2412AFC032224 – Who has done this? ← 😊 PODCAST LINK
The Road to Jerusalem Series #6
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Isaiah 50:7 –
7 The Lord God helps me;
therefore I have not been disgraced;
therefore I have set my face like flint,
and I know that I shall not be put to shame;
Psalm 22:21-22 –
21 Save me from the lion’s mouth:
for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns. [or wild oxen]
22 I will declare thy name unto my brethren:
in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
Philippians 2:6-9 –
6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied * himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death —
even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
* ekenōsen from ken-o’-o – to empty out, render void, seen as without value or recognition.
Mark 14:3 – The Anointing at Bethany
3 While he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper†, as he sat at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment of nard‡, and she broke open the jar and poured the ointment on his head.
† This could refer to the brother of Mary and Martha of Bethany – Lazarus – and that name means “God has helped.” It might also be that man’s father or brother, or some other close friend of Jesus. The Gospels of Matthew and Mark mention the name Simon, but in the Gospel of John, the name Lazarus is used. There is a stop at Bethany in all four Gospels during the last week of Jesus’ life before the end of his Journey to Jerusalem. See Matthew 26:6-13 and also John 12:1-8.
‡ Nard, also called spikenard, is a very expensive fragrant plant (See photo) originally found in the Himalayas. It is very costly to extract and purify. The fragrance is said to be exquisite, and would not be diluted or overpowered by other fragrances – such as those at a meal. In Song of Songs (also referred to as the Song of Solomon) Chapter 1, Verse 12 it says the King was reclining on his couch at table and the fragrance his lover wore filled the air. The oil clings to skin and hair and last for quite a long time.
Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. This weekend we will hear the Passion of Christ as recorded in the Gospel of Mark. The Gospel reading is longer than most, and often it is read by 3 voices and the assembly participates as well. We all know the story, and it is easy at times to get on autopilot and hear the readings as sort of a long b-z-z-z-z-z-z. Today I want to look again as some of the things where we say, “OK, OK, and what’s that? … never mind. Back to the story.” Let’s begin with the Old Testament reading from Isaiah 50. Verses 4-11 are referred to as one of the Songs of the Suffering Servant and those are prophecies of Jesus’ Passion. Here, Isaiah is telling us he has the gifts of a “well-trained tongue.”
This Gift from God is an answer to what Isaiah said in Isaiah 6:5-8. (↔ Click Link) In that passage he bemoaned his unclean lips so an angel took a burning coal in some tongs and cleaned his lips. The Lord God of Hosts – Jehovah Sabaoth (ṣə-ḇā-’ō-wṯ) – proclaims “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then Isaiah says emphatically “Here am I; send me!” (↔ Music Link) Now, that’s what all of us should say when the opportunity comes up to be of service to someone. Remember, they can see the Jesus in us if we look for the Jesus in them? In our Key Verse, he describes how Jesus was able to leave the Garden of Gethsemane and – with the same steadfast determination we have seen all the way on this Journey to Jerusalem – he moved forward into his Passion. He fixed his whole being – body mind, and Spirit on what must be done … then he did it. We may not feel like we have a well-trained tongue, but we most certainly can make up our own body, mind, and spirit to do what God asks. There’s an APP for that.
Our Key Verse from the Psalms is part of David’s Prophecy of Jesus’ Passion and Crucifixion. I have sometimes wondered if this was one of the songs the Disciples sang at the Last Supper. The first line of it is included in the Seven Last Words of Christ – My God! Why have you abandoned me? (↔ Music Link) There are plenty of beautiful explanations of what that meant to Jesus while he was dying. This old man likes the idea in the tradition that says all Jewish men knew the Psalms by heart and upon hearing the first line, they could recite that Psalm to the end. Here is a version of that ending:
Psalm 22:29-31 [1] (GNT) –
29 All proud people will bow down to him;
all mortals will bow down before him.
30 Future generations will serve him;
they will speak of the Lord to the coming generation.
31 People not yet born will be told:
“The Lord saved his people.”
That is the Victory of the People of God!
For our Key Verse from the Epistles, I’ve given us a note about the word “emptied” because it means more than just what comes to mind when we think of pouring out a vessel. I am always reminded of the Christmas song “Come to My Heart, Lord Jesus.” (↔ Music Link) Jesus gave up being God! to become like us – the creatures HE created – and he allowed us to kill him in the most gruesome way. The passage cited is referred by some as a “Hymn of Kenosis” or kenotic hymn. It reinforces and exemplifies Jesus words in Mark 10:32-45. That passage is the third time that Jesus tells them about his Passion and Resurrection, and tells them “and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” There we see the true result of Jesus’ kenosis – to empty out, render void, seen as without value or recognition. And yet, Belovéd, he was still God and part of the Holy Trinity throughout all Eternity. AMEN to that! As a human earthling, he did not use his Omnipotence to escape the agony of the Cross. Instead, he knowingly, willingly, humbly, quietly, and completely surrendered to his death, even death on a cross. When we meditate on those last hours, those last words, those last gurgling breaths, we might experience those moments of contemporaneous concomitance (See 1620.5AFC051616 Contemporaneous Concomitance) and stand with the Apostle John and the three Marys while our hearts break to see him suffer so. Selah.
Next we move to the Gospel Key Verses.
This account takes place at the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany. The note provided along with the Key Verses give us most of the information we need so as to come to an understanding that Jesus spent some time with some very dear friends before finishing his 
Journey to Jerusalem. Jesus was in Bethany, close to Bethphage Βηθφαγή, (Béthphagé) {bayth-fag-ay’} which is from an Aramaic word meaning “Place of new – or unripe – figs” near the base of the Mount of Olives. While reclined at table (chairs were not used as in this image), an unnamed woman anoints him with nard. As the lovely fragrance fills the air, some of the guests complain it is too extravagant. Jesus quiets them with yet another reference to his impending Sacrifice: Mark 14:8-9 – 8 She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial. 9 Truly I tell you, wherever the good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her. ʻŌmea, have we done what we could to unite our lives with Jesus’ last hours? The opportunity is always there; bet to act on it before the cock crows thrice in our lives!
Now, we turn to our question of the week, “Who has done this?” Who can unfetter mind, heart, and soul to walk that lonesome Journey to Jerusalem with Jesus? God willing, and with our commitment, we have traveled these first six weeks of Lent together, and we’re going to see the King of the Universe die a shameful death all alone, cold, beaten and battered. Still, he asks his Father’s forgiveness for the ones who have done this to him: us. He asks God to forgive us because we don’t know what we’re doing when we walk away from Our Father into the seemingly warm arms of sin only to find ourselves in freezing fire. Instead we must recall that The Lord God helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced.
Jesus surrendered everything for us. What will we surrender, empty of ourselves, to come to know who we are in Christ? Can I, can you, can we surrender all? (↔ Music Link) We have walked with Jesus as earthlings for many days – for some of us it is our entire life to be on this road with him and with each other. Knowing that the Journey to Jerusalem ends at Calvary is, frankly, a terrifying thought. But we know a Secret that God himself has told us: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” When you listen to the reading of The Passion, think of Love. It is the greatest Love Story ever told. We will walk with Jesus all the way to Easter next week and ask “When did we know?” Think about that for me, OK? Then next week let’s share what we know about when we knew. You can send your memories to this email address. Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea!
Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!
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Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com
Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
[1] Passages marked (GNT): Good News Translation (GNT) Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition)© 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible
