The Scandalous, Moronic Death Of Messiah

In light of the cross, everything must be re-evaluated.

You see, the cross is not just the cross (for there were many crosses).

And the cross was not just the cross of a potential messiah (again, many)

No, the cross is the the cross because it is the cross of the Messiah.

And the thought of the Messiah dying is just not...right.

In fact, it is scandalous.

The Jewish Messiah was to come and conquer.  It was his role to rule, to repair and to rescue poor Israel from the hands of those who oppressed it.  Messiah was a savior who would destroy the swords of the Romans and collect the Jews dispersed among the nations.

And so when the Messiah died, it required a rethinking.  Perhaps the conquering that he came to do was more than political.  Perhaps those he came to rescue were in deeper bondage than realized.

Perhaps those who oppressed the true Jewish faith were not those who opposed the nation politically.

The Messiah's death is moronic.

Any good Greek would know a hero, and they would know power.  The thought of a King's coronation coming through his death wouldn't fit the mold.  Kingship meant authority, power, dominion.  It meant the right to dominate.

The thought of the Messiah--the King--serving humanity (and through his death!).  That doesn't make sense.

The cross of Christ calls the Greek to reconsider his notions of authority and power.  It calls the Greek to reconsider his understanding of sin, servanthood, and dominion.  It calls the Jew to rethink his view of election, ethnocentric salvation, and ethic superiority.

The cross of Christ calls us to reconsider everything.

And it calls me to reconsider.  My dependence on rational, scientific, systematic thinking.  My ethnocentric nature.  It calls me to reconsider the structures built around me, and within my very heart.

For God's Kingdom is coming, and now here, and it is unlike anything else.

It is scandalous for some.

It is moronic for many.

But for us who believe, Christ (and him crucified) is both powerful and wise.

And in this truth let my heart dwell.

I Was Nothing But An Outsider

It was my sin that held him there, until it was accomplished...

...but it was my adoration that placed him there.

It was two days before Passover, two days before the feast and festival of Unleavened Bread, Jesus was in Bethany--right outside of Jerusalem.  His death was certainly coming.  He knew it.  Those who wanted him dead knew it.  Jesus was a dead man walking.

Mark shares with us that the chief priests were set on arresting him, but not until after that Passover; he never made it that long.  The plan fell together quickly from this time two days before, actions were set in motion.  Judas would betray...

...but why?

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Lent is a season traditionally used to prepare the Christian for Holy Week (Good Friday and especially Easter).  It is typically a time of self-reflection, a time to remember who you were before you were in Christ.  It is time for repentance and self-denial.

All good things.

Whether you and your church participate in Lent or not, I would like to propose something to you.  Lent, like the rest of Christianity is more about discovering Jesus than examining yourself.

When you examine yourself...you know what you are going to find.

You know the sins, the shortcomings, and the inconsistencies in your life.

When you look at Jesus, however, you discover something much more important:

Identity.  Who I was without, and who I am with, the Son of God.

Lent reveals us as who we really were:  Outsiders.  We were no better or worse than the religious leaders, but we were not part of the "in crowd."  In fact, most of you reading this were Gentiles.  We were the sick, the sinful, the ceremonially unclean.

Our sin may have been removed on the cross, but it wasn't only our sin that put Christ on the cross.  It was our adoration.  It was his acceptance of outsiders like us that led to his betrayal and arrest.  It was his willingness to include us that led to the nails and death.

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In Bethany, Jesus went to eat at the house of Simon the Leper.

The Leper

Outsider.

While there a woman (outsider by gender) and poured an expensive jar of perfume upon Jesus head.  THis woman, the other gospels will tell us was a prostitute, an adulterer, a sinner.

An outsider.

They complained that the perfume was not sold for the benefit of the poor.  Jesus rebukes them, favoring her  desperate plea for love.  Jesus rebukes them telling them "you can help them (the poor) any time you want."  They rebuked her for something they did not do themselves.

Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus.

Judas went when he could stand it no longer.  Jesus love of the outsiders, his inclusion of those that should be excluded, was too much for him to bear.

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Jesus includes.  It was his inclusion of sinners and unclean and ungood that sent him to the cross.  Looking at Jesus, as we walk closer toward the cross and Easter once more, we realize that we are not the in, but the outsiders.

Jesus brought us in.

Who are we leaving out?

Lent: What the Christian Churches Need to Know

Tomorrow begins the traditional season of Lent. For many within the Christian faith worldwide, this is a normal part of their yearly worship. For others, like myself and those who worship with me in the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, the concept of Lent can seem foreign, scary, and for some a little too Catholic.

What do we need to know about Lent? Is Lent something that as Christians we should participate in, fight against, or ignore?

First, we should remember that Lent is not biblical, nor is it anti-biblical. This is an important concept to remember, because we often ignore one of these two aspects. The fact that Lent is not found in Scripture let's us know that it is not an ordained activity. We cannot enforce it upon anyone, and God does not expect it to be a part of our worship. However, Lent in general is not an anti-biblical concept either. The basic elements of Lent--prayer, fasting, penitence, and giving are all important elements of the Christian faith. The Bible may not express them in the formula of Lent, but the Bible certainly does not give us details about how to do communion, preach, etc. We have freedom to follow these teachings in a way that is effective in our circumstances.

Lent is a season of preperation for Easter. The common belief is that we should take extra care to prepare our hearts and minds as we approach Easter. However, as a Christian, we celebrate Easter every Sunday. Every week should be seen as a time of celebration, and every week should be a time of preperation. It is not wrong to take a season and put in an extra effort, as long as we are not looking at Lent as our only time to pray, fast, repent, or give.

So how can a member of the Christian Church/Church of Christ participate in Lent in such a way that it is beneficial and God glorifying? I have a few suggestions:

Instead of penitent, be repentant. A penitent person is a person who is sorry for the sin they have committed. We should be sorry, but more so we should be repentant. A repentant person turns their sorrow over their sin into resolve to make changes in their life. What better time than as we turn our hearts and minds toward the sacrificial death for the forgiveness of our sins for us to examine our sinfulness, and make resolutions toward ending those patterns in our life.

Read the Gospels. The gospels are the fourfold story of Jesus Christ. If you want to prepare yourself for Easter, read them. Spend time in them. Ask questions about them, pray about them.

Keep Sundays Festive. Sunday is always a celebration of the resurrection. Do not neglect the celebrative nature of Sunday because you have not yet reached Easter on the calender--Easter happened 2000 years ago! The victory has been won! Even as you fight against your spiritual sinfulness, take time each Sunday to recognize that through Christ you are a saint, a "made holy one" by the blood of Jesus, and celebrate it!

Keep your devotion quiet. Prayer and fasting are very personal aspects of our relationship with God. Keep them private. If you need someone to pray with you, or even fast with you, ask one or two people who you trust and who will respect the importance of this time for you.

Don't neglect the ordained for the optional. Lent is optional, wheras there are many biblical mandates that are not. If you cannot seem to focus on things that you are commanded to do, don't clutter your life with a traditional option. Focus on the most important aspects of the Christian faith.


I hope this helps. I know that Lent can be a time of confusion if you aren't really sure what its about. It can be a time that ends up leading us away from God through our confusion and silliness in attempting to "do Lent." If you have any other questions about Lent from a Christian Church perspective, don't heistate to ask!

M.