THE KING OF THE JEWS

 

 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above:

 THE KING OF THE JEWS.

With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who  destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

 

- Mark 15:22–32 

 

Yesterday we read that, as the crowds, being stirred up by the chief priests, demanded Jesus' crucifixion and asked instead for Barabbas to be freed, Pilate answered and said to them again, "What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?"  So they cried out again, "Crucify Him!"  Then Pilate said to them, "Why, what evil has He done?"  But they cried out all the more, "Crucify Him!"  So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified. Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison.  And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, and began to salute Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!'  Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him. Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of  the country and passing by, to bear His cross.

 

 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  It seems somehow strangely disjointed from the time to consider that at the Crucifixion of the Man who fulfilled so many prophesies, these soldiers would, in fact, cast lots for His garments, essentially gambling for them.  These are the garments which healed those who simply touched them in faith (see Mark 5:25-34; 6:56).   

 

 Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above:  THE KING OF THE JEWS.  The third hour corresponds to 9:00 in the morning.  Regarding the inscription, THE KING OF THE JEWS, my study Bible comments that this title, intended as an accusation and mockery, becomes instead a triumphant symbol.  Again, this is an unwitting act of prophecy connected with Christ's Crucifixion, this time on the part of Pilate.  According to my study Bible, it shows that the nation has risen against their own King, and that the cross was the means by which Christ established His Kingdom.  

 

 With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who  destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.  My study Bible claims that Christ being crucified between two robbers not only fulfills the Scripture, as noted in this passage (see also Isaiah 53:12), but shows that He is completely identifying with sinful humanity.  

 

Once again, we experience the "upside down" quality of this time in which Jesus is led to the Crucifixion.  My study Bible explains the title on the insignia of the Cross, meant to humiliate, and yet it was unwittingly a prophesy, and inadvertently proclaimed the truth about Jesus Christ.   Even so, at the same time, it fulfilled the prophesy, "And He was numbered with the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:12).  Again, the "upside down" quality is present in that Christ is the singular Innocent, free of sin as no one else is, and yet, He's numbered with the transgressors.  In this sense, He bears the sins of the world, although He comes in order to forgive and to redeem.  Notice also how the text tells us that Jesus is blasphemed, by those who wag their heads and tell Him,  "Aha!  You who  destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"  This is the Man who performed many healing miracles, and yet here He's mocked for seemingly failing to save Himself.  The chief priests most notably jeer at Him regarding His incapacity to "save," once again demanding a sign from Him, "that we may see and believe."  It's like they've never heard Him before when He's told them He will not produce a sign on demand (Mark 8:11-12).  Moreover, there is a greater irony here, in that we know the truth -- that Jesus has purposefully gone to the Cross of His own volition and for His own purposes, which they cannot imagine nor understand.  The text also tells us that even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.  But we know that at least one of these men with Him will be saved, and possibly both (see Luke 23:39-43).  But Christ goes so that we will follow.  In His death on the Cross, He will defeat death through His Resurrection and Ascension, human nature taken up into Paradise with Him, and transfiguring human suffering such as is witnessed through such a cruel death.  Those who revile Him cannot see what is happening in front of them, and to the defeat of their purposes in putting Christ to death.  In Galatians 3, St. Paul tells us, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree'), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Galatians 3:13-14).  Those who were to uphold the Law inverted both its purpose and letter in putting Christ to death; yet through the use of the law, Christ removes its curse once and for all, and for all humankind.  One really couldn't imagine a more "upside down" vision than the one His detractors have of Him and what He does on the Cross, in His suffering, humiliation, and death.  All of this brutality, injustice, and ugliness is transfigured in Christ, so that He may in turn transfigure us and out suffering and sin -- even the curse of evil -- in our own lives.  All of it is done through faith, and that is where we must start, with Him, and where we must end also with Him.  

 

 

 

They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots

 

 Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name.  Him they compelled to bear His cross.  And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink.  But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.   Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:

"They divided My garments among them,

And for My clothing they cast lots."

Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.  And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one of the right and another on the left.  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "You who destroy the temple and built it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.

 

- Matthew 27:32-44 

 

We are currently reading through the Passion of Christ.  Jesus has been convicted in night trial before the Sanhedrin, and brought to Pilate the Roman governor of Judea who sits in the judgment seat.  Pilate finds no guilt in Jesus, and has tried three times to release Him, but the chief priests and elders have coerced the crowd to demand Barabbas.  When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just Person.  You see to it."  And all the people answered and said, "His blood be on us and on our children."  Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.  Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him.  And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.  When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand.  And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.  

 

Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name.  Him they compelled to bear His cross.  And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink.  But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.  Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:  "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots." Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.  And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:  THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.  Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one of the right and another on the left.  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "You who destroy the temple and built it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.  My study Bible has a note on the entire passage in today's reading.  It comments that Jesus accepts mockery and endures the weakness of our body in His own to take upon Himself our sufferings.  This is accomplished because He unites His divine nature to our human nature.  So, His humanity is truly our humanity.  As He has no sin, He nevertheless was made to be sin for us, that through His flesh He might condemn sin itself (Romans 8:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 2:9).  Matthew speaks of the two robbers who were crucified on either side of Jesus, that at first both mock Him.  But we know from St. Luke's Gospel that one of them would later repent (Luke 23:39-43).  The words spoken by the prophet which are fulfilled are from Psalm 22:18; the entirety of the Psalm describes the Crucifixion.   The words from the first verse of this Psalm will be on Christ's lips as we follow the events of His Crucifixion in the next reading.

 

 One element that pervades all of today's reading is how completely Christ is reviled in the scene presented to us.  Crucifixion itself was the harshest punishment the Romans handed out.  It was reserved for the worst of criminals.  It assigned a slow and agonizing death which included the most punitive type of shame to a criminal -- hung upon a cross before all, and for days at a time.  Crucifixion itself invited public spectacle and jeering at ones exceptional suffering and degraded state.  The notion of personal honor is important here, as it was an important understanding in classical civilization, and so this treatment was degrading on a number of levels, and designed to assert a full lack of any consideration whatsoever for the person as a human being.  In the classical world, even cruelty to animals was a subject of discussion of moralists and philosophers, many asserting that animals had souls and therefore the right not to suffer unnecessarily.  So one way we might consider St. Paul's words (as referred to by my study Bible) that Jesus Christ came to "be sin" for us is to consider this extraordinarily degrading treatment.  We couple this with the understanding that so many knew Him to be innocent of wrongdoing, and it puts us in a place where we see extraordinary injustice even on purely human terms; treated as One made notorious in this iniquitous treatment seems to embody "sin" in and of itself.  But Jesus bears all of this, and He has willingly gone to His Cross to defeat sin once and for all.  His divinity not only defines Him but bears witness to the cruelties and unjust sufferings the world visits upon Jesus, and so becomes the ultimate judge of sin itself.  For there is no doubt that this isn't a simple story of certain religious leaders seeking to do in their opponent, a man whose growing popularity is a kind of threat or a thorn in their side.  What we're witnessing is the outcome of a tremendous battle behind the scenes, of the "ruler of this world" and the forces represented thereby and Christ as the Son who is in all things obedient to the Father.   In John 8:44, Jesus condemns those who do as the devil does:  "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it."  So we cannot separate the sin and evil put upon Christ from the spiritual forces with which people ally when they do so -- and Christ, as Son, becomes the great object of this spiritual battle.  In so doing, we could say that the devil attempts to paint Christ as the ultimate evil, as sin, projecting his own state upon the Lord.  In this light, let us consider that Christ has also taken on all the shame we might ourselves experience, vividly rendered for us in the Gospel accounts.  Additionally, Christ voluntarily took on the consequences of sin -- corruption and death -- but without Himself sinning.  He Himself has become like a sin offering, reconciling humanity and God for the renewal of the world, in a completely ontological sense.  That is, this reconciliation runs to the fullness of all that is, seen and unseen.  But lest all of these considerations lead us to a kind of despair at such unjust suffering, let us consider that it is not just Christ's divinity but His own state as a sinless human that enables evil to be defeated -- even evil in the highest places.   In Luke's Gospel, when the seventy apostles return rejoicing that they were able to cast out demons, Jesus says, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven" (see Luke 10:17-19), for as Christ's power becomes shared by human beings, the ruler of this world is defeated.  So let us take heart, for Christ knows this is the way to defeat evil, and we are invited into that struggle because of all He has done.  If we carry Christ with us and within us as we go through this world, we also participate in the Resurrection He will bring, and the defeat of death and evil.  For we may also bear witness for the court of His judgment.  In what we see today, the prophecy is fulfilled:  "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots."  In a worldly sense, Christ is treated as a person become nobody, nothing; even His clothing is left to others to cast lots for.  In such fulfillment, He becomes the Almighty, and Savior of all things.

