What Were They Thinking As They Saw Jesus Crucified?
After Jesus breathes his last breath, Luke tells us:
But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
Luke 23:49
Here’s my question: what where they thinking?
Imagine the despair and disappointment and fear and anger they must have been feeling.
What I KNOW they were not thinking about was resurrection. The scriptures are clear: no one expected resurrection.
They were totally hopeless, and yet hope came for them anyway.
When you cannot possibly understand how this or that situation will ever be anything good, that’s when you know that what God is going to do with it will be SHOCKING and beautiful.
If God can make that Friday Good, he can make anything good.
Don’t lose hope today!
Today’s Scripture:
Some Political Background Info to the Crucifixion
The Romans were in political control of Jerusalem at the time of Jesus, and unsurprisingly there were Jewish rebels who tried to overthrow Roman rule. (The ancient Jewish historian Flavius Josephus–who lived a generation after Jesus– tells us a lot about these movements.)
I think it’s a fair assumption that Barabbas was a rebel leader, which is why he was imprisoned under Pontius Pilate, awaiting sentencing. Luke also tells us that Barabbas was a murderer. Most likely, he murdered Romans.
Think about the irony: Jesus, the innocent man, dies on behalf of Israel for his enemies, whereas Barabbas, the guilty man, goes free.
Today’s Scripture:
Dressed In a Royal Robe
One of the themes of Luke’s account of the Passion is that he portrays the Crucifixion as the royal enthronement of Jesus. To be clear, it is an unexpected enthronement: he is being put to death, after all. But, as we read through the Passion account, pay attention to all the ways Jesus is being prepared for a “coronation.”
For example,
Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate.
Luke 23:11
Jesus is a prisoner about to be crucified, but Luke wants us to pick up on the irony: Herod thinks he is mocking him, but he is really preparing him for his enthronement.
Today’s Scripture:
Silent Like a Sheep Before Its Shearers
Jesus refuses to defend himself in the sham trial he’s put through that last night of his life. His silence reminds me of the great Isaiah prophecy of the suffering servant:
He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.Isaiah 53:7
Isaiah 53 is worth reading in its entirety, by the way. Keep in mind that this prophecy comes centuries before the time of Christ.
53 Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
for the transgression of my people he was punished.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,
he will see the light of life and be satisfied;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.Isaiah 53
Today’s Scripture:
Jesus Permits His Capture
t’s very important that we understand Jesus was not a passive victim. When Judas approaches him in the Garden of Gethsemane in the dark, Jesus permits the guards to capture him, rather than attempting to fight or flee.
Judas and the others think they are in control, but actually Jesus is in control.
The same is true today. The evil powers of the world think they are in control, but in reality God is using their wickedness for his own purposes.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28
Today’s Scripture:
Bread & Wine; Body & Blood
Some quick thoughts on the Last Supper account in Luke’s Gospel.
Don’t be surprised when someone close to you betrays you–Judas betrayed Jesus. (The Jewish authorities hated Jesus, but because he was popular with the crowds, they couldn’t figure out how to get to him until Judas played into their hands.)
Passover was a political event, and not just a religious one. Or, to be more accurate, there was no split between politics and religion in the ancient world: politics was religion, and vice versa. At Passover, Jews celebrated and remembered that when they were enslaved in Egypt, the Lord brought them out into the Promised Land. It’s not a perfect analogy, but celebrating Passover was like our celebrating the Fourth of July–it was a way to defiantly remember how the Children of Israel received their freedom.
This, of course, made the Romans nervous, which was why Pontius Pilate was in Jerusalem keeping watch on the crowds during Passover, and not at his opulent palace on the Mediterranean, called Caesarea Maritima.
At the Last Supper, Jesus explicitly makes the Passover ritual about him: “this is my body….this is my blood.” He is explaining to the disciples how his sacrificial death will make his people free from slavery to sin and death.
I preached on this passage Sunday, for those who are interested.
