LENT • 6
Given that our Lord suffered for the sake of our communion with the Father, how should we as servants and children respond?
reading for: 6 April
Luke 22:14-23:56
The Son who suffers for the sake of our communion
READ
Today’s reading details Jesus’ journey beginning from the last Passover meal and cumulating with His death on the cross and subsequent burial. For the purposes of today’s lectionary reading, it is helpful to catch the interesting detail of this Passover feast in relation to the four cups of wine that is drunk marking different stages of the meal. While much can be said and appreciated from understanding the details and significance of each of the cups, it is enough to note that this was an orderly practice passed down from generation to generation with the fourth cup marking the end of the Passover feast. However, Jesus seemingly inappropriately ended the feast with his disciples after the third cup. While this may not be a big deal for us today, for a Jew this would have been startling.
As we can guess, if not rightly credit Jesus to know what He is doing, this should be seen as an intentional act knowing full well that this last Passover was to end with Himself as the Passover lamb seeing to completion His Father’s will. John (19:28-30) captures this intentional act of fulfilling scripture well cumulating with Jesus’ final drink of wine declaring that ‘It is finished’. He is after the Lamb of God who was slain before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8) and with that fourth drink, He closes the Passover meal, commits Himself to His Father and breathes His last.
This overarching structure of an open and close to this chunk of scripture provides a graphic and detailed description of Jesus’ Passover passion and is helpful in capturing the fullness of our Lord’s passion, love, suffering and sacrifice and not just focusing on the moment He dies on the cross.
The words ‘This is my body given for you’ and ‘my blood… poured out for you’ that Jesus said at the Last Supper quickly moved from a symbolic gesture and declaration to a raw tangible flesh and blood outworking how the Father’s will was worked out in His obedience to His Heavenly Father even in the face of suffering and death.
I will leave it to you and strongly encourage you to set time a take in His passion journey towards the cross. Put on your counsellor’s coat and bravely put yourself in each moment of His journey. For therein lies His loving confrontation and revelation of the kind of love demonstrated and given to us. He suffered tremendously every step of the way but did not waver. He showed us His Father’s love for us in each detail and tells us that this is the kind of love poured out for us and the kind of Kingdom of love that we are called to and a part of as His sons, daughters and servants.
Pick up your cross and follow me is not just some Sunday Christian jargon but a real tangible and potentially painful, gory, and fearsome albeit glorious invitation of a life in His footsteps. Let us make no mistake, Jesus suffered greatly not just physically, but psychologically and emotionally as well. And He did it keep His eyes of His Father’s heart and will for us to be reunited with Him. Oh, how eagerly did He long to eat this Passover Feast with His disciples and to eat it again when it finds its fulfilment in the Kingdom of God (Luke 22:15-16). Oh, consider the earlier imagery of the great banquet (Luke 14:15-24)! Though many rejected His invitation and did not come, His heart was always to have communion with us; that we would be one just as He (Jesus) and the Father are one (John 17). He spared no expense and paid for us in full. Let us take a moment this day considering the fullness of what He gave so we could come.
REFLECT
I cannot help but be reminded of ‘Love Song’ by Third Day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjFEkI8ETf0
Attached it’s an excerpt of the whole song.“I’ve heard it said, that a man would climb a mountain just to be with the one he loves.
How many times has he broken that promise, it has never been done.
Oh I’ve never climbed the highest mountain but I walked the hill of calvary…
Just to be with you I’ll do anything. I would give my life away..
And I know that you don’t understand the fullness of my love.
How I died upon the cross for your sins.
and I know that you realize how much that I love you.
But I promise, I would do it all againnn…
Just to be with you I’ve done everything.
I have gave my life away now…
Just to be with you.”As mentioned above, let’s take a moment to read through Luke 22:14-23:56, taking time to pause at each moment of His journey to the cross to take in how He suffered and died for us. Let us appreciate God’s love poured out that we may be one with Him.
