Stations of the Cross, Pt. 1: "The Way of the Master"

THE WAY OF THE MASTER (LUKE 9:22-26)
When skater Michelle Kwan was 13, the junior skater who was still plotting her course in the world of figure skating went behind coach Frank Carroll’s back, submitted her application for senior competition and aimed to transcend her age group. Kwan then pleaded with her coach to allow her to compete with skaters older than her, with those who were savvier and had earlier planned to peak at the right moment.

At that time, Carroll was an unknown coach, Kwan an obscure skater and the coach was caught in an awkward dilemma of whether to send the precocious but eager teenager into senior competition, where maturity was rewarded, and girlishness, play and cuteness were penalized.

Coach Carroll, worried about, horrified for and protective of his prized student at the same time, took the youngster aside, looked seriously at his prized student, and admonished her of the emotional and physical demands of senior competition: “If you want to be a senior, you have to learn what it takes. You have to give up your baby feelings, that ‘I’m tired,’ or ‘I’m sick.’ You have to suffer.” (Los Angeles Times 1/4/93)

Kwan was delighted with her coach’s consent, took his advice to heart and spun, jumped and dance her way to unprecedented heights. Two years later she swept all the major senior competitions in figure skating.

At Caesarea Phillipi, after Jesus had disclosed the first of his predictions about his pending death, he issued a stringent call to the disciples, the crowd (Mk 8:24) and the wannabes who clamored to be with Him: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

What does it mean to deny oneself, take up one’s cross and follow Jesus? What expectations does Jesus have for us when we follow Him? Can we live up to them? And in what way is the return greater than risk?

Say “No” to Self
22 And he said, "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life।" 23 Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? 26 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. (Lk 9:22-26)


Researchers at Australia's University of New England reviewed 128 studies in 1982 and calculated that people’s perceptions of their intelligence versus their actual performance on tests and academic tasks had an average correlation of less than 0.3 out of a perfect correlation of 1.

In another study, in 1977, 94 percent of college professors ranked themselves as above average, even though by definition only 50 percent can be in the top half.

Professor David Dunning, professor of psychology at Cornell University, and a colleague conducted several studies to test theories about incompetence and inflated self-assessment. Forty-five Cornell undergraduates took tests on logical reasoning and estimated how their test scores would compare to that of their classmates. The students who performed in the top quarter lowballed their actual scores and rankings. But those in the bottom quarter were grossly off mark. They misjudged that their scores would fall at the 62nd percentile instead of the actual 12th percentile. Conclusion: Incompetent people are doubly handicapped because they lack not only the requisite skills but the ability to recognize their own deficiencies.

David Myers, a professor at Hope College in Michigan, author of “Social Psychology,” contends that errors in perception bear blame for much of life's disharmony। “It's at the root of many divorces, as both partners see themselves as contributing more and benefiting less than their counterparts.” (“Mirror, mirror on the wall…,” The Seattle Times, 3/2/07)

The first criterion in following Jesus is to deny oneself. To deny oneself is not to hate oneself, live in denial or take up a vow of poverty. To hate oneself is to snub one’s heredity or personality, to live in denial is to deny and avoid reality, to take up a vow of poverty is to escape and denounce society.

However, to deny oneself is to concede the right of ownership to one’s life and to transfer the deed to Him, who is our Savior and Lord. It is to grant the power of attorney to Jesus Christ, who alone has the lawful and exclusive claim on your life. Errol Hulse said: “The practice of self-denial for the Christian means that his feelings, desires and comforts take second place to the Lord's will.”

To deny oneself is a positive and not a negative step, progressing forward not regressing backward, being proactive and not passive. It is not the repression, but the restrain of our emotions, desires and wants; not crushing them, but containing them; not their disparagement, but their discipline. The old self tempts us to live a self-centered, self-fulfilling and self-sufficient existence, but the new Master beckons us to God-centered, Christlike and Spirit-led living.

A few centuries ago, Father John Joseph Surin was asked why few are truly saintly when so many people wished for greatness in God's eyes. He said: “The chief reason is that they give too big a place in life to indifferent things.” (Disciplines of the Spirit 169-70, Dallas Willard)

God in Christ has saved you by dying in your place. He has given His life for your life, covered your unrighteousness with His righteousness and delivered us from darkness to light. Therefore we owe a debt to Him, our lives are no longer ours and we belong to Him. Jesus is the rightful owner of our lives by His redemptive death on the cross. He has purchased the existing lien, title and deed to your life at a heavy price, paid the remaining mortgage you accrued and repossessed the parts, the body and the key to your life, making it brand new.

The Lord is not interested to limit your personality, ability or flexibility, but that you acknowledge what God has done for you, yield your life to Him and allow the Spirit work in your life.

Suffer the Rejection of Men
23 Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. (Lk 9:23)

My cousin who lives in Chicago is the first relative to accept Christ and the first person I know of that encountered persecution for his faith. His parents practically disowned him. At that time, I was barely a teen and, like others, I, too, shared this opinion about my cousin: “What a religious nut, an extreme person and an ungrateful son!”

The worst was yet to come. On his wedding day, his mother threw a fit in church, attracted a lot of attention and chewed up the pastor for talk of leaving father and mother and uniting with wife and becoming one flesh. We felt bad for my cousin and his wife, were worried his mother might hit the pastor and, of course, were embarrassed that we were relatives!

I asked my cousin about his conversion experience in an email correspondence and he wrote: “My family had a difficult time adjusting to the fact that I was a Christian then. My father and mom were so upset that they literally threw me out of the house, and told me to live with my Christian friends. I had no option but to stay with my friend for a day or so trying to figure out what to do. However, my mom sort of recanted, and sent one of my sisters to call me home. It was a difficult two years of isolation from the church. My dad burnt most of my Christian books. However, it was a good time for me to sit down and learnt more of what I believed.

The good news is that as I looked back, all my sisters are Christians now, and recently I heard from my sister that my dad had decided to accept Christ. The only person left is my mom, and when she heard the news of my dad's conversion - she sort of, resigned to the fact. I am not sure what this means, but that is what she told me.” (Via e-mail 6/13/00)

The crosses Jesus refers to are not gold-plated jewelry, mystical religious icons or wooden cosmetic crucifixes. They are burdensome, cumbersome, fearsome, even tiresome, but God has not called us to a tea party, a group social or a free lunch.

The cross is a scandal and a setback to the world, an emblem of suffering and shame, but the signature and stamp of Jesus Christ in the life of Christians today. Persecution suffered by Christians around the world reminds us how dearly Christians have paid for who and what they believe in. In many parts of the world, pastors are beaten, churches are burned and believers are jailed with regularity. In India alone, 35 violent anti-Christian incidents have been reported in the first six months of the new millennium.

Jesus predicted his betrayal, rejection and death three times – once in Caesarea Phillipi (Mark 8:31), the next time on the way to Capernaum (Mark 9:30-32) and, lastly, before reaching Jerusalem (Mark 10:32-34, Luke 18:31-33), but in his first prediction, Matthew (16:21), Mark (8:31) and Luke (9:22) all agreed on one thing: Jesus said he “MUST” suffer, the Greek word occurs in the Synoptic gospels. Another astonishing thing the three gospel writers did was to put the word “must” before the rest of the record on his suffering (Note: “must the Son of man suffer,” not “the Son of man must suffer”). Luke used “must” to start Jesus’ declaration in Luke 9:22. More than any gospels, Luke consistently records that Jesus’ suffering is a must: “But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation” (Luke 17:25) and “This is what is written: The Christ will/must suffer and rise from the dead on the third day” (Luke 24:46)

There are no ifs, buts and maybes concerning suffering on the road to discipleship. It is absolutely necessary for the Son of man to suffer. Suffering comes also to all disciples of Christ. Todd H. Wetzel said, “When you follow Jesus, what happened to Him happens to you.” It is a not a matter of who will suffer, but on what occasion, to what end and for what purpose. Taking up the cross cannot be equated with your normal hardship - studying, working or parenting, but being expelled, fired, disliked, ostracized or attacked for associating with the name of Christ.

Matthew Henry said: “We frequently meet with crosses in the way of duty; and, though we must not pull them upon our own heads, yet, when they are laid for us, we must take them up, carry them after Christ, and make the best of them.”

So let us not beg God for suffering, but neither should we begrudge God when suffering.

Surrender All to Jesus
A question young people asked used to bother me easily, especially when I was organizing group activities like going to a movie, a baseball game or a youth conference, but occasionally I find myself instinctively asking the same question to people who invite me to conferences, seminars or outings, no matter how exciting, nearby, beneficial or inexpensive they are. The question is: “WHO ELSE IS GOING?”

The predictable next question people ask is: “Is so-and-so going?” And if you say, “No,” “I have not asked him or her yet” or “They will tell me later.” The subsequent question I hear is, “Why not?”

The bad news for disciples is that no one can experience the way of the cross with them, for them or like them. Not your parents, friends or children. But the good news is that Jesus is ahead of us and when we follow behind Him, we will never be separated from Him.

The four gospel writers recorded at least 14 times Jesus’ use of the Greek phrase “Follow me” (Matt 8:22, 9:9, 16:24, 19:21, Mark 2:14, 8:34, 10:21, Luke 5:27, 9:23, 9:59, 18:22, John 1:43, 12:26, 21:19) to call the crowd and the curious to Himself, but the duplicate gospel accounts record only six individual calls given the call. Even so, not all answered this unique call of discipleship. Those who obeyed the call were identified as Andrew and Peter (Matt 4:19), Matthew (Matt 9:9, Mark 2:14, Luke 5:27), and Philip (John 1:43). They were rewarded with their inclusion as apostles. Not surprisingly, others who rejected the call and refused the journey remained nameless to the end – the man who asked to return home (Luke 9:59) and the rich young ruler (Matt 19:21, Luke 18:22). They declined the call and missed the opportunity.

Fittingly, the last time Jesus uttered this command again before His ascension was to a finger-pointing Peter (John 21:19) to remind him not to look at, compare with or inquire about others.

When Jesus said, “Follow Me,” he did not say where he was going, when he was leaving, and who else were coming, but only that who was ahead of them, who was providing for them and who was deserving of them.