Today’s Scripture:
More on the End
Jesus continues to talk about the End of the World, and tells his followers that it will be obvious when it comes. In Luke’s Gospel, “this generation” means the people whose hearts are stubbornly opposed to Jesus. So, when Jesus says”
“Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Luke 21:32-33
He is saying that there will always be people opposed to him until he returns again.
And he closes with a familiar message: be ready!
Today’s Scripture:
The Temple and the End
I think the best way to think about Jesus’s words about the destruction of the Temple is to understand him talking specifically about the Temple’s last days while at the same time talking about the Last Days themselves. He is going back and forth between the two: he is telling them what to expect when the Temple is destroyed, and telling all of us what to expect then The End begins.
The Temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70.
The End? No one knows the day or the hour, so be ready.
Today’s Scripture:
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
This is a difficult parable.
Context matters. This entire parable is told by Jesus right after the religious leaders in Jerusalem question him about his authority. Jesus tells this parable the last week of his life, between Palm Sunday and Good Friday.
The image of a vineyard was the central image in the Old Testament for Israel as the people of God. God makes a covenant with Israel, but then Israel has responsibilities because of that covenant. The people listening to Jesus understand that he’s talking about Israel, which is why, when tells he them what’s going to happen, namely that the owner of the vineyard will give it to others, they reply the way they do:
“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”
When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!”Luke 20:15b-16
Jesus then quotes from Psalm 118:22:
“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone”Psalm 118:22
The point is that what the religious leaders have despised will be the foundation of the new thing that God is going to do.
No wonder they crucified Jesus–you can understand how angry this parable would make the religious authorities in Jerusalem.
Jesus tells the leaders of the Jews that, if they reject him, they will lose their role in God’s plan to bless the whole world through them.
And that’s what happened.
Here’s the question for us: are we living productively and faithfully, in response to God’s call on our lives? We are not entitled to be part of God’s plan to save the world–it’s a gracious gift to be involved. But, if we don’t take responsibility to live faithful lives, God will move on to other people who are willing.
How can you say “Yes” to the Lord today?
Today’s Scripture:
More on the Minas
I didn’t post anything on Friday, but because it’s such a difficult parable, I decided to skip today’s reading and comment on Friday’s “Parable of the Ten Minas”. Matthew has a similar parable called “The Parable of the Talents,” with which you might be more familiar. It’s also more straightforward than the parable Luke gives us.
Some historical context: when King Herod the Great died (the one who was king when Jesus was born in Bethlehem), his son Archelaus went to Rome to petition Caesar to permit him to reign in their father’s place. Some Jews followed him to Rome to ask Caesar not to accede to his request. (They were unsuccessful, and Archelaus became king.) So, Jesus seems clearly to be alluding to current events as he begins his parable:
“12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’
14 “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’”
The point is that Jesus was accusing some of the Jews of rejecting the Messiah’s reign in the same way they rejected Herod’s son.
As far as the rest of the parable, I like how Klyne Snodgrass explains it:
““Whatever else it does, the parable assumes a time when people will need to be faithful before the kingdom arrives….
“Like some Jews who resisted the reign of Achelaus, so some now resist the reign of the Messiah, but they will encounter judgement; further, the adherents of the Messiah will also be judged regarding their faithfulness. Both themes fit well in the last days of Jesus’ ministry. The parable serves as a warning to Jesus’ Jewish contemporaries–both those who followed him and those who did not….
“Jesus’ harsh language is intended to shock so that people take the warning seriously.””
Oh, and that final command of the king to slaughter his enemies?
Remember who is telling the story!
Jesus is killed on behalf of his enemies. So, why does he add that last line in? My best guess is that he’s just being provocative and alluding to the real-life example of Archelaus.
Friday’s Scripture:
Read Through the Gospels With Me in 2019!
The readings are just Monday-Friday, and we only read each Gospel once, which means we’re moving at a pace with which anyone can keep up. I write a brief post/commentary/devotional on each day’s readings, posted at 3:30 AM every weekday morning.
This page shows every post I’ve written, sorted chronologically below.
