It seems fitting that it's raining here today, Good Friday, the day we remember Jesus' gruesome crucifixion on the cross.
I don't know about you but it's an uncomfortable day for me. I'd rather just fast-forward to the celebration of Sunday.
But it's not Sunday yet. And Jesus very much suffered through Friday first. It's easy to say "Jesus died on the cross" without putting much thought into what that really looked like, sounded like, smelled like.
The bruised and bloodied face.
The back that bore the whip so violently that it more closely resembled ground meat than human flesh.
The smell of human blood, constantly present.
The pounding of nails. The scream of agony.
Is your stomach in a knot yet? Mine is.
I remember watching "The Passion of the Christ" several years ago. It is hard, very hard to watch. Not a movie you cuddle up with popcorn for and then slip into an easy slumber. By the end I was sobbing (and grateful for DVDs and the privacy of my own home) because I could not wrap my mind around why.
Why would the Lord endure what I had just seen for us? Were we worth it? Really?
And I know the answer is "yes" not because of our own goodness (no such thing) but because God just genuinely loves us.
However, my human mind wants to implode on itself at such a conclusion because I simply cannot grasp such a selfless and ardent love.
The joy and triumph of Sunday is coming - Hallelujah - but let us not forget the solemnity, the sacrifice, the sorrow of Friday.
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I totally agree with you the Passion was so hard to watch, I think it made Friday so real in ways I just couldn't imagine on my own. I too have a hard time invisioning all the my Lord went through, but I am so grateful that he did, without the Friday there would not be the great celebration on Sunday and the amazing reunion in Heaven. Thanks for reminding us all of the importance of Friday and the Cross.
ReplyDeleteHere's a question for the day...was the cross of this day inevitable? And if so, why? Or, why not?
ReplyDeleteI'll post a few thoughts later.
C - "without Friday there would not be Sunday" - exactly :-) Wonder how that applies to our lives. What do we need to "crucify" in our lives that will lead to a resurrection? Hmmm . . . I hadn't thought of that until now.
ReplyDeleteB - dangit you always make me use my brain :-) My first thought was the cross was not unavoidable - that Christ chose to lay down His life. But then I thought if He chose not to die on the cross, and thereby not saving us, would that be consistent with His nature? In other words, maybe it was inevitable in that God's nature is to love and save and He would not choose to not do so.
I'm not going to pretend to have my head wrapped around it. Christ died because sin requires a blood offering. But God created that system. It's so hard for me to understand. I think I'll go back to the verse Ginger mentioned in one of her comments about God's ways being higher than my ways . . .
How's that for talking my way around a real solid answer??? :-)
Curious to hear yours, and others' thoughts!
Leilanni-
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate your humility in your words and acknowledging that many parts of our Easter story are hard to make sense of!
I agree with you completely that it's hard to get our hearts and minds wrapped around the cross. In many ways, our heritage just doesn't make that much sense. What is the image of God that we show to the world, when we say that God specifically sent His Light to the world so that he could be brutally killed in order to pay himself off? Is that the arithmetic of substitutionary atonement? It seems to say, that the core of God is judgment. And, as a result, in my life I've approached others and the world with judgment. I hate to say it, but if that is the core of God, then I will likely slide quickly into atheism.
Alternatively, I whole-heartedly believe that the cross is God's ultimate sign of love for us. I believe that Jesus showed such radical love for his brother and sisters (and hence us), that the cross became his inevitable future! He did not back away from the religious authorities that made worship to God about themselves or about money, he did not back away from the empire that persecuted his people, instead, he lived in such a way that brought about his position on the cross. He forgave and brought into communion with Him sinners, social outcasts, tax collectors, the least of these - and as our story goes even the criminal on the tree next to him. Yes, I believe his death was a sacrifice, but it was a sacrifice of love for us made in opposition to an unjust world. And hence, at the core of God, and at the core of Christ is love.
Coming back to the original question, what if the people and the empire had embraced him instead of rejecting him? Would the cross have been necessary then? I would hope then he could have been the "King of the Jews" that he truly was.
If you have a few minutes today...want to check out a sermon from our church last week? It so happens that writer of the book I mentioned in an earlier post (Christ of the Celts by Philip Newell) preached at our church last Sunday (For some background on check out http://www.jphilipnewell.com)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, his sermon is available at www.fpcfw.org then click on Media&Interactive. I'm not sure how long it will be on there (if they archive the sermon), so check it out today if you get a chance. It is a very hopeful and exciting message.