John 12: 1 - 11
Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God, from everlasting to everlasting...
May He add His blessings to the reading of His Holy Word.
Scholar’s call the Gospel by John as “the Book of Signs.” They also call the second half of the Gospel, either “the Book of Glory” or “the Book of the Passion.”. Beginning in chapter twelve, the remainder of the Gospel deals with the last week of Jesus’ life. It is the story of his passion and the story of his glorification.
As we begin observing Holy Week – we experience the events in the last week of Jesus’ earthly life – We probably have different questions, aversions, and fears about Jesus’ death. And it doesn’t help that in church history there have been squabbles over the meaning of Christ’s death.
Jesus’ death is a sacrifice, a reconciliation of everything in heaven and earth through the blood of the Jesus on the cross. The whole idea, to some, of a 'sacrifice' is primitive and noxious? Just like I mentioned a few weeks ago to church members about the young man at the County jail who told me he just couldn't "believe in a religion that practices human sacrifice."
Well, Jesus’ death on the cross is a victory over the forces of sin, death, and the devil. So the question then is why would an all-powerful God have to deal with the devil in the first place?
Jesus’ death makes satisfaction for our sins.
Jesus’ death is an example of self-giving love that inspires us to participate in his self-offering.
a. Are you saying then that we can save ourselves?
b. Jesus was executed by a corrupt empire, Period.
c. Is there no theological meaning to be found in Jesus’ death whatsoever?
These ideas and debates can shape our perceptions of Jesus’ death during Holy Week.
Sacrifice? Victory? Satisfaction? Example? Execution?
The Book of Glory or the Book of the Passion?
In our Gospel today, the characters in the story each represent a different perspective on Jesus’ death. At the home of Lazarus, a dinner is given for Jesus. The theme for the evening is clearly his impending death.
Lazarus was at the dinner. He says and does nothing. Just like when Frank Pentangeli's older brother Vincenzo appeared in court his silence spoke volumes, Lazarus' silent presence says a lot about how we should understand Jesus’ death. Earlier in the Gospel, Lazarus had died, but Jesus raised him from the dead. This was a sign of the resurrection, an assurance that when Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life,” he was speaking the truth. All Lazarus has to do is sit there. His presence is testimony enough that Jesus’ death will not be the end of the story. The end of the story has to do with life, and, in the case of Jesus’, eternal life.
At the dinner, Martha served the guests. This picture of Martha serving is consistent with what we know of Martha from the Gospel of Luke. But in our passage from John, where the theme of the evening is Jesus’ death, we also see another faithful approach. One thing faithful people do at the time of death is feed people. It is a tangible sign of care in the presence of death, when grief often causes us to forget to take care. In the face of Jesus’ impending death, Martha offers the sacred service of providing a meal.
Mary anoints Jesus’ feet with a pound of costly nard and wipes them with her hair. The whole house is filled with the fragrance of the perfume. This is Mary’s approach to Jesus’ death, which Jesus interprets for us as a preparation for his burial. It is a love offering that fills the whole house. Mary’s action points to an interpretation of Jesus’ death that sees it as a love offering that will fill the whole world. When Jesus is lifted up on the cross, he will draw the whole world to himself.
Judas’ response to Mary’s love offering reveals his character as a betrayer and a thief. He raises an objection: Why waste the perfume anointing Jesus when it could have been sold and the money given to the poor? The narrator makes clear that Judas didn’t really care for the poor. He only wanted to steal from the common purse. Yet, Jesus’ response to Judas, “You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me,” strikes many as callous. In historical context, however, it is part of Jewish wisdom on how to balance the two goods of almsgiving and care for the dead. Are good things to do. But when you can’t do both, Jewish teachers have said, priority ought to be given to caring for the dead.
As we follow Jesus on the way of the cross during Holy Week, we see John’s Gospel portraying Jesus’ death as the accomplishment of the Father’s work, the glorification of Jesus, the defeat of the ruler of this world, a drawing of all people to himself, and a propitiation for sin. People need to hear and experience these different aspects of Jesus’ death during Holy Week. We need to hear and experience these aspects of Jesus’ death this Holy Week. Jesus draws all people to himself when he is lifted on the cross we need to honor the way we all find healing, forgiveness, deliverance, encouragement, and salvation in his death and resurrection.
Amen
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