 

 

If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross

 

 Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name.  Him they compelled to bear His cross.  And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink.  But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.  Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:

"They divided My garments among them,

And for My clothing they cast lots."

Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.  And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS

Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him, for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.

 

- Matthew 27:32-44 

 

Yesterday we read that when Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all as he tried to have Jesus released instead of Barabbas, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just Person.  You see to it."  And all the people answered and said, "His blood be on us and on our children."  Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.  Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him.  And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.  When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand.  And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.   

 Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name.  Him they compelled to bear His cross.  And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink.  But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.  Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:  "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots."  This quotation is from Psalm 22:18.  If we read the entire psalm, we see it is a picture of the Crucifixion.

Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.  And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:  THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.  Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him, for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.  Of today's entire reading, my study Bible comments that Jesus accepts mockery and endures the weakness of our body in His own in order to take upon Himself our sufferings.  This He accomplishes by uniting His divine nature to our human nature.  His humanity is indeed our humanity.  Although He has no sin, He was made to be sin for us, that through His flesh He might condemn sin itself (Romans 8:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 2:9).  Of the two robbers, we know that one would later repent (Luke 23:39-43), but at first both criminals mock Jesus, as Matthew notes.

So why does Jesus endure all of this at the Cross?  Why has He gone through scourging and mocking and cursing and all the rest of it?  He has said Himself that He could pray to the Father and be given twelve legions of angels to stop what is happening to Him (Matthew 26:53).  In every way, the Gospels teach us that this is a voluntary place that Christ goes to, even this horrible miscarriage of justice, with intentional violations of the Mosaic law at every turn in His trial, from false witnesses to a night trial to all the rest of it.  Even to be "betrayed into the hands of sinners" (Matthew 26:45) is part of what He voluntarily undergoes.  None of this takes away the sin of those who commit such acts (Matthew 26:24).  But the deliberate cruelty and injustice that Christ endures here tells us a story for all of us and for all time, about the power of God for transcendence and Resurrection, about divinity and goodness that are nonetheless not impaired through bad treatment, and especially about the power of God that goes first before us into a deeply sinful world and shows us the way through.  But even more powerfully, we are to understand holiness through Christ and through the gift of the Spirit.  Resurrection, for example, is a mystery far beyond some sort of rational explanation or moral aphorism.  It is the same with the Cross, and all of these aspects of Christ's Crucifixion.  Jesus as both God and Man enters into the territory of the worst of human sin and atrocities of injustice, unrighteousness.  As the Son of God He is blasphemed, tempted, mocked, scourged, derided, and treated to behavior meant to number Him among the lowest criminals, worthy only of cruelty and contempt.  But none of these actions change who Christ is.  There is no injustice or lie that can actually change the truth about Jesus Christ, that He is both divine in origin and sinless as human being.  This alone is a powerful lesson and inspiration to any of us who have experienced injustice in our lives, for we look to Him as the example of righteousness.  Rather, we look to Christ's faith as an example of how we ourselves should endure in a sinful world.  We hold fast to what is good.  It is the transforming power of the divine, of the very mission of Incarnate Christ, that turns the Cross into a way to redeem our lives and to fill even the worst of times with meaning and mission.  For what the divine has touched and endures through Christ sanctifies and heals our lives, even in the worst of what we do or what is done to us.  It is He who went to the Cross voluntarily who has the power to reach into our deepest places, and to teach us what needs to be changed and healed, to teach us what is properly love, to radically transform what needs transforming, and to teach us His love and redeem us through it.  Only through "becoming sin" -- this image of the worst of the worst, the One who was numbered among the transgressors, among the lowest criminals, who appears to the world as cursed (Galatians 3:13), and reviled, and all the rest of the things we see in today's reading -- can Christ's divinity touch us in all our most difficult and dark places.  For if He came to the world in the image of the all-powerful glorious majesty that is truly the Son of God, what would that have done to lift us up with Him?  What would that have done to make us come to Him and reveal our most shameful secrets so that they may be healed in His love?  The beloved disciple writes:  "We love him, because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19), and that is what this story truly tells us today.  This is the answer to those who taunt Him to come down from the Cross.

Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him

 

 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above:

THE KING OF THE JEWS.

With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"   Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

 

- Mark 15:22–32 

 

 Yesterday we read that Pilate answered and said to the crowd again, "What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?"  So they cried out again, "Crucify Him!"  Then Pilate said to them, "Why, what evil has He done?"  But they cried out all the more, "Crucify Him!"  So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.  Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison.  And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, and began to salute Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him.  Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross.

 

And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above:

THE KING OF THE JEWS.  Golgotha is the Place of a Skull, the place of death.  This is the full human experience of the Lord, the author of life.  He did not take anything that would blunt His pain in being crucified.  He has the full measure of unjust suffering that is possible for a human being.  They divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take:  see Psalm 22:18.   In tomorrow's reading, Mark reports Christ praying this psalm, giving us its first verse as His cry from the cross (Mark 15:34).  Regarding the inscription on the Cross, my study Bible comments that what was intended as an accusation and a mockery became instead a triumphant symbol.  Pilate's act of giving Jesus this title (see John 19:19-22) is prophetic, showing that the religious leaders had risen against their own King, and that the cross was the means by which Christ established His Kingdom.

 

 With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"   Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.  That Christ was crucified between two robbers not only fulfills the Scripture, my study Bible says (see Isaiah 53:12), but also shows He is completely identifying with sinful humanity.  Those who passed by blasphemed Him and the chief priests and scribes are mocking Him.  He has fallen to such a low place in the social order that even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him, even as His Cross bears the title KING.

 

