As Tuesday begins on the road to the cross, Jesus faces opposition from the Jewish religious leaders themselves. On Monday, he addressed the systems and structures that hindered the people from recognizing the Messiah. On Tuesday, he confronts what lies behind those institutions: sinful human hearts.

The day opens on the same road from Bethany, where Jesus and the disciples pass by the cursed fig tree once again. He makes the illustration clear. The tree represents Israel, whose hearts have not produced the fruit God made them to produce. As they journey into Jerusalem, he addresses those hearts directly.

Pharisees, Sadducees, Jewish elders, and scribes come together to lay a trap for Jesus. They weren't sure how they were going to get him to stumble in, but they knew they would have to come at his life, his teaching, and his claims from multiple angles. They are looking for evidence to bring him to trial, and they want to do it quietly so that the crowds that gathered Sunday won't stage a revolution. They try to come at his authority and claims, but these traps are not only dodged by Jesus, they are defeated.

They lay the traps. You can read them in Matthew 21:23–23:39; Mark 11:27–12:44; and Luke 20:1–21:4. They ask unanswerable questions to get him to misspeak. He refuses. They quiz him about the Scriptures. He knows them better. They speak in slippery hypotheticals. He responds with vivid parables. These controversies are more than mounted attacks on an innocent man; they are the collision of wicked hearts with a pure heart.

Tuesday will accomplish nothing for the religious leaders. Jesus's innocence stands against the hearts of sinners. It is not our Jesus who needs to be stamped out—it is the hearts of men who would scheme against the power of God at work to save sinners. He doesn't invade the holy city with armies—he comes with truth. That truth seems to be more than the religious leaders can withstand. The traps don't work. They will have to find another way. 

Take some time today to dive into one of the Gospel accounts above. See Jesus confront the leaders, and take yet even more steps towards the cross. Nothing will stand in the way of our Savior laying his life down now. There is no guilt to be found in him. Only truth to power, and love for the powerless. 

I love you Springs of Grace Family!

Grant Rose
Lead Pastor, Springs of Grace