Darkness and Light Together
Darkness and Light Together Matthew 27
As I sat in a local restaurant the other day I wondered how many of the people there who were drinking, yes, even smoking, were actually aware in their own lives of the needs of others. What would have happened in their lives if that moment in time could have been frozen and they had to say, " this is what my life means and meant to others." In some ways the Gospel for today is a moment frozen in time, with its results that are eternal in the lives of all people. They were gathered at the Cross, the Soldiers, the women who had followed Jesus, yes, even His blessed mother, Mary, and it all came down to the Cross. It seems as though it is only a moment of darkness when Jesus was nailed to the Cross and He was dying, and then gave up the ghost.
We too have very dark periods in our lives. They are moments when the light does not shine in any place we can see. Very depressed people know this trial. Unfortunately there does not seem to be much hope in our world to help. Every one seems to be ignorant of the problems we really face. We even try and hide them from God thinking He is obviously not concerned very much. That little cartoon we often laugh at , " Counseling- 5c" by Peanuts is amusing, but only if there was someone who we could confide in and feel relief.
Today we read the Gospel of the Passion, and it runs by us much like many of the readings . In a slight moment of hearing, we ask for insight and help for we truly are needy people. Often it just is ritual and not real. What did you hear in the ritual today? Here we include the readings of the Scriptures for they are definitely a part of our liturgy.
There were those who scoffed. In fact they make up the probably majority of those around the Cross in this picture. The people asked for Barrabas, at the persuasion of the priests and elders 27:20. They put a crown of thorns on His head, and spit on Him, mocking, " Hail, King of the Jews". Under the Cross they cast lots for His garments . The railing against Him continued, " If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross." vs. 40 Likewise also, " the chief priests mocking him with the scribes and elders, said ' He saved others, himself He cannot save.' "
But in that moment in time, the Soldier there at the Cross heard Jesus cry with a loud voice ,then yielded up His spirit ( vs 50). It made a deep impression on this centurion. " And when the centurion which stood over against Him , saw that He so cried out, and gave up the ghost , he said, ' Truly this man was the Son of God.' " Edersheim says in his book Jesus the Messiah, " Christ encountered death not as conquered, but as the Conqueror"
What happens next is often not recalled. " The veil of the temple was torn in two.." which according to Jewish tradition took 300 priests to move around. There were earthquakes. The tombs were opened . The saints walked about . After the resurrection of Jesus, Matthew says, they appeared to many in the holy city.
What looked like darkness was darkness of course, but the light came. The light of God's power entered into the natural world and many hearts were changed, " Truly, the man was the Son of God." Today as we go through difficulties, tragedies and lose loved ones to death and sickness, we too feel great darkness. Our lives appear to not matter. However this is not the light talking, but the darkness. In the death of Jesus, our sin , is taken to God and made holy. At the Cross we are forgiven.
It is sometimes hard to see the light in the darkness, but it is there. The body of Jesus does not stay on the cross, but a disciple comes, Joseph of Arimathea, puts it with Pilate's permission in his new tomb. God is bringing us through many trials and difficulties, but He is preparing us to receive His light .
As I sat in a local restaurant the other day I wondered how many of the people there who were drinking, yes, even smoking, were actually aware in their own lives of the needs of others. What would have happened in their lives if that moment in time could have been frozen and they had to say, " this is what my life means and meant to others." In some ways the Gospel for today is a moment frozen in time, with its results that are eternal in the lives of all people. They were gathered at the Cross, the Soldiers, the women who had followed Jesus, yes, even His blessed mother, Mary, and it all came down to the Cross. It seems as though it is only a moment of darkness when Jesus was nailed to the Cross and He was dying, and then gave up the ghost.
We too have very dark periods in our lives. They are moments when the light does not shine in any place we can see. Very depressed people know this trial. Unfortunately there does not seem to be much hope in our world to help. Every one seems to be ignorant of the problems we really face. We even try and hide them from God thinking He is obviously not concerned very much. That little cartoon we often laugh at , " Counseling- 5c" by Peanuts is amusing, but only if there was someone who we could confide in and feel relief.
Today we read the Gospel of the Passion, and it runs by us much like many of the readings . In a slight moment of hearing, we ask for insight and help for we truly are needy people. Often it just is ritual and not real. What did you hear in the ritual today? Here we include the readings of the Scriptures for they are definitely a part of our liturgy.
There were those who scoffed. In fact they make up the probably majority of those around the Cross in this picture. The people asked for Barrabas, at the persuasion of the priests and elders 27:20. They put a crown of thorns on His head, and spit on Him, mocking, " Hail, King of the Jews". Under the Cross they cast lots for His garments . The railing against Him continued, " If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross." vs. 40 Likewise also, " the chief priests mocking him with the scribes and elders, said ' He saved others, himself He cannot save.' "
But in that moment in time, the Soldier there at the Cross heard Jesus cry with a loud voice ,then yielded up His spirit ( vs 50). It made a deep impression on this centurion. " And when the centurion which stood over against Him , saw that He so cried out, and gave up the ghost , he said, ' Truly this man was the Son of God.' " Edersheim says in his book Jesus the Messiah, " Christ encountered death not as conquered, but as the Conqueror"
What happens next is often not recalled. " The veil of the temple was torn in two.." which according to Jewish tradition took 300 priests to move around. There were earthquakes. The tombs were opened . The saints walked about . After the resurrection of Jesus, Matthew says, they appeared to many in the holy city.
What looked like darkness was darkness of course, but the light came. The light of God's power entered into the natural world and many hearts were changed, " Truly, the man was the Son of God." Today as we go through difficulties, tragedies and lose loved ones to death and sickness, we too feel great darkness. Our lives appear to not matter. However this is not the light talking, but the darkness. In the death of Jesus, our sin , is taken to God and made holy. At the Cross we are forgiven.
It is sometimes hard to see the light in the darkness, but it is there. The body of Jesus does not stay on the cross, but a disciple comes, Joseph of Arimathea, puts it with Pilate's permission in his new tomb. God is bringing us through many trials and difficulties, but He is preparing us to receive His light .
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