God's Timing: Mark 14:1-2
The story of the crucifixion is ultimately God’s plan. I love how God uses what appears to be a story of defeat to accomplish an incredible victory. I love how the story is filled with schemes of His enemies as well as the work of His followers. It demonstrates how God’s power is not limited to that which is favorable to Him. God can use all things.
Jerusalem was confusing during Passover. Religious people made long journeys to visit the temple and offer their sacrifice. They traveled a long way, spent their days trapped in a huge throng of unknown people, and adhered to strict rules of ritual cleanliness. It was tense; the smallest fuse could set off a disturbance.
Such a disturbance would draw Roman guards to police the area. These Roman guards would defile the temple, making the whole place unclean. The tension of the crowd needed to be monitored lest the most significant celebration of the year be spoiled.
This is the setting into which Jesus walked. The religious leaders knew the firestorm Jesus could create when He taught. This is why they planned to do it stealthily. Jesus had come to their power base; the location was right. The timing would have to be managed well.
This raises an interesting question. If the religious leaders knew the crowds were so volatile, why didn’t they wait a couple of weeks until the crowds went away? They’d already tolerated Jesus’ teachings for months – if not a few years – what’s another dozen days?
This question shows God’s ability to work through all things. The religious elite could have waited, but God had other plans. Jesus was to be the ultimate Passover sacrifice. Jesus’ death would be timed with Passover to tie Jewish emancipation to emancipation from sin. The Jewish leaders didn’t wait because God’s timing wanted it to happen now.
Return to the original story of Passover. In Egypt, the Hebrew people were oppressed under Pharaoh. God send a variety of plagues against the people of Egypt to convince them to allow their enslaved labor force to go worship Him. Pharoah tried to negotiate ways to allow the Hebrew people to go and worship and then return to Egypt, but God had a different plan. God used the hardness of Pharoah’s heart to escalate the severity of the plagues until the Egyptian people forced Pharoah to let the Hebrew people go. The story of the Passover is rooted in God’s ability to use leaders who oppose Him to still accomplish His will.
The same is true here. The religious elite could have waited. Jesus wasn’t going anywhere. God wanted Jesus to be a Passover sacrifice; God uses the religious elite to accomplish His timing. Their plan for murder will escalate and take shape in only two days so God’s ultimate plan would take place. The story of the crucifixion is ultimately God’s plan.
