I watched Mel Gibson's movie again this week. I am still overwhelmed by it. I know it is Mel's interpretation of the events, but I imagine the actual events were very similar. To see a depiction of Jesus tortured beyond recognition and then hung on a cross brought an overwhelming sense of awe. What supernatural restraint Jesus displayed on the cross, during the arrest, while being flogged. He just kept taking it. The beating, the mocking, the spitting in the face, the pushing down to the ground, the yelling and screaming of insults. 23:35 And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also scoffed at him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if this is the Christ of God, his chosen. What holy restraint!!!! He would not give in to the temptation to get off the cross and kick some religious a#%. Instead, he prayed for them. He asked God to forgive them. I wish that was my response when people hurt me, instead of my tendency to counter punch. Jesus prepared for this in the desert before he began his public ministry. Re-read the account in Luke 4 of the Temptation of Jesus. He was tempted for 40 days in the desert. He did not eat, and yet after 40 days, he did not give in to the temptation to turn the stone into bread. Also, I noticed for the first time the reference that Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit. 4:1 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led in the Spirit in the wilderness If Jesus needed time of preparation (30 years and then 40 days in the desert) and the filling of the Holy Spirit before he was ready to embark on his public ministry, how much more do we average Joes and Carols need prep and the Holy Spirit. Have we taken the time to go to the desert or the wilderness? Have we put ourselves in a sacred liminal space without distraction and listened for the voice of God and resisted the temptation not to believe. Or do we just channel surf or web surf or actually surf instead. Are we prepared for the passion that God has called us to? In his Passion, Jesus displayed holy restraint, humility, obedience, and love. I pray that we will allow the Holy Spirit to lead us to the desert, so we can be can be stripped of ourselves and then strengthened, empowered, and initiated into the way of Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, and ready to take up our crosses and follow Jesus. |
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