Crucifixion and Me

For 4/17/2011
Some churches celebrate this day as Palm Sunday, the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to begin his final day on earth, and others as Passion Sunday the beginning of Jesus’ trials and suffering through those final days. You can read all of the events of that last week in the Passion Sunday Lectionary scripture Matthew 26:14-27:66. But today we will look at the Passion Sunday Lectionary scripture by Paul in his letter to the church at Philippi which speaks to the meaning of those last days. But to set the stage we need to address the nature of this Jesus who died on the cross. So we first read from Matthew about the time Jesus spent in prayer at Gethsemane as it makes a connection to Paul’s thoughts:

Matthew 26:36-38 Then Jesus went with them to a garden called Gethsemane and told his disciples, "Stay here while I go over there and pray." Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he plunged into an agonizing sorrow. Then he said, "This sorrow is crushing my life out. Stay here and keep vigil with me." 39Going a little ahead, he fell on his face, praying, "My Father, if there is any way, get me out of this. But please, not what I want. You, what do you want?" … 42He then left them a second time. Again he prayed, "My Father, if there is no other way than this, drinking this cup to the dregs, I'm ready. Do it your way." 43-44When he came back, he again found them sound asleep. They simply couldn't keep their eyes open. This time he let them sleep on, and went back a third time to pray, going over the same ground one last time. 45-46When he came back the next time, he said, "Are you going to sleep on and make a night of it? My time is up, the Son of Man is about to be handed over to the hands of sinners. Get up! Let's get going! My betrayer is here."

·What gets your attention as you read about Gethsemane, what reactions do you have to it?

·What can we learn about his feelings as he faced the events that were to come?

Our understanding of who Jesus is complex and can be somewhat mysterious. John 1 describes him in these terms:

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

·Without getting into deep theological ideas what do these two scriptures highlight about our understanding of who Jesus (the Word) is? What are some of the ideas about him as “the Word was God? Are there any other ideas you would add to his description as being God?
·The second scripture tells us that Jesus became flesh and dwelled among us? What would you cite as examples of him acting as a human being?
·Does the Gethsemane story emphasize his human or his godly nature? What do you see as examples of his human nature? Are there any glimpses of his godly nature?
·Two men who were very close to him slept during this time of agony. What does it say about them and possibly their understanding of what was to come? What are you including in your Lenten preparations to stay awake to the magnitude of the events of this coming week?

Let’s take a look as some reflections that Paul had about the example Jesus set during that final week :

Phillipians 2:5-8 Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.

·How does Paul characterize Jesus in what is probably a hymn from the earliest days of the Christian faith? Make a list of the attributes describing him. How does Paul present the dual nature of Christ?
·How does this scripture expand our understanding of the Gethsemane experience? What does Paul think that we should remember as we travel through this week?
·What do you see as the most important points of this scripture? Why did he “set aside the privileges of deity” and instead was selfless and obedient? What can we learn from this about living a vibrant spiritual life?

Skipping ahead Paul gives us his take on the example Jesus set for us:

12-13 …Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God's energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.
·Jesus acted in obedience to God as he faced the cruelty and agony of the coming crucifixion. How does he urge us to act in response to Jesus’ example? What word describes the nature of our response? What is the source of the energy in our spiritual lives? What can we be assured of if we tap into God’s energy?
·Is there any new insight for you into how we should understand the events of this coming week? Our demeanor during Lent can be one of darkness and sorrow which is certainly appropriate for the crucifixion to come. What does Paul suggest should accompany that demeanor and how do you think we can include it in our personal preparations.

If you would like to comment click on comments by the envelope at the bottom of this posting.

Closing Prayer
For the life of Christ within us, turning all our fears to freedom, helping us to live for others: Father, Son and Holy Ghost we praise you. Amen

The Oxford Book of Prayer

Next Week’s Lectionary Scriptures:
Matthew 28:1-10, Acts 10: 34-43, Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24, Colossians 3:1-4, Philippians 2:5-8, 12-13

After the Celebration - Back to Reality

For 12/26/2010


This is the only account of Joseph and the family fleeing into Egypt and their later migration to Nazareth to escape potential threats from the reigning king. Luke gives us the only other birth narrative and it leaves the impression that Joseph and Mary were residents of Nazareth at the time of Jesus conception and does not mention or allude to these events.


Each gospel brings us a different perspective although there is a great deal of commonality among the first three. These differences probably reflect the understanding of the Jesus story which was a part of the Christian community in which the writer lived. In this particular scripture we see the importance to the writer of showing Jesus as fulfillment of messianic prophecy in the Hebrew Scriptures.