What are we to make of this scene?  Christ is reviled even by those who are crucified with Him, mocked, derided.  The words of prophecy regarding His Resurrection are misunderstood and thrown back in His face as sadistic ridicule (see John 2:18-22).  Those who say these things to Him are no doubt taking pleasure in His pain, and what seems to be an ignominious end and failure of His ministry.  It seems to me to tell us many important things.  First of all, there is the appearance of failure.  Christ's "failure" is not failure, but prelude to triumph.  Imagine this scene, and then the impossible, unheard-of news that will come at the tomb, and later on as He makes appearances to His disciples.  The rest of the 2,000 year history of the Church will follow, but for now let us consider how the gospel message will spread throughout the Roman Empire and across the known world of the time through the apostles.  So the appearance of failure cannot be trusted.  On the other hand, it also teaches us that the "success" of this scheme is no success at all.  The apparent successes we see in life are equally simply appearances.  The engineering of this evil and cruel end, despite the terror of His great suffering and punishment under a system reserved for the worst of criminals, will achieve nothing of the desired ends of those who want Jesus dead.  Rather, to the country, it will be used by God as triumph, as clear indication that God's power prevails over that of human beings -- but more importantly, over evil.  But there is something more that comes out of this horrible scene, and that is its meaning personally for us and in our own lives.  The fact that our Creator has apparently (that is, to human eyes) "failed" so spectacularly is a message to each of us.  And that is a message of hope that always exists as a seed in every circumstance.  The appearance of failure, even the apparent triumph of evil, should never stop a faithful Christian from pursuing our faith, and our lives as we are asked by God to live them.  We understand through this scene that our world is not perfect, nor does our Lord proclaim it to be "perfect."  Rather, He lives the injustice and pain of the world.  As the prophet says, "He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted" (see Isaiah 53:4-6).  We can be assured that whatever we go through, and whatever happens to us in life, our Savior has been there before us, and has assured us that no appearance of failure, no cruelty nor injustice can define who we are in God's sight.  This is because our Lord has shown us that nothing that He went through defined Him, except to teach us of His love for us, His willingness to suffer for love on our behalf.  So not only should we look at this scene, even when we want to recoil from it, and see its teaching that our real judgment does not come from this world, but also we must be able to see the immense, unfathomable love of our Creator for us.  Whatever happens in our lives, we can be upheld by these two things, and this is the gift of our enormously suffering Creator who loves us.  It really does not matter what comes along in life, who rejects us or reviles us, who mocks us and ridicules us, what failures in worldly terms we endure:  for the faithful person our Creator is truly the last word.  He is the Word Himself, and He will indeed have the last word as Judge.  Ultimately it is His judgment alone which we need to take about ourselves and all things; it is His judgment that will define reality and our worth, and His judgment that must lead us in our lives, even after a spectacular failure or setback, and no matter what are our afflictions.  This is what we must take from the Cross, the great gift of God to us, and especially the meaning of our Lord and Savior Jesus, who loves us so much He was willing to suffer and die for us.  He is left at this Place of a Skull, a garbage heap for human beings.  But what it means is that even when we might find ourselves in such a place, either figuratively or even literally, He is there out of love, with us.  We who follow Him are therefore those who always have hope.  We just have to seek and find His way for us through all things, even through a human garbage heap, with prayer -- and even in those times when, unlike Christ, our failure might be entirely our own.  He remains the answer to whatever it is we need.

They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots

Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name.  Him they compelled to bear His cross.  And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink.  But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.  Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:

"They divided My garments among them,

And for My clothing they cast lots."

Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.  And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:

THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  Even the robbers who were crucified Him reviled Him with the same thing.

- Matthew 27:32-44

Yesterday we read that when Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just Person.  You see to it."  And all the people answered and said, "His blood be on us and on our children."  Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.  Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him.  And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.  When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand.  And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, and put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified. 

Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name.  Him they compelled to bear His cross.  And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink.  But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.  Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet:  "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots."  The text quotes from Psalm 22:18.  St. Leo the Great (Pope Leo I) comments that the compelling of Simon of Cyrene to carry Christ's cross is symbolic of Christianity coming to the outsiders, the Gentiles.  Regarding the sour wine mingled with gall, see Psalm 69:21.

Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.  And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him:  THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.  Then two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and another on the left.  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  Even the robbers who were crucified Him reviled Him with the same thing.   Of today's entire passage, my study bible says that Jesus accepts mockery and endures the weakness of our body in His own to take upon Himself our sufferings.  He accomplishes this by uniting His divine nature to our human nature.  His humanity is our humanity.  Although Christ has no sin, He was made to "be" sin for us, that through His flesh He might condemn sin itself (Romans 8:3, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 2:9).   Although one robber would later repent (as we know from Luke's Gospel, see Luke 23:39-43), at first both criminals mock Jesus.

