My blog has been on a hiatus for a
month, and I apologize to my readers for this interruption. My entries for this blog focus on the sermons
which I preach at Christ United Methodist Church in Lincoln. During February, I was out-of-the pulpit for
two Sunday’s and at other times I did not post a blog due to illness.
During the Lenten season, my
proclamations will focus on "Jesus’ Words from the Cross.” These are the sayings of Jesus during his
crucifixion, as recorded in the four Gospels.
They are:
1.
Luke 23:34: “Father, forgive them,
for they do not know what they do.”
2.
Luke 23:43: “Truly, I say to you,
today you will be with me in paradise.”
3.
John 19:26–27: “Woman, here is your
son. Here is your mother.”
4.
Matthew 27:46 & Mark 15:34 “My
God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
5.
John 19:28: “I am thirsty.”
6.
John 19:30: “It is finished.”
7.
Luke 23:46: “Father, into your hands
I commit my spirit.”
I began these explorations at our
Ash Wednesday service by focusing on Jesus’ exclamation, “I am thirsty!”
(Number 5 above). This Sunday (March
5th), I will focus on Jesus’ words, “Woman, here is your son. Here is your mother.” (Number 3 above).
As we reflect on these sayings of
Jesus from the Cross, it seems to me that the central question we should ask is this: “What
do these sayings teach us about Christian discipleship in the twenty-first century?”
In the passage we are examining, the
Greek syntax of verse 25 is very confusing.
Consequently, translators have struggled with this verse and there are
substantive differences between various English translations. I prefer the translation in the New International
Version:
25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of
Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When
Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman,[a] here is your son,” 27 and to
the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took
her into his home.
In verse 26, “the
disciple whom he loved” refers to the disciple, John, who was the brother of
another disciple, James, and the son of Zebedee.
There are several ways to interpret
this saying from the Cross. One method
of interpretation would be to look at this passage symbolically. Biblical scholar Gail R. O’Day suggests that
we read this passage in that manner. Dr.
O’Day argues that for the John the Gospel writer, Mary symbolizes Jesus’
earthly ministry because she was present at the beginning of his ministry (see
John 2: 1-11) and she was present at the end. Meanwhile,
she argues that the Apostle John represents the future when Jesus is resurrected. O’Day concludes: “When Jesus entrusts his mother and the beloved
disciple to each other, then, the Fourth Evangelist [John] points to Jesus’
death as the link between the past of Jesus’ ministry (represented by Jesus’
mother) and the movement of that ministry into the future (represented by the
beloved disciple).”[i]
I find Dr. O’Day’s symbolic
interpretation of this scene instructive.
However, for the purposes of illuminating what we can learn about
faithful discipleship in the twenty-first century, it seems to me that a more
straightforward reading is more beneficial. Read from this perspective, what we see is a very poignant act of
familial love.
Even in the midst of a crucifixion’s brutal pain and
exhaustive exertion, Jesus exhibits this profound love and concern for his
mother. We must remember in the time and
context of Christ, there were no social provisions for the care of widows or
the elderly; no Medicare or Social Security.
Women were especially vulnerable because there were no employment
opportunities for women outside the home.
So, even dangling from the Cross, Jesus seeks to insure that his mother
will be cared for after his death. He
proposes that his mother look upon his favorite disciple as a son, “Woman, here
is your son.” And, he asks John to care
for Mary as though she were his own mother, “Here is your mother.” And, we learn that “From that time on, this disciple took her into his
home.”
From the
twenty-first century perspective, Jesus’s act of concern and compassion on the
Cross mandates that faithful discipleship includes caring for those who are
weak and vulnerable within our families, within our communities, within our society, and indeed
throughout the world. This may become
even more important within our communities and society, if our federal
government finds it necessary to radically curtain social support for the weak
and vulnerable in our society, as some elected governmental officials have
proposed. However, for this Sunday, I
will focus my attention on the gathered community of faith—our church.
For twenty-first
century congregations, Jesus’ concern for his mother, even when dangling from a
Cross, provides critical instruction:
The church is called into being as a gathering of love, support, and
friendship. Like a family, the gathered
community of faith provides a place to belong, a setting to be in ministry, and
the source of pastoral care and support when needed. Just as Mary received concern and care from
her son as he died on the Cross, so also individual disciples should receive
concern and care from Jesus through their church; their gathered community of
faith.
But, there is
more. The Church is also an eschatological
foreshadowing of the community of Christ at the end time, when Christ returns
and the Kingdom of God is fully established here on Earth (See the Revelation
of John 21: 1-8). We experience this eschatological
promise most fully when the community of faith gathers around the Altar table
and celebrates the Sacrament of The Lord’s Supper. Each time we celebrate the Sacrament, we hear
these words from the prayer of institution, “By your Spirit make us one with
Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, until Christ comes in final victory, and we
feast at his heavenly banquet.”[ii] When we celebrate The Lord's Supper, then we are looking ahead to that future, when we will share in a heavenly banquet with Christ and with all of our loved ones, even those who have passed on ahead of us.
If you live in the Lincoln, Nebraska area and do not have a place of
worship, then I invite you to come and join us this Sunday, March 5th, at
Christ United Methodist Church, as we reflect further on these words of Christ
from the Cross and how important they are for faithfully following Christ in
the twenty-first century. Our church is
located at 4530 A Street. Our classic
worship services are at 8:30 and 11:00 on Sunday mornings.
Everyone is welcome and accepted because
God loves us all.
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