Conclusion: A disciple of Christ is a full-time, long-term, high-risk servant of Christ who by enduring all things for the sake of Jesus Christ will gain eternal life in the kingdom of God when Jesus comes in His glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. Augustine said: "Christ is not valued at all unless he is valued above all.” God has not called you to be a passive recipient, silent spectator, or a half asleep, half-hearted, halfway follower. Have you remained a baby, a weakling or a deadwood in the path of discipleship? Will you wake up or rise up? What is preventing you from allowing Jesus to be the center, the head and the frontrunner of your life? What are your obstacles and excuses?

Stations of the Cross, Pt. 2: "The Way of the Student"

THE WAY OF THE STUDENT (LUKE 14:25-33)
Upon entering a little country store, a stranger noticed a sign reading “Danger! Beware of Dog” posted on the glass door. Inside, he noticed a harmless old hound dog asleep on the floor besides the cash register.

The stranger asked the store manager, “Is that the dog folks are supposed to beware of?” “Yep, that's him,” he replied. The stranger couldn't help but be amused. “That certainly doesn't look like a dangerous dog to me. Why in the world would you post that sign?” “Because,” the owner replied, “before I posted that sign, people kept tripping over him.”

Have you ever felt like the poor household dog? Old, sleepy and traumatized by outsiders, footsteps and boots?

Jesus had called us to be His disciples, to make a difference in the world, to be salt and light in society and to snatch lost people from the jaws of spiritual death, but, sadly, we have more resemble to sleeping dogs at rest than shepherd dogs at work. Today’s Christians have lost their bite, their legs and stomach for discipleship.

A disciple is a student of the Master - he represents Him with distinction, dedication and delight. The Master has challenged his students to forego the comfort of the family, the lure of sheltered living and the attraction of the world to join Him in the school of discipleship. Jesus used the word “disciples” three times in this passage to challenge all His followers to roll up their sleeves and join Him without regretting the journey or the loss.

Consider Your Priority
25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters-yes, even his own life-he cannot be my disciple. (Lk 14:25-26)

Luke 14:26 is very controversial due the critics’ assertion that it is anti-family - it pits children against parents, splits brothers and sisters apart and divides husbands and wives. The surest way for people to leave the church is for the pastor to expound passages like these. We have enough issues to divide the family today – money, politics and lack of time - and we certainly don’t need religion to drive the family further apart.

However, to understand this passage, we have to first understand what Jesus had to say about the duty of children. On two occasions, Jesus asserted that honoring parents is a command of God: to the rich young ruler (Lk 18:18-20, Mt 19:19) and to the Pharisees and the teachers of the law (Matt 15:1-4, Mark 7:5-10). The presence of the teachers of the law was crucial, since the teachers of the law were at the courtyard of the high priest, too (Mt 26:57, Mk 14:53) when three accusations brought against Jesus there were that he would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days (Mt 26:61, Mk 14:58); that he was the Christ, the Son of God (Mt 26:63, Mk 14:61, Lk 22:67) and that he was the king of the Jews (Mt 27:11, Mk 15:2, Jn 18:33).

Note that when push came to shove, the teachers of the law did not accuse Jesus of transgressing against parents, a blame they would be most willing to place on him if they had evidence or charge against him, especially since they had no problem parsing or misinterpreting other things Jesus had said to large crowds.

Also, the word “hate” has to be examined in the light of the Old and New Testament teachings. In Leviticus 19:17, the Old Testament teaches us not to hate our brother in our heart, and in Ephesians 5:28-29, Paul clarifies that, in a strict sense, no one ever hates his own body.

However, Jesus did use the word “miseo,” the same linguistic word for “misogynist” or “women-hater.” So what does the word “hate” means in the Aramaic sense, the language Jesus spoke?

It is certainly not used in the emotional, relational or literal sense of the word today. In the Semitic sense, according to I. Howard Marshal, one of the foremost scholars on the book of Luke, it means “to love less.” He said, “The thought is, therefore, not of psychological hate, but of renunciation.”

A passage correlating to Luke 14:25-33 is Matthew 10:37-38, where it says clearly: “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

The sad truth is that the problem for the average Christian today is not the argument with, the breakup of or withdrawal from the family over religion, but the absence of opposition, discussion or impact in the family. Christians who are not kept on their toes through moderate persecution now and then often have brittle legs, weak knees and flabby muscles due to others’ indifference to them.

Large crowds had followed Jesus to see what miracle He would do next, how He would restore Israel and when He would bring in His kingdom, but Jesus warned the fair-weathered crowd that there will come a time when they had to choose between family and Him.

While we do not see a reason or a teaching from this passage to disobey or disown our parents, debate or defy them, dishonor or dismay them, a disciple, nevertheless, is one who depends on God first and foremost, without pity or pause.

Though in many parts of the world today, following Jesus is no longer controversial, divisive or perilous, in Jesus’ time, it meant death. The religious climate would not allow one to remain silent, neutral or unscathed.

Disagreement in the family is a historical fact, a present reality and an eschatological event. Jesus said: “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.” (Luke 12:50-53)

Even in the last days, Jesus warned that “you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people (Matt 24:9-11).

Count the Cost
27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28 "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? 29 For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, 30 saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' 31 "Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. (Lk 14:27-32)

There was a farmer who had three sons: Jim, John, and Sam. No one in the family ever attended church or had time for God. The pastor and the others in the church tried for years to interest the family in the things of God to no avail. Then one day Sam was bitten by a rattlesnake. The doctor was called and he did all he could to help Sam, but the outlook for Sam's recovery was very dim indeed. So the pastor was called and appraised of the situation. The pastor arrived, and began to pray as follows:
“0 wise and righteous Father, we thank Thee that in Thine wisdom thou didst send this rattlesnake to bite Sam. He has never been inside the church and it is doubtful that he has, in all his time, ever prayed or even acknowledged Thine existence. Now we trust this experience will be a valuable lesson to him and will lead to his genuine repentance.

“And now, 0 Father, wilt thou send another rattlesnake to bite Jim, and another to bite John, and another really big one to bite the old man. For years we have done everything we know to get them to turn to Thee, but all in vain. It seems, therefore, that what our combined efforts could not do, this rattlesnake has done. We thus conclude that the only thing that will do this family any real good is rattlesnakes; so, Lord, send us bigger and better rattlesnakes. Amen.”

Many Christians appear active, but they are not going nowhere, gaining ground or making headway in their commitment. The church often has to stand in as their motivator, baby-sitter and psychologist, trying to cajole them, stir them and entertain them to serve, at times getting into their schedule, inside their head and between their petty quarrels.

While eternal life is free, testimonials, ribbons and decorations are not. Crowns come to those who bear crosses, medals to those who sustain scars and corsages to those who deserve respect.

The early church disciples endure hardship like good soldiers of Christ Jesus
(2 Tim 2:3). They were crucified at the cross, left rotted in jail, torn apart by lions, and killed by the sword. Hebrews 11:36-37 testifies to the lot of believers in history: “Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated.” Presently, many still die from beatings, bullets, bombs, beheadings and baseball bats. As the saying goes: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” According to Oswald Chambers, “There are some things only learned in a fiery furnace.”

Jesus said that those who have not count the cost of following Him are opening the door to unfinished projects, future abandonment and long delays. Why start something when you cannot finish it? Why bear and wear Christ half-heartedly? Why choose to remain badly informed? Ignorant and indifferent Christians eventually waste their time, money and effort, and end up muddling the name of the Master, the church and Christianity.

So wear the cross of Jesus Christ and follow Him proudly and positively, not passivelyor pessimistically. Run with perseverance (1 Cor 9:24, Heb 12:1), finish the race and keep the faith (2 Tim 4:7).

Choose to Sacrifice
33 In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple. (Lk 14:33)

A one dollar bill met a twenty dollar bill and said, “Hey, where’ve you been? I haven’t seen you around here much.” The twenty answered (as the dollar bill listened with envy), “I've been hanging out at the casinos, went out on a cruise and did the rounds of the ship, back to the United States for a while, went to a couple of baseball games, to the mall, that kind of stuff. How about you?” The one dollar bill said, “You know, same old stuff - church, church, church.”

The British preacher Philip Hacking spoke of a time when, as a seminary student, he was challenged by a young communist, who left him grappling for an answer. The young man, who had left school at fourteen, had no higher education, but dutifully gave a quarter of his income to the cause of communism. He only slept four hours a night, occupying his time studying Marxism, and sleeping on the bare boards so that sleeping does not become a habit, luxury or temptation. But what he said was more shocking: “Look, you guys believe in God. You say Jesus is the Son of God. I don’t believe a word of it; you believe in the resurrection and heaven – if I believe what you say you believe I would do a lot more. But I guess you don’t really believe it because Christians don’t sacrifice as much as we do, do they?” (Keswick, 1983)

Every year we give our federal tax, state tax, property tax, sales tax, gas tax money to the government, but what have we given to God who gave Himself completely to us? Do you give only what you do not want? Do you give only when there is church deficit? Or do you give if the pastor, the leadership and people are nice; if you are asked properly and if there is leftover? A man observed wryly: “If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

Giving up everything means sacrificing your time, talents and treasures. I asked a pastor friend what giving up everything means and he said, “All the self’s: self-ambition, self-centeredness and self-sufficiency. The verb ‘give up’ implies ‘letting go’ or ‘loosening the grip’ to latch onto nothing except for Christ. Often the ones who are rich towards God are not necessarily the wealthy, but the average and poor of the earth.”

The truth is that God speaks with an ultimatum but He really carries a small stick. From experience, we know that God may have asked for all, but He has not taken our all. God is like the parent who deposits what an obedient child has given Him into a bank account under the child’s name for the child’s future use. And if the child, for safekeeping purposes, gives the parent the monetary gifts he receives from relatives, the parent would not only deposit the money in the child’s account but would match the fund and pay the extra out of his own pocket. On top of that, unknown to the child, the parent would return a gift to the relatives. God is like the parent who would return double to you what you give Him, the type who would buy you a house for every car you give and the friend who would return you a penny for every considerate thought.

However, God is not writing us a blank check. He wants His children to count their blessings, offer their best and follow Him gladly.