Let us also consider how God maybe challenging us to walk in His footsteps in our own life circumstances and spheres. Let us turn to Him afresh in repentance for all the times we have denied Him, turned away from Him, and rejected His invitation.
Jesus tells us that ‘in this world we will have trouble but take heart for I have overcome the world!’ (John 16:33) His grace is sufficient for us for in our weakness His strength is made perfect! (2 Corinthians 12:9) Let us take heart and turn to Him. He is worthy of our all.
reading for: 7 April
Isaiah 50:4-9a
The Servant who suffers in faithfulness and obedience to God’s call
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Isaiah 50:4-9a often titled ‘The Suffering Servant’ is a first person writing by the prophet Isaiah during the time of Israel’s Babylonian exile. The unnamed servant whom scholars have identified as a particular individual or the collective Israel is the protagonist.
In this segment, we can hear the prophet making sense of the painful realities of exile in particular highlighting the cost of being a faithful servant during such a time.
Isaiah 50:4-9a has a rather neat literary structure with two segments, verses 4-5, and verses 7-9a, both hinging upon verse 6 graphically describing the servant suffering at the hands of his/her enemies (this week’s readings seem to have this graphic-ness in common).
Beautifully framed in such a manner, Isaiah 50:4-9a is a well-nuanced portrait of the suffering servant. The first part, verses 4-5, establishes the servant’s calling and enablement from God as well as his/her faithfulness to the call, while the second part, verses 7-9a grounds the servant’s vindication and approval as coming from God Himself in spite of his/her suffering and persecution at the hand of enemies.
It is important to note that the anchoring theme of the servant’s suffering in verse 6 is meant to be seen in clear relation to the servant’s faithfulness to his/her calling and proclamation described in verses 4-5. In the context of exile, the prophet’s attentiveness, advocacy, and encouragement to the suffering and marginalized could have drawn persecution and rejection from those in power and even those suffering. Lastly, one would want to note that the relationship between verses 4-5 and verse 6 wants to emphasize that this suffering is not passive but a result of the servant’s choice to face the conflict with others and the corresponding suffering because of his faithful proclamation.
Wrapping up, it is easy to see the parallels of Isaiah 50:4-9a with our Gospel reading of Jesus’ passion yesterday. Jesus Himself, the faithful Son and Servant, setting His face like a flint (v7), saw to completion His Father’s will in the face of surmountable suffering, all the while resting in the vindication and approval of His Heavenly Father.
REFLECT
The call to pick up our cross to follow our Master cannot be a bed of roses. As much as we should not seek out suffering for the sake of suffering, it is logically impossible to avoid in the face of conflicting kingdoms. As fellow faithful servants and children of God, we need to be apologizingly real about the cost of discipleship. We need to be absolutely critical of so called ‘common sense’ and ‘let’s be real’ thoughts that short circuit our following of Christ in the face of opposition and suffering. It is not something we can switch on and off based on our comfort levels. We can choose not to and turn away from Him, and we all do sometimes, but let us be clear that this is exactly what we are doing.
The context of Isaiah 50:4-9a is directly applicable to us today in that we too live in the harsh realities of exile awaiting Jesus’ second coming. We still ought to pray ‘Your Kingdom come’ every day. We need to decide this day for which kingdom we stand. One cannot serve two masters. A house divided cannot stand. Let us not shun the Holy Spirit conviction and loving rebuke. Let us be humble and repent in ashes for all the times we have diplomatically denied Jesus. Like Peter at the rooster’s crow, perhaps we too ought to ‘go outside’ and ‘weep bitterly’ (Luke 22:62), knowing that our Lord is not surprised by our struggles and failings. After all, God demonstrated His love for us in this way, that while we were still sinners Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).
Listen to the song, ‘So you would come’ amid our failings and turning away:
https://youtu.be/5nh1_LSHOdwAnd let us come boldly to His throne of grace.
“Before the world began, you were on His mind.
And every tear you cried, was precious in His eyes.
