Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God!

And those who had laid hold of Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. But Peter followed him at a distance to the high priest's courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end. Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none. But at last two false witnesses came forward and said, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.' " And the high priest arose and said to him, "Do you answer nothing? What is it these men testify against you?" But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to him, "I put you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God!" Jesus said to him, "It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you,

hereafter you will see the Son of Man

sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven."

Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, "He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard his blasphemy! What do you think?" They answered and said, "He is deserving of death." Then they spat in his face and beat him; and others struck him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck you?"

- Matthew 26:57-68

In yesterday's reading, we read of Jesus' betrayal with a kiss, by Judas, one of the twelve. Today Jesus' trial begins, before the leadership of the temple.

And those who had laid hold of Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. But Peter followed him at a distance to the high priest's courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end. Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but found none. Even though many false witnesses came forward, they found none. I find it interesting that these people - the temple leadership - seek false witnesses. They are clearly trying to get rid of him in any way they can. Once again, I feel that it is important that we understand that our Lord has gone through the injustices that plague the world, and all the forms of evil from which we suffer. If there is to be a spiritual battleground within our hearts, let us be grateful that the Lord we worship has also experienced every hardship that we do.

But at last two false witnesses came forward and said, "This fellow said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.' " My study bible notes here: "The people misunderstand Jesus' words reported in John 2:19. Some Jews believed the temple would be destroyed and a new one rebuilt by the Messiah." Jesus' words are twisted - perhaps unintentionally, as my study bible indicates. But it teaches us several things. One, that we need the spiritual understanding to interpret what Jesus teaches. And secondly, that even the greatest and most succinct orator who has lived, whose words have shaped language and expression in countless countries, can be misunderstood, misinterpreted, and his words shaped for others' purposes, in order to use them against him.

And the high priest arose and said to him, "Do you answer nothing? What is it these men testify against you?" But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to him, "I put you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God!" There are a couple of small, interesting references in my study bible here. It references Isaiah 53:7: "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 her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth." For the words of the high priest, that Jesus was under oath, we reference the law of Leviticus 5:1: "If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible." Jesus speaks, therefore, as witness to himself.

Jesus said to him, "It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven." Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, "He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard his blasphemy! What do you think?" They answered and said, "He is deserving of death." My study bible has the following note on these verses: "Quoting from Psalm 110 and the prophecy of Daniel (Dan. 7:13), Jesus confesses he is the Messiah, both fully man, indeed, the Son of Man, and fully God -- for only God can sit at the right hand of the Power, sharing the authority of the Father. Jesus also proclaims he will yet establish the Kingdom of God in its fullness, coming in his glory on the clouds of heaven. His claim to be God is the real reason the high priest sentences him to die (verses 65, 66). Jesus' statement is befitting his divinity, but the high priest can neither comprehend nor endure such a thing." The penalty for blasphemy was death (see Lev. 24:16). Jesus is witness to his own divinity - as he has been throughout Matthew's gospel. We must recall that this gospel is written primarily for a Jewish audience, with this perspective in mind. "It is as you said" is a translation once again from Jesus' words that will be repeated throughout the gospels to these accusations: "You have said [it]." It is also the phrase used in the accusation against Judas at the Last Supper (see Rabbi, is it I?)

Then they spat in his face and beat him; and others struck him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck you?" This is the picture of Jesus humiliated, by people who are brutish by any standards. What has he done? He is simply in a powerless position, picked out as a scapegoat. He will be gotten rid of, so there is no threat to the leadership from what he preaches. He is a man of words, not fists nor rocks nor weapons of any kind - a man who rode into Jerusalem not on a horse as a worldly Lord, but on a donkey, a man of peace. Guessing games and divination are all these people understand of the spiritual, and he was not in the world for those without spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear, and hearts that will not be open to receive him.

How do we understand this story of humiliation? That the One we call the Lord of the Universe has endured what each of us may endure in our worst moments, what the evil in the world may do even to those most innocent. Let us understand then his suffering. He came into the world with love, taught through love. And those whom he loved, including even one of the twelve, betray him. How can we not, then, turn to this Lord in our own times of trial? Let us understand what a gift this life is, this way of handling injustice is for us. To share life in our world is to be one of us. We turn to him now for our way through it, too. Especially in times of humiliation and the greatest injustice we can experience, which he has walked through before we did.