For more info about our Gospel reading plan, click here.
The Persistent Widow
The point of this parable is that God is NOT like the unjust judge; if an unjust judge will respond to a widow’s persistent plea how much more will a loving God eagerly respond to the requests of his people?
Today’s Scripture
The Second Coming
I like how Joel Greene puts it: when the Second Coming occurs, it will be “unmistakeable, worldwide, sudden, inescapable, and, for those who are not prepared, calamitous.”
Today’s Scripture
Don't Be Like the Other Nine
There were ten lepers healed.
Nine went on their way and chose not to thank Jesus.
One went back and thanked Jesus.
Don’t be like the nine today.
What, specifically, do you not want to take for granted today? How can you thank the Lord for it?
Today’s Scripture
Sin, Faith, Duty
Luke 17:1-3
Causing other people to sin or otherwise trip up spiritually is a serious sin in the eyes of Jesus. Watch out!
Luke 17:3-6
Be ready to confront sin, and eager to forgive it. (Don’t be like the elder brother in the Parable of the Prodigal Son.) And, though forgiveness is difficult, Jesus says that even with just a smidge of faith, cool stuff will happen when you put his teaching into practice!
Luke 17:7-10
Obedience doesn’t gain you honor or reward—it’s just what’s expected. (I need to read this section to my children!)
Today’s Scripture
Luke 17:1-10
The Parable of the Unjust Steward
This is a difficult parable, but part of the problem is our habit of treating the parables of Jesus allegorically, in that we expect every detail to have a theological correspondence. This is not the right way to interpret parables--rather, the parables are startling stories drawn from everyday life that make surprising spiritual points.
So, in this case, don't try to figure out who the unjust steward is and who the master is and what the oil represents. Instead, focus on the main point, which I take to be this:
If people in this world know how to use their possessions in a way that works with this world's values, how much more should the followers of Jesus know how to use their possessions in in a way that works with the values of the world to come!
In other words, a Christian ought to use his money in accordance of the values of the Kingdom of God.
Does that help?
Today’s Scripture:
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The Two Brothers
In the Parable of the Lost Sons, Jesus shows how there are two ways of destroying relationships:
- The younger son shows the "external way of destroying relationships: outright sin, rebellion, and selfishness;
- The older son shows the "internal" way of destroying relationships: self-righteousness, pride, and resentment.
Note how both ways destroy relationships, but they each do so in different ways. And note how the father wants reconciliation with both sons, regardless.
The danger to the younger son is obvious: his behavior is immediately self-destructive. But the danger to the older son is more subtle and insidious, and in some ways scarier: he thinks he is right even as his self-righteousness is keeping him out of the party.
I suspect that most of us have more in common with the older son than the younger.
How is your pride keeping you from being reconciled with someone today?
Today’s Scripture:
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God Loves the Lost
When the Pharisees grumble that Jesus eats with sinners, he tells 3 parables, the first 2 of which we read today: the Parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin. What's the point he's making?
That God loves lost people.
To whom can you show that love today?
Today’s Scripture:
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Count the Cost
Jesus doesn't want anyone to accuse him of not being forthright about the cost of being a disciple. He uses hyperbolic language ("You have to hate your own family") to show that the only way discipleship works is for faith to be first, and everything else second. (How do I know that Jesus doesn't literally want us to hate our families? Well, to honor your father and mother is one of the Ten Commandments, among other reasons.)
Then, the little Parables of the Tower Builder and Warring King make the same point: understand that following Jesus comes with a cost, and don't say he didn't warn you. And if you aren't willing to pay the price, discipleship just won't make sense for you--you might as well be salt without saltiness.
For me, this raises the question, "Why would anyone choose to become his disciple, knowing that discipleship is so costly?" Here's my answer: because his way leads to life, and no other way will ultimately give us what we want.
Today’s Scripture:
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Are You Going to the Party?
God is throwing a huge party, and wants everyone to be there. How will you reply?
I preached on this parable this past Sunday, and that was the main point.
Today’s Scripture:
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