Mark 16:1-8

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” Again, the women: And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. (v. 8) The first thing the “man” said to them was “Do not be alarmed…”. They didn’t buy it! They continued to be very unsure about what had happened. Today’s reading has them leaving with “trembling and astonishment”. Matthew’s Gospel yesterday had “fear and great joy”. So yes, a mix of emotions. As for their saying “nothing to anyone”, I’m guessing that this sentence referred to their travel from the tomb to where the disciples were gathered. I’m sure they had something to say when they came “to safety”.

One other item struck me, common in today’s and yesterday’s readings. In both cases the angel refers to the women’s seeking “Jesus, who was crucified…” (v. 6). Why did the angel reference the crucifixion? Was it to assure the women that they were at the correct location? Or was it to establish his integrity, that he was on the level, that he knew what had transpired? Or did he want to solidify the connection between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection? Did the women maybe wonder if the body had been stolen?

Yes, I’m sure they went away confused. But it just dawned on me – they went away. Simple, but telling… They were confused, but they had no reason to stay!! So for us today, GO! Carry your confusions with you, but GO! Recall His words as you go, but GO! We serve a risen Lord! Hallelujah!!

Slava Bohu!

Matthew 28:1-8

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” After 32 days of Jesus’ Passion, we now have 18 days of His Resurrection! Glory!!

“…He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see Him. (v. 7b) I’ve always been confused by this announcement from the angel that Jesus would meet them in Galilee. However, from my memory most of the Gospel accounts of His appearances are in or near Jerusalem. Yes, He met them in Galilee, but that was later (or so I thought). Comments…?

The women at the tomb: So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy… (v. 8) I can easily understand their “great joy”, but understanding their “fear” requires some concept juggling. When we think of fear, we think of being afraid. But the Bible often speaks of “the fear of the Lord” in a positive sense, as in “…is the beginning of wisdom.” I found a Pope Francis quote: “The fear of the Lord, the gift of the Holy Spirit, doesn’t mean being afraid of God, since we know that God is our Father that always loves and forgives us,…[It] is no servile fear, but rather a joyful awareness of God’s grandeur and a grateful realization that only in Him do our hearts find true peace.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_God, my apologies for the Wikipedia source!) That same source also refers to the fear of God as “…a specific sense of respect, awe, and submission to a deity.” I like all of those together – gratefulness, grandeur, respect, awe, submission. I can picture the women running / fast walking to the gathering of the disciples, chatting back and forth, joy and wonder in their hearts. My thoughts go back to the Annunciation: “For nothing will be impossible with God!” (Luke 1:37) Again, GLORY!!

Slava Bohu!

John 19:38-42

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” Today we close out Jesus’ “Passion” with John’s account of Jesus’ burial. Today marks 32 days from the time that we first read about Jesus’ going to the Garden of Gethsemane until the last account of Jesus’ burial. In most of our past readings we would have read this Passion in all four Gospels in 3-4 days. What a difference these short bursts make!! I’ve seen so many things that I had never seen before and have had greater understanding than ever in my past. And admittedly, even though Jesus’ Passion was a big part of my Catholic upbringing, I think I’ve grown closer to Jesus through our last months’ readings. Thank you, Lord!

So, more on Joseph and Nicodemus… When we have three or four Gospel accounts covering the same event, I try not to look ahead, instead trying to read these passages almost like I am seeing them for the first time. So with Joseph of Arimathea, when we “met him” a few days ago I knew that he was a secret follower of Jesus, but now we have that confirmed by John’s Gospel. And I wonder how he must have felt, being a member of the Council but hiding his true feelings. John reports Joseph’s “fear of the Jews” (v. 38) as his reason for being a secret follower, but now no longer!! I mentioned a few days ago that Joseph’s life would be forever changed. Now I wonder the extent of that change, both for him and for Nicodemus. Were they ostracized by the Jewish leaders? Were they part of the later persecution of Christians that we read about in Acts? We never hear about them again, but I wonder. I like to think that they became avid followers (evangelists even!), that their “forever changed” lives would have blessed thousands of others, and that in the end they would again see the Jesus whom they so lovingly cared for in that final episode of His earthly walk. What a blessing they are to us on this side of the Resurrection! Glory!!

Slava Bohu!

Luke 23:50-56

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” The women who had come with Him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment. (vv. 55-56) Today, a focus on the women… All three Synoptics (but not John) report on the women being at the gravesite. Luke has them returning (?somewhere?) and resting on the Sabbath before coming back the following day. So my mind wanders off to this interlude. Where did they go? What did they do? What did they talk about? Were they grieving? Or did they have hope, remembering Jesus’ words that He would rise again?

