The Powers Gather
1 Corinthians 1: 22 - 25 (NIV)—
‘Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.’
Colossians 2:15 (NIV) —
‘And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.’
Throughout the Gospels we can see the hostile powers hovering and circling around Jesus. When he fatefully decides his time has come and moves towards Jerusalem - heaving with pilgrims in Passover week – the crescendo of enmity must erupt. The triumphal entry on the (ref. Zechariah’s kingly) donkey, the doctrinal spats and traps, the overturning of the bureau de change and, shockingly, a betrayal from one of his own, were sure to provoke the powers to pounce.
What happens is diabolical and dreadful. Crucifixion was definitively the worst conceivable death; deliberately so to make the Empire’s point ‘Rome triumphs again.’
But we must not sanitize the events with mere personalities. We know the powers at work behind thrones: Militarism/Violence (Pilate), Nationalism (Herod), Wealth & Status (Caiaphas), Religion (Pharisees) and Populism (the mob).
Two important questions must be asked. First, on Sunday morning, who really ‘triumphed’? The powers of death? The alliance of every evil that mankind could summon bore down on this one person on that Friday but, by Sunday, it stood blinking and perplexed, denying, futile, outwitted, even puny, facing the resurrected Lord Jesus.
Second, what could possibly reverse the seeming utter defeat of crucifixion to become a proud, glorious message to be blazed worldwide by a rampant church? To some, comment the New Testament writers, it might seem repugnant or crazy; but to us - we’re so proud of this message: the crucified Messiah (1 Cor 1:23). The writers realised that God’s ‘foolishness’ was actually a master stroke.
Jesus really was crowned, the powers dethroned, at the cross. Only resurrection could achieve this revolution.
If any of those five characters in yesterday's devotional had been in the garden, on the Emmaus Road, by the lakeside, among the 500 on the mountain, what could they have answered? What can anyone answer?
Prayer - My response is unrestrained worship of Jesus, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. You are more than worthy of my humble offering – but so gladly given.