Lessons: Wisdom 2:12-24, Psalm 22, Hebrews 10:1-25, John 18:1 – 19:37

 Brothers and Sisters in Christ, pray for me, that the words I say may be those God wants us to hear.

Last week, a friend showed me a picture that had been given to her by a skilled artist, who also happened to be a guest at Loaves and Fishes and Friendship Park. It was a drawing of Jesus, hanging on the cross…but the view was not face-on, as we usually see it, but from behind…so you saw the back of the cross, all hard brown wood…and the peach and beige tones of a healthy, strong body, with a white cloth wrapped about the loins…you saw the tangled hair and the crown of thorns, but you could not see the anguished face, or any blood.

At the foot of the cross, facing Christ and facing us, there were black line drawings, outlines of what could only have been people. But the figures and faces were jumbled and distorted, so while you could tell they were meant to be human, you couldn’t tell exactly what they were thinking or feeling, or if you were looking at faces, or hands, or backs, or feet…whether they were standing, sitting, kneeling, or embracing. The overall feeling when you looked at them was one of human anguish, despair, confusion, misery…a mess of human souls, with no health in them.

And there was Jesus, the only healthy, whole human, hanging on the cross…dying for this mess of souls.

One wonders, looking at such pictures, and thinking such thoughts, what good news can be found in Good Friday. It feels like death and destruction reign, like the powers of evil are in charge. We hear those powers of evil speaking in the first lesson today: “Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions…the very sight of him is a burden to us, because his manner of life is unlike that of others, and his ways are strange…let us test what will happen at the end of his life…Let us test him with insult and torture, so that we may find out how gentle he is…”

 But Christians have named this Good Friday. Originally it was “God Friday”, but the change in names has endured, because the reality is that evil is not stronger, and death does not win.

Today’s Gospel reading comes from John. John is known as “the Gospel of Love”. It is structured very differently than the other 3 Gospels, includes different stories, and is the source of some of the most beautiful poetry and imagery we Christians have When we read it, we often hear the Holy Spirit speaking to us by word and symbol. Remember how the Gospel of John begins?  It starts out this way: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” So this Gospel begins by telling us that Jesus, the Word, called all things into being…and then became flesh and lived among us. So when John tells us the story of Jesus’ passion and death, he is careful to show us that, from beginning to end, Jesus is in charge. Jesus is a victim, but not a helpless one. He allows all the things that happen, carefully fulfilling what scripture has foretold about him.

Throughout this lesson, John inserts phrases that point to the fulfillment of this scripture or that one, or the fulfillment of Jesus’ own words…he does not lose a single one of those whom he is given…the way Jesus said he would die…the division of clothes and casting of lots…his thirst…none of his bones broken…the piercing of his body. You may have noticed that a couple of these passages come from Psalm 22, our psalm for today. John brings these references to our attention to show that, even though the passion story may contain what looks like random acts of cruelty and death, there is some purpose underlying it all that we can’t see…yet.

But Jesus sees it. He knows that this is what he was born for, part of the truth he must testify to the world. In this passage, we hear him reveal this to Pilate, and in an earlier passage he says ”Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”

All people. The whole human family. Even those confused, lost folk in the painting, who are standing at the foot of the cross.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”

Even from the cross, Jesus is in control, providing for the welfare of his mother. He sees her and his beloved disciple standing nearby, and entrusts them to each other’s care. He assures that his mother will be taken care of by someone he loves and trusts, and that she, also, will have someone to love and care for. How well he understands the need of his mother to give love!

This little cluster of 4 people standing at the foot of the cross is good news for us, too They support Jesus with their love and presence, even though they can’t fix his situation, or make his way easier…they are there because they love him, and they cannot deny that love, even at their peril. Their “cross”, at this time, is to endure the pain and suffering of watching helplessly while something horrible happens to someone they love…and not to let the one they love endure these things alone. They are good examples for us to remember, especially when we face situations where we feel helpless.

Peter, who said he was ready to follow Jesus anywhere, and even die with him, is nowhere to be seen. Wielding the sword in the garden, cutting off the ear of Malchus, he was trying to make good his promise to follow Jesus. He tries to get control over the situation with his might. But Peter misses the point. Jesus is in control. Later, Jesus tells Pilate “if my kingdom were of this world, my followers would fight.” In the garden, he tells Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?” Jesus is in control, and he chooses arrest.

Even in the Praetorium with Pilate, Jesus is in control. When Jesus refuses to speak, Pilate reminds him that he has the power of life and death over his prisoner. Jesus points out “you would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above.”

John peppers the story with irony. The Chief Priests are doing something unholy. They are actively pressing for the quick and brutal execution of a fellow Jew in order to maintain the status quo. Yet they won’t go into the Praetorium, because it would make them ritually unclean, and they wouldn’t be able to celebrate Passover. Then, when Pilate asks them “Shall I crucify your king?” they reply, “We have no king but the emperor.” The leaders of Israel, the holy nation, say this. Israel, the people who are supposed to have no king but God.

Jesus says “I am thirsty”. So they put sour wine on a sponge and lift it up to him on a branch of hyssop. Why does John tell us it was hyssop, and what IS hyssop? Hyssop is an aromatic herb. The plant referred to in this passage is probably somewhat like marjoram…this is not a plant you would choose because of long branches. Putting wine on hyssop and lifting it up has to do with the Lamb of God imagery that John, our poet gospeller, is carefully weaving into the story. Hyssop was the plant the Israelites used on the night of the Passover to smear blood from the sacrificial lambs on the lintel and doorposts.

You notice that John tells you what time it is. It is about noon when the chief priests declare, “we have no king but the emperor”, and Jesus is handed over to be crucified. This is the same time that the Passover lambs began to be slaughtered. Here too, John is reinforcing the Lamb of God symbolism in the story.

Finally, Jesus yields control to the Father. He says “It is finished.” His work is done, he has fulfilled all he came to do. He bows his head, and gives up his spirit.

Even though John has portrayed Jesus as being in control, and the passion story as part of a larger struggle and victory, he reminds us of Jesus’ humanity. When the soldiers pierce his side, blood and water flow out. Jesus is fully human. He was born with free choice, like the rest of us. He chose this way because he knew he was born for this, but the choice, the pain, the suffering, the death, and the courage to face them were all parts of his humanity. And this is good news for us, too…because in the depths of our pain and suffering, he is there with us. He brings us comfort and courage.  And we know he won’t run away…we can trust him to be there, to the end and beyond. He stretched out his arms on the cross to bring all people to himself, and he holds us in his love…even before we know it.

Almighty God, we pray you graciously to behold this your family, for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed, and given into the hands of sinners, and to suffer death upon the cross.

Amen.