So I wonder what we do with our time between Sunday services? Where do we go? What do we do? What do we talk about? Are we moaning and griping? Or do we really live in the hope that we have, remembering Jesus’ words that He would rise again, knowing that He did, knowing that He will come again, and knowing that we, too, will rise with Him??!! Glory!!

Slava Bohu!

Mark 15:42-47

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” Mark’s account of Jesus’ burial is very similar to Matthew’s, except that Mark does not include the Jewish leaders asking Pilate for a guard on the tomb. Mark, however, has a much more elaborate description than Matthew on Pilate granting Joseph of Arimathea the burial rights. He first has Joseph summoning up the courage to ask Pilate for the body, then Pilate asking the centurion if Jesus had already died, then Pilate granting permission when he was assured that Jesus was dead. Matthew only had Joseph asking Pilate for the body.

The striking thing in all this, that I had not seen before, is that Joseph …took courage and went to Pilate… (v. 43b). This little blip gives a picture of Pilate as a powerful, dominating leader, not the weak-willed man we saw granting the Jewish leaders their crucifixion request. Then again, the courage that Joseph summoned up may have been associated with his breaking with the Jewish leaders and ?having pity? on the man that they had wanted dead. Either way, Joseph was now “out’ing” himself at one level as a possible follower of Jesus or at another level as one who stood opposed to the Jewish leaders in the Sanhedrin. His life would be forever changed.

I think there’s a message for us in looking at Joseph’s example of courage. Many of us – I hope most of us – are concerned with sharing our faith. What we know as the greatest gift we could ever give anyone is also often a hard topic to bring up. Mostly, I think, we fear rejection by the one to whom we are speaking, either rejecting our message or rejecting us. That’s exactly where Joseph stood. His rejection could have been two-fold – from Pilate and from the Jewish leaders. We probably suspect that Joseph had been a secret follower of Jesus for some time, at least someone more than willing to listen to His message – yet he remained silent until Jesus’ crucifixion gave him the courage to step forward. So, are we waiting for some “big event” to unshackle us from our fears? I daresay that “big event” in our lives is simply a heartfelt confession to Jesus of our fears and hesitation. If He has the power to overcome death, He can overcome whatever little “big thing” is bothering us. Look at Joseph. Done. GLORY!

Slava Bohu!

Matthew 27:57-66

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” I’ve read these words so many times that I find myself finishing sentences before I read the words. One sentence in particular struck me today, …and they rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb… (v. 60b). I don’t know what translation that came from, I just remember it from my childhood and continuing to this day, finishing the words in verse 60 with my own words before I read them. Which makes me enormously thankful for my parents bringing me up strong in my faith…!! Those Catholic roots run deep – and wide! I am forever grateful!

But what struck me today came from our Chronological Bible, with the chief priests and Pharisees asking Pilate for a guard on Jesus’ tomb. They made this request on the Sabbath, a day in which no work of any kind was to be done. But these Jewish leaders were so troubled by Jesus’ words (“…in three days…”) that they were willing to violate their own sacred traditions and do this “work” on the Sabbath!! But beyond that, put yourself in Pilate’s shoes for a minute. First these Jewish leaders ask you to condemn an innocent man to crucifixion, when you are troubled by their request and your wife has counseled against it – but you do it. Then these same Jewish leaders come again later in the day (after they have had their wish granted) and ask you to change the sign that you have affixed to Jesus’ cross. You dismiss them, “Go away!” Then they come again the next day and ask for a guard on the tomb. While Scripture says simply that Pilate granted their request, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” (v. 65), in my mind I hear him screaming at them, granting their request in his most irritated, frustrated, exasperated tone!! “JUST GO AND DO IT!!” (And don’t come back…!!) I feel sorry for these Jewish leaders – and then again, I don’t. Jesus had struck at their hearts so deeply, but theirs were hearts of stone, and His words could never penetrate. I’m so glad to live on this side of the Resurrection…!! Glory!

Slava Bohu!