As we read in today's text, Jesus takes on the sufferings of the world.  It doesn't seem to be precisely understood today what "gall" was that was mixed with the sour wine commonly consumed by the Roman soldiers, but quite possibly it was a bitter substance designed to help blunt the pain and shock of crucifixion.   If we understand this correctly, we see Jesus willing to endure and suffer all things that humanity does.  This is a voluntary act, and in the refusal of the wine mixed with gall He does not even take a preparation designed to help minimize that suffering, even to some small extent.  Why does Christ suffer?  This question opens us to what is called a theodicy.  This word comes from two Greek words:  theos/θεος meaning "God" and dikē/δικη which means justice.  A definition provided by the Oxford English Dictionary describes theodicy as "the vindication of divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil."  In other words, it asks the question, "Why does God (who is ostensibly "good") permit evil?  That would especially mean the evil that exists in our world, and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ stands as a most explicit example of evil, and is committed against One who has no sin.  But in the words of St. Paul (and echoed in my study bible), Christ "became" sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21).  Clearly, one thing we know absolutely from the Gospels, is that this suffering and death on the Cross by Christ is a necessary part of the salvation plan for us.   There have been many answers to the question of why this is so throughout Christian history.  But I would offer one particular understanding which has to do with Christ's return and the Judgment that is initiated through His life in the flesh, and the coming of the Holy Spirit.  That is, this suffering of the innocent Christ becomes a testimony against the evil of the world, rendered effectively by His suffering as witness (in Greek, the word for witness is "martyr").  It most especially becomes a testimony against the "evil one."  When we also enter into suffering in His name and for the sake of our faith, we do the same, we are witnesses ("martyrs") in the sense of the framework of judicial language in which Christ has often used in His mission into the world, and the eventual judgment to come at His return.   Even when we declare our faith, we say that we give testimony, as in a courtroom.  The Holy Spirit is the called the Counselor, an Advocate; that is, one who defends at trial and offers assistance.   In this role He is called Helper and Comforter; in Greek Parakletos/Παράκλητος, meaning the one who comes (to one's side) when called, as does a legal advocate in a trial.  The entire Passion of Christ is an indictment of injustice itself, and also of lies, the spirit of the anti-Christ.  And here we must recall the Holy Spirit is also called by Christ the Spirit of Truth (and remember who is the "father of lies").  Our own salvation comes when we take up our own crosses, as He has taught us, and we share in His ministry, testimony, and "martyrdom."   We walk in the way of God, in some sense taken out of the world, although the world will respond in its own way.  Like Christ we are "not of this world" through faith and participation in His Kingdom; that is we are in the world, but not of it (see John chapter 17).  When we are met with the evil of the world, we must turn to our faith, our steady participation in the life Christ offers, to prayer:  and follow in the ways that Christ gives us.  In this way, we offer testimony in the fullness of true judgment that belongs to Christ.  What Christ offers us on the Cross is the ultimate freedom, for He shows that He is no slave of the evil one nor of the world, but rather, He says, the enemy, or the "ruler of this world," "has nothing in Me" (John 14:30).  On worldly terms, God intervenes in the mysterious ways of God.  But God's justice has a way of working itself out:  witness Christ's prophetic words regarding the eventual Siege of Jerusalem (in this reading), or the effective peaceful resistance movement of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King.  Just as the world (in the collective presence of the mob) was offered a choice between Jesus and Barabbas, so we are effectively always offered this choice.  We are essentially asked what we choose first:  God or a worldly fix.  Do we walk through life prayerfully and seeking God's guidance, or do we live by the sword alone?  This is not to say that there is never a time to take up arms, or to use other means available through a worldly justice system.  But we are asked to be guided by our faith, always, and before all things.  We follow the first great commandment to love God with heart, and soul, and mind -- and the second, to love neighbor as ourselves.  We are asked to live as part of His Kingdom, even as we are in this world, and we are given a solution that in effect challenges evil in its very root, as the spiritual problem it truly is.  There will be times when we bear our own cross and suffer injustice, but even that is ultimately a part of a much greater movement of justice, one which includes healing and beauty and truth, and the goodness and love of God.   It is the Cross that saves us.  For the Cross is transcendent, and takes us from simply material beings who suffer and contest in constant struggle with one another over scarce goods, to human beings who are created in the image of God.  It offers us life in a much greater and larger cosmos than we can imagine, a shared love with all the saints of God, participating in God's glory and strength and purpose.  And it offers us the growth in ourselves of all the fruits of the Spirit, the stature of dignity as God's children by adoption.  Behold the Man on the Cross.  He leads the way first.  Even in our very personal and most intimate struggles, His Cross is transcendent for us, and leads the way through and beyond to Resurrection and His life.

