Hope From Ashes

Read: Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Psalm 22; Hebrews 10:16-25

Nearing the end of the Lenten season we now arrive at the day considered by Christians to be the darkest in history. The death of our Lord was celebrated and crowds gathered to cheer for his crucifixion. Jesus, a humble carpenter from Nazareth, was pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities. The servant of the Lord flogged, crucified, and mocked for the afflictions of humankind. 

The Messiah who sits at the right hand of the throne of God interceding on our behalf is not a distant or apathetic God. Rather Christ is the God that took on servanthood and became acquainted with suffering. The Son of Man’s sufferings represent the greatest act of love. Not only do these sufferings make a way for our reconciliation with God, but they give us a perfect picture of a God who stands in solidarity with the broken and hurting. God could have chosen many ways to communicate the love and forgiveness that is offered through Christ to all of humanity with us, but the Lord chose to do it in such a way that the anointed one himself would be brought low.

In The Cross and the Lynching Tree, Minister and theologian James Cone writes this of the cross, “The gospel of Jesus is not a rational concept to be explained in a theory of salvation, but a story about God’s presence in Jesus’ solidarity with the oppressed, which led to his death on the cross. What is redemptive is the faith that God snatches victory out of defeat, life out of death, and hope out of despair.” The servant of the Lord who was crushed understands the pains of injustice and oppression far more than we ever can; however, he also loves his fellow brothers and sisters more than we ever can. The sacrificial love of Christ on the cross reconciles a sinful world to the Father.

We currently live in a world riddled with injustice and oppression. Those on the fringes of society are often looked down upon and mocked by the majority. Looking to the darkness of the sufferings of Christ we know that because we have a Lord who by his blood has opened for us a new and living way we are called to provoke one another to love and good deeds (Heb 10:19-24). As members of the community of faith, we are called to walk in the example of Christ and draw near to the oppressed and needy, offering to them the love and acceptance that Christ offers to us all. 

Prayer:

Lord, you are the God who is near to us in all things. You are אֵלרֳאִי, the God who sees. You are the God that sought out Hagar in her fear and anger and then cared for her. You are the God that took on flesh and humbled yourself to sufferings as a way to show us your love. You are always moving us towards an ultimate redemption. Thank you for revealing yourself to us in Christ and for identifying with us in our sorrows. Through your Spirit make us imitators of Christ and move us to love others. In your Son’s holy and matchless name we pray, amen.