Conclusion: Martin Luther said, “A religion that gives nothing, costs nothing, and suffers nothing, is worth nothing.” Are you a disciple and a servant of Jesus Christ who is on a real mission or a mere outing? Are you a tourist or a pilgrim? Do you bear the cross daily or rarely? While separation from family and friends is rarely fact, it is not fiction either. Finally, be strong in the Lord. Do not be a flabby, flaky, and foggy Christian; a cream puff, old “you-tiao” (a piece of fried flour) or a mile wide and an inch deep convert.

Stations of the Cross, Pt. 3: "The Wounds of Love"

THE WOUNDS OF LOVE (JOHN 19:17)
Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). (John 19:17)

The parents of a ten-year old public school boy who was failing fifth grade math decided to enroll their son in a private Catholic school after exhausting all methods. The youngster stormed home the first day of school, walked right past them, charged straight to his room and locked the door. Two hours later, he emerged for a quick meal, announced that he was studying and poured through the books until bedtime.

This pattern continued until the end of the first quarter. After school, the boy walked home with his report card, dropped the envelope on the family dinner table and went straight to his room. His parents cautiously opened the letter, saw a bright red “A” under the subject “MATH,” and rushed excitedly into their son's room!

“Was it the nuns?” the father asked. The boy only shook his head and said, “No.” “Was it the one-on-one tutoring? Peer-mentoring?” asked the mother. Again, the boy shrugged, “No.” “The textbooks? The teacher? The curriculum?” asked the father. “No, no, no,” the son replied, and finally spoke up: “From the very first day of school, I knew that these folks were serious about math. When I walked into the lobby and saw a guy nailed to the PLUS sign, I knew they meant business!”

Calvin Miller said, “One cannot even begin to understand the life of Christ without understanding His death.”

Jesus, the original cross-bearer, was a model of humility and obedience in the face of death (Phil 2:8-9). He endured the cross, scorning its shame, enduring such opposition from sinful men, so that we will not grow weary and lose heart (Heb 12:2-3).

John 19:17 has been a thorn for skeptics who argue that the Bible contradicted itself. The synoptic gospels -– Matthew, Mark, and Luke – record that Simon the Cyrene carried Jesus’ cross, but John asserts that Jesus Himself was the cross-bearer. The complication can be easily solved. The traditional theory was that Jesus carried the cross to the country, and Simon took over from there to Golgotha. A student from my Sunday school class cleverly suggested that Simon might have held the lower end of the long cross that the Lord was carrying!

What kind of suffering did Jesus endure? What did He accomplish on the cross? Why did a blameless man submit himself to such a horrible death?

The Cross is a Long and Lonely Endurance of Shame
The “cross” is essentially and enduringly associated with Jesus Christ. It is the cross of Jesus (John 19:25), the cross of Christ (1 Cor 1:17, Gal 6:12, Phil 3:18) and the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ (Gal 6:14).

A pastor shared his experience of witnessing to a Jewish man. When the minister attempted to share about the death of Jesus on a cross, the man rebuffed him with these words: “Why do I want to believe in someone who is cursed by hanging on a tree?”

The suffering at the cross was a long and lonely endurance of shame for our Savior. Cicero, the great Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar and writer who lived from 106 BC to 43 BC, had a strong opinion about the crucifixion: “It was the most cruel and shameful of all punishments. Let it never come near the body of a Roman citizen.”

Jesus, as a Jew, suffered the worst humiliation possible. He carried on our behalf the stigma and the sentence of a curse. The Mosaic law said, “Anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse” (Deut 21:23). It was not just the ridicule, the laughter and the torment He endured, but the curse of the law, suffering religious, ceremonial and social exclusion and discrimination.

All through his three short years of public ministry, from the moment Jesus preached about the sin of man, the need for repentance and the forgiveness of God, he was prepared himself for a life of infamy, rejection and anguish. The cross was an offense (Gal 5:11); it meant persecution (Gal 5:11, 6:12), shame and opposition (Heb 12:2-3). John, in a terse, uneasy and overlooked verse, recorded Jesus’ failed attempt to carry the cross by himself. No wonder Matthew (27:32-34), Mark (15:21-23) and Luke (23:26-32) presented the longer version, featuring a healthier, fitter and stronger Simon the Cyrene as assistant.

Jesus endured the spectacle from the Jerusalem to Golgotha, commonly known as the place of the skull. The nearest city, Bethany, was less than two miles from Jerusalem (John 11:18). Since Jesus carried the cross from Jerusalem to its boundaries, where he met Simon the Cyrene coming in from the country (Mark 15:21, Luke 23:26), a safe estimate of the lonely march would be about a mile. It was the longest mile, the bleakest day and the harshest experience of our Lord. His disciples had abandoned him, his mother was grieving him and his enemies, the skeptics and religious leaders were taunting and ridiculing him.

A harmony of the four gospel accounts reveals that four principle groups of tormentors gleefully added injury to his wounds. First, the bystanders struck him with their fists (Mk 14:65); next, the guards took him and beat him (Mk 14:65); later, Pilate had him flogged (Mt 27:26, Mk 15:15) and finally the soldiers struck his head again and again with a staff (Mt 27:30, Mk 15:19).

Consequently Jesus swayed, stalled, shivered, swooned, sweated, staggered, struggled and stumbled on the way to his death; often he paused, exhaled and kneeled, at the same time shuffling his feet, dragging both feet and cutting his feet. No wonder he was called the Man of Sorrows (Isa 53:3).

The Cross is a Lawless and Loathsome Exit to Death
Roy Hession compares Jesus’ treatment to that of a worm’s fate. He said, “The snake rears itself up and hisses and strikes back – a true picture of self. But a worm offers no resistance, it allows you to do what you like with it, kick it or squash it under your heel – a picture of true brokenness. Jesus was willing to become just that for us – a worm and not man.” (The Book of Jesus, ed. Calvin Miller p. 221).

Today’s criminals, prisoners and suspects have human rights, lawyers provided and due process. They are presumed innocent until proven guilty, are given the benefit of doubt and are released for false imprisonment. Some inmates can enjoy TV behind bars, some can study for a degree, others can write a tell-all autobiography or make lucrative movie deals and a few have been known to have posed for and profited from clothing companies.

The cross has none of the benefits. It was a lawless and loathsome conspiracy. The trial was unjust, the court was unqualified and the appeal was unheeded. It was a sham - a mob atmosphere, a kangaroo court and a foregone conclusion. Pilate’s four no’s in his three speeches weakly but ineffectively exonerated Jesus. To the chief priests and the crowd, Pilate stated unequivocally the first time, “I find no basis for a charge against this man” (Luke 23:4). Greek has “no” first before the rest of the statement - “No I find fault in this man.” Then with the rulers present, Pilate announced Herod’s verdict, twice using “no” or “nothing” in his second speech: “I have examined him in your presence and have found ‘no’ basis for your charges against him. Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done ‘nothing’ to deserve death” (Lk 23: 14-15). Pialte’s fourth “no” was in his third finding: “For the third time he spoke to them: ‘Why? What crime has this man committed?’ I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty” (Lk 23:22).

Jesus Christ was not an errant criminal, a dangerous man or a political revolutionary to be treated as such. He was a carpenter’s son who loved, healed, and forgave, but he was crucified with sinners, lawbreakers and enemies of the state. He was the pure and holy Son of God, the spotless Lamb of God, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). Sadly, in the end Pilate acted as the judge, the jury, and the law to convict Jesus.

Jesus did not deserve death, yet he carried the heavy, long and wobbly cross vicariously. Isaiah 53:7 says, “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” He was hurt by the spikes, splinters and scourging, but He bit his lips, numbed his pain and endured the shame of a common criminal.

So the cross is a symbol of death and life, senseless to those who perish, but salvation to those who believe (Rom 1:16, 1 Cor 1:18).

The Cross is a Loving and Legitimate Extension of Forgiveness
Hudson Taylor, the great 19th century missionary to China, suffered many setbacks in China, experienced great doubts and was often persuaded by friends to leave China. He was sick much of his life, he lost his wife and third child to cholera there, but he reiterated the 30 years he was there: “I never made a sacrifice.”

When the missionary first arrived in China, he needed $25 to study Chinese and $75 for a Chinese dictionary, money he could not afford. He only had the gospel of Luke in Chinese, but he patiently compared brief verses with their equivalent in English to compile a dictionary, beginning from the 600 Chinese characters he discovered in Luke.

Taylor wrote home and comforted his worried mother: “Think, mother, of 12 million souls, yes, 12 million in China every year, passing without God, and without hope into eternity. Would you not give up all for Jesus Christ who died for you?” (Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret, 31).

Jesus’ death was not an accident; he was not a victim but a sacrifice - to save and forgive (1 Cor 1:18) and to reconcile man to God (Eph 2:16, Col 1:20). He said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). Note the same word for Judas’ “betrayal” (Matt 26:25 Luke 22:48) also argues for the flip side that He was “delivered” over to death for our sins ((Rom 4:25), that God “gave up” his own Son for us (Rom 8:32), the Son of God loved me and “gave” himself for us (Gal 2:20-21, Eph 5:25).

Further, Jesus himself dipped a piece of bread in the dish and handed it to Judas (Jn 13:26). Jesus needed no prodding to carry his own cross. And in the end, Jesus, on his own accord, bowed his head and gave up his spirit (Mt 27:50, Jn 19:30). He said, “I lay down my life-only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again” (John 10:17-18).

Jesus Christ carried the sins of the world when he carried the cross. He has forgiven the weight of our offense, disarmed all powers and authorities (Col 2:15) and nailed it to the cross there.

Conclusion: Martin Luther said, “If one thorn pierced Christ, you deserve a hundred thousand.” Are you tired of the load of your of your sin? Have you laid your burdens down to the One who has carried the sins and sorrows of the world upon His shoulders? He will save you (Ps. 20:6), sustain you (Ps 18:35) and steer you in the right direction (Ps 139:10). Jesus Christ is able to sympathize with your weaknesses (Heb 4:15-16), will help you when you when you are tempted (Heb 2:18-3:1). Just cling to Him, hold tight, sit back and rest in Him. Won't you come, hurry and run to the cross?

Stations of the Cross, Pt. 4: "In HIs Steps"

IN HIS STEPS (MARK 15:21-22, MATTHEW 27:32-33, LUKE 23:26)
The cross is what separates Christianity from other religions, the suffering Messiah from popular gurus and theological heavyweights from lightweights.

