Day 45: The Anatomy of a Sacrifice: The What, Why, and How of Good Friday
April 3
by Michael Lovett
Readings:
Reflection:
Isaiah 52 makes it clear that Jesus will be exalted. He is called the Servant in this passage, but he is exalted. Not exalted for his power nor his opulence, but because of what he endures. Isaiah predicts a beating so severe that it is appalling and disfiguring. There is a unique hellishness to violence. Violence is a deliberate attack on the good, the true, and the beautiful. And violence is what Jesus endured. Jesus personified goodness, truth, and beauty. Finally, Isaiah 52 hints at the power of suffering. There is a silent message that gets through to the minds and hearts of people when the Servant suffers. The violence Jesus endured actually happened. The humanity of Jesus is not in question. Jesus was an actual person who lived in history. That he died, beaten and crucified, is also not in question. But why...? and what does he mean to communicate? What impact was he hoping to make by doing and enduring all that he did?
Isaiah 53 is helping to answer the WHY and the WHAT as we consider the terrible realities of Holy Week so many centuries ago.
Isaiah 53:1-4 paints the picture of his character: A normal man, familiar with suffering, not comfort.
Verse 5 offers the first WHYs:
pierced for our transgressions,
crushed for our transgressions
..[bring] us peace
..[healing] of our wounds
Verse 10 keeps walking it out:
...[to be] an offering for sin
...will justify many
...will bear their iniquities
...[bear] the sin of many, and [make] intercession for the transgressors.
Let's pause and be clear, because talking about our sin is so uncomfortable for so many people. This passage is naming facts, not shaming humanity. The fact is, we all have used our free will to put others down, to control others, to shame others. We have abused our power. And that's not right. Jesus came to take the hit for those choices and all that fear-based behavior. He came to build peace, but he had to go into the awful impact of our choices. He came so that we might see the impact of our choices, not so that we'd feel shamed. Guilt, yes, but not shame. Sobered by the impact of our individual and collective choices, yes, but not overwhelmed by shame and blame and judgment.
Facing the reality of the life of Jesus, the death of Jesus, and the burial of Jesus is the work of Lent. And it is a test, no doubt about it. By reading these scriptures and trying to remain open to the truth of what happened in Holy Week right now, you are practicing more courage than most do. Facing the reality is a priceless part of this liturgy called Lent.
John 18 and 19 walk us through Jesus' final hours before death. I invite you to read Isaiah 52 and 53 again before reading John 18 and 19. Isaiah articulates the WHAT and the WHY directly and poetically, and John, who felt like he was the favorite of Jesus, tells us HOW, in detail, his beloved Lord was punished for our transgressions. Put together, these two scriptures, separated by about 750 years, make clear that Jesus was a singular, original, necessary, and willing servant of an ageless human need. The need for forgiveness.
Prayer:
God, Father in Heaven, bless us with a growing awareness of who you are, who Jesus is, who the Holy Spirit is, and how to collaborate and appreciate you. Give us insight, speak to us as your children and your church, both as individuals and as a community: What did you do and endure? Why did you do it? How, then, would we best honor you, in light of all things good and true and beautiful? Guide us in the final days of Holy Week and remembrance. Help us more deeply appreciate but Holy Week and Resurrection Sunday.
Father in Heaven, guide us year by year, to be formed ever more into the likeness of Jesus, our hero, our brother, our Lord, who made a way when there was no way. He was the only and final option for our forgiveness. Let us live a life of gratitude and following of Jesus of Nazareth.
Song:
Gethsemane, Carolyn Cobb
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