(Today we read the Passion according to Mark. John Frey and I shared the reading, each of us reading alternate paragraphs, so as not to have one voice droning on. All the palms were given out, many people taking extras for shut-ins and people who could not be present... and that's how it should be.)
1
As soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with
the elders and scribes and the whole council. They bound Jesus, led
him away, and handed him over to Pilate. 2 Pilate asked him, "Are
you the King of the Jews?" He answered him, "You say so."
3 Then the chief priests accused him of many things. 4 Pilate asked
him again, "Have you no answer? See how many charges they bring
against you." 5 But Jesus made no further reply, so that Pilate
was amazed.
6 Now at the festival he used to release a prisoner for
them, anyone for whom they asked. 7 Now a man called Barabbas was in
prison with the rebels who had committed murder during the
insurrection. 8 So the crowd came and began to ask Pilate to do for
them according to his custom. 9 Then he answered them, "Do you
want me to release for you the King of the Jews?" 10 For he
realized that it was out of jealousy that the chief priests had
handed him over. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to
have him release Barabbas for them instead. 12 Pilate spoke to them
again, "Then what do you wish me to do with the man you call the
King of the Jews?" 13 They shouted back, "Crucify him!"
14 Pilate asked them, "Why, what evil has he done?" But
they shouted all the more, "Crucify him!" 15 So Pilate,
wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them; and after
flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.
16 Then the
soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the
governor's headquarters ); and they called together the whole cohort.
17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after twisting some
thorns into a crown, they put it on him. 18 And they began saluting
him, "Hail, King of the Jews!" 19 They struck his head with
a reed, spat upon him, and knelt down in homage to him. 20 After
mocking him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own
clothes on him.
Then they led him out to crucify him. 21 They
compelled a passer-by, who was coming in from the country, to carry
his cross; it was Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus.
22 Then they brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means
the place of a skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh;
but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him, and divided his
clothes among them, casting lots to decide what each should take. 25
It was nine o'clock in the morning when they crucified him. 26 The
inscription of the charge against him read, "The King of the
Jews." 27 And with him they crucified two bandits, one on his
right and one on his left. 28 29 Those who passed by derided him,
shaking their heads and saying, "Aha! You who would destroy the
temple and build it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down
from the cross!" 31 In the same way the chief priests, along
with the scribes, were also mocking him among themselves and saying,
"He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Messiah,
the King of Israel, come down from the cross now, so that we may see
and believe." Those who were crucified with him also taunted
him.
33 When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until
three in the afternoon. 34 At three o'clock Jesus cried out with a
loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means,
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" 35 When some of
the bystanders heard it, they said, "Listen, he is calling for
Elijah." 36 And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put
it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, "Wait, let
us see whether Elijah will come to take him down." 37 Then Jesus
gave a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the
temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 Now when the
centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his
last, he said, "Truly this man was God's Son!"
40 There
were also women looking on from a distance; among them were Mary
Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and
Salome. 41 These used to follow him and provided for him when he was
in Galilee; and there were many other women who had come up with him
to Jerusalem.
42 When evening had come, and since it was the day of
Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, 43 Joseph of
Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself
waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and
asked for the body of Jesus. 44 Then Pilate wondered if he were
already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he
had been dead for some time. 45 When he learned from the centurion
that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph. 46 Then Joseph
bought a linen cloth, and taking down the body, wrapped it in the
linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the
rock. He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. 47 Mary
Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid.
- Some of the best times we have are the times we tell stories. Whether it is around a campfire, over a family meal in the dining room, or even at a tavern with some friends. Even at the luncheon after a funeral, those story times are meaningful to everyone involved.
- Such stories can entertain and amuse and educate. They can bring everyone involved together by sharing the experience, even if only a little bit. Shared stories make community. When told well, stories can make you feel like you were there. You become part of the experience and somehow, you share the history. That's one of the reasons I'm happy to listen to people's stories.
- Stories can also tell us who we are. They tell us where we've come from, what we've been through, what we've learned, and what it cost us. In that way, stories can help us move into the future with some past history and, probably more importantly, integrity.
- This is why we hear the same stories year after year in our worship services. This is why preaching is best based on the Scripture's stories, to explain, to illuminate, and even to apply the story the Scriptures tell.
- This is why I'm not going to say much as a sermon today. I want the Scriptures to speak for themselves.
- The story we heard is one we've heard many times before. It may be one of those stories we might not like because the subject is rather gruesome and frightening. Yet, it is the story that defines who we are as disciples of Christ because it defines Jesus Christ for us.
- I know I need to hear this particular story. Without it, I might eventually forget all that Jesus went through for me and what that means to me. I might even mistake something else for the story of salvation and redemption.
- There's one more thing about stories. History in books may seem dry and dead; History told as stories is as alive as the person telling it.
- The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a living story. It gives life and it takes on life in each of us. The Gospel story changes us.
- Whatever else we might say, the story we heard here today is alive. May it be our living story as well.
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