Lois A. Cheney wrote a touching and thought-provoking poem on the cross:
I stand before the cross and wonder.
I stand before the cross and fear.
I kneel before the cross and weep.
I pray before the cross and rejoice.
To know the cross is to know Christ.
To feel the cross is to feel Christ.
To gaze at the cross is to gaze at Christ.
To carry the cross is to be a Christian,
And not until then.
God, forgive us. (Calvin Miller, The Book of Jesus 370. NY: Touchstone, 1996)

Thomas a Kempis said, “Jesus now has many lovers of his heavenly kingdom, but few bearers of his cross.”

While John’s gospel noted that Jesus carried the cross upon his shoulders (John 19:17), Matthew, Mark and Luke stressed that Simon the Cyrene carried the cross for Jesus. In the Roman Catholic tradition, Simon of Cyrene, who helped Jesus carry the cross, is visibly present at the 5th and 9th stations, two of fourteen stations of the cross.

Who was Simon the Cyrene? What did he get out of carrying the cross? Why did it help him and not hurt him from carrying the cross? Simon of Cyrene was a pilgrim, in the biblical sense, who became an eyewitness and a servant of our Lord in the most extraordinary way.

A Cross-bearer is No Longer a Seeker, But a Sufferer
21 A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. 22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). (Mark 15:21-22)

I am often bewildered by the strong response to the gospel song “Were You There When They Crucified My Lord?” After reading Simon’s story, I understand the stirring feeling of being informed of, invited to and included into this unique privilege.

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh…Sometimes I tremble, tremble, tremble,
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Simon was an accidental tourist, but not an accidental believer. He was a Jewish pilgrim coming into Jerusalem, but he ended up as a Messianic pilgrim coming into faith. The foreigner from Cyrene, a region in Libya (Acts 2:10) of North Africa, discovered that the real pilgrimage was not at Jerusalem, but Golgotha; it was a single act and not a yearly Passover affair and the sacrifice was the precious Lamb of God, not the blood of animals.

Oddly, the choice of Simon the Cyrene was as curious as his appearance with Jesus that day. Previously he was faceless, nameless and clueless in the crowd, but now he was singled out to be Jesus’ pall bearer, the closest witness and the survivor of the two. While most people seldom question the color of his skin, one internet painting of Simon the Cyrene depict him as a black man. http://www.magnificat.qc.ca/english/stat05.htm

Another web site suggested that he was one of eight black men in the Bible. Whether it is so may be intriguing, but this uneasy pilgrim could well be a black man, a Jewish foreigner or maybe a Gentile godfearer.

Like other pilgrims who had come to Jerusalem at that time, Simon was there to confess his sins, ask for forgiveness and vow to return. The sacrifice at the temple was symbolical, ceremonial and yearly, but the sacrifice at the cross was personal, bodily and historical. Jesus’ death was the offering of his own precious blood, not the blood of goats and calves, once for all and not once a year to obtain eternal redemption for believing sinners (Heb 9:12). Simon the pilgrim did not receive ceremonial forgiveness, but legal pardon; temporary acquittal, but permanent atonement; short relief, but divine reconciliation.

A Cross-bearer is No Longer a Stranger, But a Son
32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). (Matt 27:32-33)

Henry Morton Stanley, the 19th century explorer whose name is forever associated with finding the missing Scottish missionary David Livingstone and the immortal words of “Dr. Livingstone, I presume,” described the transformation that came into his life from befriending Livingstone:
“I went to Africa as prejudiced as the biggest atheist in London. But there came for me a long time for reflection. I saw this solitary old man here and asked myself, “How on earth does he stop here -- is he cracked, or what? What is it that inspires him? For months after we met I found myself wondering at the old man carrying out all that was said in the Bible – ‘Leave all things and follow Me.’ But little by little his sympathy for others became contagious; my sympathy was aroused seeing his piety, his gentleness, his zeal, his earnestness, and how he went around his business. I was converted by him although he had not tried to do it.” (7,700 Illustrations # 3101)

Simon was a passerby who was a reluctant and unknowing eyewitness. Yet it was not fate and destiny that brought Simon to within city limits that day, nor was it man’s design and inclination, but God’s grace, kindness and love that made Simon an eyewitness. Simon was literally trapped, captured and transformed by God’s love.

This African civilian was at the wrong place at the wrong time, ignorant of local politics and Rome’s might. If he had known, he would not pass that way, make the trip or linger so near. Simon had missed what Jesus said at his trials. Jesus’ words on the cross definitely did not escape him and he certainly heard and understood the only words Jesus spoke on the road to Golgotha (Luke 23:27-31), where a large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ Then they will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

More than 20 years after Jesus’ death, Mark wrote his gospel and noted that Simon the Cyrene is now the father of two well-known young men in the Christian community, Rufus and Alexander (Mark 15:21). The logical conjecture from this is that Jesus’ words had an impact on Simon, who, in turn, took Jesus’ warning to heart and was responsible for his sons’ conversion.

A Cross-bearer is No Longer a Spectator, But a Servant
26 As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. (Luke 23:26)

My wife Doris asked if I was ready to preach about Simon the Cyrene, and I replied that I still could not feel what carrying the cross is like and asked if she knew of any one who would be an example of cross-bearing. She said, “Yes, but you wouldn’t like it.” I said, “Really? Let me hear it.” She told about a missionary by the name of Helen Roseveare, a speaker at Urbana '87, and how she had underwent suffering and pain as a medical missionary to Zaire. Doris listened to Dr. Roseveare at Urbana, and though Dr. Roseveare did not tell her story and its details, the audience nevertheless was asked to read a book she wrote about her ordeal in Zaire, Africa. The book’s name is “Living Sacrifice.”

Helen Roseveare had a zest for life and believed that she would make a difference with her training, but she quickly found out that her misplaced pride in her achievement, the numerous languages of Zaire natives and inadequate medical supplies and equipment were unkind barriers. However, nothing compared to the terror she experienced when guerillas held her captive for many months, repeatedly hitting and raping her.

Doris showed me the book she bought, and in it, Dr. Roseveare wrote candidly: “Beaten, flung on the ground, kicked -- teeth broken, mouth and nose gashed, ribs bruised -- driven at gun point back to my home, jeered at, insulted, threatened -- I knew that if the rebel lieutenant did not pull the trigger of his revolver and end the situation, worse pain and humiliation lay ahead. It was a very dark night. I felt unutterably alone. For a brief moment, I felt that God has failed me. He could have stepped in and prevented this rising crescendo of wickedness and cruelty. He could have saved me out of their hands. Why didn’t he speak? Why didn’t he intervene? And in desperation, I almost cried out against Him: ‘It is too much to pay!’…In the darkness and loneliness, He met with me… and He breathed a word into my troubled mind: the word privilege. ‘These are not your sufferings: they are not beating you. These are my sufferings: all I ask of you is the loan of your body.’”

All in all, Dr. Roseveare served faithfully in Zaire for 20 years. Though misfortune struck her, she survived the humiliation and shame of the attack, worked for nine more years in the village and concluded the briefly-reported incident in the book with these words: “For that night, cost became swallowed up in privilege. (Helen Roseveare, Living Sacrifice 22. Chicago: Moody Press, 1979)

Carrying the cross is a costly and controversial privilege. There were many disciples named Simon, but where was Simon Peter, the leader of the twelve apostles? Why did he not say or do something? Where was Simon the zealot when the Roman soldiers were crucifying the Lord? What happened to his anti-Roman zeal and passion? Where was Simon, Jesus’ half-brother, when their mother Mary was crying her tears out (Mk 6:3)?

The shame of the cross -- to the Greeks, Jews, and to the world -- was understandable. Cross-bearers need big bodies, broad shoulders and brave hearts for the journey. Simon the frequent traveler was right for the job. In the end, Simon became Jesus’ biggest supporter and his side-show, the butt of jokes and object of ridicule.

Whether Simon understood it, meant it or treasured it, he was still serving Jesus. The walk behind Jesus was a challenge no one anticipated or prepared for. If he walked in front of Jesus he could have reached Golgotha easily in half the time. But to walk behind Jesus, he would have to slow down each time Jesus slowed, stopped or stumbled. He could not walk fast, overtake Jesus or arrive first. Simon saw Jesus fell three times. He heard Jesus paused for breath, heaved in relief, struggled for air, but eventually reached Golgotha.

Hudson Taylor said: “Fruit-bearing involves cross-bearing. There are not two Christs – an easy-going one for easy-going Christians, and a suffering, toiling one for exceptional believers. There is only one Christ.” (Howard Taylor, Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret 236-37, Moody, 1989)

Simon the Cyrene was the Good Samaritan to Jesus. He walked a mile with Jesus and was one of three people – the other two being the two Marys (Matt 26:6-16, Lk 7:36-50) - who was counted as having done something for Christ and offered something to Him.

Conclusion: Charles Haddon Spurgeon said, “There are no crown-wearers in heaven who were not cross- bearers here below.” If you do not carry the cross on earth, you do not have a crown in heaven. Some of us were nudged by our friends or family, others pulled by the love of God, but push or pull, we will carry the cross in our lifetime. God desires you and I to be strong enough to carry the cross, slow enough to follow His steps and spirited enough to finish the course. Have you discovered the strength of and triumph from bearing the cross, suffering its shame and to experiencing its glory? Will you embrace the cross and endure the shame, so that you can exchange it for a crown? Today, the pilgrimage is not a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Mecca or Golgotha once in your lifetime, or to Jerusalem every year at the Passover, but the true biblical pilgrimage is to deny yourself, take up the cross daily and follow Jesus.

Stations of the Cross, Pt. 5: "Christ the King"

CHRIST THE KING (JOHN 19:19-22)
19 Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 20 Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. 21 The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, "Do not write 'The King of the Jews,' but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews."
22 Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written." (John 19:19-22)

According to legend, no king is as beloved, powerful and ideal as King Arthur, the king who obtained the throne when he pulled the sword Excalibur from a stone. He ruled a perfect enchanting kingdom called Camelot – a name prematurely attributed to John and Jacqueline Kennedy’s supposedly-happy marriage. When King Arthur first met his future queen, Guinevere, he successfully convinced her that the ideal conditions at Camelot would make her happy, too, if she stayed with him.

