Today's Reading: St. Mark 10:32-52
Daily Lectionary: Genesis 40:1-23; Mark 10:32-52
“Behold! We are going up to Jerusalem and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles. They will mock Him and spit upon Him and whip Him and kill Him. And after three days He will rise.” (St. Mark 10:33-34)
Happy Lent! In the name of Jesus. Amen. The Cross is coming. It’s always before Jesus’ eyes. It consumes Him. It’s why He came.
He came to die, to be delivered into the hands of the religious leaders, to be rejected by His people, falsely accused, condemned to death, and handed over to the Romans to be crucified. He came to be mocked with a purple robe and a crown of thorns pressed into His forehead—the thorns piercing His flesh. He came to be mocked, spit upon, whipped, and killed.
He came to have His clothes taken from Him. He came to have nails driven into His hands and feet. He came to be lifted above the earth while the religious leaders gathered around him like wolves. He came to be abandoned by God. He came to die on the Cross. He came to have His body pierced with a spear.
The Apostles actually argue about who can have the top spot in the kingdom. James and John called it first. Could they be any more clueless?
Could webe any more clueless? He’s going to the Cross and we read His Word and say, “How does this apply to me? What does this say about my life? How can I turn this into some way that I can improve my life?”
If your life could be improved, if you could change, why is Jesus hanging dead on the Cross? If the Scriptures are a guidebook to a better life, why is he stripped naked of all His clothes and beaten to a bloody pulp? Why the shame? Why the horrific death?
Repent. Turn. Stop being consumed with yourself. Take your eyes off you and what you think about your life and the Scriptures, and fix them upon Jesus. Let His Words have the final say about you.
He’s going to the Cross. On His right and left, when He comes into His glory, will not be James and John, but two robbers on crosses, too. He was indeed crucified for your trespasses; He was raised on the third day for your justification. And with each step, with each beating, with each mocking, He proclaims to you, “For you.”
“I’m seized for you. I’m mocked for you. I’m stripped for you. I’m beaten for you. I’m whipped for you. I’m crowned for you. I’m crucified for you. I die for you, and after three days, I will rise for you.”
Lent is all about Jesus going to the Cross to save you. Fix your eyes on Him. That’s the only way to have a happy Lent. In the name of Jesus. Amen.