Mark 12:12
And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away.
Tag: The Fear of Man
The above verse is pulled out of the story of Jesus in Jerusalem, in the Temple, one week prior to His crucifixion. During this period Jesus had overturned the tables of those making the Temple of God a commerce center. That was disrupting the chief rulers of the Temple. So, Jesus tells a parable condemning the religious rulers that exposed them for rejecting all the prophets, throughout history. The above verse shows the religious leadership state-of-mind after hearing the parable. Notice that the Messiah told the parable. He is the King of the Universe. Rather than to honor Him they wanted to do something bad to Him. However, they didn't because they feared "the people." Their power was not based in the appointment or pleasure of God. Their power is based upon the fear the people have of them. Yet, they also fear the people. Not in what the people would do to them, but in the fact that the people would not fear them and they would lose their power over the people. These leaders had a fear of man. When we fear man we fear, not as much what they will do to us, but what we may lose in regard to power over them. If a certain leader does not want to make a tough decision because the fear what others will think vs what is right, that person fears that if they make this hard decision the people will no longer approve of their leadership, thus making them lose their power over the people. When we fear man vs fear God we make decision based upon power and not based upon righteousness and justice. That is what the religious leaders had ... false man-made power.
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