Unfortunately, the perfect kingdom was shattered when the well-meaning King Arthur conceived a plan to gather the bravest and fairest knights from around the world to dispense justice for his people. The best knight from the famed Knights of the Round Table, however, was Lancelot and he fell hopelessly in love with the queen and had an affair with her.

On the day the queen came to her senses to pluck up her courage to leave Lancelot, King Arthur’s roguish son from his wild past laid in wait and ambush with a group of men to arrest the cheating pair. Lancelot escaped but returned to rescue the queen from burning at the stake, to the relief of the reluctant king. Before she left Camelot for good, the former queen wanted to see King Arthur for the last time. When she bade him farewell, King Arthur asked Lancelot to take good care of the queen. Lancelot tearfully explained that the queen did not choose him either; she had decided to live the rest of her days as a nun.

Christ is a king unlike frail and foggy human kings. The kingship of Christ is also the single most serious and controversial accusation the Jewish religious leaders brought before Pilate against Jesus. Curiously, Jesus did nothing dent the allegation, to discourage or deny designation.

When Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a donkey, the Pharisees (Luke 19:39, John 12:18-19), the chief priests and the teachers of the law (Matt 21:15) were enraged by the excited disciples, the massive crowd and their reverberating chorus: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Luke 19:38).

Jesus is the King of the Jews, the King of Israel (Matt 27:42, John 1:49, John 12:13), the king who comes in the name of the Lord (Luke 19:38). Rightly, contemptuously or prophetically, Jesus was called King of the Jews eighteen times (Matt 2:2, 27:11, 27:29, 27:37, Mark 15:2, 15:9, 15:12,15:18, 15:26, Luke 23:3, 23:37, 23:38, John 18:33, 18:39, 19:3, 19:19, 19:21, 19:21) - the first time by the magi at his birth, the King of Israel four times (Matt 27:42, Mark 15:32, John 1:49, 12:13) and once, the king who comes in the name of the Lord (Luke 19:38). On top of the designations, Christ is recorded simply as “king” in eight instances (Matt 21:5, Luke 23:2, John 6:15, 18:37, 18:37, 19:12, 19:15, 19:15).

So, what kind of king is Christ? Why was He such an unwilling king on earth, upsetting the notions of his disciples and enemies? When will He reign unquestionably and how will he rule?

Jesus Christ is the Sovereign King
In most ancient culture, kings claimed a divine mandate. They were adored by the masses, accountable to no one and met with royal treatment. Even then, kingship was never permanent. Kings usually last for a generation, an era or a dynasty. Today, monarchy had given way to democracy, socialism and communism. Most kings were toppled, jailed and vilified in domestic revolutions. No monarchy’s downfall was more spectacular and vivid than the guillotine execution of France’s King Louis XVI and his 37-year old wife, Marie Antoinette, in 1793, about three years after the French Revolution erupted in 1789 and a year after the First French Republic was established in September, 1792, less than four months before the king was executed.

Royalty today is mostly perfunctory. They concern themselves with national duties, social activities and diplomatic functions. Though constitutional monarchs meet with foreign kings, prime ministers and ambassadors, they prefer to stay out of the political limelight and the newspaper headlines, content to receive a sizable budget from the state and careful to say little on how government should run.

The most famous royal family today is the English monarchy, ironically led by a queen, not a king! The English Parliament allots $11.2 million a year to the queen for her official expenses as head of state and to support her husband and mother. About 70% of that goes to staff salaries. In addition, the queen generates revenue from land and other valuables passed from generation to generation - which earned about $189 million in 2000, the year in which the royal family spent a paltry $50 million. A royal watcher muttered: “The queen and her heirs enjoy favorable tax status. Unlike the rest of us, they negotiate their own income tax rate.” (Los Angeles Times 6/20/01)

Pilate’s announcement of Jesus as the King of the Jews was not novel or sincere. Jesus was not king because Pilate or the crowd declared him so or because the disciples acknowledged him so. The wise men that sought the King of the Jews at his birth had already proclaimed baby Jesus the King of the Jews (Matt 2:2) and had beaten Pilate to the punch thirty three years ago. Unlike popular kings such as King Saul and King David, Jesus was born king of the Jews, not anointed by a prophet (1 Sam 10:1, 15:1, 15:17, 16:12), by the people (2 Sam 2:4, 2:7) or the elders (2 Sam 5:3). He was king of the Jews, but he was not slavish to Jewish or Gentile political views or personal interest. Unlike earthly kings that could collapse or end, Jesus was born of royalty and for royalty, and not born into royalty.

Jesus was a king of his own choosing and making. He was the king of the people, but he refused to be made king by the people. His sovereign empire extends to all the peoples of the earth, not just his own people or race. While He is the King of the Jews, His kingship is over all land, realm, people and countries. He is not merely King of the Jews; He is the King of the earth (Ps 47:7, Ps 47:2-3, Zech 14:9) and King of the nations (Jer. 10:7).

To the end, Jesus’ kingship was unique. The Sovereign King chose to ride in a donkey, and not in a chariot (Matt 21:5). He was the Chosen King, but not the people’s choice. He chose the unattractive duties of healing the sick, defending the helpless, ministering to people and mending broken lives, not dining with dignitaries, drinking fine wine or dressing like royalty. After feeding five thousand people, Jesus withdrew again to a mountain by himself when he knew that the people intended to come and make him king by force (John 6:15). Kingship was in his blood, but not in his ambition.

Jesus Christ is the Shepherd King
King Solomon once told a skillful craftsman: “I desire a ring with an inscription on the inside to be made for me.” The craftsman replied, “Of course, it shall be done. But tell me, what is the inscription you desire?” The wise king said, “Ah, that is for you to decide. I want you to inscribe words that will make me happy when I am sad, and the same words should also make me sad when I am happy.”

The king turned and walked away, leaving the perplexed craftsman to ponder over the strange assignment. Three days later, the craftsman appeared before the king and handed him a simple, silver band. “This is the ring you ordered,” he said. The king asked the craftsman, “Does it have the words that will make me happy when I am sad? And will those same words make me sad when I am happy?”

The craftsman handed the king his ring and said, “See for yourself.” King Solomon inspected the ring, nodded approvingly at the four words inscribed on it that say “THIS TOO SHALL PASS.” (Stella Wolf, SENIOR LIFE).

Jesus the king gave His people the greatest gift a king can give: his majestic life for their mortal lives. To that end, he was stricken, scorned and slain - the king dying for his subjects, the monarch for the masses, royalty for commoner and divinity for humanity. While some kings would volunteer to die for their subjects, none would premeditate or design that kind of kingship. He is the great Shepherd of the sheep (Heb 13:20), the Shepherd and Overseer of souls (1 Peter 2:25), the good shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep (John 10:11). The Good Shepherd reigned over the hearts and minds, not the flesh and blood, of His people.

In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus chided the disciples for their resistance, violence and outrage: “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matt 26:52-53). And again, before Pilate, Jesus said: “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place” (John 18:36).

Jesus was an unusual king, unlike the kings of the Gentiles. Jesus said to his disciples, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves” (Luke 22:25-28). The shepherd king’s mission on earth was the forgiveness of sins, salvation of man and reconcilement with God. People’s souls, redemption and eternity were His concern and at stake. Both Mark and Matthew recorded Jesus’ identical words: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:44-45, Matt 20:28).

The Shepherd King did not live in a palace in Jerusalem. He had chosen his humble abode in Nazareth, a small village of no more than 300 people at that time, according to archaeologists. In 1996, Dr. Nakhle Bishara, the medical director of Nazareth Hospital, had come up with the idea of creating Nazareth Village for the new millennium celebrations. Bishara and an international team of developers purchased a 12-acre plot and commissioned an archaeological survey of the previously undeveloped site. Later, archaeologists Stephan Pfann and Ross Joseph Voss, who directed the excavations, revealed that the Nazareth of Jesus' day covered only 100 yards by 400 yards at most and had merely 80 to 100 houses. (“Resurrecting Nazareth” Biblical Archaeology Review, May/Jun 1999)

Our earthly holdings are actually fool’s gold in the true sense of the word - penny stocks, junk bonds and funny money. They fluctuate, tumble and crash. The kingdom of the Shepherd King however, is a long-term investment, a guaranteed return and a king’s ransom.

Jesus Christ is the Supreme King
Andrew Daughters asked in his wonderful prose: “What kind of a Kingdom has Jesus? No castle nor palace has he. No congress nor parliament sitting, deciding what laws there will be. Perhaps he has need of but two laws: Love God and your neighbor as well. To obey them is all that is needed, as all of the saintly can tell. He has neither army nor navy, no air force to guard the frontiers to keep out the strangers unwanted and maintain the enemy’s fears. Immigration he seems to encourage, of some quite disreputable, like fishermen, publicans, sinners. To such he is hospitable. It seems there’s no revenue service or taxes we must calculate. He surely cannot run a kingdom on what we put into the plate! No 1040 form comes in April to fill out before the fifteenth, with penalties charged for nonpayment, beginning upon the sixteenth. No currency’s here with his picture, no coinage engraved with his name. And where are the posters and slogans proclaiming his power and fame? And I see no trappings of kingship, no robes made of velvet and fur, no crown made of gold set with diamonds, to befit our supreme arbiter. Jesus said that his kingdom was really not what Pilate had thought it had been. It was not of this world. And its glory was not of the kind to be seen. (Andrew Daughters, The Kingdom of Jesus, CSS Publishing)

Jesus Christ will one day return bodily, then the King of glory (Ps 24:8-10) will reign in all His glory. Everyone would recognize and confess Him as the King eternal (1 Tim 1:17), the King of the ages (Rev 15:3), the Great King (Ps 48:2), King forever (Ps 29:10), King for ever and ever (Ps 10:16), the great King over all the earth (Ps 47:7, Ps 47:2-3, Zech 14:9), the great King above all gods (Ps 95:3), and King of the nations (Jer 10:7). The kingdom He brings is unshakeable, immovable and resolute (Heb 12:28).

In God’s kingdom, He raises the bar, makes the rules and searches the hearts. Access is denied to the godless rich (Matt 21:31), the religious hypocrite (Matt 23), the self-indulgent, the self-centered and the self-sufficient. A new life (John 3:3), a drastic change (Mark 10:14) and a fruitful life (Matt 21:43) is required.

