Healing Rays of Righteousness

Just after Barabbas walked out of Pilate’s courtyard as a free man, the sickening thud of leather snapping against flesh rang out.  Jesus the accused, with hands tied and bent over a column, was having His back laid open, one sharp stroke at a time.

His whole body trembled with the blows digging deeper and deeper into muscle and nerve.  The echo of the religious voices inciting the crowd was still reverberating from the walls, “Crucify him, Crucify him!”  This punishment of scourging served as a prelude to the worse pain of crucifixion.

The Roman soldiers gathered around Jesus and vented their hatred of Jews on this “fool” pretending to be their king.  These men tore off Jesus’ bloodied garments, put a purple robe on him, pressed a crown of thorns down on His head, and knelt in jesting homage.  They had seen their friends killed by Jewish zealots and now took their pain and frustration out on Jesus vigorously, hitting, slapping, and spitting in His face.

Despite the warnings of His disciples.  Despite the soul-wrenching premonition in Gethsemane, Jesus would not turn away from the demonic violence that zeroed in to destroy Him.  He would not utter one word of compromise to the man who thought he had “authority to release” Him.  This was His life to give away as He chose, and no one could take it from Him. 

With the weight of the heavy, rough, wooden crossbeam on His shoulder, He stumbled out to the street and up the hill toward Golgotha.  With body torn and bleeding He strained every pain-filled muscle to take one more step. 

Weakened by pain and loss of blood, His knees buckled, and He fell to the ground defeated and dying.  A pitiful sight.  Dying?  Yes.  Defeated?  No – a thousand times “No.”  He would go all the way to Golgotha, all the way, to finish His mission, to pay the sacrificial price of redemption for all humanity.

(Luke 23:27-28) – “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.’” 

Why would Jesus say this?  I believe the reason He rejected their weeping was because Jesus did not want to be seen as a victim.  Truly, He was a pitiful sight.  But He was on an amazing love rescue mission and wanted no one shedding tears of pity and sympathy for him as a victim of violence.

It was His choice to die in our stead and He does not want anyone to look at Him hanging from a cross as a pitiful victim and weep tears of sympathy for Him.  The women, in their sobbing, failed to see that He was on His way to victory over death and Satan.  Thus, Jesus’ word to the women is a word of rebuke. 

He earlier told His disciples, “The reason my Father loves me is that 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.” (John 10:17-18).  He also said, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13).

(From PRAYERS, a book by Michael Quoist)

I manage very well, Lord, to pity your sufferings and the sufferings of the world.

But to weep for my sins, that’s another matter.

I’d rather bemoan those of others,  it’s easier …..

I’ve found plenty of guilt … in many others, Lord, many others.

All in all, in just about the whole world, except me.

For whom do you weep?  – Yourself?

Jesus told the women, “Weep for yourselves.”  Our tears of regret and repentance will show a willingness to acknowledge and bear responsibility for the evil being done.

(Joel 2:12-13a) – “Even now, declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning.  Rend your heart and not your garments.”

(James 4:8-10) – “Come near to God and he will come near to you.  Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.  Grieve, mourn, and wail.  Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”

For whom do you weep?  – Others?

(Philippians 3:18-19) – For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.  Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame.  Their mind is set on earthly things.”

(Jeremiah 9:1) – “Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears!  I would weep day and night for the slain of my people.”

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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – March 16, 2022

www.geigler13.worpress.com

Ray M. Geigley