Because of His great love, He gave His only Son.
And everything was done, so you would come.
Nothing you can do, can make Him love you more.
And nothing you have done, can make Him close the door.
Because of His great love, He gave His only Son.
And everything was done, so you would come.
Come to the Father, though you gift is small.
Broken hearts, broken lives, He will take them all.
The power of His Word, the power of His blood,
And everything was done so you would come.”
reading for: 8 April
Philippians 2:5-11
The Role Model for our communion with one another
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‘Jesus at the centre’ could be the song titled used to describe how to we ought to see this Messianic Poem (Phil 2:5-11) in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. For a bit more on that, I encourage us to watch ‘The Gospel Project’ video on the book of Philippians to see how the different parts of Philippians draw from the various essences of this artistically written poem as the centre piece of this letter.
What’s important to note is that leading into this poem, the Apostle Paul guides his readers to consider how they ought to relate/commune with one another with the mind/spirit of Christ (v5). While some translated versions of this verse may seem to be an individual charge (i.e. ‘same mind in you’), the Greek language carries a plural/communal tone to this verse, calling for the community to have this same mind among them (i.e. ‘among you’).
In our last two readings of this week, we considered how Jesus suffered for our communion with God and subsequent how the suffering servant suffered as a result of choosing to stay faithful to His call from God. In this reading, Paul shows us how our communion with God and following of Jesus Christ ought to impact and guide our communion with one another. Much like the greatest commandment, where Jesus highlights our communion with God as the greatest commandment but sets it inseparable from the second which is about our communion with one another.
Verses 6-8 paint a rather descriptive picture of the internal posture of Jesus. In direct comparison to the first Adam, who reached out to try to be God, Jesus our last Adam, emptied Himself of His God status and power, humbled Himself, and served God and us. These verses also serve as a good juxtaposition to the scene in our Gospel reading of Luke where the disciples were contending amongst themselves about who is the greatest (Luke 22:24). Jesus corrects them and challenges them to open their eyes to His very own example as a servant among them – exhorting them to follow in His example as their Master.
In addition, verse 8 not only highlights Jesus’ life as one that is lived in obedience to His Heavenly Father, but also emphasizes the extent He lived out that obedience – even unto death on the cross.
Our Lord lived out His love and ministry to the people even amid the persecution, rejection, denial, and suffering. He healed his captor’s ear, extended grace and prayer for Peter who denied him, forgive those who rejected Him, ministered to the thief on the cross, and saw to completion the work needed to be done so that we could be reunited in our communion with God and with one another (just to name a few). He served faithfully and with great humility and calls us to do the same.
As His church in these last days, we ought to remember that our faith ought to not only shape our congregational relationships, but also that of those around us in our community. However, let us not compete for power or recognition like the world does as we do our good works but begin to consider how a life lived in humble emptied service should look like. We can trust that just as God is the one who eventually exalted Jesus’ name (v9-11) to His glory, He too will exalt His church in His time and His way. He will be glorified, but by a people whose relationships bear the likeness of His son Jesus.
REFLECT
Which Adam do we find ourselves more likened with? Do we, like the disciples at His Last Supper find ourselves still bickering and competing for recognition and power in a worldly way. How comfortable and aligned are we to our Lord’s version of glory. Can it be that the way is really one of emptying and deepening humility becoming a servant of all just like our Master? Let us gaze afresh at our Lord’s example and allow the Holy Spirit free reign in our lives. Let Him examine our hearts and our hands.