In his return, he will no longer wear the mantle of the Suffering King but the Conquering King. He will no longer wear the purple robe (Mk 15:17), but on his robe and on his thigh will have the name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS (Rev 17:14, 19:16, 1 Tim 6:15). His critics will not do the answering and not the questioning. He will no longer ride on a borrowed donkey (Matt 21:5); he will ride on his white horse (Rev. 19:11), coming on the clouds of the sky, with great power and great glory (Matt 24:30, 26:64, Mark 13:26, Rev 1:7).

Conclusion: Have you accepted Jesus as your God and King? (Ps 5:2, Ps 44:4, Ps 68:24, Ps 84:3, Ps 145:1). Just as Christ suffered, we must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:21-23). Are you patient in perseverance, awaiting and anticipating His return as the High King of Heaven in all His glory? Are you ready for your Master, Lord, and Savior who is the coming King? As young Simba, in Disney’s Lion King, would say why he can’t wait to be king:
No one saying, “Do this”
No one saying, “Be there”
No one saying, “Stop that”
No one saying, “See here
… free to do it all my way!
Oh. I just can’t wait to be King!

Stations of the Cross, Pt. 6: "Pure and Holy Son of God"

PURE AND HOLY SON OF GOD (MATTTHEW 27:39-44, LUKE 23:39-44)
Three pastors went to the pastor's convention and were all sharing one room. The first pastor said, “Let's confess our secret vices one to another. I'll start - my secret vice is I just love to gamble. When I go out of town, it's cha-ching cha-ching, let the machines ring!”

The second pastor said, “My secret vice is that I just love to drink. When I go out of town, I like to take a little nip of something.”

The third pastor said, “My secret vice is gossiping and I can't wait to get out of this room!”

I am sure all of us had our fair share of being disrupted, disparaged or discouraged by rude behavior such as insults, curses, or gossip.

Jesus Christ’s harshest critics appeared near the end of his life, shortly after the soldiers had nailed Jesus on the cross. While Jesus hung on literally for his life on the cross, one group after another made fun of him. At the cross vehement words like poison poured from three sources: the passersby that added insult to injury; followed by the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders that added insincerity to incivility; and finally the thief on the cross that added inspiration to insight.

Could Jesus save himself? Could God the Father save the God the Son? How did Jesus respond to his tormentors, followers and defenders? What did he accomplish on the cross for the very people who treated him so?

The Son of God Forgives Those Who Hurt the Father
38 Two robbers were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, "You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!" (Matt 27:39-40)
32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals-one on his right, the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
35 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One." 36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself." 38 There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. 39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" (Luke 23:32-39)

One of the most powerful prayers uncovered in the midst of suffering was from the ravages of Ravensbruck. Ravensbruck was a concentration camp built in 1939 for women. Over 90,000 women and children perished in Ravensbruck, murdered and exterminated by the Nazis. Corrie Ten Boom, the author of “The Hiding Place,” was imprisoned there once, too. The prayer, found in the clothing of a dead child, says: “O Lord, remember not only the men and women of good will, but also those of ill will. But do not remember all of the suffering they have inflicted upon us: Instead remember the fruits we have borne because of this suffering, our fellowship, our loyalty to one another, our humility, our courage, our generosity, the greatness of heart that has grown from this trouble. When our persecutors come to be judged by you, let all of these fruits that we have borne be their forgiveness.” http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/f/forgiveness.htm

The people who mocked Jesus on the cross did not surprise, sadden or shake Jesus one bit. You are only surprised, sadden or shaken if you were unaware, unprepared or undermined. As Charlie Brown would say defiantly to his critics: “I don’t care if you can argue better than I can! You just sound right!”

The book of Luke tells us that before the soldiers divided up his clothes and the people and the rulers poured scorn on him, Jesus uttered his first words on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34-43)

Jesus prayed for the forgiveness of those who hurled abuse at him, piled insults on him and laughed at his expense. We know from experience that bitterness and retaliation cannot rid the pain of suffering at people’s hands; only love and forgiveness can relieve, remove and reverse the anguish.

The passersby were badly mistaken. Coming down from the cross, putting on a show of force and fooling them at the very last second were not Jesus’ intentions or in his plans. The most compelling proof of his power was not to cheat or escape death, but to forgive those who plot, relish or scorn his death.

Jesus’ forgiveness was amazing. Up to this point, he had been falsely accused, repeatedly misrepresented and unfairly tried, but the first thing on Jesus' mind, the first prayer on the cross, the first words the crowd heard was not vengeance, disgust or hate, but forgiveness. He did not say he was wronged and he did not take their hurtful words personally. The people’s insults were directed at God the Father and Jesus' petition to the Father was for His mercy upon them, and not judgment upon them or punishment for them.

Jesus did not just teach forgiveness; he modeled forgiveness. For Jesus, the passersby were his attackers and assailants, but never his antagonists or adversaries.

The Son of God Frustrates Those Who Harden Themselves
41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! He's the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, 'I am the Son of God.'" (Matt 27:41-43)

The Daily Bread (4/28/97) records the story of a judge who was constantly annoyed by the sneering remarks and abusive language of an attorney. Instead of cracking down on the lawyer and silencing him, the judge would only smile and chew on his pencil. People wondered how he could be so patient.

At a dinner party someone asked him, “Why don't you do something about that wise-guy lawyer?” The judge laid down his fork, and resting his chin on his hands said, “Up in our town there lives a widow who has a dog. Whenever there is a full moon, that dog barks and barks all night.” Then the judge quietly resumed his eating. One person asked, “But Judge, what about the dog and the moon?” He replied, “Well, the moon just keeps right on shining!” http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb-04-28-97.shtml

Abraham Lincoln once said, “If I were to try to read, much less answer, all the attacks made on me, this shop might as well be closed for any other business. I do the very best I know how -– the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said to me won’t amount to anything. If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was right will make no difference.” (The Wit and Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln, NY: Barnes and Noble Books, 1994, p. 188)

Who were the ones who hardened themselves?

The chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders, who were as sarcastic and as sincere as the devil himself, so Jesus treated these religious leaders with his last breath the same way he treated the devil and evil spirits all through his ministry. What do I mean?

The religious leaders mocked him as king, provoked him to act and presented the same offer the devil outlined in his first appearance, temptation and words to Jesus - in the wilderness: “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Another temptation from the highest point of the temple was: “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.” But Jesus answered, “It is written: `Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God'“ and then “It is also written: `Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'“ (Matt 4:2-7).

Later, the gospels of Mark and Luke noted that when the demons and evil spirits that came out of many people at the sight and in the presence of Jesus, they fell down before Jesus, as recorded by both writers, and cried out the same words: “You are the Son of God.” Though the demons and evil spirits knew he was the Christ, acknowledged His name and obeyed His command, Jesus Christ still rebuked them, forbade them to speak and gave them strict orders not to reveal who he was (Mark 3:10-12, Luke 4:41) Two violent demon-possessed men also met their doom even though they, too, politely called Jesus the Son of God (Matt 8:28-29).

In the same way, the religious leaders who mocked Jesus’ name and requested a miracle “so that they might believe” (Matt 27:47, Mark 15:32) had hardened their unbelieving hearts and sealed their own fate despite their double talk, justifying what Jesus had predicted in the gospel of John: “The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:25-27)

The Son of God Favors Those Who Honor Him
44 In the same way the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him. (Matt 27:44)
39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 40 But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." 42 Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." (Luke 23:39-43)

Peanuts cartoonist Charles M. Schulz did some of his best work with poor Charlie Brown lying on his bed, talking to himself. Here are a few monologues:
“Sometimes I lie awake at night, and I ask myself, ‘Why me?’ Then a voice answers, ‘Nothing personal. Your name just happened to come up.’”
“Sometimes I lie awake at night and I ask myself, 'Where did it all go wrong?' And then a voice comes to me that says: ‘This is going to take more than one night.’”
“Sometimes I lie awake at night in bed and I ask, ‘Is it all worth it?’ And then a voice says, ‘Who are you talking to?’ And another voice says, ‘You mean: to whom are you talking?’” Finally, Charlie Brown says, “No wonder I lie awake at night.”
“Sometimes I lie awake at night and I ask, ‘Why am I here?’ And a voice says, ‘Where are you?’” “Here,” Charlie Brown says. “Where’s here?” says the voice. “Wave your hand so I can see you.” Charlie Brown says, “The nights are getting longer.”
“Sometimes I lie awake at night, and I ask, ‘Is life a multiple choice test or is it a true or false test?’ Then a voice comes out of the dark, and says: ‘We hate to tell you this, but life is a thousand word essay.’”
“Sometimes I lie awake at night, and I ask, ‘Who, Why, What and Where?’ Then a voice comes back to me that says, ‘Wait a minute...I think you’ve lost me.’”

Losing out in the end in the game of life is very painful. Someone captured the day’s outcome for the sneering criminal, the dying Savior and the confessing criminal who were hanging on the cross this way: “One died in sin, one died for sin and one died to sin.” The criminal who died in sin squandered his time in life and in death, occupied valuable space by the Savior for nothing and failed to value and seize present opportunity and future outcome. Unlike the repentant criminal, he did not speak to Jesus, with or for Him, but only speak of, about and against Him. When the occasion presenting itself, the thief, with his hardened stance and harsh tone, did nothing to help his own cause or plead his own case.

The story of the repentant criminal who died to sin was about one who had a keen ear, an independent mind, a sincere heart and a confessing mouth. He had heard with his ears Jesus’ prayer of forgiveness, decided not to join in the herd mentality, used his mouth with passion to defend Jesus and believed in his heart Jesus’ offer of salvation.

The Son of God honored those who call on His name, come to saving faith and confess Him before men. He never turned away a lost sinner or one last confession. The repentant criminal was not the only one saved at the cross; the centurion made his opportunity at the cross count, too. The scared but sincere centurion confessed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” (Matt 27:54). Such people never come away empty from the cross.

Conclusion: Jesus is the Son of God on His own terms (Mark 1:1). He was not anyone’s Pied Piper or Circus Clown. Jesus came so that the dead who hear the voice of the Son of God will live (John 5:25) and that those who believe the Son of God may have life in his name (John 20:31). The first thing on Jesus’ mind was not to settle the score, silence his critics or strike them down. He was more than able to take care of himself, but he considered saving others his mission. Shortly before his death, he offered salvation to the repentant thief, the believing centurion and the like-minded guards (Matt 27:54). John 3:17 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” Have you come to the cross for personal salvation, God’s forgiveness and life transformation? Do not wait or wonder anymore. He is ever present, willing and beckoning to forgive and save.