John 19:31-37

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of His bones will be broken.” (v. 36) Whenever I see the Gospel writers quoting the Old Testament, my first inclination is that they are quoting from Isaiah or the Psalms. And so with this quotation… However, not true. This quotation comes from the Pentateuch, from Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12. The reference is to the Passover lamb which is to be sacrificed as a remembrance of the Jews’ departure from Egypt. The lamb is sacrificial – the blood of the lamb was spread on the doorposts of the Jewish people so that the Angel of Death might pass over their houses and leave the residents alive. The death of these lambs saved the Jewish people. Now we see John applying this quotation to Jesus as fulfillment of Scripture – but I wonder if John understood the full implications of Jesus’ death, that Jesus was that one sacrificial “lamb”, that His death meant salvation for all humankind, for all time. Or did John just see Scripture being fulfilled? Intriguing…

But the one other thing about this quotation is that neither Jesus nor His followers could make it happen. It was something that a Roman soldier did that yielded the “blood and water” outcome – with no broken bones. The only way that we can argue against this Scriptural fulfillment is to say that John was lying, that it didn’t really happen. But that’s the same argument that critics pose for all of Jesus’ miracles, that these are just stories made up by Jesus’ followers – for whatever reason! But if that’s what critics want to believe, that’s their choice. Personally, I know Whom I have believed!

Slava Bohu!

John 19:28-30

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” Today now, we have the fourth account by the Gospel writers of Jesus’ death, this time by the apostle John who had stood there watching. It’s a very short account and a very short phrase sticks out for me: It is finished. (v. 30) I know I’m covering ground here already plowed by hundreds, even thousands of preachers and commentators before me, but one wonders, “What is ‘it’”? It would be obvious for Jesus to be referring to His own life – finished. But probably the more popular reflection is that Jesus is referring to His complete and final obedience to the plan that the Holy Trinity had set forth before Jesus was even born, that His completely innocent death would suffice to cover the sins of all mankind for all time. And now, that plan was accomplished: It is finished.

So we can say, yes, the plan was accomplished. As our Jesus Storybook Bible would put it, Jesus has rescued all humanity. But my immediate reflection goes back to what we’ve been saying the past few days, back to Jesus refusing the drink that He was offered as He was being nailed to the cross (Matthew 27:34, Mark 15:23). If He refused the drink because He chose to be fully aware of His suffering as He went through the complete agony of His full and final deliverance of all mankind from all sin, then He continued that desire completely, up to and including His final breath. Suffering through six hours of intense pain and completely aware of it all, never losing consciousness up to that final deliverance…! That’s more than I can imagine – and more than I can fully appreciate, no matter how hard I try. That’s LOVE – all caps, bold, italicized – love at a level that we can never comprehend. But Jesus doesn’t ask us to understand all that He and the Father and the Holy Spirit had put together millennia ago, only that we accept that love, His substitutionary death on our behalf. GLORY!

Slava Bohu!

Luke 23:44-49

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, because the sun was obscured… (v. 44-45a, NASB). The ESV has verse 45a as while the sun’s light failed… and the NKJV has Then the sun was darkened… I’m intrigued by this darkening. I’m trying to imagine this daytime darkness. We’ve all seen dark clouds before a storm, but typically they don’t last for three hours! My Study Bible pointed out that Passover occurs during a full moon and an eclipse cannot occur during a full moon. This must have been a very thick cloud covering the area for a long time! And the darkness covered “the whole land”, which surely would have included the temple area where all the Jewish leaders hung out. Surely they also saw this darkening.

This darkness immediately calls to mind Exodus 10:21, Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even a darkness which may be felt.” Exodus 22b continues with …there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. So I’m wondering if any of the Jews standing near the cross had this same reflection back to Exodus and, if so, what would have been their reaction? Certainly the centurion was affected by it all. How could others also not have been struck by all that occurred? Maybe they were! I hope we are…!

Slava Bohu!

Mark 15:33-41

Let’s continue to pray for Jim and Marty.

“Notice what you notice.” The centurion… First, I wonder why a centurion, a commander of 100 men would be at the crucifixion. Second, Mark is more complete than Matthew in the centurion’s response: When the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw the way He [cried out and] breathed His last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (v. 39, NASB) [NOTE: Some manuscripts include “cried out”, some do not, but in or out is not so important.] What is important, however, is the centurion noting the manner of Jesus’ death. My Study Bible described an “ordinary death” whereby the crucified “suffered long periods of complete agony, exhaustion, and then unconsciousness before dying”. Jesus’ death was far from ordinary and the centurion saw that. For him there was something different, something “special” in the way Jesus died. His concluding comment reflected his awareness of this different manner of Jesus’ death: Truly this man was the Son of God. (v. 39b)

All this is consistent with what we saw a few days ago, that Jesus refused the pain-killer (the intoxicant?) and wanted to be fully aware of what He was going through. Even as I write this, I wonder at how much we really understand it all. It is beyond my comprehension that Jesus would so willingly suffer, yet I have no doubt that He did. For us…

Slava Bohu!