Matthew 2:13 After the scholars were gone, God's angel showed up again in Joseph's dream and commanded, "Get up. Take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt. Stay until further notice. Herod is on the hunt for this child, and wants to kill him."
14-15Joseph obeyed. He got up, took the child and his mother under cover of darkness. They were out of town and well on their way by daylight. They lived in Egypt until Herod's death. This Egyptian exile fulfilled what Hosea had preached: "I called my son out of Egypt."
16-18Herod, when he realized that the scholars had tricked him, flew into a rage. He commanded the murder of every little boy two years old and under who lived in Bethlehem and its surrounding hills. (He determined that age from information he'd gotten from the scholars.) That's when Jeremiah's sermon was fulfilled:
A sound was heard in Ramah, weeping and much lament. Rachel weeping for her children,
Rachel refusing all solace, Her children gone, dead and buried.
19-20Later, when Herod died, God's angel appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt: "Up, take the child and his mother and return to Israel. All those out to murder the child are dead."
21-23Joseph obeyed. He got up, took the child and his mother, and reentered Israel. When he heard, though, that Archelaus had succeeded his father, Herod, as king in Judea, he was afraid to go there. But then Joseph was directed in a dream to go to the hills of Galilee. On arrival, he settled in the village of Nazareth. This move was a fulfillment of the prophetic words, "He shall be called a Nazarene."


After a visit by three visitors of great stature and very expensive gifts Herod sees Jesus as a threat to his reign. Herod had a long history of authorizing murders, including some in his own family, to protect himself against perceived threats.


• Where does it appear that the family was living and how long after Jesus’ birth might it have been when the family fled? What common thread runs through his story when Jesus for some reason comes into the awareness of religious or political authority?


• Part of Jesus’ reason for being with us is to be an example for us of what it means to be one of God’s people. One of the major results of his ministry was controversy. In today’s world, here where we live, what lines are there that we might cross because of faith convictions and as a result cause controversy? Can you think of examples? What kind of controversy was caused?


The rest of today’s scripture is built around two dreams, two instructions from God and the fulfillment of three Old Testament prophecies. Each individual prophecy is not particularly important but are used in their totality to bring credibility to Jesus’ stature.


In thinking about the family’s sudden departure from Bethlehem remember that they traveled at least several hundred miles through the desert which would have been hot during the summer and cold in the winter. We remember images of Mary riding the donkey into Bethlehem but most likely they walked to Egypt with and donkeys or mules used as pack animals.

• The first dream results in the uprooting of Joseph’s family and their fleeing into Egypt. What kind of night must it have been for them to put together the food, belongings, and animals needed to sustain them as they traveled through the desert to Egypt and set up housekeeping in Egypt. Would someone who was without means likely have been able to do this? Can you imagine having to do something like this?


• What contribution does this story make to your understanding of Jesus? What do you think that Matthew wants us to know about God’s presence with him?


• Herod reacts by murdering all children under two in the Bethlehem area. What must this experience have been like for those families? How do you feel about the presence of Jesus resulting in the murder of children by those in authority? What kind of necessary reminder does this story bring to a joyful celebration of Jesus’ birth? How does it all end?


• Herod probably died when Jesus was at least 6 years old and after the family had been in Egypt for 4 years. Although Herod had died what realities faced them when they returned? What ramifications did this kind of a move have for them after establishing some kind of life in Egypt?


Nazareth is insignificant on many fronts. First it is located in Galilee which was considered by the Jews to be influenced by ‘foreigners’ and its residents considered only a little better than the despised Samarians. Second, Nazareth was an insignificant village of little note, at one time thought by some historians and archeologists as never having existed.


• What does Matthew want us to understand about the perceptions that the Jewish community would have about an individual who resettled in Nazareth? How different is this from the entrance that they might have expected of a messiah? Do these stories have any impact on your understanding of Jesus?


• Did the two dreams give Joseph and the family something hard or something easy to do? Did Jesus’ strong connection to God result in him doing hard things or easy. We are human and will turn away from the hard for lots of reasons. Do you think that the percentage of the times you responded to your faith calling you to do something you considered difficult has increased, or stayed the same over time? What has played into the level of your response?


• The writer sees these events in the light of prophecy. Do you think that fulfillment of prophecy was the driver of these events or something else? Is fulfillment of prophecy something that impacts your relationship with Jesus?


• How does today’s scripture impact your picture or understanding of God? What insight have you receiived?

Closing Prayer

Ever Present God, do not let our prayers excuse us from paying the price of compassion. Make us generous with the resources you have entrusted to us. Let your work be done in us and through us. Amen. From: Contemporary Prayers, Oxford Book of Prayer



Next Week’s Lectionary Scriptures: Jeremiah 31:7-14 or Sirach 24:1-12, Psalm 147:12-20, Ephesians 1:3-14, John 1:(1-9), 10-18