Living in the Spirit
November 22, 2015

Scripture Reading: John 18:33-37

Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’—John 18:37

Biblical historian, John Dominic Crossan in his work The Challenge of Jesus* describes the siege of Israel the Romans accomplished when a Jewish uprising occurred at the death of Herod shortly before Jesus was born. The Romans quickly used overkill, literally to remind the Israelites who was in control. The town of Sepphoris, located a short distance from Nazareth, was destroyed and many of its inhabitants killed. Jesus grew up in the shadow of this devastation, which no doubt left a lasting impression on him and his parents.

We experienced the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing and its impact, still are probably. Add 9/11 to that and we have the makings of dis-ease among the people. Crossan strongly suggests that the young Jesus took all this in and understood the Roman idea of peace via violence, known as the Pax or Peace of Roman, was a false façade. The only way to peace was through love. He lived it up to and through the cross and displayed its truth through his resurrection.

We are seeing, maybe even experiencing, some of the dis-ease that results for senseless violence in our world today. It seems its purveyors, like the Romans, take some satisfaction from it. They most likely have suffered some loss, humiliation, shame themselves and are targeting others in an impossible attempt to rectify through violence whatever they have experienced. It will eventually work no better for them than it did for the Romans. It will not work for us either.

Prayer: Lord, in these difficult times teach us how to love our way toward peace. Guide our leaders as they must make the difficult choices regarding how to protect the populace while bringing the terror to an end. Amen.

*http://faithandreason.org/index.php/store/product/the-challenge-of-jesus

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights 
reserved.