on Sabbath as it might be work. Jesus’ response was to point out that their revered King David had eaten the shewbread, the sacred bread placed before the ark of the covenant when he and his men were hungry. David was considered to be a good and holy man, so the implication is that satisfying human need takes priority over ritual laws.

The critical line here is that the Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath. The gospel shows God to be concerned for the well-being of his people. Hence it is important to care for the needs of people on the Sabbath.

"The Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath." is another important statement. Jesus as the Son of Man possesses legislative power over Sabbath observance. No man-made laws bind him. On the contrary, he can dispense with them. He has the authority of God.

The story of the man with the withered hand shows how important is the war against suffering. Urgent healing was allowed, but this was non-urgent, so it should by law have waited until the next day. For Jesus healing was God’s work and cannot wait. The thrust of this passage is that no man-made law should constrain the urgent work of God. Note that this healing annoyed the Pharisees, who plotted with the Herodians against Jesus. The Herodians were the followers of Herod who wanted Herod to be king of Judea as well as Galilee. Why Jesus had annoyed them at this time is unclear, as in this passage Jesus makes no claims to kingship.

Give a summary of these two passages.

Task Mk 3

Using information in these passages explain what the Pharisees taught about Sabbath work.

Task Mk 4

Why did Jesus feel that he had the right to ignore the Pharisees’ laws?

Task Mk 5

Many Christians feel that they should do good works on the Sabbath. What kind of good works can Christians do?

Read Mark 16:1-2.

Note here that the early Christians did rest on Sabbath. They did not do non-urgent work.

Many Christians believe that people need a day free from work to have a rest and be themselves and be free to worship God. They believe that families need a day to have time together, and that having such a day helps keep families together. They accept that necessary work needs to be done, but they believe that you should not work unless you have to. Many want to keep Sunday special. They do not like shops to open on Sundays, as they feel that shopworkers will be exploited. Others feel that shops should open on Sundays and that Christians should not impose their views on non-Christians.

What are your views on Sundays? Should shops open? What is the best way of spending Sunday?

The commandments say that you should keep holy the Sabbath day. For the Jews this meant doing no work and going to synagogue. Many Christians attend church, because they feel that God is entitled to a time set aside to worship him, and because they feel that worshipping God is the best way of making yourself a better person, of eliminating bad qualities and developing good ones. Listening to the readings and the sermon is a way of educating yourself more fully in your own religion. Often Christians attend a eucharistic service, as they believe that the eucharist is an important part of their faith that they must take seriously. You can hardly take the eucharist seriously if you don’t attend. For this reason these Christians believe that they should combine Sabbath observance with participation in the eucharist. Christianity is in any case a community religion, and you can hardly be a member of a community if you don’t attend its meetings.

Why do many Christians attend church on Sundays?

How far is church attendance essential to Christian life?

Read Mark 14:12-25.

Jesus had obviously prepared to eat passover meal in secret, so that he would not be arrested before it was completed. The disciples were told to follow a man carrying a water jar. Such water-carrying was woman’s work in those days, so a man carrying a jar would have been very noticeable.

This meal was a passover meal. The passover celebrated the Hebrews’ escape from slavery in Egypt and their entering into a covenant with God in which they became his people and lived by his law. At this celebration the passover lamb was killed and eaten in memory of the night of their escape. The Jews looked forward to the new covenant when God would establish a new relationship with his people. For Jesus this was the meal that signalled the establishment of the new covenant. Whereas the old covenant was salvation from slavery, the new was salvation from sin and death. The community of the old covenant was Israel, the community of the new covenant is the Church. The sacrifice at the old covenant was a lamb, the sacrifice of the new covenant was Jesus Christ, who was to die for sin. Just as the lamb was eaten, so the bread and wine are consumed. Jesus told them that the bread and wine were his body and blood. To eat the bread and drink the wine is to commit yourself to the new covenant, it is to signal your membership of the Christian community.

Christianity is not just a set of teachings. Christians see it as a community with the risen Lord Jesus present in it. The eucharistic meal is the community meeting, a visible sign that Christians share a common fellowship of love. Yet it is not only a sign of fellowship. When we eat with people and spend time with them we grow closer to them. The eucharistic meal is the means by which community ties are strengthened. It is intended to draw participants closer to each other and to the Christ who is among them.

What did Jesus say about the person who was to betray him?

Why did Jesus want to eat the meal in secret? What was the sign that led his followers to the room?

Explain the meaning of the eucharistic meal to someone who has never heard of Christianity.

"The eucharist is both the sign of fellowship and the means by which fellowship is strengthened." Discuss.

What is the connection between eucharist and passover?

Essay

a) Recount what happened at the Last Supper. (8 marks)

b) What is the meaning of the eucharist for Christians? (12 marks)

c) Many Christians believe that the bread and wine become Christ’s body and blood. Others think that they are merely the sign through which he communicates with the assembled people. What is your view? (5 marks)