THE KING OF THE JEWS

 And they brought Him to Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above:

THE KING OF THE JEWS.

With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, come down from the cross!"  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

- Mark 15:22-32

Yesterday we read that Pilate answered and said to crowds again, "What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?"  So they cried out again, "Crucify Him!"  Then Pilate said to them, "Why, what evil has He done?"  But they cried out all the more, "Crucify Him!"  So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.  Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison.  And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, and began to salute Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him. Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross.

And they brought Him to Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above: THE KING OF THE JEWS.  Once again, we find truth peeking out from what was intended to be an accusation and mockery.  My study bible calls this inscription a triumphant symbol.  John's Gospel teaches us that Pilate acted to place this title on the Cross (John 19:19-22).  My study bible says that Pilate's act is prophetic, showing that the Jews had risen against their own King, and that the cross was the means by which Christ has established His Kingdom.

With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, come down from the cross!"  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.  My study bible comments here that Christ being crucified between two robbers not only fulfills the Scripture (v. 28; Isaiah 53:12), but also shows that He is completely identifying with sinful humanity.  Moreover the mocking continues by members of the leadership, and yet another demand for proof that He is the Christ.  The Gospel, in its details, wishes us to understand how lowly is His worldly state:  even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preaches, "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake" (Matthew 5:11).  Here in today's reading, Jesus is living that teaching, first of all, before the rest of us.  He is the Master, and as He has taught also, "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household!" (Matthew 10:24-25).  Are we really prepared to follow in His footsteps?  The real question here is a deepening understanding of what exactly all of this means.  We understand that Christ goes to the Cross not simply "because it is written" (although true prophesy does teach us about things which will come to manifest; it does not cause those things to occur).  We understand that in all things, Christ is living faith.  That is, it is precisely as He prayed in the garden:  "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You.  Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will" (see this reading).  There is a depth of reliance upon the Father and the Father's will that makes this death on the Cross bearable and possible.  In this sense, this is no ordinary crucifixion.  None of the others crucified on this or any other day transfigure the instrument of suffering to turn it into one of salvation and redemption.  There is only one Cross, and it is so precisely because of the way that Jesus lived His life and goes to His death:  His complete reliance and trust in the Father, and the subservience of His human will to God.  Fr. Stephen Freeman writes in a comment on his blog regarding our own acceptance of death and the Christian faith:  "It is not death that we desire, but union with Christ, including with His death. I think it is useful to make this distinction. Most of what the world encounters in death is precisely the enemy (death is the last enemy). It is ugly, brutal, frequently laced with meaninglessness, etc."  What we come to terms with in the death of Christ is how the Church will come to understand the death of its martyrs.  Death is transfigured through the Cross -- and most importantly, death as the final enemy, death as evil, is defeated.  This death on the Cross leads not only to Christ's Resurrection, but in that Resurrection so we are also lifted up with Him, and we may participate in this "cycle" in our own lives, wherever and whenever there is a kind of death, or encounter with evil.  When all things are given to God, even those which are nominally evil that we encounter in our lives, they are transfigured and given meaning.  We are to face them and live them through in faith and trust in God, as does Jesus.  Life is a journey.  Jesus tells us, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6),  and that word for way also means "road" in Greek.  Our road might pass through all kinds of things, but if it is the road we're given through our faith, it is the road that leads us somewhere, gives all things meaning as we pass through it, and brings us only that much closer to Him.   Even in this lowliest of states Jesus enters in today's reading, all things are given meaning, and in turn that meaning is offered to us through Christ.  Let us remember such a life is also one of witnessing, for an ultimate judgment.  In the end it means the defeat of that which seeks to harm and destroy, and it is for the life of the world.  Let us also understand that our own identity is not determined by our circumstances in the world, but rather through the faith which gives all things their meaning and value.