Lent

April 5, 2020

Scripture Reading: Matthew 27:11-54

Then two bandits were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying, ‘You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.’ In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, ‘He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said, “I am God’s Son.” ’ The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way. –Matthew 27:38-44

The older I get, the more I understand that people are much the same rich or poor, black or white, male or female.  All fall somewhere on the continuums of good and evil, wise and foolish, righteous and unrighteous. Paul implied something similar when he said there is no Greek or Jew*. Of course, being human almost seems to require our defining and rating differences. Jesus was popular among many people drawing large crowds to hear what he had to say. Some came out of curiosity and left once their interest was satisfied. Some did not know what to think. Others who heard and believed in him experienced their lives changing forever. And some, like the religious leaders of the day, were threatened by him.

Mob mentality ensued. I am reading Fire in Beulah by Rilla Askew, a work of fiction that deals with the Tulsa Race Riot. It describes the almost party atmosphere of people attending the hanging of a white man by other white people that occurred in Tulsa the year before the riot. Parts of Tulsa caught up on the greed of the oil boom lived in an anything-goes-world. Mob mentality provides an outlet for pent-up emotions in a world where some flourish at the expense of others. Paradoxically, the people who are the angriest often have the most to lose. Their rage is most likely not directed at the current incident, but building over time had found an outlet for expression.

The people of the first century, no doubt wanted a savior, needed a savior. They were caught in the web of the Roman Empire and led by faith leaders who were more concerned about their power and status than about the people they served. I cannot imagine how it must have felt to see one more potential savior end up on a cross.

People are the same today. The world continues to be awash with greed and lust for power. We, however, know the end of the story. Although Jesus died on that cross, he arose from the tomb and lives today, guiding us to be the people of God as we work to bring the gift of God’s love to all.

Prayer: O, Lord, nourish our souls each day, enabling us to work for a just world where mob mentality is only a paragraph in a history book and all have a place at your table. Amen.

*Galatians 3:28-29

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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.