Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Reading the Gospels...With Anticipation

The four gospels are about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ - the God-Man. Written to be understood, and to compel us to love Jesus, these four biographies of the Person and work of Christ must not become stale to our taste.

I'm currently meditating through Luke's gospel. Today, I made it to the end of chapter 22. Jesus is in custody, has been denied, mocked, beaten, blindfolded, and in many other ways, blasphemed (Luke 22:54-65).

Yes, we know the end of the story. Praise God! But what about that night? Go there. Watch it unfold. Sit close to the warmth of the fire beside the slave girl, who, leaning over to you while pointing across the glow at Peter says, "This man was with Him too." Hear Rocky's tone of voice as he says, "Woman, I do not know Him."

Look at the grip the man has on Jesus' tricep. And notice the handful of mocking men standing beside Him. Did you hear what they just said...to Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God? Oh, how heavy your heart is sinking as you watch Him take a punch to the jaw (A blow He never saw coming) for the 4th time. Then the blindfold? What are they doing to Him?

If you are there, you don't get the priviledge of fastforwarding to the next morning - and wouldn't want that anyway because that's when it gets even worse - when they mount Him on a timber; naked, shredded, and gasping for air until He dies.

That is where Luke leaves us until morning. Sleep on that! Isn't He God? Have you trusted a fraud? You left your job. They were right, you should have kept seeing patients, mending nets, keeping books. Now what? What now?


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The cost of discipleship, to be like Jesus. Thats the highest calling and, I guess, the toughest calling. Thankfully, there's joy there, as well. As Bonhoeffer wrote, "When Christs calls a man, He bids him come and die." Good thoughts today. Thanks for the challenge to meditate on Christ and His Word.