Stations of the Cross, Pt. 7: "The Best of Our Love"

THE BEST OF OUR LOVE (JOHN 19:25-27)
25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Dear woman, here is your son," 27 and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. (John 19:25-27)

One of the most compelling stories lost to the world in its excitement over the invention of the telephone was the urgency of the great inventor Alexander Graham Bell to make a breakthrough in communications for the sake of a loved one. No one had more vested interest than Bell, whose mother was deaf. It’s been said that “the telephone, which the deaf could never use, owed its genesis to Bell’s unique understanding of the physiology of hearing.” Unfortunately, the phone as a product had overshadowed Bell’s ongoing commitment to the deaf and his many products he invented or designed to improve their lives.

Bell’s parents were educated people and both his father and grandfather were speech experts. However, his mother, Eliza Grace Symonds, a portrait painter and an accomplished musician, started to lose her hearing when her son was twelve.

In 1861, a double misfortune occurred. Mabel Hubbard, Bell's future wife, developed scarlet fever and also lost her hearing. Before his invention, Bell had taught single-mindedly at Sarah Fuller's Boston Day School for the Deaf and had established both a school for teachers of the deaf and a private school for deaf students in Boston, Massachusetts. It was another 15 years later before Bell began working with his wife on her speech and invented the phone the same year. Someone noted, “Alexander Graham Bell began by seeking to help the deaf, and he ended up with the telephone.”
http://campus.northpark.edu/history//WebChron/Technology/AGBell.html

Before Jesus died at the cross, He offered the best of a child's love to his mother, who had come to behold, comfort and mourn him before He breathed his last. Mary visited and contacted Jesus as much as any mother could her child. Before his departure, Jesus chose his most affectionate disciple, John, to take care of the person who had bore, raised and understood Him – his mother. The apostle John was the perfect candidate for the task. John, though often overshadowed by Peter, was an imposing figure in the New Testament. A prolific writer, he was one of Jesus’ three closest apostles (Mk 5:37) and often called himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved (John 13:23-25, 21:7, 21:20).

What did Jesus see and admire in a person like John? Do responsibilities weaken us or strengthen us, help us or hinder us? How can we rise up to life’s challenges and crises?

A Disciple Has Courage to Combat Fear
During his years as premier of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev denounced many of the policies and atrocities of Joseph Stalin. Once, as he censured Stalin in a public meeting, Khrushchev was interrupted by a shout from a heckler in the audience. “You were one of Stalin's colleagues. Why didn't you stop him?”

“Who said that?” roared Khrushchev. An agonizing silence followed as nobody in the room dared move a muscle. Then Khrushchev replied quietly, “Now you know why.” (Today in the Word, July 13, 1993)
http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/c/courage.htm

The first admirable quality that Jesus saw in John the beloved disciple was his courage, the ability to stand up to fear and not shut down with fright.

Someone once said, “Courage is not the absence of fear; it is the mastery of it.” Another said, “Courage is doing what you are afraid to do.” (Eddie Rickenbacker) Or in the words of John Wayne: “Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.”

John was a witness of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. While all the disciples abandoned Jesus at his arrest, the apostle John was the courageous leader who remained steadfast though he had fled like the other disciples. Not only did he return to face his fears, he went with Jesus all the way to the high priest’s courtyard after the soldiers had arrested Jesus (John 18:15).

On the resurrection morning, after Mary Magdalene told Peter and John that Jesus was risen, John was the first apostle to reach the tomb, the first to believe (John 20:8) and the one who pointed Peter to Christ by the sea of Tiberias (John 21:1, 7). He was the true disciple who braved the courtyard, the cross and the cave.

In fact, John was the rightful leader of the apostles before Peter was restored and even though Peter was God’s mouthpiece at Pentecost, John’s name consistently appeared together with Peter in Acts as the two leaders of the early church (Acts 3:1, 4:1, 8:17).

Later, in Acts 4 when the rulers, elders and teachers, along with Annas the high priest, persecuted the church for the first time, their first targets were Peter and John, but they were shocked at, impressed with and deterred by with the courage of Peter and John (Acts 4:13). When they commanded Peter and John not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus, they replied with these famous words that anchored the whole book, defined the early church and echoed by Christians ever since: “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19-20).

A Disciple Has Compassion for the Helpless
An elderly lady who made up her mind to visit President Lincoln waited patiently for an audience with the president. When the opportunity came, some men eventually ushered her into the busy president's private office.

“What can I do for you?” President Lincoln said. Placing a covered basket on the table, she said to the astonished president, “Mr. President, I have come here today not to ask any favor for myself or for anyone. I heard that you were very fond of cookies, and I came here to bring you this basket of cookies!”“

Tears trickled down the face of Lincoln. He stood speechless for a moment, and then said, “My good woman, your thoughtful and unselfish deed greatly moves me. Thousands have come into this office since I became President, but you are the first one to come asking no favor for yourself or somebody else!” (7,700 Illustrations # 4547)

The second admirable quality that Jesus saw in John was his compassion for people, the same quality that brought John to the cross. John was the disciple whom Jesus loved for a reason: John loved people and had compassion for them. Compassion is simply the outpouring of sympathy for those who have suffered loss. It s to feel for others’ loss, struggles and failures. Compassion is the best medicine, the positive cure and the strongest antidote for human suffering.

The needs on that cruel day were many, the list went on and on and the reasons were obvious. No one felt the pain deeper than Mary, the mother of Jesus, who saw his son dying before her eyes. The Chinese characterizes this pain as “people with gray hair sending off people with black hair.” She was speechless, scared and stunned by the chain of events unfolding right before her eyes - the way her son was arrested, beaten and chained. The reality, pain and loss that instance, that day and weekend was too much to bear for any person, any woman and any mother.

Johan Gerhard describes it this way: “She sees Him suspended, but cannot touch Him, she sees Him nailed, and may not loose Him. She sees Him dripping with blood but cannot remove it. She sees Him wounded upon the entire body, but cannot bind up his wounds. She hears Him cry ‘I thirst,’ but may not give Him to drink.”

The beloved disciple had strength and room for more than one person: himself. Also present that day was Jesus’ aunt (v 25), who stood bravely, sympathetically, and closely by her sister, grieving, suffering and experiencing the loss with her, wondering about her sister’s welfare, livelihood and future. Faithful Mary Magdalene, who was not related to the two women, did her part, too. She offered her heart, sacrificed her shoulders and lent her sympathy to the sisters.

John did more than just stand by Jesus; he stood by helpless women, as a true apostle, a real gentleman and a normal person would. He stood with the women not because they were afraid, inferior, or both; he stood by them because Mary had lost her dear son, Jesus’ aunt had lost her young nephew and he his precious friend.

A Disciple is Committed to the Gospel
A hen and a pig had a conversation when they passed a church and noticed the pastor’ sermon title on a sign: “How Can We Help the Poor?” After a moment’s reflection, the hen eagerly said, “I know what we can do. We can give them a ham-and-egg breakfast! I’ll provide the eggs.” The hog protested strongly, “Sure, that’s easy for you to say. The breakfast would only require a contribution from you, but for me it would mean total commitment.” (7,700 Illustrations # 5211)

It’s been said that commitment is doing what you said you would do long after the feeling you had when saying it has passed.

Ironically, John, who once asked Jesus for a priority seat next to Jesus in His heavenly glory (Mk 10:35), found it in doing earthly service for Jesus. Jesus had explained the matter and clarified his position to John, his brother James and the other incensed apostles: “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:41-45)

John had his work cut out for him when he was handed the task of caring for Jesus’ mother, who is not an ordinary person. In fact, she was quite private. She had nothing much to say in the Bible, except to the angel Gabriel, her cousin Elizabeth and her son Jesus (Luke 2:48, John 2:3-5). John’s given assignment was quite unusual. Many scholars and commentators suggested that Mary’s husband Joseph had probably died by that time. I believe the single most important reason Jesus urged John to care for Mary was that the Savior knew his mother would remain in Jerusalem ever since (Acts 1:14). He was right. She did not return home or go away.

John was a model of commitment for the early church, for young believers then, and even you and I today. Not only did he take time to serve and lead the church, he took time to honor and care for Jesus’ mother besides his feisty mother, who was also in Jerusalem, watching Jesus’ death from a distance (Matt 27:56). Commentator Matthew Henry suggested that Mary lived with John at Jerusalem eleven years and then died, while others said that she traveled with him to Ephesus. John was aware of and familiar with the cost of commitment. He paid dearly for his unwavering commitment, watching in horror as his brother James became the first apostle martyred (Acts 12:2) and, according to early church fathers, lived the rest of his days banished to the remote Patmos Island, where he wrote Revelation.

Conclusion: Love for Jesus is a nurtured, worthwhile and ongoing relationship. The first three times John spoke, he was roundly rebuked by Jesus (Lk 9:49-50, 9:54-55, Mt 20:22). Impetuous, impatient and immature followers are often driven by their competitive nature, emotional feelings and carnal desires, but faithful, brave, humble disciples eventually come around to do what the Master asks of them. Like the old John, you and I are not perfect in any way, but just as John’s love for the Master grew, so may our courage for the Lord, compassion for His people and commitment to His work increasingly grow and mature. Have you given your best to Him and be beloved by Him? Do you care merely for yourself or do you care genuinely for others? Do you have the courage and the conviction of a disciple? Are you walking steadfastly and staunchly in the path of discipleship?

Parables of Life, Pt. 1: "Bloom Where You are Planted"

BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED (LUKE 8:4-15)
Motivational writer Dennis Kimbro says that some people are like wheels - they don't work unless they are pushed. Some people are like trailers - they have to be pulled. Some people are like kites - always up in the air, and if you don't keep a string on them, they'll fly away. Some people are like canoes - they have to be paddled. Some people are like blisters - they don't show up until the work is done. Some people are like balloons - always puffed up and so full of themselves. Some people are like flat tires - they have to be jacked up and changed. Some people are like lights - always switching off and on.

