For the Sake of the Nations

The Messiah. At this time, many Jews envisioned the Messiah as one allied with the chief priests and elders. This was a figure who was thought to be the uniter of Israel, the one who would restore Israel to its previous independence and glory. The Messiah was the one who was supposed to change everything for the nation of Israel. Our God revealed in Jesus Christ did not come for this glory but prophesied that he would die a death fit for political dissidents and the cruelest of criminals None, not even one, of these messiahs which were envisioned handed their followers a cross to be shouldered en-route to their own Golgothas. In no Gospel account does Jesus say, “It is my responsibility to die for you, while you applaud my heroism from afar.” Instead, Jesus the Messiah prophesies that not only will he be humiliated on the cross, but that we too should take up our cross. Jesus says, “I am to suffer, die, and be raised, and so are you. Will you follow me?”

We have a hard time with this. Was it necessary that Christ should suffer? And, if so, why was it necessary? The necessity of Jesus’ death is closely linked with its being foretold in scripture (Mk. 9:12). Notice in our passage the reference marker “it has been written” has been substituted with “it was necessary.” But this is not a sufficient answer in itself. Jesus was killed for healing the sick, for preaching the Kingdom of God, and for prophetically speaking out against the religious and political officials of his day. I do not think that God ordained that Jesus should be killed on the cross, but I do believe that God foresaw humanity’s rejection.

This distinction is important. If we say that God ordained that Jesus would die, then we are faced with dark implications. Sacrificial language has been used to tell women that they should submit to the will of the Father even as Jesus did. It has been used by Plantation masters to keep their slaves compliant and in line.  It was used in Apartheid South Africa to support their skin classifications, segregation, and maintenance of power. I have a hard time with sacrificial language myself because I have seen how it maintains abusive relationships, how it has been used to dismiss mental health concerns, and how it is a genuinely disturbing picture of God. I do not believe that God is the angry Father who requires retributive justice. I do not believe that God demanded the blood of Jesus Christ. Instead, I believe it is humanity that called for the death of God. It is humanity that saw the inclusive love of Jesus and said it was too radical, too inclusive, and unrealistic.

Jesus would have been rejected by humanity in any age. In his life alone, Jesus was rejected by Jews, Gentiles, the rich, and the powerful. Jesus would be rejected today, as he was yesterday, and as he will be tomorrow. Jesus is rejected because the Kingdom of God is inherently different than the world, we call normal. Jesus claims a special provision for the poor, for the non-violent peacemakers, for the widowed, and for the sick. These are not people that our world looks kindly upon. These are not people that the world wants to lift up and claim as the ideal archetypal life. And yet, these are the people Jesus came for. The people who had been othered, the people who had been overlooked, the people whose voices have been silenced. These are the people that Jesus was killed for.

Jesus was innocent of all crime, yet he was tortured and killed because the world could not imagine the Kingdom of God on earth. One of the ways we sashay around the question, “why did Jesus have to die?” is to trivialize the cross. Crucifixion was an instrument designed for its victims’ utter degradation and excruciating torture: capital punishment so vile that it appalled even the tough-minded Roman ruler and politician Cicero. In Against Verres he says, “To bind a Roman citizen is a crime; to flog him, an abomination. To slay him is virtually an act of murder. To crucify him is—what? No fitting word can possibly describe a deed so horrible.”[1] It is an indescribable act of brutality, violence, and aggression. Our God who we worship every week was killed in this manner.

The title of this sermon is “For the Sake of the Nations.” Jesus was killed and died for the sake of the nations. Though he undoubtedly had the power to protest his torture and to halt his killing, Jesus died for the sake of the nations. Recall Romans 5,

“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die.  But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.”[2]"

He willingly died a degrading and humiliating death so that God’s grace would be extended to all peoples. He died for us. He died so that we, non-Jews, could experience the love of the God revealed in Jesus. He died so that we could experience the same love that Jesus extended to people who were, as we noted last week, despised. He came so that those who were far away from God, those who stuck in the cycle of their sin and in the far-reaching clutches of structural sin would be reconciled to God. Importantly and vitally, Jesus invites us to join in this mission. He invites us to extend the love and grace of God to all peoples at all times in all places. And we are confronted with an equally challenging question, “Did Jesus die for them?”

Did Jesus die for the refugee? Did Jesus die for those on the other side of the political aisle? Did Jesus die for those who are wicked? Did Jesus really die for all peoples? In short, yes. God came so that all might have life and life to the fullest. God came so that those who were far off could be brought near. God came so that we might be forgiven of our sins, redeemed, and made a new creation in Christ. God came so that our relationship with ourselves, our neighbors, and God would be restored. Jesus died for us and testifies for us before God, but will we do the same for our neighbor. Jesus proclaimed good news to their nations, the rivals of Israel, the enemies of his people, but will we welcome in the refugees fleeing Afghanistan? Jesus proclaimed that the Kingdom of God was a hospital for the sick, but will we forget those who are shut-in or in lockdown at senior centers? Jesus came for us and our salvation, but he also came for the nations.

As Christians we often taken the stance of Peter and the disciples. Jesus, do you really need to do that? That’s not realistic. It’s not necessary to die for those people. We like to think that loving certain kinds of people is optional, but if loving was optional Jesus would not have died for us. If loving were optional Jesus would not have died for the nations and may not have died at all. The grace of God is not for a few, but for all. Even as Jesus saw us in our sin, in our disobedience, and as we worshipped idols, he called us beloved children of God. We do not have the option to be realistic as Christians because God was not realistic with us. We do not have the option to place limits on the grace we as a country, a county, as a church, and as an individual extend to our neighbor because God has never placed a limit on the grace given to us. We do not have the option to follow behind the taillights of God’s justice, we do not have the option to conserve the status quo because God came down to our level and chose me and you despite ourselves. We are given the difficult task of taking up the cross in our advocacy for one another. We are given the difficult task of being ambassadors of reconciliation in a world that lusts after war, conflict, and tribalism. We are given the difficult task to be God’s children in the world. Let’s pray.

[1] Cicero, Against Verres 2.66.170

[2] Romans 5:6-8.