Worshipfully listen to the song ‘Above all’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_cxhf5ISeg asking the Holy Spirit to lead you in contemplating our Lord’s example. May He grant us fresh insight and loving conviction in our relationships and our involvement with our community and areas of influence. Even as we have been challenged recently in the area of discipleship and mentoring, let us prayerfully seek out a mentor or a discipleship group. Let us journey with intentionally with fellow brothers and sisters in their own journeys of following in our Lord’s example. Let us not be satisfied with milk and move on towards solid foods. He is worthy of it all!
reading for: 9 April
Psalm 31:9-16
The Trusting Posture of His Suffering Servant
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What an amazing Psalm to bring together this week’s readings! In some sense, our weekly Psalm reading is kind of my personal favourite read as it shows us the inner life of the writer in prayerful response to God within their context. For us, the Psalm usually brings together the theological assertations, insights, and revelations of the week in the form of a prayer, profession, or declaration. How often in our journey with God do we long for insight from our mentors or forerunners in Christ for their testimonies and how they responded or lived out that this or that challenging teaching of Christ? The book of Psalm actually gives us a sense of that through the prayers, professions, songs, and poems written.
This week, Psalm 31 is especially precious in that it tackles one of the most heart dark-night-of-the-soul questions of all times – the question and place of suffering in our lives albeit in this context as a servant of God. Not only that, but it is also a Psalm that Jesus Himself quotes in His passion (Ps 31:5) – ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit’ (Luke 23:46).
So how does the Psalmist respond? And what can we gleam from today’s reading?
Verses 9 to 13 showed us the servant’s authentic conversation with God. It showed the servant’s plead for mercy followed by a personally experienced account of his/her circumstances and state of being. Noteworthy, in this portion is that the Psalmist chose to turn to God in his/her plight and accounted it to God authentically and in detail. Why does this matter? Well, it shows that the Psalmist saw God as a God who cared about the details of his/her life and someone who the Psalmist felt safe with.
Verse 14 serves as like the linchpin of this portion of scripture capturing the posture of the writer amid his/her suffering. We all know that when a person says ‘but’, the main point comes right after. The Psalmist writes, ‘But I trust in You Lord; I say, “You are my God” (emphasis mine) (v14). What is the internal posture of the suffering servant? One who looks to and puts his/her trust in God in spite of all that is going on around or to him/her. The servant goes on to declare that power and authority belongs to God (captured in the word ‘hand’), and that he/she has no power or authority over his/her future (v15). He finally reveals the foundation of his/her prayer – God’s just character and His faithful covenantal love that does not turn away those who depend on Him (v16).
In many ways, Psalm 31 can also be rightly read as Jesus' prayer during His passion as He committed His spirit into God’s hands.
As in Isaiah 50:4-9a, which we read earlier this week, it mirrors and reinforces the correlation between trusting God and suffering. What was the Psalmist view and thoughts of suffering and what did the Psalmist deem as an appropriate response?
i) Suffering is not something that God removes when we choose to follow Him. In fact, it is something that often ought to be expected and be worked out before God.
ii) Suffering is not something that God shuns, nor does it represent that God is not present. Rather God is close to His servants amid their suffering. Even as Jesus, God’s only Son Himself went through hellish suffering to reconcile us with God, He shows us that nothing can separate us from God’s love for us (Romans 8:31-39). He tells us in action through His Passion, that when we face suffering, that He goes through it with us. Surely His goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives (Psalm 23:6). He said, “Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you” (Hebrew 13:5).
iii) The appropriate response is trust in the God revealed to us in Jesus Christ His Son. His character and covenant is steadfast and certain.
REFLECT
Listen to the song “With all I am” and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us in prayerful response: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYXJmnJCPG0
Sure, the road to following our Lord is a narrow one often laden with persecution, sin, evil, and suffering, but we can take heart even as we keep our eyes on Jesus the author and perfector of our faith. He has overcome the world and calls us to come. He will see us through! In Romans 8:17 we are reminded that as heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if we share in His sufferings, we also share in His glory. Let us press on in our communion with our Heavenly Father and with one another following Christ’s example. He is truly worthy of it all.
“I will walk with You. Wherever You go.
Through tears and joy, I’ll trust in You.
And I will live in all of your ways and your promises forever.
Jesus, I believe in You. Jesus, I belong to You.
You’re the reason that I live. The reason that I sing.
With all I am.
I will worship you. I will worship you.”