November 6

The Way of the Cross: The Way of New Life

Mark 8: 27-38

Then he and the disciples set out for the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way, Jesus asked the disciples this question: “who do people say that I am?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptizer; others, Elijah; still others, one of the prophets.” “And you,” he went on to ask, “who do you say that I am?”  Peter answered, “You are the Messiah!” 30 But Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone about him. Then Jesus began to teach them that the Promised One had to suffer much, be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and religious scholars, be put to death, and rise again three days later.  Jesus said these things quite openly.  Peter then took him aside and began to take issue with him.  At this, Jesus turned around and, eyeing the disciples, reprimanded Peter: “Get out of my sight, you satan! You are judging by human standards rather than by God’s!” Jesus summoned the crowd and the disciples and said, “If you wish to come after me, you must deny your very self, take up your cross and follow in my footsteps.  If you would save your life, you’ll lose it, but if you lose your life for my sake, you’ll save it.  What would you gain if you were to win the whole world but lose yourself in the process?  What can you offer in exchange for your soul?

Mark 15:21-41

A passerby named Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was coming in from the fields. The soldiers pressed him into service to carry Jesus’ cross.  Then they brought Jesus to the site of Golgotha—which means “skull Place.” They tried to give him wine drugged with myrrh, but he would not take it. Then they nailed him to the cross and divided up his garments by rolling dice for them to see what each should take. It was about nine in the morning when they crucified him. The inscription listing the charge read, “The King of the Jews.”  With Jesus they crucified two robbers, one at his right and one at his left.  People going by insulted Jesus, shaking their heads and saying, “So you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days! save yourself now by coming down from that cross!” 31 The chief priests and the religious scholars also joined in and jeered, “he saved others, but he can’t save himself! 32 Let ‘the messiah, the King of Israel’ come down from that cross right now so that we can see it and believe in him!” Those who had been crucified with him hurled the same insult. When noon came, darkness fell on the whole countryside and lasted until about three in the afternoon. At three, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, eloi, lama sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” A few of the bystanders who heard it remarked “Listen! He is calling on Elijah!” Someone ran and soaked a sponge in sour wine and stuck it on a reed to try to make Jesus drink, saying, “Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down.” Then Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last.  At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom. The centurion who stood guard over Jesus, seeing how he died, declared, “Clearly, this was God’s Own!”

    There were also some women present looking on from a distance. Among them were Mary of Magdala; Mary, the mother of James the younger and Joses; and Salome.  These women had followed Jesus when he was in Galilee and attended to his needs. There were also many others who had come up with him to Jerusalem.

                Last week we took the discipline to face the cross. Jesus told the disciples the kind of death he would face in Jerusalem. We explored a bit what Jesus’ death might still mean for us today. That would be difficult enough if it weren’t just half of the equation. This week we face the second half.

                Jesus told the disciples that if they wanted to follow him, they must deny themselves (this translation pushes that a bit further and states “deny your very selves”), take up your cross and follow in his footsteps. I have included the second scripture selection simply to underscore that this was not a flippant invitation. The account of Jesus’ crucifixion lays bare the extremity of what Jesus expected of his followers.

                What does Jesus expect from his followers? Way back at the beginning of our series we listened to Marcus Borg talk about Christianity as a two-fold journey of transformation. One we have spent a good deal of time with: the transformation of our present day world into the Kin-dom of God. The other part of the transformative journey is the personal revolution. To tell his followers that they must take up their own cross, Jesus understood that for a true new life to be possible the old life must end. Jesus’ crucifixion is the model to open the door (tomb?) for resurrection. But do not misunderstand: this is not a call for suicide. It is a call for ongoing rebirth throughout this life. Remember that Jesus’ proclamation that God’s Kin-dom is at hand values this reality. Christ is not calling us to disvalue our lives, but to value them enough to allow the best of life to blossom.  Jesus desires us to change the direction of our lives and our word (repent!) and to orient ourselves toward God’s Kin-dom coming on earth. That change of direction is embodied in the metaphor of death and resurrection. So the pivotal question becomes, what needs to die in us to make room for God’s life to grow?

                One turn of phrase that this language has given rise to is “each person’s cross to bear.” The apostle Paul talked about a thorn in his flesh. More often we refer to something like an annoying in-law, a domineering boss, or an allergy to chocolate. Clearly this is not what Jesus meant. Paul’s condition, whatever it was, was evidently serious enough that it impacted his life in significant ways. That is different than putting up with irritations. To bear the cross is a life-changing experience. Transformation is a painful, almost tortuous journey. But transformation is life-giving: New Life giving.

                So taking up one’s cross is more than a matter of giving up caffeine in order to sleep better, or to exercise more to be stronger or healthier. Those working the twelve steps understand that they are in the grips of a terminal addiction and that if they don’t change their lives they will die. The middle steps embody the concept of denying self and cross-taking. Step 4 is to make a fearless moral inventory of oneself. Step 5 is to admit to God and another human being the exact nature of one’s wrongs. Step 6 is to be ready for God to remove one’s defects. Step 7 is to humbly ask God to remove these shortcomings. An addict has to die to the addiction in order to live. If we follow this as a metaphor for the spiritual journey of transformation, then the question about what needs to die is the same as asking what we are addicted to. As a society we are addicted to violence, to greed, to power, to guns. Individually, we each may suffer from these to one extent or another as well. We also may be addicted to our own anger, or despair, prejudices, illusions, not to mentions the usual addictions to chemicals, gambling, or the like. What are we addicted to that prevents us from living fully in the Kin-dom of God?

                An idea for Sunday might be to get a railroad tie or some other big piece of lumber to use as an example of what a cross-beam might be. It should be heavy and cumbersome. It is difficult to pick up, much less carry. We might have a few people ready to name something they see that needs to die, something that they can say aloud as they lift the beam. We might even invite those worshipping to lift (or simply touch) the beam and name the cross they need to carry.

Here’s an attempt at the language we learned last week:

Series anchor: The window through which we see the world as God does.

Frame: dying to that which prevents us from living fully, taking up our cross

Thread: the servant song