Jesus said that people are more like soil. Someone suggested that the parable of the sower should be renamed the parable of the soil because the focus is on the soil or the hearer, and not on the sower. The two constant factors are the sower and the seed. The variable is the soil, or how we hear.

The four kinds of soil yield but three types of results: people who are frozen ground and peddle empty promise, people who are futile ground and have unfulfilled potential, and people who are fertile ground and are prime prospects.

What is the difference between a believer, a seeker and an unbeliever? How do we know if a person’s faith is genuine and growing? Why are some people stifled, stagnant or stunted in belief?

Be Sincere in Seeking
4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. (Lk 8:4-5)
11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. (Lk 8:11-12)

Three pastors got together for coffee one day and found all their churches had bat infestation troubles. “I got so mad,” said one, “I took a shot gun and fired at them. It made holes in the ceiling, but did nothing to the bats.”

“I tried trapping them alive,” said the second, “Then I drove 50 miles before releasing them, but they beat me back to the church.”

“I haven't had any more problems,” said the third.

“What did you do?” asked the others, amazed.

“I simply baptized and confirmed them,” he replied. “I haven't seen them since.”

The seeds that fell on the ground represent people who are futile ground and peddle empty promises. A lot of people (v 4) gathered and crowded around Jesus, feeling good about Him and about themselves, even following Him from town to town. The crowd was impressed with Jesus, but he was not impressed by their attendance, their attention and their adulation because they were coming for the wrong reasons and with the wrong motivation.

This parable is also recorded in Matthew 13 and Mark 4, but Luke’s gospel uniquely emphasized that the seeds are trampled upon before the birds feed on them. Busy pedestrians, durable footwear and heavy traffic spell their doom. They don’t have a slim chance, but no or zero chance of survival. The seed is crushed and flattened in no time. Fertilizer, water and tender loving care won’t help the seed that was on the ground or pavement. They become food for the wild in no time. If birds do not swoop down and gobble up, snakes, insects, rodents and ants would compete for scraps and complete the job.

A lot of people come to church for information but not intake. They are in-house but not in fellowship. These folks are continually seeking but not finding, interested, but not inspired. They do not comprehend the word of God, have no conviction in their heart and are not converted in their soul. Before they reach the point of belief, confession and salvation, the devil takes away the word from their heart. The devil does not tempt unbelievers more than believers, but the devil easily overpowers those with low aim, little interest and lame excuses.

The seeds on concrete floor have no sign of life, no chance to survive and no hope for cultivation. Even a small crack in the ground won’t help the seed’s growth. Vegetation, moss and wildflowers would be too happy to fill the space.

The devil does not want unbelievers to belong to Christ, to believe in Christ or to be like Christ. He wants them to have one foot in the door and the other outside, to listen with one ear and come out the other, to be present in body but absent in spirit.

Be Steadfast in Spirit
6 Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. (Lk 8:6)
13 Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. (Lk 8:13)

Once, my wife was so excited that she had purchased a giant abalone in a Chinese supermarket for the bargain price of $2.99. It was wrapped in red plastic except for a see-through oval-shaped front that had the abalone sticking out teasingly. On the way home she thought out loud about using the abalone for soup.

A college-age nephew who was in the car with us asked, “Are you sure it is for soup?” He recalled drinking a blend of abalone, seafood and chicken soup his grandmother served him during Chinese New Year. The soup was perfect until his grandmother decided to add flour-made fish maw (hua jiao). He ended his story with the comment: “The soup was like glue.”

Doris hurriedly turned to the instructions on the plastic wrapper packet that read “Slice and serve cold” and - the last words and manufacturer suggestion on the wrapper - “Please do not boil.” It turned out that she bought fake or imitation abalone, merely expensive flour that will dissolve in hot soup!

The seeds that fell on the rock and the seeds that fell among thorns represent people who inspire false hope but have unfulfilled potential. These people are shallow, soft and spineless - they cannot stand the heat, pressure and opposition.

According to Matthew 13:5 and Mark 4:5, the seeds that fell on rock or, better still, rocky places have no water or root. Not only do the seeds have no water, they do not even have “moisture” (v 6). This is the only time the Greek word “moisture” is used in the Scriptures. Without water, even cactus would die, as my wife found out with her cactus.

The seeds on rocky soil represent people who fall away in time of testing. They have inspiration but no internalization. These rootless people have emotional exuberance and support in the plenty but no personal belief or decision in the least. These people, the Chinese say, are “hot for 3 minutes,” but when tests arise, their emotions fan out, their feelings waver about and their passion dies down. When they are high, they break records; when they are low, they bottom out. Unfortunately, their highs were no match for their lows. Matthew 13:21 and Mark 4:17 use clearer words in place of “temptation” – both have the Greek words “tribulation and persecution.” Tribulation is outside pressure, but persecution is the inflicted pain.

The seeds do not “fall away” (v 13) either when temptation comes; the Greek version “walk away” or “depart” or “leave” is better. The same word describes Anna, who never departed from the temple (Luke 2:37), and the devil leaving Jesus after failing to tempt Him (Luke 4:13). People who naively believe that Christianity is a bed of roses walk out the moment they discover that roses have thorns.

Another type of seed that does not make the passing grade and is way short of its potential is the seed that fell on thorns or weeds. There is no biblical word for the word “weeds” in the New Testament:
Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants.
(Luke 8:7)
The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. (Luke 8:14)

Someone said, “90% of the Christian life is survival.” Three things choke the life out of an unconverted seeker: anxiety, affluence and amusement.

The seed that fell among the thorns are choked by the worries (v 14) of this life, worries of the world and its age. This type of people worries about having less and not having enough to pay the bills. There is an old saying that: “Worry is an old man with bended head, carrying a load of feathers which he thinks are lead.” The fear is scarier than the reality.

Another chokehold to the seed is riches (v 14), or according to Matthew 13:22 and Mark 4:19 - the deceitfulness of riches or wealth. The word deceit can also mean delusion. Banking on riches is as reliable as chasing a mirage, as skating on thin ice and standing on one leg.

The next obstacle is pleasure (v 14), or the word hedone, from which the word “hedonism” is coined, or the pursuit of pleasure as the only chief good in life. Mark 4:19 uses another phrase, “the lust of other things.” This type of people fall prey to the Playboy lifestyle, the Hollywood night life and the Las Vegas way of life.

Worries, riches and pleasures do not mature a person. The Greek word for “mature” (v 14) is unique to Luke not found elsewhere in the Bible; “teles-phoreo” comes from two words in Greek: “carry” and “end.” Mature means carrying things to its completion and not stopping halfway. Sadly, worries, riches and pleasures more than slow a person’s growth; they stop, stunt, stifle, strangle and suffocate it.

Weeds grow where they are not wanted and they choke plants. “Choke” is more than just strangling; it means drowning and killing. The same word was used for the pigs rushing down the banks that were drowned (Luke 8:33). Weeds are an annoyance to a house-owner, an eyesore to the eyes and an irritant to the nose. They deprive plants of sunlight, water, nutrients, space and yield. The only option is to pull them, mow them, burn them, spray them and kill them. Leaving them alone decreases your property value, endangers those playing nearby and cause for fire hazards. The longer you wait, the deeper they grow and the harder to pull.

Be Solid in Substance
8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”(Lk 8:8)
15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.(Lk 8:15)

A woman bought a parrot to keep her company but returned it the next day. “This bird doesn't talk,” she told the owner. “Does he have a mirror in his cage?” he asked. “Parrots love mirrors. They see their reflection and start a conversation.” The woman bought a mirror and left.

The next day she returned; the bird still wasn't talking. “How about a ladder? Parrots love ladders. A happy parrot is a talkative parrot.” The woman bought a ladder and left.

But the next day, she was back. “Does your parrot have a swing? No? Well, that's the problem. Once he starts swinging, he'll talk up a storm.” The woman reluctantly bought a swing and left.

When she walked into the store the next day, her countenance had changed. “The parrot died,” she said. The pet store owner was shocked. “I'm so sorry. Tell me, did he ever say a word?” he asked. “Yes, right before he died,” the woman replied. “In a weak voice, he asked me, 'Don't they sell any food at that pet store?'” (Leadership, Fall 1996)

The last type of soil is about people who are fruitful soil and primed for growth. They are the wonder soil, the miracle growth and a gardener’s pride. There is no shortage of hearers but not listeners and receptors of the word. There is no shortage of preachers either. It’s been noted that every Sunday 400,000 preachers mount the pulpit.

The word “hear” occurs nine times in the parable (vv 8, 8 10 12 13 14 15 18 21). Genuine hearing leads to retention. The word “retain” (v 15) means keep or hold fast or unswervingly (Heb 10:23). It has nothing to do with how much a person knows, but how deep it grows and penetrates.

A growing Christian listens to the word of God with a fitting attitude, a responsive mind and a hearing ear. Unfortunately, many people are dull of hearing. They think they are being lectured, they have heard it before and they know what the next point is. The parable, ironically, tells us the responsibility for growth is on the hearer, not the sower. As communication experts say, “The hearer is responsible for 51% of the message.” The hearer is responsible to bear fruit, not merely grow branches, leaves, or flowers. Bearing fruit means changed behavior and transformed lives.

Fruit is hard to bear but waiting is worthwhile. Trees take a few years to bear fruit - peach in two years, apple in three, pear in four - but its supply is for twenty to fifty good years.

Conclusion: The devil loves believers who are clueless, high maintenance and on life support. Are you “honest to goodness soil?” How receptive are you to the word of God? Are you rooted and grounded in God’s word Do you receive it in good faith, retain it in good measure and reproduce it in good time? What are the things that disrupt proper intake, interrupt normal growth and corrupt good behavior in your life? It’s been said, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” Why don’t you start today?

Discussion Questions (Contributed by Daniel Hung)
1. Why were “a large crowd” and people “from town after town” (v4) gathering around Jesus? Do people come to church today for similar reasons?
2. Why did Jesus quote from Isaiah 6:9 before explaining the parable? How can this be - “though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand”?
3. In the parable, the four types of soil represent four different scenarios after a person hears the word of God. If you were a good “sower”, how would you attempt to treat the first three types of soils so that they may “produce a crop” (v15)?
4. How many times does the word “hear” appear in the parable? How should one “hear” in order to bear fruits?

Reflection Question
1. What type of soil are you? Can you recall any instances when you are changed by hearing God’s word? How did it happen and why?